CD-Charts Position 191

Blowin' in the Wind: The Gospel Soul of Etta James

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Etta James

Release Date October 29, 2002

CD-Charts Position 192
Average Rating:

Blues Everywhere I Go

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Odetta

Release Date September 28, 1999
The years have not diminished the powerful voice of the Great Odetta. I am often suprised how many people haven't even heard of her! She an American Treasure! This album features her with a superb back-up band and Odetta is as great singing the Blues as she is singing Folk. I have some of Odetta's live albums and I absolutely love how she can merge several songs into a "Suite" rather than a show biz medley. This is a different Odetta for me to hear and I am extremely pleased with this album. Whether she is recorded live or in the studio and whether she is singing folk or blues, Odetta is a truly great artist. I do recommend this album highly! One feels as if they are there in person. There is an intimate feeling to this Blues album which only ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 193
Average Rating:

Lady Day & Pres

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Billie Holiday, Lester Young

Release Date July 30, 2002
The years have not diminished the powerful voice of the Great Odetta. I am often suprised how many people haven't even heard of her! She an American Treasure! This album features her with a superb back-up band and Odetta is as great singing the Blues as she is singing Folk. I have some of Odetta's live albums and I absolutely love how she can merge several songs into a "Suite" rather than a show biz medley. This is a different Odetta for me to hear and I am extremely pleased with this album. Whether she is recorded live or in the studio and whether she is singing folk or blues, Odetta is a truly great artist. I do recommend this album highly! One feels as if they are there in person. There is an intimate feeling to this Blues album which only ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 194
Average Rating:

The Quintessential Billie Holiday, Vol. 9 (1940-1942)

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Billie Holiday

Release Date July 23, 1991
In my book, and I am hardly alone on this, Billie Holiday is the torch singer's torch singer. Maybe it is the phrasing on her best songs. That well-placed hush. Maybe it is the unbreakable link between her voice when she is on a roll and the arrangements. Hell, maybe in the end it was the dope but, by Jesus, she could sing a modern ballad of love, lost or both like no other. And if it was the dope, let me say this- a `normal' nice singer could sing for a hundred years and never get it right, the way Billie could get it right when she was at her best. Dope or no dope. Was she always at her best? These recordings done between 1940 and 1942 show the highs. Billie had mastered her trade.

Many of the songs on the current compilation are ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 195
Average Rating:

Flashbacks, Vol. 4 - Heartbreakers 1927-1946: Blue & Lonely

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Various Artists

Release Date September 12, 2005
In my book, and I am hardly alone on this, Billie Holiday is the torch singer's torch singer. Maybe it is the phrasing on her best songs. That well-placed hush. Maybe it is the unbreakable link between her voice when she is on a roll and the arrangements. Hell, maybe in the end it was the dope but, by Jesus, she could sing a modern ballad of love, lost or both like no other. And if it was the dope, let me say this- a `normal' nice singer could sing for a hundred years and never get it right, the way Billie could get it right when she was at her best. Dope or no dope. Was she always at her best? These recordings done between 1940 and 1942 show the highs. Billie had mastered her trade.

Many of the songs on the current compilation are ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 196
Average Rating:

The Best of Billie Holiday

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Billie Holiday

Release Date June 24, 2008
In my book, and I am hardly alone on this, Billie Holiday is the torch singer's torch singer. Maybe it is the phrasing on her best songs. That well-placed hush. Maybe it is the unbreakable link between her voice when she is on a roll and the arrangements. Hell, maybe in the end it was the dope but, by Jesus, she could sing a modern ballad of love, lost or both like no other. And if it was the dope, let me say this- a `normal' nice singer could sing for a hundred years and never get it right, the way Billie could get it right when she was at her best. Dope or no dope. Was she always at her best? These recordings done between 1940 and 1942 show the highs. Billie had mastered her trade.

Many of the songs on the current compilation are ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 197
Average Rating:

Blues Classics

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Various Artists

Release Date July 30, 1996
The consolidation of record companies is generally bad, but this 3-CD box set was only possible because MCA acquired the rights to some outstanding early "race" record labels (Vocalion, Decca) and classy early R&B (e.g. Chess). The result is an intelligent, sequenced collection that is much more than a jarring, random assortment of songs by blues masters. Starting with the Delta blues, the mix seems subtly slanted in favor of bawdy, roadhouse-style blues performances--why it's the devil's music and you can't stay away from it. Whether it's Peetie Wheatstraw, Louis Jordan, John Lee Hooker or Etta James, these performances will seduce you. Good quality sound throughout (even the old stuff), with a handsome booklet.

CD-Charts Position 198
Average Rating:

The Hits of '23: Dreamy Melody

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Various Artists

Release Date October 19, 2004
The consolidation of record companies is generally bad, but this 3-CD box set was only possible because MCA acquired the rights to some outstanding early "race" record labels (Vocalion, Decca) and classy early R&B (e.g. Chess). The result is an intelligent, sequenced collection that is much more than a jarring, random assortment of songs by blues masters. Starting with the Delta blues, the mix seems subtly slanted in favor of bawdy, roadhouse-style blues performances--why it's the devil's music and you can't stay away from it. Whether it's Peetie Wheatstraw, Louis Jordan, John Lee Hooker or Etta James, these performances will seduce you. Good quality sound throughout (even the old stuff), with a handsome booklet.

CD-Charts Position 199
Average Rating:

Lady Day's 25 Greatest: 1933-1944

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Billie Holiday

Release Date March 19, 1996
The only disappointment is the omission of "Autumn in New York" my personal favorite, although I believe recorded outside the scope of this album.

CD-Charts Position 200
Average Rating:

Music for Torching: The Billie Holiday Story, Vol. 5

CD-Charts > Music > Classic Female Vocal Blues
by: Billie Holiday

Release Date May 23, 1995
Billie Holiday is here joined by small Jazz combos for some of the best vocal performaces of her later years. Her vocals are warm, rich and full of nuances. Her interpretive powers are still very strong and these standards are all given the unmistakable Holiday stamp. I love the way Billie sings around the beat like an instrumentalist would when taking a solo. This set is as good as anything you will hear from Billie Holiday's later years, and I can highly recommend it.