 Sarah Vaughan It's no exaggeration to say that Sarah Vaughan possessed one of the best voices ever to sing music, but it's also been pointed out that her tendency toward vibrato-abuse sunk a good percentage of what otherwise would have been a career full of utterly amazing vocals. Her voice was not subtle, but in its range it approached operatic in terms of color and shading. If only she'd have cut out the damn warbling! It's almost as though she's mocking me personally. I'm lucky to get some accidental vibrato at the end of "Bicycle Built For Two" when I'm singing in the shower, furiously ejaculating into the bathtub spout and wincing from the pain as my erection experiences bloody tearing and infection from all the rust. Sarah Vaughan In Hi-Fi collects some relatively early performances (1949-52), several years before her huge stardom and years before the sheer indulgence period. These sides are jazzy pop songs, not quite as daring and interesting as Sarah's Mercury recordings. In fact, I've yet to find the "great" Sarah Vaughan disc, as each one seems hampered by being either musically dated, vocally indulgent, or spotty in song choice. In Hi Fi is a good album, very likely a classic to jazz vocal aficionados, but it's pretty flatly paced and perhaps not the best place to acquaint yourself with the voice they called "Sassy." The best tracks ("Can't Get Out of This Mood," "It Might as Well Be Spring," "Goodnight My Love," "Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year") show off Sarah's range and her incredible control of dynamics – the performances can't be faulted. The big drawback is that the whole affair sounds sort of like one of those Sunday afternoon jazz shows you sometimes stumble upon on the radio, where they keep playing stuff from 1930 through 1950 and you start feeling like you're in a nursing home. It is undeniably great music, but among my many jazz vocal CDs, it's not one I find myself returning to for pleasure all that often (unlike that bathtub spout). The backing musicians include such names as Miles Davis, Tony Scott, and Freddie Green, among others, with new Miles solos unearthed on some of the alternate takes!!!!! All those exclamation points are sarcastic, because only a frickin' idiot would buy a Sarah Vaughan album for the prospect of hearing a short Miles Davis solo from 1950. "But you get to see his development as a musician!" Shush your mouth, or you'll get to see my development, if you know what I mean. Those bonus tracks, I should point out, also drag the proceedings down a bit, as they don't differ greatly from the master takes, so you end up coming away with the feeling that your CD player is locked on "repeat." At least they're tacked on at the end rather than put in consecutive order of recording. When I find the golden Sarah Vaughan disc, I'll let you know. She's sort of the third wheel behind Ella and Billie, but she's hipper than either, and overall a more interesting singer. Sassy fans will love this album, a showcase of her pure voice with all its swoops and tangents. Neophytes won't be too turned on, however. The line is drawn at "Pinky" (track 9), a wordless vocal that fans will cream over and others will assume is a recording of a drunk. See, I do give some jazz albums mediocre reviews! Now leave me alone and let me finish my "shower," you jerkoffs.
Review by Ulee Gold |