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Home , Abbey Lincoln, Barnaby Records, Dinah Jams, Jimmy Rushing, Joe Comfort, Karl Suessdorf

New World Records NEW WORLD RECORDS 701 Seventh Avenue, New York, New York 10036; (212) 302-0460; (212) 944-1922 fax email: [email protected] www.newworldrecords.org

When Malindy Sings Vocalists: 1938 -1961 New World NW 295

he question of who is and who isn't a jazz Some would just as soon do away with the T singer is perplexing. It's easy enough to note term “jazz singer” completely, claiming that it is those characteristics that separate the jazz singer misleading and confusing. And there are singers from, say, the singer of lieder—the subtler who, although they at least partly follow a jazz changes in inflection, the greater rhythmic loose- approach in tone quality, phrasing, and rhythm, ness, the more flexible tonal quality—but making shun the use of the word to describe themselves the distinction between “jazz” and “popular” out of fear it will limit their audiences. singing is trickier. The easiest way to make the distinction The problem is part of the identity crisis that between popular and jazz singers is to note that jazz has been having for years. On the one hand, although virtually all American popular singers jazz is a “popular” music—it was nurtured in from Crosby (1904-1977) on have been in- dance halls, it is performed in nightclubs, its fluenced by jazz, some (Crosby, , repertoire has always been heavily stocked with ) have used jazz elements in creating the popular songs of the past and the present. what is essentially a less inventive, more accessi- On the other hand, it is a “serious” music, far ble style, while others (like the artists in this col- more so than most popular music, much of lection) are more adventurous, their style closer which is ephemeral by nature.The jazz musician to the improvisational approach of a jazz instru- is committed to improvisation as a means of mentalist. Some of the jazz-oriented singers have expression, and the musical context of that achieved popular success—often at the expense improvisation tends to be harmonically sophisti- of the more creative elements of their music— cated and often extremely complex—which has but at heart they remain more interested in mak- nothing at all to do with the concept of the care- ing compelling and lasting music than in strain- fully crafted, mass-appeal-oriented popular song. ing to capture the public's fancy. Nowhere is jazz's identity crisis more apparent This collection does not profess to offer the than among vocalists, where the distinction definitive history of jazz singing. For a variety of between the music’s serious and popular sides reasons, including the unavailability of certain often blurs completely. was a important material, it can't. It does offer an jazz singer, but is his recording of “Hello, Dolly” overview, from the late thirties to the early six- jazz? Young Armstrong's vocal technique had a ties, of some of the outstanding recorded jazz profound influence on the style of young Bing vocalists, some universally known, some unde- Crosby; did this make Crosby a jazz singer? Sarah servedly obscure. Vaughan's approach is exploratory, daring, and * * * complex—she rarely sings a melody straight— The voice was, of course, the first musical and so is 's. But Carter has practiced instrument. Vocal music is a significant compo- her art in relative obscurity, like many jazz musi- nent of virtually all cultures, and in Africa, where cians, while Vaughan has enjoyed enormous pop- jazz had its genesis, vocal inflection is a key ele- ular success. Does this make less a ment of many languages.The peoples brought as jazz singer than Betty Carter? slaves to America from Africa did not bring musi-

1 cal instruments; the music they made for them- unpleasant or difficult—gradually grew in populari- selves was at first entirely vocal (although highly ty, he was called on more and more to record the rhythmic). African vocal styles sifted through popular songs of his day, many of which were American culture, and the agonies of the slave banal.The approach he developed to such material experience gradually took stark, compelling shape is captured by Marshall Stearns in The Story of as field hollers, work songs, and spirituals. It was Jazz in this description of the 1931 Armstrong from these forms that the evolved, and it was record of “All of Me”: from the blues that jazz emerged. In jazz's formative period, when it was focused in In the middle of his vocal, his accent goes insanely (although not limited to) the culturally diverse British....On the surface, Louis is saying:“This is as far milieu of early-twentieth-century New Orleans, as I can get with these corny lyrics without clown- instruments, specifically those of the marching ing, out of sheer embarrassment.” At the same time, band, assumed primary importance. But the vocal by changes in the melody and by unusual accents in the rhythm, he makes the listener suddenly realize aspect of Afro-American music was never absent; in that he,Armstrong, is in full, double-edged control of fact, it made itself known in the musicians' the musical situation, embroidering beautifully on approach to their instruments.As jazz historian Dan the stereotyped mask, and enjoying the whole affair Morgenstern has noted in his book Jazz People, hugely. In a word: he is the master—not just of the “one of the key characteristics of early instrumental music but also of a complex and ironic attitude, a jazz was the players' attempts to vocalize their rare, honest way of looking at life. sounds” —to imitate the sound of the human voice, to duplicate the plaintive cry that is unique to the This approach had its disciples, of whom the African and Afro-American vocal tradition. most outstanding was the pianist, singer, and song- This vocal approach to instrumental improvisa- writer Thomas “Fats” Waller (1904-1943). Though tion was matched from the start by an instrumental no great vocal stylist,Waller achieved considerable approach to singing.Voices and instruments in jazz fame through his interpretations of pop songs, have long had a symbiotic relationship, and it is no which he treated with outrageous humor and coincidence that Louis Armstrong (1900-1971), the sometimes outright condescension. But for the first truly inventive and influential jazz in- most part, Armstrong's “complex and ironic atti- strumentalist, was also the first truly inventive and tude” had a more subtle effect on the course of influential jazz vocalist. American popular singing. It led to a more relaxed, Armstrong revolutionized jazz instrumental casual concept, a way of phrasing that marked a technique by expanding the range of the radical departure from the stiff, often melodramatic and imbuing his playing with a loose, spirited style that had been the norm in white popular rhythmic sense that came to be known as swing. music. While was the first important And he revolutionized jazz vocal technique by popular singer to adopt an Armstrong-derived style, perfecting a style of wordless vocalizing known as the approach soon became widespread.Armstrong scat, in which the voice functions as an improvis- can truly be said not just to have defined jazz ing instrument, and by treating popular songs singing but to have permanently altered the course with a casual irreverence that gave them new of all American popular singing. meaning as music. At the same time Armstrong's style was taking It has been said that Armstrong invented scat hold, another type of singing was in full bloom out singing when, while recording the song “Heebie of earshot of white America. The rudimentary Jeebies,” he dropped his sheet music and, not blues music—usually performed by singers accom- knowing the words, started singing nonsense syl- panying themselves on —that took root in lables. This story is almost certainly apocryphal, rural black America in the wake of emancipation but whether or not Armstrong invented scat, he had begun, around the turn of the century, the was the singer most responsible for showing that transition into the more refined “classic” blues it could be more than just a gimmick. Although style first popularized by Gertrude “Ma” Rainey there have been singers who have exploited scat (1886-1939) and developed to its peak by Bessie for its novelty value alone, with a master like Smith (1894?-1937). Armstrong or it is the purest form did not exist separately from of jazz singing. Armstrong—in fact, he played on a number of her As Armstrong—whose gruff voice and unortho- recordings—but her style evolved along different dox phrasing at first struck many listeners as lines. The blues was a crucial element of

