Search - Lee Wiley :: Complete Golden Years Studio Sessions

THE GOLD STANDARD

Andrew Velez | New York, NY USA | 05/11/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Even as I write these words I am listening to this great, great singer, and savoring an artist who never fails to satisfy. In this instance it's BACK HOME IN INDIANA, which was the last recording she made in a studio, and as far as I am concerned another essential collection for any lover of great singing. MANHATTAN NIGHTS gathers together Wiley's sessions for Columbia and other lesser known labels. Musicians loved her and she has some of the greatest accompanying her here. The songs? All pearls from the American songbook including of course Gershwin, Arlen, Porter and Berlin. There are many well known classics and lesser known gems like Porter's "Find Me A Primitive Man," "You've Got Me Crying Again" and Joe Bushkin's "Oh, Look At Me Now." The list just goes on and on, with songs and performances that will delight as long there are listeners who love great music. Although Wiley does not sound at all like Carmen McRae, their styles are similar in how they express deep feeling within a sophisticated style one might indelicately call "laid back." Theirs is simply the "less is more" approach which is probably why they never date. If you are in love, have ever been in love, are about to fall in love, Ms. Lee is one helluva companion on your way. Please, do not hesitate. Gold never came so cheaply."

Music great, remastering shoddy

JJA Kiefte | Tegelen, Nederland | 01/13/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Beware of this product. While the amount of music is more than generous and the booklet info comes with complete discographical info, the sources from which the music is drawn and the remastering have unfortunately not been done with the love and care one usually associates with e.g. JSP, HEP, Living Era or Vocalion. While I don't mind the surface noise on some of the earlier tracks (with Leo Reisman, Paul Whiteman and Casa Loma) there is evidence of added reverb and pseudo stereo on many of the later tracks with Eddie Condon and Jess Stacey (some can be compared to the four disc Eddie Condon set on JSP where these defects are not present).

The music however is non-pareil, Wiley being a wonderfully foggy voiced singer (Mel Tormé's sobriquet 'Velvet Fog' perhaps suited Ms Wiley even better), her understated delivery the lid on a volcano seething with passion.

The music is deserving of five stars, the presentation of three."