BILLY ECKSTINE | BENNY CARTER - Billy Eckstine Sings with Benny Carter (1987) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Billy Eckstine's final recording (although he would live until 1993) finds the 72-year old singer showing his age. Mr. B's famous baritone voice at this late date only hints at his earlier greatness although his phrasing and enthusiasm uplift what could have been a depressing affair. Ironically altoist Benny Carter (who was 79) still sounds in his prime on alto and he takes an effective trumpet solo on "September Song." Singer Helen Merrill opens and closes the set by interacting vocally with Eckstine on "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To" and "Didn't We." Eckstine, backed by a trio headed by his longtime pianist Bobby Tucker, does his best on such songs as "My Funny Valentine," "Memories of You" and "Autumn Leaves" but his earlier recordings are the ones to get. Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1     You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To 5:24
Cole Porter
Vocals – Helen Merrill    
2     My Funny Valentine 3:33
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers    
3     Here's That Rainy Day 3:52
Johnny Burke / James Van Heusen    
4     Summertime 3:53
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin / DuBose Heyward    
5     A Kiss From You 3:54
Benny Carter / Johnny Mercer    
6     Memories of You 3:46
Eubie Blake / Andy Razaf    
7     I've Got the World On a String 4:42
Harold Arlen / Ted Koehler    
8     Now That I Need You 3:53
Benny Moten    
9     Over the Rainbow 4:40
Harold Arlen / E.Y. "Yip" Harburg    
10     September Song 3:57
Maxwell Anderson / Kurt Weill
11     Autumn Leaves 3:44
Joseph Kosma / Johnny Mercer / Jacques Prévert    
12     Didn't We 5:25
Jimmy Webb
Vocals – Helen Merrill
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Benny Carter
Bass – Paul West
Drums – Vernell Fournier
Piano, Arranged By – Bobby Tucker
Trumpet – Benny Carter (pistas: 10)
Vocals – Billy Eckstine, Helen Merrill (pistas: 1, 12)

BILLIE HOLIDAY – 1945-1948 (1999) The Classics Chronological Series – 1040 | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Trading in the loose combo swing of her Columbia recordings for some sophisticated charts by Sy Oliver and Gordon Jenkins, Billie Holiday cut some of her best sides while at Decca during the latter half of the '40s. And even though Decca's own two-disc Complete Recordings set is highly recommended, this single volume still offers a fine overview for those not quite ready to fully commit. The absence of "God Bless the Child" notwithstanding, the mix covers most of Lady Day's Decca highlights, including "Deep Song," "Big Stuff," "Porgy," and her own "Don't Explain." There's also some quality duet work with Louis Armstrong and fine contributions from clarinetist Edmond Hall, trumpeter Billy Butterfield, and guitarist Mundell Lowe. A fine and generous sampling of Holiday at her peak. Stephen Cook
Tracklist :
1 Don't Explain 3:20
Billie Holiday / Arthur Herzog, Jr.
2 Big Stuff 2:55
Leonard Bernstein
3 You Better Go Now 2:32
Robert Graham / Bickley S. Reichmer
4 What Is This Thing Called Love? 3:03
Cole Porter
5 Good Morning Heartache 3:04
Ervin Drake / Dan Fisher / Irene Higginbotham
6 No Good Man 6:06
Dan Fisher / Sammy Gallop / Irene Higginbotham
7 Big Stuff 2:28
Leonard Bernstein
8 Baby, I Don't Cry Over You 3:07
Morton Krouse
9 I'll Look Around 3:11
George Cory / Douglass Cross
10 The Blues Are Brewin' 2:58
Louis Alter / Eddie DeLange
11 Guilty 3:09
Harry Akst / Gus Kahn / Richard A. Whiting
12 Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans? 6:29
Louis Alter / Eddie DeLange
13 Don't Explain 2:37
Billie Holiday / Arthur Herzog, Jr.
14 Deep Song 3:08
George Cory / Douglass Cross
15 here Is No Greater Love 2:55
Isham Jones / Marty Symes
16 Easy Living 3:09
Ralph Rainger / Leo Robin
17 Solitude 3:07
Eddie DeLange / Duke Ellington / Irving Mills
18 Weep No More 3:18
Tom Adair / Gordon Jenkins
19 Girls Were Made to Take Care of Boys 3:10
Ralph Blane
20 Porgy 2:53
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin / DuBose Heyward
21 My Man 2:54
Jacques Charles / Channing Pollack / Albert Willemetz / Maurice Yvain