2 Armstrong's music, but it was the essence of band when she joined Artie Shaw in 1938. The Smith's. The power and directness of her vocal other great jazz singer to establish herself during style were communicated even in the nonblues this period was Ella Fitzgerald (born 1918), who numbers she recorded, especially toward the end got her professional start with Chick Webb's band. of her career. (Like Armstrong and Waller, she had Her approach was radically different from Billie's. to deal with trite material, but unlike them, she Ella, too, was concerned with phrasing like a horn, transcended the material by treating it with total, but in her case the instrumental approach became searing earnestness.) And her style had an effect on considerably more important than the lyrics. succeeding generations of jazz singers—notably A song's words are not irrelevant to Ella those who specialized in the blues, like Joe Turner Fitzgerald, but they are not very significant. and —almost as profound as Although she achieved success well beyond the Armstrong's. jazz audience and became popularly known as the (1915-1959), considered by many “first lady of song,” in her approach the sound and to be the greatest jazz singer of all time, always the improvisational possibilities of a song's melody acknowledged that she took her inspiration from and harmony are the prime concern. both Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith, and her Sarah Vaughan (born 1924), whose development style can be said to be a synthesis of the best of closely paralleled that of the instrumental pioneers the two. She regarded her voice as an improvis- of what came to be known as or modern ing musical instrument. “I don't think I'm jazz (New World Records NW 271, Bebop), is in the singing,” she was quoted as saying,“I feel like I'm Fitzgerald mold in that her concern is only inciden- playing a horn.” tally with lyrics. She has, in fact, expanded the idea The sordid details of Billie Holiday's life—the of voice-as-horn by fully exploiting a voice of struggles, the stormy marriages, the drug addiction, uncommon clarity and range. Conventional the run-ins with the law, the untimely death—have European standards are largely inapplicable to jazz been told, sentimentalized, and sensationalized too singing; certainly Billie Holiday cannot be said to often to bear detailed repeating here.To many peo- have possessed a “good” voice by such standards, ple her rocky life and her music are inseparable, but her stature as a jazz vocalist is unaffected. Sarah and to the degree that jazz is a highly personal art Vaughan, however, happens to be blessed with a that is true; but it's a good idea not to let the one voice that is outstanding by any standards, and over overshadow the other. As Albert Murray observes the years she has perfected an improvisation tech- in his book Stomping the Blues: nique that can accurately be called virtuosic, just as 's and 's are. Sensational publicity about her personal problems Taking their cue from Vaughan, other singers have was such that for many people her singing came to concentrated on the voice's hornlike jazz potential represent the pathetic sound of an attractive but to the virtual exclusion of lyrics—Betty Carter wretched woman crying in self-pity. And perhaps (born 1930) is a particularly gifted singer of this some of the torch-type songs in her repertoire seem sort. At the same time, there remain those singers to suggest the same thing. But the great and lasting who, although their rhythmic and harmonic distinction of Billie Holiday is not based on her high- ly publicized addiction to narcotics. . . but on her (against the accompanying chord structure) ideas deliberate use of her voice as an Armstrong-derived and improvisatory approach mark them as jazz instrumental extension. artists, have retained the kind of belief in communi- cating verbally as well as musically that Holiday Murray continues that for all her concern with adhered to. Among the contemporaries of Billie phrasing like a horn, Holiday “almost always deliv- Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald, some of the noteworthy ered her lyrics not only with verbal precision but examples are (born 1918), Maxine with conviction.” She was yet another example— Sullivan (born 1911), and Mildred Bailey (1907- perhaps the classic example—of the superior 1951). In the succeeding generation, Carmen vocalist confronted with inferior material, but her McRae (born 1924), (born 1930), seriousness and her sensitivity to even the most and (l924-1963)—who in her treacly lyrics often brought out depths of meaning heavy emphasis on the blues was a throwback to unthought of by the lyricists themselves. Bessie Smith—are examples. Billie Holiday came to prominence during the Probably the first white jazz singer to exert a sig- big-band era—she sang with and nificant influence was Anita O'Day (born 1919), became the first black vocalist to tour with a white who first attracted attention with Gene Krupa in 3 1941. “Her husky, febrile voice had a jazz sound,” Dan Morgenstern has written, “and her rhythmic sense was superior to many an instrumentalist's.” In her style the sound of the music took precedence over the substance of the lyrics, but not entirely; in her work and in that of her disciples, notably Chris Connor (born 1927), there is an attention to verbal as well as musical nuance that—coupled with dar- ing in tone and phrasing—can often imbue trite lyrics with unexpected meaning. During the bebop era jazz singing took a couple of tangential paths—the development of scat as an end in itself, with entertainment more than impro- visation in mind, and the creation of “vocalese,” lyrics written for jazz musicians' recorded solos (the stock-in-trade of Eddie Jefferson, King Pleasure, and most notably the vocal group Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross)—that merit a men- tion, but chiefly as curiosities rather than serious developments. And since the bebop era there has been relatively little new in jazz singing. Some of the more promis- ing jazz vocalists to come along in the forties and fifties got diverted into overtly commercial, nonjazz undertakings. Then there were those who were never strictly jazz singers, although jazz played an important part in their styles. These include (born 1914), who at one point led a featuring some of the key figures in the bebop movement during their formative years; Nat “King” Cole (1917-1965), who had established him- self as a superior jazz pianist before embarking on his highly successful career as a popular vocalist; and (born 1932), who combines blues and gospel styles with a distinct jazz tinge. Which brings us back to the question of what dis- tinguishes a jazz singer from a popular singer. Since the advent of and its influence on rock 'n' roll, the lines have blurred anew. The music scene of the seventies has become such a polyglot that it may well be true, as Morgenstern suggests, that “jazz singing as a distinct form,” now being carried on by the “surviving veteran perform- ers,”is destined to pass into history when they do.

