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Untitled Document
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VAUGHAN, Sarah: Trouble Is A Man (1946-1948) |
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Composer: |
Vernon Duke, Ord Hamilton, Walter Gross, Alec Wilder, Michael Edwards, Ira Gershwin, Will Jason, Val Burton, Gus Kahn, Paul Madeira, Jimmy McHugh, Walter Donaldson, Stanley Adams, Jule Styne, Johnny Green, Eden Ahbez, Maria Grever, Phil Moore, Burton Lane, Harold Adamson, Jimmy Dorsey, Isham Jones, Traditional, Cole Porter, Bruce Sievier, Bud Green, George Gershwin |
Artist: |
Jack Fulton, Sarah Vaughan, Freddy Gardner, Paul Robeson, Vaughn de Leath, Lawrence Brown, Mabel Mercer, Cy Walter, Lawrence Tibbett |
Conductor: |
Guy Lombardo, Paul Whiteman, Alexander Smallens |
Choir: |
Lombardo Trio, The, Earl Rodgers Choir |
Ensemble: |
Jimmy Jones Quartet, Teddy Wilson Octet |
Orchestra: |
Victor Studio Orchestra, Ted Dale Orchestra, George Treadwell Orchestra, Paul Whiteman Orchestra, Guy Lombardo Royal Canadians, Richard Maltby Orchestra, Paul Whiteman Concert Orchestra, Peter Yorke Concert Orchestra, Georgie Auld Orchestra |
Lyricist: |
DuBose Heyward, Dorothy Fields, Gus Kahn, Edward Heyman, Sammy Cahn, Eden Ahbez, Jack Lawrence |
Label: |
Naxos Jazz Legends |
Catalogue No.: |
8.120763 |
Format: |
CD |
Barcode: |
0636943276327 |
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SARAH VAUGHAN Vol.2
‘Trouble Is A Man’ Original Recordings 1946-1948
From the start of her career, Sarah Vaughan had
a tremendous voice, and she never declined. The
tone of her voice was consistently beautiful, her
range was remarkable and she had complete
control over her singing, no matter what the
circumstances. She was among the first vocalists
to fully grasp the intricacies of bebop and, even
when singing pop music, her phrasing was
always modern and often adventurous.
Sarah Vaughan was born 27 March 1924 in
Newark, New Jersey. She first sang in church and
was a well-trained pianist. In 1943 she won an
amateur contest at the Apollo Theater and, on
Billy Eckstine’s recommendation, was hired by
Earl Hines to both sing with his orchestra and
play second piano. Unfortunately that
pioneering bebop orchestra (which also featured
Charlie Parker on tenor and trumpeter Dizzy
Gillespie) never recorded but it was an important
training ground for the young singer. The
following year she, Parker and Gillespie all joined
Eckstine’s big band, which continued her
education in bebop. Though she only recorded
one song with that orchestra, on 31 December
1944 Vaughan cut four selections as a leader,
including a vocalized version of Gillespie’s “A
Night In Tunisia” which was called “Interlude”.
After leaving Eckstine in 1945, Vaughan
(who gained the lifelong nickname of “Sassy”)
spent a few months with the John Kirby Sextet.
In 1946 she launched her solo career and began
recording for Musicraft. She would never look
back and during the next 44 years she was
considered one of jazz and popular music’s
greatest singers.
Between 14 June 1946 and 8 April 1948,
Sarah Vaughan recorded 33 selections. Trouble Is
A Man has twenty of the best. The programme
begins with Penthouse Serenade, a vintage
ballad that has Sassy accompanied by the Teddy
Wilson Octet, a group similar to the ones that
had backed Billie Holiday earlier in the decade.
At 22, Vaughan already sounds quite mature,
using space well and showing restraint along
with youthful enthusiasm. Pianist Wilson has a
nice spot while the arrangement for the band
(with Scoville Brown’s clarinet in the lead) is a bit
reminiscent of the John Kirby Sextet. You’re
Blasé seems pretty straightforward until one
compares Vaughan’s reading of the melody to
how the song usually goes. The Georgie Auld big
band provides the backing, sounding a little
boppish.
