Jazz singers Sinatra and Holiday left indelible mark on music

Reviewed by STEVE KURUTZ
Collegian Arts Writer

The late '30s and '40s were the glory days of swing music.

It was a time when musicians read from charts, guitars were either absent or used strictly for rhythm and the music world had a count, a duke and a first lady.

It was also the heyday of the jazz singer. Professional tunesmiths such as Cole Porter and Hoagy Carmichael supplied endless streams of classic songs for the crooners to sing, many of which have become timeless standards.

When people of the prewar generation hear someone like Ella Fitzgerald sing these classics, their faces warm with smiles and they say:

"Now, this is music. You can hear all the individual instruments. You can hear the words and understand what they mean."

It is true that, unlike rock, little room is provided for a jazz singer to hide if he or she doesn't have what it takes. And what it takes is impeccable phrasing and the ability to convey the emotional meaning of the lyrics.

If you want to hear two singers who have mastered the art, there is no better place to start than with Frank Sinatra or Billie Holiday.

The problem is that both artists recorded prolifically, leaving virtually hundreds of albums to choose from. Even the ever-so-popular "greatest hits" album wouldn't begin to give you the scope of each singer's work.

Select albums, however, can help a listener navigate the deep waters of their respective careers.

Though he is technically not a jazz singer, Sinatra's music has gone in both soft jazz and hard swing directions. Sinatra, now 82, reportedly modeled his phrasing after Tommy Dorsey's trombone.

"He was at his freest and loosest when paired with a great big band like that of Count Basie," said Richard S. Ginell in a review for the All-Music Guide.

In the course of his seven-decade career, besides the count, Sinatra has also worked with legendary jazzmen such as George Benson, the Brecker brothers and Lionel Hampton.

Although Ol' Blue Eyes has released more than 100 albums, causing confusion for rookie listeners, certain releases manage to capture Sinatra at quintessential moments of his career.

• In The Wee Small Hours (1955):
  

Have you had your heart stepped on by a woman? Well, so has Frank. This album, filled with melancholic ballads such as "I Get Along Without You Very Well" and "When Your Lover Has Gone," is reportedly about his failed relationship with actress Ava Gardner.

Arranger Nelson Riddle brought together a small jazz combo to create a "melancholy mood (that) is one of Sinatra's most jazz-oriented performances," critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine said in the All-Music Guide.

It is a soft, intimate record, and Frank's plaintive voice -- along with strings that make you weep -- gives life to the songs, making them autobiographical.

• Songs For Swingin' Lovers! (1956):
  

This record shows Sinatra's love for the hard swing of the big band heyday and returns him to the uptempo material that he abandoned on In The Wee Small Hours.

Although the album is comprised of old standards such as "You Make Me Feel So Young" and the Cole Porter classic "I've Got You Under My Skin," Nelson Riddle's arrangements of the songs do much to update them, making them feel vibrant instead of weary.

• Duets (1993):
  

Unfairly panned by critics who objected to the synthetic manner in which the songs were recorded, Duets is an easy way to get acquainted with some of the tunes Sinatra is famous for.

Although you won't hear the classic Sinatra who is enjoyed on In The Wee Small Hours (his impeccable phrasing has been worn by time), you do get a once-in-a-lifetime Sinatra duet with U2 frontman Bono on "I've Got You Under My Skin." Frank also yuks it up with fellow crooner Tony Bennett on "New York, New York."

Lady Day is perhaps the most famous of all jazz singers. With a life like a Bronte novel, she was more than qualified to sing about the emotional ups and downs her lyrics conveyed.

Holiday was discovered by famed A&R rep John Hammond in the early '30s while singing in Harlem nightclubs, and soon she was belting out hard swing with both Count Basie and Artie Shaw.

The following albums' musical styles parallel the singer's personal life, beginning with the young, insecure Holiday's timid voice and ending with the hardened, whispery inflection of a world-weary woman.

• Quintessential Billie Holiday, Vol.1. 1933-1935 (1987):
  

This album chronicles those early years, pairing the singer with Teddy Wilson's all-star band, a group that included such great swing men as Benny Goodman, Gene Krupa and Roy Eldridge.

Holiday's sassy vocals on songs such as "Your Mother's Son-In-Law" and "Riffin' The Scotch" will immediately endear the listener, and it's a joy to hear the vibrancy she possessed early in her career.

• The Complete Decca Recordings (1991):
  

This two-CD set contains more than 40 tracks and is by far the most bang for your buck. The Decca period catches Holiday in the middle of her career (the mid-'40s) when many feel her voice was at its strongest.

"To hear all fifty of her Decca performances (including alternate takes and even some studio chatter) is a real joy," said Scott Yanow in a review for the All-Music Guide.

Strings are added for the first time as well, and Lady Day doesn't skip a beat, blasting through renditions of "Lover Man" (her biggest hit), "God Bless The Child" and "Them There Eyes."

• Lady In Satin (1958):
  

Albums often become significant for their historical value instead of their musicianship (Sinatra's L.A. Is My Lady comes to mind). Such is the case with this effort.

Lady In Satin finds Holiday near the end of her life, at a time when her once-powerful voice had been weakened by years of heroin abuse. Nevertheless, Holiday called it her favorite record and her voice, though almost reduced to a whisper, does carry an emotional rawness on songs such as "Glad To Be Unhappy" and "You've Changed."

Though it's not the record a beginner would buy to hear her greatest hits, it does have a ragged glory about it that adds to Holiday's unique charm.