Peter Keepnews has written about jazz for the New York Post, the Village Voice, Down Beat and Jazz magazines, and other publications. He is currently manager of jazz-and-pro- gressive publicity for CBS Records.

4 T HE RECORDINGS Side One The simple eloquence of the blues Murray's assertion that “the con- Band 1 as demonstrated by a master. Jimmy crete information contained in a I Can't Get Started Rushing did some of his best work blues lyric as performed is likely to (Vernon Duke and ) with the Basie band, which here be largely incidental. The essential Billie Holiday and Her Orchestra: Billie complements his two choruses with message is usually conveyed by the Holiday, vocal; , trumpet; some simple but expertly executed music.” Turner's interaction with , ; Margaret call-and-response passages. 's trumpet and the “Queenie” Johnson, ; Freddie Rushing, a product of the super- piano of his Kansas City crony, Pete Green, guitar;, bass; Jo Jones, charged milieu and Johnson, points up another of drums. Recorded September 15, 1938, in New York. Originally issued on an effortlessly powerful singer, Murray's observations, that Turner Vocalion/Okeh 4457 (mx # 23468-1). could, in Dan Morgenstern's words, “delivers his lyrics like a tenor sax “make the most lead-footed band player in a Kansas City combo.” The greatest example of the sym- swing.” Here he achieves empathy “Careless Love” is not, strictly speak- biotic relationship between voice with Lester Young, who is heard ing, a blues, but it is treated in blues and instrument in the annals of jazz also on the preceding track. Young style by Turner, if less so by his was the extraordinary combination plays mournful obbligatos to accompanist, stride pianist Willie of Billie Holiday and Lester Young Rushing's vocal, offering a different “The Lion”Smith. (1909-1959). Their approaches to perspective on the inextricable rela- their respective instruments were tionship between instrument and PINEY BROWN BLUES remarkably similar and totally com- voice in jazz. Well, I've been to Kansas City, patible in tone, phrasing, harmony, I left my baby standing in the back door Girls and everything is really all right, and rhythm. Yes, I've been to Kansas City, On this recording, Holiday and a crying, Yes, I left my baby standing in the back Girls and everything is really all right, small group made up of members of door crying, The boys jump and swing in the broad the Count Basie band (with Margaret She said,“Baby you've got a home just as daylight. Johnson substituting for Basie on long as I've got mine.” piano) perform one of the more Yes, I dreamed last night durable popular songs of their day. When I leave you baby, count the days I was standin' on 18th and Vine, Ira Gershwin's lyrics are typically I'm gone, Yes, I dreamed last night I was standin' on 18th and Vine, glib and clever, but Billie—as usual— When I leave you baby, count the days I'm gone, I shook hands with Piney Brown succeeds in giving them emotional And I could hardly keep from cryin'. meaning as well, in spite of some Well, there ain't no love, ain't no getting along. uncertainty (she sings “I've got a Now come to me baby, house and a showplace” instead of © 1940 & 1943 by Bregman,Vocco & Conn, I want to tell you I'm in love with you, “I've got a house, a showplace”).The Inc. Copyright Renewed 1967. All Rights Please come to me baby, chief feature of this performance, Reserved. Used by Permission. I want to tell you I'm in love with you, though, is the way her reading of the Because you understand everything I tune and Young's—in his introducto- Bands 3 and 4 do. ry passage and solo chorus—echo Piney Brown Blues (Joe Turner and Pete Johnson) I want to watch you baby and complement one another. Joe Turner and His Fly Cats: Joe Turner, When the tears roll down your cheeks, The lyrics to this song are avail- vocal; Hot Lips Page, trumpet; Pete I want to watch you baby able from the publisher. Johnson, piano; John Collins, guitar; Abe When the tears roll down your cheeks, Bolar, bass;A. G. Godley, drums. Recorded I want to hold your hand Band 2 November 11, 1940, in New York. Tell you that your eyes can't be beat. I Left My Baby Originally issued on Decca 18121 (mx ©Copyright 1944, 1963 by MCA Music, a division of (Andy Gibson, Count Basie and James Rushing) # 68333-A). MCA Inc., New York, N.Y. 10022. Used by Jimmy Rushing, vocal; Count Basie Permission.All Rights Reserved. and His Orchestra: Buck Clayton, Ed Careless Love Lewis, , and Shad (Anon.) CARELESS LOVE Joe Turner, vocal; Willie “The Lion” Collins, ; Dickie Wells, Smith, piano. Recorded November 26, Bennie Morton, and Dan Minor, Love, oh love, oh careless love. (repeat) 1940, in New York. Originally issued You have caused me to weep, ; Earle Warren, alto saxo- on Decca 7827 (mx # 68395-B). phone; Jack Washington, alto and You have caused me to moan. Careless love, you have wrecked my baritone saxophones; Another Kansas City blues happy home. and Lester Young, tenor saxophones; shouter, Joe Turner, in two very dif- Count Basie, piano; , ferent contexts.