The next five selections have the singer joined
by bands headed by trumpeter George
Treadwell. Treadwell and Vaughan were married
on 16 September 1946. Although their marriage
did not last, the trumpeter was a major asset
early on in building up Vaughan’s career and he
taught her about aspects of show business that
helped her become more famous. Everything I
Have Is Yours (a big hit for Billy Eckstine) and
Body And Soul feature backing by a small group
with Treadwell briefly heard from and Vaughan’s
favorite pianist Jimmy Jones doubling on celeste
on the former song.
Moving up to 1947, the sixteen-piece George
Treadwell Orchestra accompanies Sassy on three
magnificent performances. I Cover The
Waterfront had been recorded by many other
singers during the previous fifteen years but this
version is difficult to top. Vaughan’s perfect
control, her subtle variations on the melody and
her essaying of the unexpected key changes are
quite a feat, sounding much easier than it really
is. Sassy was the first to record Tenderly and this
rendition (which starts out as a waltz) was her
first hit, remaining in her repertoire for many
years. Don’t Blame Me has Vaughan sticking to
the words but making many surprising choices of
notes, almost completely reinventing the melody
and showing that she could do practically
anything with her voice.
As 1947 progressed, Sarah Vaughan was
often featured with large anonymous orchestras
arranged by Ted Dale. She stretched herself
beyond jazz, most notably on Sometimes I Feel
Like A Motherless Child. It has often been said
that Sassy could have sung opera if the times had
been different and that had been her choice.
One can hear the potential on this emotional
performance. But fortunately for jazz and
popular music, opera was not in Sassy’s future.
I Can’t Get Started and Alec Wilder’s
Trouble Is A Man benefit from Vaughan’s
interpretations even if the backing is sometimes a
bit eccentric. Love Me Or Leave Me (originally
associated with Ruth Etting) has a prominent
role for Sam Musiker’s clarinet along with a
particularly colorful arrangement. Sassy displays
her powerful voice on a medium-slow The Man I
Love, creating some remarkable intervals during
the last part of the song. The double-timing
drum patterns of Cozy Cole set the atmosphere
for I Get A Kick Out Of You while Vaughan
sounds exuberant during The One I Love
Belongs To Somebody Else, neglecting the
meaning of the melancholy words in favour of
the joy of singing with that voice of hers. It’s
You Or No One, a song that Doris Day
introduced, is taken at a slower tempo than
usual with Sassy joined by Richard Maltby’s
orchestra.
For her last session of 1947 before a
recording strike kept musicians off records
during much of 1948, Vaughan is backed by a
jazz quartet that includes pianist Jimmy Jones
and guitarist John Collins. She swings happily
during What A Difference A Day Made a dozen
years before Dinah Washington had her giant
hit, and puts plenty of feeling into Once In A
While. These performances give listeners a good
idea what it sounded like to see Sarah Vaughan
in clubs during this period.
While the recording strike resulted in few
records being made in 1948, there were some
unusual attempts that involved only singers and
no union musicians. For what would be her final
Musicraft date, Vaughan is joined by the Earl
Rodgers Choir for a cappella versions of the
recently composed Nature Boy (a minor hit for
Sassy but a major one at the same time for Nat
King Cole) and a unique version of I’m Glad
There Is You. These are rather unusual and
haunting performances that are Vaughan’s only
studio recordings of 1948.
To end this programme on a swinging note,
Vaughan is heard once again with Ted Dale’s
orchestra on the happy I Feel So Smoochie.
In 1949, the singer signed with the Columbia
label, a major step forward in her rise to
international stardom. Up until the time of her
death on 3 April 1990, she was one of the top
attractions in jazz. Even fifteen years after her
death, few vocalists have come close to reaching
the heights of the great Sarah Vaughan.
Scott Yanow
Author of 8 jazz books including Jazz On Film, Swing,
Bebop, Trumpet Kings and Jazz On Record 1917-76
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