Billie Holiday - 'Lady Sings the Blues'

 

As DownBeat writer Nat Hentoff said of Billie Holiday:

"The experience of listening to her is unanalyzable – either you feel it or you don’t."

'Lady Sings The Blues' is living proof of that notion.

Recorded over two separate sessions in Los Angeles in September 1954 and over two days in June 1956 in New York City, this is an album that as close to a musical autobiography as you can get.

To my ears, the Los Angeles sessions offer a fresher sounding Billie, but that in no way minimizes the quality of the songs recorded in New York City, which produced unparalleled versions of "No Good Man," "Some Other Spring," and "Good Morning Heartache" and "Lady Sings the Blues".

When it was originally released on the Clef records label, DownBeat magazine give it a glowing review and 5 stars.  In their review of the 78 rpm release of "Love Me Or Leave Me" coupled with "I Thought About You" DownBeat said:

"What counts is the penetratingly personal presence of Lady Day"

And that just about says it all.

The Los Angeles sessions were recorded on September 3, 1954, at Capitol Studios. They feature: Harry "Sweets" Edison on trumpet, Willie Smith on alto saxophone, Bobby Tucker on piano, Barney Kessel on guitar, Red Callender on bass and Chico Hamilton on drums.  The musicians create a musical bed that Billie seems to drape herself across.

The later New York sessions at Fine Sound Studios recorded June 6 & 7 1956 at Fine Sound Studios, NYC there is a complete change of musicians that features the brilliant Wynton Kelly on piano along with Charlie Shavers on trumpet, Tony Scott on clarinet (who also wrote the arrangements), Paul Quinichette on tenor saxophone,  Kenny Burrell on guitar, Aaron Bell on bass and Lenny McBrowne on drums.

Lady Sings the Blues was Billie Holiday’s last album for producer Norman Granz’ Clef Records & Verve Records, and released late in 1956 in conjunction with her autobiography of the same name.

These autumnal sides bear the frayed vocal moments that brought so much depth to Billie's late career. The album ranks with her best material, especially the cuts from the June 1956 date.

Today's freeload is a 24bit/192kHz vinyl rip of a super sweet sounding Japanese mono reissue, from 1981. It sounds better than the available CDs.

For the freeload, tell us about albums that, to your ears, are perfect.