Solitude

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Cat No: 772031

Release Date: 19 June 2012

Label: Waxtime

Packaging Type: Slip Sleeve (CD or Vinyl)

No of Units: 1

Barcode: 8436542018692

Genres: Jazz Vocal Jazz

Release Date: 30 August 2024

Label: Number One Essentials

Packaging Type: Slip Sleeve (CD or Vinyl)

No of Units: 1

Barcode: 8436563185625

Genres: Jazz Vocal Jazz

Description
Reissue of classic Billie Holiday LP 'Solitude' + 1 bonus track, pressed on 180g vinyl and includes free MP3 album download.

After an impasse in which she mostly recorded with tightly arranged groups (for Commodore) and big bands with strings (for Decca), Billie Holiday signed her last long-term contract with Norman Granz. He had showcased her as a star with his Jazz at the Philharmonic tours in the mid- and late forties, and when he signed her as a recording artist in 1952, he tried to repeat the small group magic of her early days. She participated on various sessions surrounded by old friends like Benny Carter, Ben Webster, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Charlie Shavers and Cozy Cole, all of whom had participated on dates with her in the 1930s, plus other big names from Granz's payroll at the time, such as Paul Quinichette, Flip Phillips, Oscar Peterson, Alvin Stoller, and Tony Scott.

The results were uneven, as Billie's unhealthy lifestyle had caught up to her by this point, and would lead to her death in the early hours of the morning of July 17, 1959, at the age of 44. However, many masterpieces were made during the six years from 1952 to 1957, which were issued on a myriad of different EPs, 10" LPs, and 12" albums. On her early Columbia sides from the 1930s Billie was forced by the company to record plenty of trite songs, many of which she transformed into classics merely by her own talents and by interpreting the lyrics and reshaping the melodies.

In contrast, Norman Granz took great care in providing the singer with the very best material from the American Songbook. Thus, she was able to perform many songs by Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, etc, which she had never recorded before. Solitude included Billie's first studio sessions for Granz.

Description

COMPLETE ALBUM + 3 BONUS TRACK -180g VIRGIN VINYL - LIMITED EDITION. Specially prepared liner notes by renowned music writer Brian Morton.
After an impasse in which she mostly recorded with tightly arranged groups (for Commodore) and big bands with strings (for Decca), Billie Holiday signed her last long-term contract with Norman Granz who tried to repeat the small group magic of her early days.
Solitudewas among Billie's first studio sessions for Granz and features the singer backed by Charlie Shavers, Flip Phillips, the Oscar Peterson Trio, and Alvin Stoller or J. C. Heard.
Tracklisting
Tracklisting