Sunday, December 8, 2013

WARM BRANDY  -  DOLORES GRAY

YEAR:  1957
LABEL:  Capitol
TRACK LISTING:  Shangri-La,  Penthouse Serenade,  You're Getting To Be A Habit With Me,  Kiss Me,  How Long Has This Been Going On,  Close Your Eyes,  You Go To My Head,  Do Do Do,  Speak Low,  Don't Blame Me,  Isn't It Romantic,  You're My Thrill
BONUS TRACKS:  My Mama Likes You,  I'm Innocent,  Fool's Errand,  There'll Be Some Changes Made
IMPRESSIONS:  Since we're cruising into the dark nights of December and lounging lazily in front of the fireplace sounds appropriate, I thought I'd revisit one of the loungiest of lounge albums here provided by actress/singer Dolores Gray.  She never broke out of B-list status for stardom and she was never a superb vocalist but here Gray is perfectly cast for the whispery, come-hither vocals contained in this album.  Gray here is more of a song stylist than an great vocalist as she half-whispers/half-sings mostly quiet torch songs which are the audio equivalent of what used to be called "bedroom eyes".  The album cover perfectly captures what's contained inside.  As allmusic's J. Scott McLintock states:"The original selections presented all have the fireside couch in mind (with an eye on the bedroom) and, for sheer cocktail romanticism, this set has few peers."  The same website's Jason Ankeny also evocatively conjures the following image for the album:  "Gray doesn't sing so much as she curls up in the melody as if it were a chaise lounge--Sid Feller's late-night arrangements further extend the sultry, profoundly adult ambience, with hints of cool jazz that float under the surface like ice cubes." The lush strings and lightly-tapped bongos on "Close Your Eyes" is perhaps the perfect example of what this album stands for.  This is an album where the drums are played solely with brushes.  As the liner notes proudly proclaim:  "Dolores Gray draws close to the microphone and sings in a manner as intoxicating as warm brandy."  Especially as the hectic holiday season approaches, WARM BRANDY is perhaps the perfect album to put on as you wind down after a particularly crazy day.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Shangri-La,  Penthouse Serenade,  Kiss Me,  How Long Has This Been Going On,  Close Your Eyes,  You Go To My Head,  Speak Low,  Don't Blame Me
FACT SHEET:  WARM BRANDY is an album by Dolores Gray released in 1957 by Capitol Records.  The music was arranged and conducted by Sid Feller. 

5 comments:

  1. Thanks for this. It's music I was supposed to make fun of when I was a teenager in the '70s, but that I have come to appreciate more and more. I call it "vacuum cleaner music" because it's the kind of thing my mom used to play when she did housework!

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  2. That's a perfect description - I too grew up in the 70's and this was the kind of music we were definitely not supposed to like. I was lucky enough to be encouraged to like all kinds of music so I heard everything from the Kingston Trio to Jack Jones to Joe Tex to Black Sabbath! Funny you should mention your Mom's "vacuum cleaner music"; if I were to describe my mother's "vacuum cleaner music" it would've been David Bowie and Sly and the Family Stone!

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    1. Love your mother's choices! Mine was born in Cuba, so we'd get a pretty good dose of Perez Prado, Xavier Cugat, and the Latin pop of the day (Herb Alpert, Brasil '66, Mongo Santamaria).

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  3. Dolores Gray had one of the finest Broadway voices ever. The "song stylist" schtick of this album was because of Julie "thimbleful of voice" London's success. And so the Broadway Belter became the whispery lounger singer. The DVD "Dolores Gray: Bell Telephone Hour Appearances" much better represents Gray's personality and pipes.

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    1. Yes, a definite Julie London vibe. A little of that "thimbleful" can go a long way; Julie seemed to own it better than most, although Dolores Gray pretty much also nails it.

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