Your Mother's Son-In-Law
by
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday says:
Billie Holiday came-up, rose to stardom , and changed the landscape of jazz for years to come. Listen to the fluctuation of cadence in her delivery. These bold vocal experiments are the reason why she took the Harlem club scene by storm. And "Your Mother's Son-In-Law " features the most influential, if not, the most recognizable trumpet melody of all-time. ...
Back in Your Own Backyard
jazz, swing/big band
Billie Holiday's voice sounds supernatural in this recording. She brings every line of the lyrics to life and takes you to a magical world, right behind your house. Check out these lyrics:
Oh you can go to the East
Go to the West
But someday you'll come
Weary at heart
Back where you started from
Moanin' Low
jazz, swing/big band
Amazing to think Billie Holiday was a teenager when she recorded this song - probably 17 years old. What's even more surreal is the obstacles she overcame to get to this point. And to top it off, her band included the finest jazz musicians of the day ~ Count Basie, Roy Eldridge, Benny Goodman, Gene Krupa, Hot Lips Page, Artie Shaw, Art Tatum, Cootie Williams, Teddy Wilson, Lester Young. Magic Happens.
They Can't Take That Away From Me
jazz, big band
Billie Holiday sings this song with such feeling and nostalgia, she makes this classic all her own. In fact, this is one of the first recordings of this song as it was written by Gershwin in 1937.
Swing, Brother, Swing!
jazz, swing/big band
This standard lives up to it's title, and is one of the greatest swing songs of all time. You can really hear Billie's experimentation, singing her lyrics behind the beat and making the melody all her own. Billie borrowed her style from her favorite horn players, Armstrong and Lester Young, and often said she tried to sing like a horn.
