Search - Ruth O'Lay :: Easy Living

OLAY!!! The Great Ruth!!!

HP Cohen | 01/29/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ruth Olay was one of the finest cabaret singers ever!! It is great that there is a CD out from her "Easy Living" LP, although it is not her best recording. She made a number of recordings for various labels in the fifties and sixties and seventies. Just having a Ruth Olay CD is great. And there are some remarkable cuts on this CD.



Watching Ruth in person was mesmerizing!! I was lucky enough to know her and I saw her perform dozens of times at various venues around the Los Angeles area in the sixties and seventies. She was always in fine fettle no matter the size of the room (Beverly Hills Ye Little Club was a major setting for her for a long time.) She should have been a major singer because she had more talent than the majority of those who hit it big in those days. But it was not to be.



Ruth was perfection always. Try "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans" on this recording. It is a breathtaking reading. She makes "Undecided" a true classic, although the song was not a so-called classic. Her rendition of the title tune "Easy Living" is one of the best ever recorded. "Tess's Torch Song" is another highlight. She sizzles on every note! Listen to what she does with "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child!" It is truly thrilling.



It is my hope that more of her great recordings will find their way onto CD's. In the meantime thanks to Mercury for this Japanese reissue. For anyone who loves a fine female vocalist, try the great Ruth Olay!!"