Search - La Vern Baker :: Woke Up This Morning

Lavern Is In The House

Alfred Johnson | boston, ma | 08/02/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Whatever happened to....? Readers of my music reviews know that I have spent no little time going back to "the vaults" to dig out all kinds of music from the American songbook, including music from my youth in the 1950s. And no retrospective of that period is complete without at least tipping the hat to one of the great songs from that period, "Jim Dandy", by the singer under review here, Ms. Lavern Baker. I have reviewed her early R&B and rock `n' roll work elsewhere. Here we have a more mature selection of renditions, including many classics from that American songbook. All done in that thoughtful, full-bore style that Ms. Baker made her trademark in her youth. Some very nice renditions here of "Trouble In Mind", the salacious "Rock Me Baby", the Carol King classic of my youth about youthful temptation "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow", and the one that Peggy made famous (with Benny Goodman) "What Don't You Right, Like Some Other Men Do?". Nice stuff.



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