Anything Goes: Capitol Sings Cole Porter Review by Alex Henderson - AllMusic
In the '40s, '50s, and '60s, the Cole Porter songbook was a high priority at Capitol Records. The company's A&R people realized that Porter's songs -- like the songs of Irving Berlin, Rodgers & Hart, and George Gershwin -- had many different possibilities. The same Porter standard that received an improvisatory jazz workout from one Capitol artist was likely to receive a straight pop treatment from another. This compilation, which Capitol assembled in 1991, finds a variety of singers from the '40s, '50s, and '60s turning their attention to the Porter songbook. Traditional jazz-influenced pop dominates the CD, but there are several jazz selections as well. Jazz's cool school is nicely represented by June Christy on "Every Time We Say Goodbye" and Chris Connor on a previously unreleased performance of "I Get a Kick out of You," and improviser Annie Ross is characteristically playful on "All of You." But most of the time a traditional pop outlook prevails. And the artists read like a who's who of pre-rock pop -- artists like Jo Stafford on "Wunderbar," Dean Martin on "True Love," Dinah Shore on "It's All Right With Me," and Peggy Lee on "From Now On." Meanwhile, Nat King Cole (who was capable of singing both jazz and pop) lets his pop side prevail on "Just One of Those Things." So, what makes Stafford and Martin pop and Christy, Ross, and Connor jazz? Essentially, it comes down to one thing: improvisation. Christy and Connor improvised, whereas Stafford and Martin demonstrated that a vocalist could swing without doing a lot of improvising. Surprisingly, this CD doesn't contain anything by Frank Sinatra, who did some of his best work at Capitol. But even so, Anything Goes: Capitol Sings Cole Porter is a gem-laden collection that Porter enthusiasts should make a point of hearing.
077779636129
CDP 7 92361 2
Capitol Jazz, 1991
Country: US
Good condition
C06
