June Christy: June's Got Rhythm (Remastered + Expanded) CD Track Listing

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June Christy June's Got Rhythm (Remastered + Expanded) (1958)
June's Got Rhythm (Remastered + Expanded)\n\nOriginally Released 1958\nRemastered + Expanded CD Edition Releasaed August 16, 2005\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Will Friedwald's liner notes for this classy Capitol reissue attempt to finger the epicenter of June Christy's vocal magic but, as he states, comparing her to other female vocalists sometimes leaves Christy seemingly lacking in any one outstanding quality. She doesn't swing as hard (or play as hard) as Anita O'Day, she isn't as empathic as Ella Fitzgerald, doesn't legitimize her blues as well as Dinah Washington, and remains detached from the kind of tragedy that makes Billie Holiday's readings so emotionally charged. What Christy does have are confidence and smarts. Her intelligent readings, artful lyrical interpretation, and cool sense of rhythm make her performances seem effortless on the surface, but closer scrutiny reveals a musical sophistication few can match. Her work with Pete Rugolo, for example, pitted her against wild and unpredictable arrangements, but Christy's cool nature managed to keep the spotlight firmly centered on the front mic. June's Got Rhythm comes near the end of her stint with Capitol records (right before she hooked up with Rugolo again for The Song Is June!) and finds Christy in top swinging form. This reissue stays true to the original sequencing, but with the benefit of faithful remastering and deluxe repackaging. The small group setting allows Christy to take unconventional paths through (often overblown) numbers like "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" -- slowing down and speeding up the arrangement with O'Day-like abandon. "All God's Chillun Got Rhythm," as performed here, may be the most unique and adventurous interpretation this second-string standard has ever received -- creeping in tentatively then exploding into a sexy, swaggering crescendo. On the slow side, "Easy Living" brings Christy's brand of cool to bear on this Billie Holiday staple and the resulting stretched-out arrangement is luxurious and evocative. In addition to the original 11 tracks, Capitol has included a selection of four songs from Christy's conceptual children's record Cool School. This isn't just fluffy kid's stuff, though; Cool School is the most stripped-down album Christy ever made -- with just a four-piece rhythm section, and not one horn to be found. The Gershwin's "Looking for a Boy" is particularly well done, complete with Christy's cerebral rhythmic stylings and "cool as the other side of the pillow" vocal delivery. Perhaps this, and the other lavish Capitol reissues of her work, will spark some new interest in June Christy's downplayed talents and bring some light to what it is, exactly, that makes her style so effortlessly cool. -- J. Scott McClintock\n\nHalf.com Details \nProducer: Bill Miller \n\nAlbum Notes\nPersonnel: June Christy (vocals); Laurindo Almeida (guitar); Bud Shank (flute, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone); Bob Cooper (tenor saxophone); Ed Leddy (trumpet); Frank Rosolino (trombone); Red Callender (tuba); Russ Freeman (piano); Monte Budwig (bass instrument); Mel Lewis, Shelly Manne (drums).\n\nRecording information: Capitol Studios, Los Angeles, California (1958 - 1960).\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nAfter 47 years, we can retire our LPs, September 23, 2005\nReviewer: Steve Emerine (Tucson, AZ United States)\nMy 47-year-old LP of "June's Got Rhythm," bought for $3 at an Air Force BX when I was a young, single lieutenant, has been scratchy for a lot of years, but it's finally been replaced with this CD, which also features some bonus tracks from another Christy album. If you've never heard this Christy effort, it's one of her best. If you have, it's probably time to replace your LP, too. The CD reveals that the "George Spelvin" listed on the original LP as a flutist and saxophonist with June and husband Bob Cooper was really the great Bud Shank, still going strong in Tucson and around the world as he approaches his 80th birthday. Check out his new CD with Phil Woods after you've heard this one. Better yet, consider buying them both. \n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nGreat album, August 24, 2005\nReviewer: Jim Andrews "Wayne Brasler" (Chicago, Illinois USA)\nOn the way I to buying this new issue of "June's Got Rhythm" I mused at length on exactly what made and makes June Christy so special. After listening to her 50 years I still can't figure it out. How surprised and amused I was to find Will Friedwald musing on the same topic in his album notes. This is one of June's most relaxed albums, a true jazz outing with the cream of instrumentalists on a tasty menu of standards, some better known than others. "Rock Me To Sleep" and "When Lights Are Low" long have been regarded as this album's notable bookends but there is much admirable between. \nTracks have been added from "The Cool School," June's unusual collection of mostly kids' songs in a jazz setting. That should be reissued completely. The remastering here is admirable and this is music that never wears out its welcome.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nJune Christy's jazziest set, August 16, 2005\nReviewer: Ben Glenn (The nation's capital)\n\nRecorded in 1958, JUNE'S GOT RHYTHM marked a turning point in Christy's marvelous years at Capitol Records. Rather than working with the esteemed Pete Rugolo, for this session the beloved singer looked to husband Bob Cooper (a superb musician in his own right) to provide the arrangements. Cooper assembled a small group of Kenton alumni, and the resulting ensemble clearly put Christy at ease, as the results are relaxed, lilting, and arguably the jazziest recordings of Christy's career. \n\nAs with previous Christy reissues, producer Michael Cuscuna has produced a first-rate package, with superb remastering, original album art, and new liner notes by Will Friedwald. \n\nA tasty bit of 1950s West Coast jazz at its peak, JUNE'S GOT RHYTHM is simply splendid.
This jazz cd contains 15 tracks and runs 43min 2sec.
Freedb: c90a140f

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