[1] I'm a Fool to Want You [Edited Master] (Herron/Sinatra/Wolf) - 3:23
[2] For Heaven's Sake (Bretton/Edwards/Meyer/Meyer) - 3:26
[3] You Don't Know What Love Is (DePaul/Raye) - 3:48
[4] I Get Along Without You Very Well (Carmichael) - 2:59
[5] For All We Know (Coots/Lewis) - 2:53
[6] Violets for Your Furs (Adair/Dennis) - 3:24
[7] You've Changed (Carey/Fischer) - 3:17
[8] It's Easy to Remember (Hart/Rodgers) - 4:01
[9] But Beautiful (Burke/VanHeusen) - 4:29
[10] Glad to Be Unhappy (Hart/Rodgers) - 4:07
[11] I'll Be Around (Wilder) - 3:23
[12] The End of a Love Affair [take] (Redding) - 4:46 *
[13] I'm a Fool to Want You (Herron/Sinatra/Wolf) - 3:24 *
[14] I'm a Fool to Want You (Herron/Sinatra/Wolf) - 3:23 *
[15] The End of a Love Affair: The Audio Story (Redding) - 9:49 *
[16] The End of a Love Affair (Redding) - 4:46 *
[17] Pause Track - 0:06
Phil Bodner - Woodwind
Mal Waldron - Piano
Danny Bank - Woodwind
Barry Galbraith - Guitar
Milt Hinton - Bass
Osie Johnson - Drums
Phil Kraus - Percussion
George Ockner - Violin, Concert Master
Ray Ellis - Conductor
Urbie Green - Trombone, Soloist
Mel Davis - Trumpet, Soloist
J.J. Johnson - Trombone
Romeo Penque - Woodwind
Janet Putnam - Harp
Dave Sawyer - Cello
Tommy Mitchell - Trombone
This was her penultimate album, recorded when her body was telling her
enough was enough. During the sessions with arranger Ray Ellis she was
drinking vodka neat, as if it were tap water. Yet, for all her ravaged
voice (the sweetness had long gone) she was still an incredible singer.
The feeling and tension she manages to put into almost every track sets
this album as one of her finest achievements. 'You've Changed'and 'I
Get Along Without You Very Well' are high art performances from the
singer who saw life from the bottom upwards.The CD reissue masterminded
by Phil Shaap is absolutely indispensable.
With Holiday having only a year and a half to live when these songs
were recorded, her voice was indeed far less palatable that it had been
in her prime. (Although in fact, she actually sounds quite stronger on
these February 1958 sessions than she would in many of her still-later
recordings.) Yet what Holiday had lost in chops, she more than made up
for in increased ability to move an audience. The dramatic contrast
between Holiday's hoarse and passionate sound and the grand,
semisymphonic orchestrations (arranged by Claus Ogerman, conducted by
Ray Ellis) also help make this just about the most moving collection of
pop standards you could ever hope to hear. The repertoire is
particularly interesting in that nearly all the songs here were
associated with Frank Sinatra; perhaps the master had by now learned a
thing or two from the pupil.
Will Friedwald - Barnes & Noble
This is the most controversial of all Billie Holiday records. Lady Day
herself said that this session (which finds her accompanied by Ray
Ellis' string orchestra) was her personal favorite, and many listeners
have found her emotional versions of such songs as "I'm a Fool to Want
You," "You Don't Know What Love Is," "Glad to Be Unhappy," and
particularly "You've Changed" to be quite touching. But Holiday's voice
was essentially gone by 1958, and although not yet 43, she could have
passed for 73. Ellis' arrangements do not help, veering close to Muzak;
most of this record is very difficult to listen to. Late in life,
Holiday expressed the pain of life so effectively that her croaking
voice had become almost unbearable to hear. There is certainly a wide
range of opinion as to the value of this set. [he 1997 CD reissue adds
two alternate takes of "I'm a Fool to Want You," part of which were
used for the original released rendition, plus the stereo version of
"The End of a Love Affair" (only previously released in mono) and
examples of Lady Day rehearsing the latter song, including a long
unaccompanied stretch.
Scott Yanow - All Music Guide
A harrowing classic, Billie Holiday's personal favorite among her '50s
albums captures the singer 17 months before her death, her once honeyed
voice, scarred and weakened from punishing life, its ravages
highlighted by the 1958 session's crisp sonics and the contrasting
"satin" of Ray Ellis' sleek string arrangements. Yet it is that very
contrast that explains the power of these performances: In revisiting
its torchy standards, Holiday reduces them to their core of pain and
longing, transforming "I'm a Fool to Want You," "You Don't Know What
Love Is," and "You've Changed" into naked declarations as mesmerizing
and unsettling as a horrific accident. Any postrocker that presumes pop
standards and string sections automatically translate to "easy
listening" hasn't listened to this. This 1997 version adds unreleased
takes and a beautiful 20-bit digital transfer to extract every
shivering pang of Holiday's music.
Sam Sutherland - Amazon.com essential
recording
Lady in Satin ist ein aufrüttelnder Klassiker und Billie Holidays
persönlicher Favorit unter ihren Alben aus den fünfziger Jahren. Hier
wird die Sängerin siebzehn Monate vor ihrem Tod dokumentiert; ihre
früher so angenehme Stimme klingt verletzt und geschwächt, von ihrem
Schicksal gestraft, was noch durch die klaren Toneigenschaften dieser
Aufnahme und durch den Kontrast mit dem "Satin" der
Streicher-Arrangements von Ray Ellis unterstrichen wird. Aber gerade
dieser Kontrast beschreibt die eigentliche Kraft dieser
Interpretationen. Bei der Rückkehr zu ihren Torch-Song-Klassikern
reduziert Holiday diese auf ihre Kernaussage von Schmerz und Sehnsucht
und macht aus "I'm A Fool To Want You", "You Don't Know What Love Is"
und "You've Changed" nüchterne Erklärungen, die faszinierend und
erschütternd sind wie ein schrecklicher Unfall. Jeder Post-Rocker, der
annimmt, dass die Verbindung von Pop-Klassikern und Streichinstrumenten
automatisch zu "Easy Listening" führt, hat dies hier noch nicht gehört.
Diese Version aus dem Jahre 1997 bringt zusätzlich bisher
unveröffentlichte Aufnahmen und eine schöne 20-Bit digitalisierte
Version, die jedes Gefühl von Schaudern und Beklemmung aus Holidays
Musik hervorlockt.
