Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: The Origins and Development of the Pop Music Album from To Mother to The Voice xiii
1. Louis Armstrong, Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson 3
2. Fred Astaire, The Astaire Story 11
3. Chet Baker, Let’s Get Lost: The Best of Chet Baker Sings 25
4. Tony Bennett and Bill Evans, The Tony Bennett / Bill Evans Album and Together Again 34
5. Ray Charles, Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music 43
6. June Christy, Something Cool 50
7. Rosemary Clooney, Blue Rose 59
8. Nat King Cole, After Midnight 69
9. Nat King Cole, St. Louis Blues 76
10. Bing Crosby, Bing with a Beat 82
11. Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong, Bing & Satchmo 91
12. Doris Day, Day by Day and Day by Night 97
13. Doris Day and Robert Goulet, Annie Get Your Gun 105
14. Blossom Dearie, My Gentleman Friend 112
15. Matt Dennis, Matt Dennis Plays and Sings Matt Dennis Bobby Troup, Bobby Troup Sings Johnny Mercer 117
16. Billy Eckstine, Billy’s Best! 127
17. Ella Fitzgerald, Lullabies of Birdland 134
18. Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, Ella & Louis 142
19. Ella Fitzgerald, Mack the Knife: Ella in Berlin 148
20. Judy Garland, Judy at Carnegie Hall 154
21. Johnny Hartman, John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman 163
22. Dick Haymes, Rain or Shine 171
23. Billie Holiday, Lady in Satin 177
24. Lena Horne, Lena Horne at the Waldorf Astoria 184
25. Barb Jungr, Every Grain of Sand: Barb Jungr Sings Bob Dylan 190
26. Dave Lambert, Jon Hendricks, and Annie Ross, Sing a Song of Basie Annie Ross, Sings a Song with Mulligan! 197
27. Eydie Gormé and Steve Lawrence, Eydie and Steve Sing the Golden Hits 209
28. Peggy Lee, Black Coffee 214
29. Peggy Lee, The Man I Love 221
30. Marilyn Maye, Meet Marvelous Marilyn Maye 228
31. Carmen McRae, As Time Goes By: Live at the Dug 234
32. Anita O’Day, Anita O’Day Sings the Winners 241
33. Della Reese, Della Della Cha Cha Cha 250
34. Jimmy Scott, The Source and Lost and Found 255
35. Bobby Short, Bobby Short 265
36. Nina Simone, Nina Simone and Piano! 272
37. Frank Sinatra, In the Wee Small Hours 280
38. Frank Sinatra, Songs for Swingin’ Lovers! 288
39. Jo Stafford, Jo Stafford Sings American Folk Songs and Jo Stafford Sings Songs of Scotland 297
40. Jo Stafford, I’ll Be Seeing You (G.I. Jo) 307
41. Kay Starr, I Cry by Night 314
42. Maxine Sullivan, Memories of You: A Tribute to Andy Razaf 321
43. Jack Teagarden, Think Well of Me 329
44. Tiny Tim, God Bless Tiny Tim 338
45. Mel Tormé, Mel Tormé with the Marty Paich Dek-Tette (Lulu’s Back in Town) 347
46. Sarah Vaughan, Sarah Vaughan 355
47. Sarah Vaughan, “Live” in Japan 361
48. Dinah Washington, Dinah Washington Sings Fats Waller 368
49. Margaret Whiting, Margaret Whiting Sings the Jerome Kern Song Book 376
50. Lee Wiley, Night in Manhattan 383
51. Cassandra Wilson, Belly of the Sun 390
Discography 399

About the Author

WILL FRIEDWALD has written about music for The Wall Street Journal and was the jazz (and cabaret) critic for The New York Sun. He is the author of nine books, including A Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singers; Stardust Melodies: The Biography of Twelve of America's Most Popular Songs; Jazz Singing: America's Great Voices from Bessie Smith to Bebop and Beyond; Sinatra! The Song Is You; and Tony Bennett: The Good Life (with Tony Bennett). He has written liner notes for nearly five hundred compact discs, for which he has received eight Grammy nominations. He has also written for Vanity Fair, The Village Voice, Entertainment Weekly, American Heritage, and The New York Times, among other publications.

Reviews

"Will Friedwald's thoughtful analysis and insight into the background and nuances of the music by the artists featured in his book make each song a more enriching experience for casual listeners and music aficionados alike. I'm honored to be included and grateful to Will for keeping the American Songbook and jazz classics relevant for generations to come."
—Doris Day

“Absolutely indispensable . . . Friedwald . . . brings his rare ability to write about singing in a way that effectively bridges impressionistic interpretation with musical analysis to the task of ‘reading’ an album the way a literary critic reads a poem. The result is never less than perceptive and often stop-in-your tracks brilliant. . . . A magnificent achievement.”
—Bill Ott, Booklist (starred review)

"With verve and an infectious love of music, jazz critic Friedwald tells the stories of fifty-seven jazz and pop albums that have become benchmarks by which subsequent records have been measured. . . . His passionate description of each album in this indispensable guide will drive readers to listen to the albums once again, or for the first time."
—Publishers Weekly, starred review