A bountiful selection from Miss Vivian Blaine
Byron Kolln | the corner where Broadway meets Hollywood | 07/28/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Here's a double helping of classic albums from Vivian Blaine, in my opinion one of the greatest songstresses of Hollywood and Broadway. Thanks to her Technicolor good looks, Blaine successfully shifted her career from band singer to movie star in the late 1940s (where she was groomed as a successor for Alice Faye and headlined several splashy musicals at 20th Century Fox) before landing on Broadway as the original Miss Adelaide in GUYS AND DOLLS in 1950. She subsequently spent most of her later life in musical theatre, nightclubs and cabaret.
Despite her lengthy, multi-faceted career, the majority of Blaine's early recorded material (aside from the film soundtrack for STATE FAIR and the cast albums of GUYS AND DOLLS and SAY, DARLING) is unavailable on compact disc. Sepia has remedied that problem with this release, which comprises two albums Blaine recorded for the Mercury label in 1956 - SONGS FROM THE ZIEGFELD FOLLIES and SONGS FROM THE GREAT WHITE WAY.
Blaine's voice is a pure classic bandstand one; lush and husky with lots of emotion and range. For these two albums, Blaine performs material she'd later use as staples in her nightclub act. She's instantly at home with such classic standards as "My Man", "Shakin' the Blues Away" (move over, Doris Day!), "A Wonderful Guy" and "Heat Wave". In a cute twist, Blaine must have relished the opportunity of laying down her own version of "If I Were a Bell", one of the numbers she never got the chance to originally sing in GUYS AND DOLLS. Strongly accompanied by an orchestra under the direction of Glenn Osser, Ms Blaine sparkles and shines on each and every track.
The disc closes with three bonus tracks ("Lonely", "Changing Partners" and "If Promises Were Made of Gold"). The first two were recorded in 1953 in London, during her stay in the West End production of GUYS AND DOLLS. A must-own keepsake for fans of this largely unappreciated theater singer. [SEPIA-1106]"
Track Listings (27) - Disc #1