“Piney Brown Blues” You worried my mother till she died. guitar; Walter Page, bass; Jo Jones, is a classic traditional blues. Its four You caused my father to lose his mind. drums. Recorded November 6, 1939, stanzas have little or no relationship (repeat) in New York. Originally issued on to one another, supporting Albert Columbia 35231 (mx # 26277-A). Now, don't ever drive a stranger from 5 your door. (repeat) for stream-of-consciousness improvi- own for about seven years when Don't ever drive a stranger from your sations that were verbal and musical she made this recording. Although door. at the same time. Note, for example, she was a product of the swing era, Well, he may he your brother, on “It's the Tune That Counts”—a her performance indicates that at Your best friend you will ever know. lyric that for all its banality is unusu- this stage of her career she was well Love, oh love, oh careless love. (repeat) ally appropriate as a vehicle for aware of the new ground the You robbed me out of my silver, Watson—how he picks up on the beboppers were breaking. And all of my gold. “hoy-hoy” refrain and weaves it into “Robbins Nest,” a well-known ins- I'll be darned if I'll let you rob me out of a verbal tapestry of “Savoy,”“oh boy,” tumental vehicle, is an excellent my soul. “oh hoy,” and, toward the very end, demonstration of the instrumental an almost perfunctory “ship ahoy.” qualities of Ella's voice. The tune's Love, oh love, oh careless love. (repeat) No other singer in jazz has had this words (the author of which has Now darn you, I'm going to shoot you, kind of fun with lyrics; certainly wisely remained uncredited) seem Shoot you four or five times, none has established such a totally tacked on and are virtually without And stand o'er you until you're prepared to die. personal kind of . Also meaning: “Give me something gen- noteworthy is the literally instru- tle, / Make it sentimental, / Whatever Bands 5 and 6 mental quality of his scatting on you could suggest, / I'll take Robbins Ja-Da both tracks—the way he imitates Nest,” etc. Fitzgerald gets them out the trumpet on “Ja-Da” and the saxo- of the way with as little fuss as pos- (Bob Carleton) Leo Watson and His Orchestra: Leo phone on “It's the Tune That sible, then launches into an ex- Watson, vocal; Johnny McGee and Ralph Counts.” quisite scat chorus that begins with Muzillo, trumpets; Paul Ricci, clarinet an allusion to “Poinciana”and segues and tenor saxophone; Gene de Paul, Note: “Ja-Da” is sung almost entirely a few bars later into a highly synco- piano; Frank Victor, guitar; O'Neal to scat syllables. pated reference to “Humoresque,” Spencer, drums. Recorded August 22 and returns to the lyrics for a daring 1939, in New York. Originally issued IT S THE TUNE THAT COUNTS modulation to end the piece. The on Decca 2959 (mx # 66169-A). performance illustrates both Makes no difference what you sing It's the Tune That Counts Fitzgerald's prowess as an improvis- A bit of , a bit of swing er and her essential unconcern for (Jan Savitt and Don Raye) Make it sweet or make it bounce words. Personnel and recording data same as Ahoy, it's the tune that counts. above (mx # 66170-A). Sing anything that you enjoy The lyrics to this song are available Leo Watson (1898-1950) has not Ring-a-tingy, hoy, hoy, hoy from the publisher. yet been mentioned in the notes Make it sweet or make it bounce because he stands outside the histo- Hoy, hoy, it's the tune that counts. Band 8 ry of jazz singing; he is unique. Blowtop Blues Obscure and under-recorded during Some folks say this kind of singing is ( and Jane Feather) his lifetime, he left behind just sappy Dinah Washington, vocal; Lionel enough recorded evidence to sug- They might be right in a way Hampton and His Septet:Wendell Culley, But any kind of music makes me happy trumpet; Herbie Fields, ; gest that his approach to the impro- It's okay, ahoy, ahoy. Arnett Cobb, tenor saxophone; Lionel visatory capacities of the voice was Hampton, vibraharp; John Mehegan, unlike anybody else's. Don't forget the lyrics when you sing piano; Billy Mackell, guitar; Charles The most obvious thing about Raggy-taggy or anything Harris, bass; George Jones, drums. Watson's singing is its humor. On Make it sweet or make it bounce Recorded May 21,1945, in New York. first listening, his treatment of two Hoy, hoy, it's the tune that counts. Originally issued on Decca 23792 (mx unusually silly pieces of popular # 72873). music seems marked chiefly by (scat) eccentricity and goofy good spirits. Dinah Washington, primarily a © Copyright 1939 by MCA Music, a division of blues singer, brought to all her mater- And certainly that's a key to his MCA Inc., New York, N.Y. 10022. Used by style; like Armstrong or Waller, his Permission.All Rights Reserved. ial a deep feeling for the blues and approach to such material is to dev- what Leonard Feather (who wrote astate it musically. But beyond the Band 7 this song) has called “a terse, sardon- humor is a formidable talent. He was Robbins Nest ic quality”that profoundly influenced one of the most inventive of all scat (Sir Charles Thompson and Illinois Jacquet) a number of younger female singers, Ella Fitzgerald, vocal; , piano; singers, both because of the unusual such as Esther Phillips (born 1935) Hy White, guitar; John Simmons, bass; J. chances he took with melody— and Nancy Wilson (born 1937). C. Heard, drums. Recorded December Unfortunately, the bulk of her career leaping from octave to octave in “Ja- 23, 1947, in New York. Originally Da,” for example—and because of issued on Decca 24538 (mx # 74393). was devoted to highly commercial his distinctive approach to lyrics, work that allowed only a glimmer of using them as a jumping-off point Ella Fitzgerald had been on her her abilities to shine through. 