Shoddy presentation almost trumps the music in this collection of five female jazz singers—almost, but not entirely, thanks to the timeless artistry of Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, and others. Still, even though the poor technical quality (lots of tape hiss, fuzzy visuals, and such) of some of the 23 clips compiled here can be somewhat forgiven due to source materials, the choice of songs—most previously issued—seems random; for instance, there's no explaining why some tunes were cherry-picked from two Simone performances from 1961 and '62 and others weren't (check out the Nina Simone: Live DVD for the complete gigs). Nitpicking? Maybe, but there's no excuse for omitting the names of the musicians, the dates and sources of the clips, and everything else (other than the titles and composers). Heck, the blurb on the back cover (there are no liner notes) refers primarily to Vol. 2 of the series (also newly available), which features Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Carmen McRae. On the other hand, we do get Holiday's performance of the stark and timeless "Strange Fruit," which for some reason was left off the otherwise far superior Billie Holiday: The Ultimate Collection (VL-3/06). The six Simone songs also display her remarkable range, as she puts her unique spin on a traditional British folk melody ("When I Was in My Prime"), an African song by percussionist Babatunde Olatunji ("Zungo"), and even an instrumental blues improvisation. Two appearances by Anita O'Day with Gene Krupa's band are fun but slight, while Dinah Washington's offerings include Bessie Smith's "Send Me to the 'Lectric Chair" and "Such a Night," later a hit for Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters. Optional. Aud: C, P. (S. Graham)
Jazz Voice: The Ladies Sing Jazz, Vol. 1
(2006) 61 min. DVD: $19.95. Music Video Distributors (avail. from most distributors). Color cover. Volume 21, Issue 5
Jazz Voice: The Ladies Sing Jazz, Vol. 1
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