Etta Jones
Released October 16, 2001
Grammy Nominee for Best Jazz Vocal Album 2003
YouTube: https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_m271l5reyTihuO5JkNGCDChuI5PAyTndI
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/6uWShC0TDZ9nzqeMzzq3dX?si=M7wSKJyKTzKXpfyD_CBLBQ
About:
Billie Holiday serves as the inspiration for any good jazz singer. Her language changed the landscape of the jazz inflected American song tradition. Etta Jones is a singer whose vocal improvisations pack a similar wallop and pay homage to the legacy of Billie Holiday. Etta has wanted to do a record of Billie’s tunes for some time and now she finally has her chance. Playing Prez to Etta’s Billie is tenor great Houston Person, whose support for Etta’s inflections is intuitive at this point. Richard Wyands uses his keen ear to produce some lovely harmonic twists and the rhythm section is rounded out by John Webber and Kenny Washington. All periods of Billie Holiday’s career are represented in the tunes selected – from the early days with Teddy Wilson to the late-period Lady In Satin album. But, early or late, well-known or obscure, Etta never loses her connection to the listener.
Track Listing:
1. That Old Devil Called Love (Doris Fisher / Allan Roberts) 5:10
2. All of Me (Gerald Marks / Seymour Simons) 8:24
3. But Beautiful (Johnny Burke / James Van Heusen) 6:15
4. You’ve Changed (Bill Carey / Carl Fischer) 5:03
5. I Cried for You (Gus Arnheim / Arthur Freed / Abe Lyman) 7:46
6. Fine and Mellow (Billie Holiday) 7:10
7. God Bless the Child (Billie Holiday / Arthur Herzog, Jr.) 7:16
8. Them There Eyes (Maceo Pinkard / Doris Tauber / William Tracey) 3:55
9. You Better Go Now (Irvin Graham / Robert Graham / Bickley S. Reichmer) 5:37
Personnel:
Etta Jones: vocals
Houston Person: tenor saxophone
Richard Wyands: piano
Peter Bernstein: guitar
John Webber: bass
Chip White: drums
Recorded July 21, 2001, at M & I Recording Studios, New York, NY
Produced by Houston Person
Review:
Etta Jones’ last 20 years found her recording one consistently soulful jazz album after another, usually with the close partnership of tenor-saxophonist Houston Person. For what would be her final recording, she pays tribute to Billie Holiday with renditions of nine standards. Except during the last part of “Fine and Mellow” when she does a remarkable imitation of Lady Day, Etta Jones sings in her usual bluesy style, staying as individual as always. She makes such songs as “All of Me,” “I Cried for You” and “Them There Eyes” sound fresh and relevant. The singer passed away on the day that Sings Lady Day was officially released and she sounds in surprisingly good form throughout this set, finishing off her career on top.
Scott Yanow (AllMusic)
