Swingin' Easy

Last updated
Swingin' Easy
Swingineasy.jpg
Studio album by
Released1957
RecordedApril 2, 1954, February 14, 1957
Genre Vocal jazz
Length35:26
Label EmArcy 36109
Producer Jack Tracy
Sarah Vaughan chronology
Sassy
(1956)
Swingin' Easy
(1957)
Sarah Vaughan and Billy Eckstine Sing the Best of Irving Berlin
(1957)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [2]

Swingin' Easy is a 1957 studio album by the American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan.

Contents

On the second chorus of "All of Me" Vaughan bops in "a quite extraordinary fashion, covering more than two octaves" (from the sleeve notes). "Pennies from Heaven" is taken slower than is usual and Vaughan creates a brand new melody the second time around, a kind of descant improvising on the original tune.

Eight of the tracks, recorded on April 2, 1954, with John Malachi on piano and Joe Benjamin on bass, were originally released that year on a 10-inch LP entitled Images.

Critical reception

The initial Billboard review from November 1957 said the album was a "commentary on Miss Vaughan's high level of professionalism and ease in jazz environment. Relaxed quality is keynote here as the singer makes the difficult sound easy." [3] The Billboard review highlighted "Words Can't Describe", which noted that it was given an "especially cogent reading". [3] Mentioning “Shulie a Bop”, “Lover Man”, and “Linger Awhile” as particular highlights, The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings says that, backed by only a rhythm section, “Vaughan is at her freest and most good-humoured.” [2]

Track listing

  1. "Shulie a Bop" (George Treadwell, Sarah Vaughan) – 2:42
  2. "Lover Man (Oh, Where Can You Be?)" (Jimmy Davis, Ram Ramirez, Jimmy Sherman) – 3:19
  3. "I Cried for You" (Gus Arnheim, Arthur Freed, Abe Lyman) – 1:42
  4. "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" (Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen) – 2:36
  5. "All of Me" (Gerald Marks, Seymour Simons) – 3:18
  6. "Words Can't Describe" (Bill Tennyson) – 4:35
  7. "Prelude to a Kiss" (Duke Ellington, Irving Gordon, Irving Mills) – 2:48
  8. "You Hit the Spot" (Mack Gordon, Harry Revel) – 3:03
  9. "Pennies from Heaven" (Johnny Burke, Arthur Johnston) – 3:07
  10. "If I Knew Then (What I Know Now)" (Eddie Howard, Dick Jurgens) – 2:33
  11. "Body and Soul" (Frank Eyton, Johnny Green, Edward Heyman, Robert Sour) – 3:15
  12. "They Can't Take That Away from Me" (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) – 2:44
  13. "Linger Awhile" (Harry Owens, Vincent Rose) – 1:00 (Bonus track not on the original LP.)

Personnel

Recorded April, 1954 and February, 1957, in New York City, United States:

Related Research Articles

<i>Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday at Newport</i> 1958 live album by Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday

Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday at Newport is a 1958 live album by Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday, recorded at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival.

<i>Sassy Swings the Tivoli</i> 1963 live album by Sarah Vaughan

Sassy Swings the Tivoli is a 1963 live album by American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan and her trio, produced by Quincy Jones. The performances were recorded in the concert hall of the Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen, over four days in July 1963.

<i>Live in Japan</i> (Sarah Vaughan album) 1973 live album by Sarah Vaughan

Live in Japan is a 1973 live album by the American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan, recorded at the Nakano Sun Plaza Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

<i>At Mister Kellys</i> 1958 live album by Sarah Vaughan

At Mister Kelly's is a 1957 live album by American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan, recorded at Mister Kelly's jazz club in Chicago.

<i>How Long Has This Been Going On?</i> (Sarah Vaughan album) 1978 studio album by Sarah Vaughan

How Long Has This Been Going On? is a 1978 studio album by Sarah Vaughan, accompanied by a quartet led by Oscar Peterson.

<i>Linger Awhile: Live at Newport and More</i> 2000 live album by Sarah Vaughan

Linger Awhile: Live at Newport and More is a 2000 album by Sarah Vaughan, featuring eight tracks recorded at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival and studio tracks from 1978 and 1982.

<i>Stan Getz and the Oscar Peterson Trio</i> 1958 studio album by Stan Getz

Stan Getz and the Oscar Peterson Trio is a 1958 studio album by Stan Getz, accompanied by the Oscar Peterson Trio.

