Biography

Captivating and sultry, Lena Horne weaves a web of seduction in the slow-as-molasses “I Got It Bad And That Ain’t Good,” and then ups the ante and sweet-talking fantasy in the trumpet and vibraphone-infused classic “Honeysuckle Rose,” before vamping up the heat with the samba groove of “Old Devil Moon.” By the time she demands for her suitor to “Take Me,” you are in all the way.

Timeless and tender, urgent and insistent, Lena Horne is the quintessential triple-threat bombshell: singer, dancer, and actress. From the infamous Cotton Club, to television, to Hollywood and beyond, Ms. Horne placed her indelible stamp across the American pop culture landscape, and that essence is captured to perfection on this superb collection.

From vocal jazz, to traditional Pop, to Broadway, there is something in Horne’s bag of magic for everyone. “Lady Is A Tramp” receives her special treatment here, while “Papa Don’t Preach to Me” and “Meditating” demonstrates Horne’s ability to not just sing a song, but to truly inhabit it, making you want to come with her wherever she may lead. “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love” she coos apologetically, but at that point she could sell you swampland in Florida.

-Paul Clifford
"Killer Tracks" review
the Direct Buzz, May 2010