Search - Frances Faye :: No Reservations: Capitol Years

Fabulous Frances Faye

Tyler Alpern | 06/12/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"No Reservations is one of Faye's best studio albums. The singles added to the CD do not show Faye at her best. The sound on this CD is the best of all Faye CDs. If you are looking for more Faye after falling in love with Caught in the Act this is a good choice though No Regrets has all these tracks and twice as many more. Significant for Will Friedwald's postive liner notes. He has come to enjoy Faye after writing bad reviews of her work in 2 of his earlier books."

I'm crazy 'bout Fayze

Dr. Jules Black | Queensland, Australia | 11/25/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have waited for this CD since their invention, my original LP having been ravaged by both time and playing, and being long out of print. Frances Faye (aka Fayze), a cousin of Danny Kaye, was in her heyday in the 50's and 60's. In the style of the "red-hot mamas", she really belted out her songs on the keyboard as she sang. She was the first openly gay entertainer I'd heard, and it was years before others dared follow her out of the closet. This added a certain frisson of sexual excitement and ambiguity to her singing style. (For example, in her interpretation of Gershwin's "The Man I Love", when she performed this over the years, the gap between the words, "I'll do my best to make him", and "stay" lengthened.) Only a true artist like Fayze can get away with daring to take such hallowed songs from the great American Songbook such as "Summertime", "Night and Day" and "The Man I Love" and perform them uptempo plus with Latin rhythms as well. She succeeds admirably. To my delight there are 11 bonus tracks, many I'd never heard before and some she used to perform in her popular nightclub act around the world. If you dig songs from that era, that is, of beautiful melodies with clever lyrics stylishly performed, then this disc is for you. She is surrounded by wonderful jazz musicians. Sample some of the sound bytes. Highly recommended."