Soulful, Torchy Billie - Live
Peter | East of Los Angeles | 12/06/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"A good compilation of Lady's live performances at various club dates in the mid to late '40s. Standouts include her rendition of Ellington's "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me" and a heart-rending version of "You Better Go Now". These two songs show when Billie is at her souful torchy best, no one holds a light to her. Some songs such as "Maybe You'll be There" and "I Wonder Where Our Love Has Gone" are rare gems in the Holiday catalog that she doesn't perform often enough. Only factor that keeps this CD from attaining 5 star status is the scratchy sound quality of the recordings, but that shouldn't come as a surprise since the date of the recordings are more than 50 years old. Storyville Records should have done a better job at removing the hisses and scratches from the sound. Still, Billie's performances on this live CD make it worthwhile. Her warm, caressing vocals on "You Better Go Now" alone makes the purchase price worth it. Strongly recommended."