6 This performance by the twenty- Side Two Band2, 3, and 4 one-year-old Washington is infused Band 1 Moonlight in Vermont with as much meaning as she can Key Largo ( and John Blackburn) Betty Carter, vocal; , piano; muster in the face of these unusual (, Karl Suessdorf, and Leah Worth) lyrics. Nonetheless,Washington tran- Sarah Vaughan, vocal; , gui- Wendell Marshall, bass; Jo Jones, drums. scends the words and turns in an tar; , bass. Recorded early Recorded May 13 or 16, 1955, in New York. Originally issued on Epic LN- emotionally valid, if not convincing, , in Los Angeles. Originally issued 3202 (mx # CO-53426). performance. on Roulette (S)R-52118. Leonard Feather is best known as a jazz critic and author—among his A good example of early Sarah Vaughan can be heard on New World ( and ) books is the monumental Personnel and recording data same as Records NW 271, Bebop. In “Key —but he is above (mx # CO-53421). also an accomplished pianist and Largo,”which might be called middle- songwriter. His compositions have period Vaughan, she meets the Can't We Be Friends? unusual challenge of singing with been recorded by , (Kay Swift and Paul James) Louis Armstrong, and numerous oth- only guitar and bass accompaniment. Personnel and recording data same as ers; including, of course, Dinah In a performance of understated Band 2, except add , (mx # CO-53429). Washington, for whom he wrote simplicity,Vaughan sings the haunt- this and other twelve-bar blues. ing melody twice, with the guitar dropping out for most of the sec- Betty Carter is perhaps the purest jazz singer alive. In terms of tech- I've got bad news, baby, ond chorus. By Vaughan's own nique and range she is similar to And you're the first to know. standards, she gives a relatively Yes, I've got bad news, baby, straight reading of the melody, Vaughan, but whereas Vaughan has And you're the first to know, although she works myriad subtle devoted a substantial portion of her I discovered this morning variations on the rhythm; by the career to the performance of non- That my top is about to go. conventional standards of popular jazz material, Carter has stayed true singing, her performance is har- to a highly sophisticated impro- I've been rocking on my feet, monically adventurous. visatory style. And talking all out of my head, Vaughan got her start in the big Betty Carter got her start with Yes, I've been rocking on my feet, and was once And talking all out of my head, bands of and Billy known professionally as Betty Be- Yes, and when I get through talking Eckstine but has been on her own Can't remember a thing I've said. since the age of twenty-one. She Bop. These recordings come from broke the same kind of new musical the first she made under her Used to be a sharpie, ground as instrumentalists like own name and offer some of her Always dressed in the latest styles, Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker most accessible recorded work. Now I'm walking down Broadway (who were also in the Hines and Even at this early stage of her Wearing nothing but a smile. Eckstine bands)—particularly in har- career, however, it is clear that I see all kinds of little men mony, in which she set the example words are even less important to Although they're never there. her than to Vaughan or Fitzgerald. I tried to push the A train for all subsequent jazz singers. Lorenz Hart's lyrics to “Thou Swell” And poured whiskey in my hair. I'm a girl you can't excuse, Key Largo, alone on Key Largo, are clever, but Carter glosses over I've got those blowtop blues. How empty it seems, with only my them and, following a Ray Bryant dreams piano solo, gets to the heart of her Last night I was five feet tall Strange cargo may come to Key Largo performance, a partly scatted Today I'm eight feet ten But where is the face my heart won't improvised solo. In later years lyrics And everytime I fall downstairs erase? would become even less important I float right up again. to her as she developed the instru- The moon tide rolling in from the sea When someone turned the lights on me mental capacities of her voice, It like to drove me blind. Is lonely and it always will be already impressive here. I woke up in Bellevue Till you're with me. But I left my mind behind. Of the three selections, the I'm a gal who blew a fuse And I know I'll stay in Key Largo straightest is her interpretation of I've got those blowtop blues Just watching the shore “Can't We Be Friends?” The tune is I've got those blowtop blues. To find you once more. one of the best known by the remarkable Kay Swift, one of the Copyright © 1973, Model Music Co., ASCAP. Used (repeat song) first and best female American pop- by Permission. All Rights Reserved. ©copyright 1949 Granson Music Co. All rights ular songwriters (another Swift hit reserved. Used by Permission. is “Fine and Dandy”), and who has also been a concert pianist. “Can't We Be Friends?” is a fundamentally light-hearted piece of music, and 7 Carter respects the intentions of “Can't we be friends?” Swift and lyricist Paul James in a Look at me, I'm as helpless as a kitten up sprightly performance marked by Why should I care that he gave me the a tree, effective upper-register work. air? I feel I'm clinging to a cloud. Why should I cry, he will sigh, I can't understand, “Moonlight in Vermont,” however, And wonder why. I get misty holding your hand. becomes much more sombre in Carter's hands than either the lyrics I should have seen the signal to stop. Walk my way, a thousand begin or music suggests. Her dark, moody Plop, plop, plop, this is how my story to play. interpretation is tremendously effec- ends. Or is it just the sound of your love? tive, although it's unclear just how He's gonna turn me down and say, The music