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Blue
by Motown
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$13.98 |
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$9.97 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. |
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$4.01 (28%) |
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Audio CD
Publisher: Motown
Nearly 35 years after being tagged for debasing Billie Holiday's legacy with her slick pop vocals in the biopic Lady Sings the Blues--an approach producer Berry Gordy claims he had her take to make her "more relatable to a general audience"--Diana Ross gets a chance to redeem herself with these jazzier, alternate versions of the same material. Recorded around the time of the 1972 film (several bonus tracks come directly from the movie sessions), the original album was conceived as a companion piece to the soundtrack. But it was shelved and, we are told, lost in the vaults until recently. The good news is that when she commits herself to jazz, with a group of top jazz musicians behind her (playing arrangements by Benny Golson and Oliver Nelson), Ross holds her own. Her renditions of Holiday staples such as "You've Changed" and "Easy Living" are a bit mild, but lovely and relaxed. She makes up for the basic thinness of her voice with her cool, immaculate handling of melody. It's when she relies on her pop-soul instincts, as she does on a painfully awkward reading of "I Loves You Porgy," or has to contend with album arranger Gil Askey's Vegas-style touches, that she sounds unconvincing or unsteady. But Ross' diehard fans won't want to be without "Blue" and her more casual admirers will be intrigued by this departure. --Lloyd Sachs
| Customer Reviews: |
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| Vintage Ross |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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It's been in the vaults since 1972: a year after the release of her Billie Holiday biopic Lady Sings the Blues, Ross went back into the studio to record additional songs for what in hindsight is essentially a crossover album. The results are admirable, and in one case--Little Girl Blue--more than that. In peak voice, the singer retains her inimitable fluidity and shows she's more than up to the challenge. Too bad Motown lost its nerve, opting to send Ms. Ross to Boss-land. Now the question is, are we ready to accept the queen of girl pop as a legitimate heir to Lena, Dinah and Billie?
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| Diana does justice |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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BLUE is an excellent collection of Billie Holiday songs. It was recorded in 1972 and its history is very sad. These songs were recorded during the making of LADY SINGS THE BLUES and Berry Gordy thought these particular tracks were performed too jazzy and wanted the music in the film and on the soundtrack to have more a pop feel so it would be appealing to a broader audience. Sadly, Mr. Gordy didn't have as much faith in Diana as the rest of us. Her performance in LADY SINGS THE BLUES was amazing and garnered her an Oscar nomination. At the same time critics dissed Diana saying that she did not do Billie justice musically. Wouldn't they have been shocked to know these tracks existed and a different side of Diana existed.
Berry Gordy's influence is a strong illustration of how a single person can lead the course of a talents career. Supposedly this set was ready for release if she won the Oscar. She did not and Berry released a pop album next. It is still surprising that it took 34 years to surface. Diana was always defined as a pop diva and sometimes her stage presence took precadence over her actual music. Here we see that Diana can sing!
This is a set of Billie Holiday standards and Diana's performance far surpasses many other standard albums thart are out there today. She appears as no novice and the music seems to smoothly emerge from her soul with intensity and purity. She owns these songs and we are presented with Diana Ross the jazz artist. There is no filler here. Standouts are WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES, LET'S DO IT, LITTLE GIRL BLUE, MY MAN, EASY LIVING AND T'AINT NOBODY'S BIZNESS IF I DO.
The sound quality here is amazing and this cd is not only recommended for Diana Ross fans but also for any fans of quality jazz music.
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| diane iz boss! |
| Customer Rating: 3 out of 5 |
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i'm a long-term dina ross fan & just the discovery of un-released material "tweeks" my ear-drums. however i must say that if you don't care for her enormous talent@ all then you wouldn't like blue which is a nice testament to her adaptations of jazz standards from the sizzling seventies!!!!!
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| BLUE is Beautiful! |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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This collection of previously unreleased songs (although recorded over 30 years ago) are refreshingly new and hauntingly beautiful. One can hear the tireless efforts of a young Diana Ross interpreting songs of Lady Day. Songs newly restored and heard for the first time since the "Lady Sings The Blues" project of 1972. These songs are warm, exciting, and deliciously haunting. DIANA ROSS is a powerhouse of talent and "BLUE" Is Beautiful!
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| Blue is Beautiful, Calming, and Relaxing |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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The Blue CD is beautiful, calming, and relaxing music. As always Diana Ross gives us her best. I have most of her other music. This adds to my collection.
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What a Diff'rence a Day Makes - Diana Ross, Adams, Stanley
No More - Diana Ross, Camarata, Toots
Let's Do It - Diana Ross, Porter, Cole
I Loves Ya Porgy - Diana Ross, Gershwin, George
Smile - Diana Ross, Chaplin, Charles
But Beautiful - Diana Ross, Burke, Johnny
Had You Been Around - Diana Ross, Jacques, Richard
Little Girl Blue - Diana Ross, Rodgers, Richard
Can't Get Started with You - Diana Ross, Gershwin, Ira
Love Is Here to Stay - Diana Ross, Gershwin, George
You've Changed - Diana Ross, Carey, Bill
My Man (Mon Homme) - Diana Ross, Yvain, Maurice
Easy Living - Diana Ross, Robin, Leo
Solitude - Diana Ross, Ellington, Duke
He's Funny That Way - Diana Ross, Whiting, Richard
T'Ain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do - Diana Ross, Grainger, Porter
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