Blossom Dearie

Blossom Dearie's fizzy, girlish voice is justly famous, yet it's how she uses it with her jazzy piano playing that really make her a superior cabaret singer. Here, Verve tries to boost Dearie's sound by having her sing Broadway tunes while surrounded by Russ Garcia's orchestra. It's not Dearie or Garcia's fault, but this doesn't work half as well as her small group jazz sets. The setting stretches the limits of her range and very few of the "wink-wink"-style lyrics measure up to her usual material. However, there are some standout tracks including "The Gentleman is a Dope" (check out her great piano work on this one).