I hear, much it has to do with either moon- “Can't we be friends?” I get misty the moment you're near. light or Vermont. © Copyright 1929 Warner Bros., Inc. Copyright You can say that you're leading me on, renewed. All rights reserved. Used by permission. It's just what I want you to do. MOONLIGHT IN VERMONT Don't you notice how hopelessly I'm The lyrics to this song are available from Bands 5 and 6 lost, the publisher. Misty That's why I'm following you. ( and ) Chris Connor, vocal; Bill Rubenstein, On my own could I wander through this THOU SWELL piano; , guitar; Eddie de wonderland alone, Haas, bass; Lex Humphries, drums. Never knowing my left foot from my Thou swell! Thou witty! Recorded September 13, 1959, in New right, Thou sweet! Thou grand! York. Originally issued on Atlantic SD- My hat from my glove. Wouldst kiss me, pretty? 8040. I'm too misty and too much in love. Wouldst hold my hand? Both thine eyes are cute, too; what they (repeat) do to me. Love Hear me holler I see a sweet lolla- (Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane) Chris Connor, vocal; Danny Stiles and © 1954 & 1955 by Vernon Music Corporation by paloosa in thee. Burt Collins, trumpets; Willie Dennis, with Octave Music Publishing Corp. ; Phil Woods, alto saxophone; All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission. I'd feel so rich in , piano; , A hut for two; LOVE bass; Ed Shaughnessy, drums. Recorded Two rooms, a kitchen November 16, 1960. Originally issued I'm sure would do; Love can be almost madness. on Atlantic SD-8046. Give me just a plot of, not a lot of, land, Love can be insane. and Love can be a life of sadness and pain. thou swell! Thou witty! Thou grand! A somewhat underrated singer, Love can a summer shower. Chris Connor is almost certainly the Love can be a sigh. (scat) best vocalist deriving from Anita Love can be two hearts that flower and O'Day; some would argue that she is flower. (repeat second verse) better than O'Day. It can't be disput- ed that the performances here—one It can be fine and free. © Copyright 1927 Warner Bros., Inc. Copyright But it's true, renewed.All rights reserved. Used by permission. recorded live at New York's Village It doesn't always happen to you. Vanguard with a quartet, the other CAN T WE BE FRIENDS? in the studio with a medium-big Oh, love can be a dying ember. band—showcase a distinctive and Oh, it can be a flame that hits in I thought I'd found the man of my inventive vocal style. dreams, September, Now it seems this is how the story ends. Pianist Ran Blake has praised Maybe then in December He's gonna turn me down and say, Connor for her “tone... sense of You may not even remember it came. “Can't we be friends?” dynamics... rhythmical concept ... her intensity, her use of silence, and Love can be a joy forever, I thought for once I couldn't go wrong, her ability to surprise.” A perfuncto- Or an empty name. Love is almost never, ever the same. Not for long I can see the way depends. ry listen to “Misty” might suggest It can be ecstasy, He's gonna turn me down and say, that she loses the thread of the tune “Can't we be friends?” But that kind in a couple of spots, but a closer lis- Is not so very easy to find. ten shows that she is taking daring Never again, with laughter, with men, They play their game without shame, chances with the rhythm. On both Oh, love can be a forceful failure. And who's to blame? tracks her husky voice plays with Love can bring you pain. phrasing and melody with the kind Love that's in the morning may be wild, I thought I'd found a man I could trust. of imagination associated with the But then without any warning it's tame. What happened, this is how the story best jazz singers. ends; Love can be a joy forever, Or an empty name. He's gonna turn me down and say, MISTY Love is almost never, ever the same. 8 When Malindy sings. distinctive approach remained Copyright © 1943 Loew's Inc. Renewed 1971 unchanged, and the weariness and Leo Feist Inc. Copyright © 1945, renewed 1973 Easy 'nough fu' folks to hollah, pain reflected in her voice give her Leo Feist, Inc.All rights administered by Leo Lookin' at de lines an' dots, Feist, Inc.All rights reserved. Printed with per- performance here (and in the other When dey ain't no one kin sence it, mission. selections recorded at this session) a An' de chune comes in, in spots; poignancy that her earlier work Band 7 But fu' real melojous music, Dat jes' strikes yo' hea't and clings, lacked. In some ways this can be said When Malindy Sings Jes' you stan' an' listen wif me to be the “worst” vocal performance (Oscar Brown, Jr., and ) Abbey Lincoln, vocal; , When Malindy sings. in this anthology—it can't be denied trumpet; , trombone; Eric that Holiday hits a number of wrong Dolphy, alto saxophone, bass clarinet, Oh, hit's sweetah dan de music notes. But for sheer emotional and flute; and Coleman Of an edicated band; impact, it may well be the best. Hawkins, tenor saxophones; Mal An' hit's dearah dan de battle's Song of triumph in de lan'. Waldron, piano; , bass; Max So I walk a little too fast, It seems holier dan evenin’ Roach, drums. Recorded February 22, And I drive a little too fast, When de solemn chu'ch bell rings, 1961, in New York. Originally issued And I'm reckless it's true. Ez I sit an' ca'mly listen on Candid CJM/CJS-8015/9015. But what else can you do While Malindy sings. At the end of a love affair? A highly forceful, highly dramatic Towsah, stop dat ba'kin', hyeah me! So I talk a little too much, interpretation of four stanzas of Paul