Search - Doris Drew :: Delightful Doris Drew

One of the finest and most forgotten jazz vocal sessions

Aaron B. | 06/07/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the 1950's there were so many untalented middle of the road pop stars like Teresa Brewer, Joni James, Patti Page, the list could go on and on. However there were a few truly terrific jazz oriented pop singers who emerged in the 50's, that didn't sell out to tunes like "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?". Many superior jazz oriented pop singers like Rosemary Clooney or Lena Horne are still remembered today. Than there were the jazz singers like Anita O'Day, and June Christy who aren't as famous today as they should be, but people still remember them. Well the most obscure of all of the good jazz and pop singers that emerged in the 50's are singers like Joy Bryan, Jeri Southern, Carol Sloane, and Doris Drew, who all didn't sell out to fads in the 50's, they sang popular songs with jazz bands(Marty Paich, et. al.), and kept good music alive for adults, they didn't reduce themselves to singing "kiddie pop". This CD re-issued by V.S.O.P., is exellent. Drew starts out swinging lightly to Doris Day's(another good pop singer) big hit with Les Brown, "I Got The Sun In The Morning." Drew is an expressive singer with a lovely range, she has her own sound and doesn't copy other "cool" singers like Chris Connor or June Christy. Every tune on this CD is a gem, wonderfully arranged by Marty Paich(Mel Torme's reguler arranger). Miss Drew is backed by some more than able jazz greats, and Paich's arrangements allow for brief solos, but the main reason to pick up this cd, is for Drew who is a superior jazz oriented vocalist, she's in prime form thoughout this highly enjoyable re-issue. It's a shame Drew didn't record more often, too bad for us. At least we have this gem of a cd. Also the original cover art work is great. Thanks V.S.O.P., for another wonderful jazz re-issue."

Wonderful fifties west coast jazz that holds up today

larabbit@AOL.com | california USA | 08/23/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Doris Drew a jazz vocalist in the fifties made this great recording with some of the finest west coast jazz recording and studio men of the day. As fresh today as it was then."

Delightful and a Whole Lot More!

Tad Ulrich | Los Angeles, CA United States | 01/25/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Whenever I see an adjective like "delightful" tossed out when describing either someone's looks or ability it's like they are merely grudgingly trying to be polite, particularly nowadays when such terms as "awesome" and "incredible" are so irresponsibly cast about.



So, by today's standards, I have absolutely no qualms in throwing an "awesome" Ms. Drew's way in regard to this album. She deserves it! I'm not qualified enough to say this is one of the finest vocal albums ever, but I can tell you I own lots of Sinatra, Irene Kral, Johnny Hartman, "Lucky Lucy Ann" and Etta Jones and I can tell you "Delightful Doris Drew" ranks right up there with all those. Yeah, it's that good!



When you have someone of the caliber of Mary Paich arranging for you and also bringing in a quintet of outstanding jazz performers to help the proceedings, it's hard to go wrong. As Aaron B already stated, every performance is a gem and this is one of those rare sessions where I just can't pick out a favorite track, though I find "I Love You" particularly moving. Most of the selections are ballads though there are four up tempo tunes for a nice overall balance.



Ms. Drew is max tasteful and projects just the right amount of feeling and dynamics without overdoing anything. Her voice is beautiful with wonderful range and projection with just a bit more piquancy than Lucy Ann Polk gave to her own outstanding Mode/VSOP album, "Lucky Lucy Ann."



The audio quality is excellent, particularly given that the album was recorded in 1957 (by engineering legend Bones Howe). My only gripe is that the ballads were remastered at a higher volume level than the up tempo tunes.



Delightful Doris Drew comes highly recommended by me as are so many other fine releases from the excellent VSOP/Mode Records catalog."