<i>All or Nothing at All</i> (album) 1958 studio album by Billie Holiday

All or Nothing at All is a studio album by Billie Holiday, released in 1958 on Verve Records, catalog MGV8329. There are 12 songs on the LP taken from five different recording sessions that took place in 1956 and 1957. Holiday was backed by a "relaxed and understanding" small combo which included the trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison and the saxophonist Ben Webster. A 1959 New York Times article noted that Holiday's voice "had become a very limited instrument which she used with the craft and guile of an aging pitcher who can no longer pour his fast one across the plate."

<i>The Genius of Coleman Hawkins</i> 1957 studio album by Coleman Hawkins

The Genius of Coleman Hawkins is a 1957 album by tenor saxophonist Coleman Hawkins, featuring the Oscar Peterson quartet.

<i>The Standard Sonny Rollins</i> 1965 studio album by Sonny Rollins

The Standard Sonny Rollins is an album by jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins, his last release for RCA Victor, featuring performances by Rollins with Herbie Hancock, Jim Hall, David Izenzon, Teddy Smith, Stu Martin, Bob Cranshaw and Mickey Roker.

<i>The King Cole Trio</i> (album) 1944 studio album by Nat King Cole

The King Cole Trio is a series of albums by jazz pianist Nat King Cole's King Cole Trio released by the Capitol Records label. These were Cole's debut commercial recordings.

<i>Helen Merrill</i> (album) 1955 studio album by Helen Merrill

Helen Merrill is the debut studio album by vocalist Helen Merrill, on which she is accompanied by trumpeter Clifford Brown in arrangements by Quincy Jones. Brown had recorded a similar album with Sarah Vaughan only a few days previously, on December 16 and 18, 1954.

<i>Plays and Plays and...</i> 1957 studio album by Dave Brubeck

Plays and Plays and... is a jazz album by pianist Dave Brubeck. It's Brubeck's second solo piano album. It was originally released on Fantasy Records in 1957. The cover artwork was created by Arnold Roth.

<i>Dizzy Digs Paris</i> Album by Dizzy Gillespie

Dizzy Digs Paris is a compilation album by trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and his band featuring concert and studio performances recorded in Paris in 1953 and originally released on the French Disques Vogue and Blue Star labels. Many of the tracks were first released as 78 rpm records but were later released on albums including Dizzy Over Paris (Roost) and Dizzy Gillespie and His Operatic Strings Orchestra (Fontana). The album also includes eight tracks recorded by Dizzy's rhythm section led by Wade Legge but without Gillespie that were originally released on a 10" album.

<i>The Chase!</i> 1970 live album by Dexter Gordon and Gene Ammons

The Chase! is a live album by the saxophonists Dexter Gordon and Gene Ammons recorded in Chicago in 1970 and released on the Prestige label.

<i>Jazz at the Hi-Hat</i> 1955 live album by Sonny Stitt

Jazz at the Hi-Hat is a live album by saxophonist Sonny Stitt recorded in Boston in 1954 and originally released on the Roost label as a four track 10 inch LP. The original album has been expanded with additional material and released on CD in two volumes.

<i>Everybody Likes Hampton Hawes</i> 1956 studio album by Hampton Hawes Trio

Everybody Likes Hampton Hawes is the third album by pianist Hampton Hawes recorded in 1956 and released on the Contemporary label.

<i>Sketches on Standards</i> 1953 studio album by Stan Kenton

Sketches on Standards is an album by pianist and bandleader Stan Kenton featuring performances of jazz standards recorded in 1953 and originally released on the Capitol label as a 10-inch LP.

<i>The Complete Roost Recordings</i> 1997 compilation album by Stan Getz

The Complete Roost Recordings is a 1997 compilation 3-CD set of sessions led by saxophonist and bandleader Stan Getz recorded for the Roost Records label between 1950 and 1954. The compilation includes material previously released on Getz's Roost LPs The Sound, The Getz Age, the two volumes of Stan Getz at Storyville and the album with guitarist Johnny Smith - Moonlight in Vermont along with alternate takes and previously unreleased performances.

<i>Sarah Vaughan</i> (1950 album) 1950 studio album by Sarah Vaughan

Sarah Vaughan is the debut 1950 LP album of Sarah Vaughan with George Treadwell and His All Stars, 10" Columbia Records CL 6133. The instrumentalists comprised Billy Taylor Sr. bass, clarinet Tony Scott, drums J.C. Heard, guitars Freddie Green and Mundell Lowe, piano Jimmy Jones, on tenor saxophone Budd Johnson, trombone Bennie Green, and trumpet Miles Davis. The 8 songs were later incorporated into 1955's Sarah Vaughan in Hi-Fi.

References

  1. AllMusic review
  2. 1 2 Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1443-1444. ISBN   978-0-141-03401-0.
  3. 1 2 "Jazz Albums". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 25 November 1957. pp. 40–. ISSN   0006-2510.