She could do just about any silly old material - e.g. WHAT A LITTLE MOONLIGHT CAN DO - and make it sound as if it was important. And it was not just about her absolute mastery of timing and phrasing - there's something about that timbre of hers that just grabs you.
I have recently fallen in love with ANY OLD TIME, recorded with Artie Shaw. She comes in at 1:22, and not that I want to speak ill of the recently dead but that first line of Billie's has more content than the entire Whitney Houston discography.
There are nights I sit in my home office after writing and just let all my Billie Holiday iTunes play. Pure pleasure.
ReplyDeleteNobody ever had a more distinctive voice.
ReplyDeleteI loved the way they used her music in ROCKET GILBRALTAR, when the dying Burt Lancaster listened to her music in his room.
ReplyDeleteJeff M.
Patti - What a lovely treat! That woman and an unforgettable voice!
ReplyDeleteBig fan here, too. I often think of how she supposedly said she never sang a song the same way twice.
ReplyDeleteI think if you feel the music as much as she seemed to, it might be possible.
ReplyDeleteShe could do just about any silly old material - e.g. WHAT A LITTLE MOONLIGHT CAN DO - and make it sound as if it was important. And it was not just about her absolute mastery of timing and phrasing - there's something about that timbre of hers that just grabs you.
ReplyDeleteI have recently fallen in love with ANY OLD TIME, recorded with Artie Shaw. She comes in at 1:22, and not that I want to speak ill of the recently dead but that first line of Billie's has more content than the entire Whitney Houston discography.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GxPpTf97VI
Fabulous. I was worried she would never come in. You forget those bands wanted you to listen to them too.
ReplyDelete