I can't believe this is our first Billie Holiday post, but it is. We need to go on a serious jag.
From Norman Granz in the liner notes:
Writing a liner note about Billie Holiday can, curiously, be the most effortless thing in the world, and at the same time the most difficult; effortless because the adjectives of praise come easily when describing Miss Holiday's talents, but nonetheless difficult because you're apt to find yourself saying what's been said time and time again in other albums, and, as in the case of this writer, by himself.
The same applites to describing the songs which Miss Holiday treats, because Billie is that rare artiste who cannot and will not have anything to do with a song, which story doesn't meet with her understanding and approval; literally, Billie tells her songs rather than sings them as far as the lyrics are concerned, yet, withal, treating the melody as strikingly as any instrumentalist.
As I re-read my rather sparing comments on the motions evoked by Miss Holiday in these short stories that the songs relate, I have the feeling that I have overstayed my welcome in these notes and that quite possibly the best liner notes ever written about Miss Holiday singing songs would be simply to say to the listener "this is a fact: Miss Holiday has happened to some songs" and to the discriminating listener that ought to suffice.
Oh, just one more note before we stop. We kind of threw in the "distingue" because it had a nice ring to it; actually these songs apply to all lovers.
Technical Information:
Artist: Billie Holiday
Album: Songs For Distingue Lovers
Year: 1957
Audio Codec(s): FLAC
Encoding: Lossless
Rip: split tracks + .cue
Avg. bitrate: 808 kb/s
Sample rate: 44100 Hz
Bits per sample: 16
Channels: 2
File size: 190 MB
Length: 0:33:00
Personnel:
Billie Holiday: vocals
Harry Edison: trumpet
Ben Webster: tenor saxophone
Jimmy Rowles: piano
Barney Kessel: guitar
Red Mitchell: bass
Alvin Stoller: drums
On Tracks 03, 04, 05:
Joe Mondragon: bass
Larry Bunker: drums
Tracklisting:
01. Day In Day Out (6:46)
02. A Foggy Day (4:39)
03. Stars Fell On Alabama (4:27)
04. One for my Baby (And One More for the Road) (5:38)
05. Just One Of Those Things (5:30)
06. I Didn't Know What Time It Was (6:00)
Songs for Distingué Lovers Megaupload Link