Cleo Laine - Very Best of Cleo Laine - 34 Classic Hits

Very Best of Cleo Laine - 34 Classic Hits

By  Cleo Laine

Very Good Condition

This two-CD set may be titled The Very Best of Cleo Laine: 34 Classic Hits but it is actually a lesser reissue. Drawing its material from Laine's RCA recordings of 1974-1996, the set is pretty light on jazz despite cameos from Clark Terry, Gerry Mulligan, Toots Thielemans and Joe Williams. While the occasional jazz tracks give one a feeling of relief, most of the reissue finds Laine backed by an orchestra, sounding like a Broadway or cabaret singer, occasionally going over the top with sentiment. While Laine has always had a beautiful voice and a wide range, she was never much of an improviser and her choice of material has been erratic through the years. So, next to swinging numbers such as "Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'" and "It Don't Mean a Thing," are forgettable show tunes and throwaway songs. Nearly all of the performances are over-arranged with little of value occurring outside of the sound of Cleo Laine's voice.

Track Listing - Disc 1

 1     He Was Beautiful       

2     I Loves You, Porgy           

3     No One Is Alone 

4     Birdsong (Sambalaya)           

5     Solitude           

6     Streets of London           

7     I Don't Know Why           

8     Send in the Clowns           

9     Dreamsville 

10   Gonna Get Through           

11   Skylark 

12   Creole Love Call           

13   What'll I Do?           

14   It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)           

15   You Must Believe in Spring           

16   Wish You Were Here (I Do Miss You)           

17   Bill           

Track Listing - Disc 2 

1     Lies of Handsome Men           

2     Play It Again Sam           

3     I'm Gonna Sit Right Down (And Write Myself a Letter)           

4     If           

5     Thieving Boy 

6     on't You Tell Me Why           

7     I Remember           

8     Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'           

9     Woman Talk           

10   Sophisticated Lady           

11   Music           

12   Bess, You Is My Woman Now           

13   My Man's Gone Now           

14   I'm Beginning to See the Light           

15   A Time for Farewell           

16   Turkish Delight           

17   Born on a Friday