Mandy, mek dat chile keep still; And I laugh a little too much, Laurence Dunbar's nine-stanza Don't you hyeah de echoes callin' And my voice is too loud, poem, set to music, that slyly sug- F'om de valley to de hill? When I'm out in a crowd, gests the superiority of natural, Let me listen, I can hyeah it, So that people have to stare. spontaneous Afro-American singing Th'oo de bresh of angels' wings, Sof' an' sweet,“Swing Low, Sweet to the formal European kind. Abbey Do they know, do they care? Chariot,” Lincoln, who was married to drum- That it's only that I'm lonely Ez Malindy sings. mer at the time of this And low as can be. recording, is a rare example of a And the smile on my face, popular singer whose style became Band 8 Isn't really a smile at all. progressively more jazz-oriented as The End of a Love Affair her career developed. Although (Edward C. Redding) So I smoke a little too much, Billie Holiday, vocal; and His And I joke a little too much. more concerned here with the Orchestra: , Tom Mitchell, And the tunes I request lyrics than the music, she has not and J. J. Johnson, trombones; Ed Powell, Are not always the best, ignored the instrumental nature of Tom Parshley, Romeo Penque, and Phil But the ones where the trumpets blare. the voice—as demonstrated in the Bodner, reeds; Bradley Spinney, xylo- wordless chant that begins and ends phone; Janet Putman, harp; , So I go at a maddening pace, the selection. piano; , guitar; Milt And not pretend that it's taking its Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906) Hinton, bass; Don Lamond, drums; string place. was a highly influential and revered section and choir. Recorded February But what else can you do 20, 1958, in New York. Originally At the end of a love affair? black American poet whom William issued on Columbia CL-1157 (mx # Dean Howells praised for his capaci- 60467). (repeat last three verses) ty to “feel the Negro life and express it lyrically”—something demonstrat- This comes from Billie Holiday's © Copyright 1950 by Duchess Music Corporation, ed emphatically in this particular session; it was includ- New York, N.Y. 10022. Used by Permission.All Rights Reserved. poem, which is both evocative and ed in the monaural version of the perceptive. Trumpeter Booker Little album but, inexplica- wrote the arrangement for singer bly, not in the stereo version. Oscar Brown, Jr.'s highly sympathet- The session was controversial ic musical setting. (For Dunbar's because many listeners felt that the contributions to black musical the- lush were unsuited ater, see Robert Kimball's notes—p. for Holiday and because many also 1, col. 3—to New World Records believed that, with or without the NW 260, Shuffle Along.) arrangements, her voice had de- generated so seriously that the G'way an' quit dat noise, Miss Lucy— musical value of her work was Put dat music book away; questionable. What's de use to keep on tryin'? Certainly her voice by this time Ef you practise twell you're gray, You cain't sta't no notes a-flyin' was considerably less than what it Lak de ones dat rants and rings had once been, but vocal equipment F'om de kitchen to de big woods was never the point with Billie. Her 9 SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY The Louis Armstrong Story, Vol.4. Columbia CL-854. Young Louis Armstrong. RCA Bluebird AXM-2-5519. Bailey, Mildred. Greatest Performances, 1929-1946. Columbia C3L-22. The Betty Carter Album. Bet-Car 1002. ____. Inside Betty Carter. United Artists 5639. Ray Charles Live. Atlantic 2-503. Ray Charles and Betty Carter. ABC-Paramount 385. Christy, June. Misty Miss Christy. Capitol T725. Connor, Chris. Chris Connor. Atlantic 1228. ____. Chris in Person. Atlantic 8040. Fitzgerald, Ella. Best of. MCA 4047. Ella in Berlin. Verve 64041. Holiday, Billie. The Golden Years. Columbia C3L-21 and C3L-40. ____. Lady Day. Columbia CL-637. ____. Lady in Satin. Columbia CS-8048. ____. . Atlantic 1614. Humes, Helen. The Talk of the Town. Columbia PC-33488. Jefferson, Eddie. The Jazz Singer. Inner City 1016. Jordan, Sheila. Portrait of Sheila. Bluenote BST-89002. The Best of Lambert, Hendricks and Ross. Columbia KC-32911. Lincoln, Abbey. Straight Ahead. Candid CJS-9015. Carmen McRae at the Great American Music Hall. Blue Note LA-709-H2. Anita O'Day Sings the Winners. Verve 8283. Rainey, Ma. Milestone M-47021. Rushing, Jimmy. The Essential Jimmy Rushing. Vanguard 65/66. ____. Good Morning, Blues (with Count Basie). MCA 4108. Smith, Bessie. The Empress. Columbia G-30818. ____. Nobody's Blues but Mine. Columbia G-31093. *Turner, Joe. Boss of the Blues. Atlantic 1234. Vaughan, Sarah.Trip 5501. ____. Live in Japan. Mainstream 401. ____. Swings Easy. Trip 5551. Fats Waller, Vol. I. RCA Bluebird AXM-2-5511. Washington, Dinah. . Trip 5500. Watson, Leo. Pre-Bop. Bob Thiele Music BTM-1-0940. Young, Lester. A Musical Romance (with Billie Holiday). Columbia JG/JGA-34837.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Feather, Leonard. The Encyclopedia of Jazz in the Sixties. New York: Horizon, 1966. ____. The New Edition of the Encyclopedia of Jazz. New York: Horizon, 1960. McCarthy, Albert, et al. Jazz on Records: A Critical Guide to the First Fifty Years. : Hanover, 1968. Morgenstern, Dan. Jazz People (photographs by Ole Brask). New York: Harry N.Abrams, 1976. Murray, Albert. Stomping the Blues. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1976. Pleasants, Henry. The Great American Popular Singers. New York: Simon & Shuster, 1974. Stearns, Marshall. The Story of Jazz. New York: , 1959.

10 Side One Total time 23:37

1 I CAN'T GET STARTED (Vernon Duke and Ira Gershwin) ...... 2:48 (publ. Chappell Music Co.) Billie Holiday and Her Orchestra

2 I LEFT MY BABY (Andy Gibson) ...... 3:13 (publ. Bregman, Vocco & Conn, Inc.) Jimmy Rushing, vocal; Count Basie and His Orchestra

3 PINEY BROWN BLUES (Joe Turner and Pete Johnson) ...... 2:55 (publ. Leeds Music Corp.) Joe Turner and His Fly Cats

4 CARELESS LOVE (Anon.) ...... 2:50 (Public Domain) Joe Turner, vocal;Willie "The Lion" Smith, piano

5 JA-DA (Bob Carleton) ...... 2:41 (publ. Leo Feist, Inc.) Leo Watson and His Orchestra

6 IT'S THE TUNE THAT COUNTS (Jan Savitt) ...... 2:38 (publ. MCA Music, a Division of MCA, Inc.) Leo Watson and His Orchestra

7 ROBBINS NEST (Sir Charles Thompson and Illinois Jacquet) ...... 2:33 (publ.Atlantic Music Corp.) Ella Fitzgerald, vocal; Hank Jones, piano; Hy White, guitar; John Simmons, bass; J. C. Heard, drums

8 BLOWTOP BLUES (Leonard Feather and Jane Feather) ...... 3:31 (publ. Model Music Co.) Dinah Washington, vocal; Lionel Hampton and His Septet

Side Two Total time 26:25

1 KEY LARGO (Benny Carter, Karl Suessdorf, and Leah Worth) ...... 3:30 (publ. Granson Music Co.) Sarah Vaughan, vocal; Barney Kessel, guitar; Joe Comfort, bass

2 MOONLIGHT IN VERMONT (Karl Suessdorf and John Blackburn) ...... 3:24 (publ. Michael H. Goldsen, Inc.) Betty Carter, vocal; with group

3 THOU SWELL (Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart) ...... 1:40 (publ.Warner Bros. Music) Betty Carter, vocal; with group

4 CAN'T WE BE FRIENDS? (Kay Swift and Paul James) ...... 2:28 (publ.Warner Bros. Music) Betty Carter, vocal; with group

5 MISTY (Erroll Garner and Johnny Burke) ...... 3:14 (publ.Vernon Music Corp. by arrangement with Octave Music Publishing Corp.) Chris Connor, vocal; with group

6 LOVE (Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane) ...... 2:46 (publ. Leo Feist, Inc.) Chris Connor, vocal; with group

7 WHEN MALINDY SINGS (Oscar Brown, Jr., and Paul Laurence Dunbar) ...... 4:02 (publ. unknown) Abbey Lincoln, vocal; with group

8 THE END OF A LOVE AFFAIR (Edward C. Redding) ...... 4:52 (publ. Duchess Music Corp.) Billie Holiday, vocal; Ray Ellis and His Orchestra

11 Full discographic information and a complete list of the performers for each selection may be found within the individual discussions of the works in the liner notes.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Our thanks to CBS Records for "I Can't Get Started"; "I Left My Baby"; "Moonlight in Vermont"; "Thou Swell"; "Can't We Be Friends?"; and "The End of a Love Affair"; to MCA Records for "Piney Brown Blues"; "Careless Love"; "Ja-Da"; "It's the Tune That Counts"; "Robbins Nest"; and "Blowtop Blues": to for "Misty" and "Love": to for "Key Largo": and to Barnaby Records for "When Malindy Sings."

Our thanks to Robert Altshuler for making his record collection available to us; and to Dan Morgenstern of the Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University, and Sam Parkins for their invaluable help.

Program consultant: Richard Seidel Rerecording engineer: Art Shifrin : Lee Hulko, Sterling Sound Cover art: Yasuo Kuniyoshi. "Juggler." Ink on cardboard. Collection of Whitney Museum of American Art, New York Cover design: Elaine Sherer Cox Library of Congress Card No.77-751194 ® 1977 © 1977 Recorded Anthology of American Music, Inc.

THESE RECORDINGS WERE MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH A GRANT FROM THE ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION

LINER NOTES © Recorded Anthology of American Music, Inc. q 1977 © 1977 Recorded Anthology of American Music, Inc. All rights reserved.

For additional information and a catalogue, please contact:

New World Records 701 Seventh Avenue, New York, New York 10036 (212) 302-0460 • (212) 944-1922 fax email: [email protected]

www.newworldrecords.org

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