Finest Hour Personnel: Anita O'Day (vocals); Buddy Bregman, Billy May, Russell Garcia, Bill Holman (conductor); Roy Eldridge (vocals, trumpet); Bud Shank (alto saxophone, flute); Phil Woods (alto saxophone, clarinet, woodwinds); Jerome Richardson, Zoot Sims (tenor saxophone, woodwinds); Stan Getz (tenor saxophone); Doc Severinsen, Conte Candoli, Jack Sheldon (trumpet); Jimmy Cleveland, J.J. Johnson (trombone); Bob Brookmeyer (valve trombone); Cal Tjader (vibraphone); Paul Smith, Bob Corwin, Hank Jones, Oscar Peterson (piano); Barney Kessel, Barry Gailbraith, Jim Hall, Herb Ellis (guitar); Joe Mondragon, George Duvivier, Ray Brown (bass); Alvin Stoller, Gene Krupa, Roy Haynes, Mel Lewis (drums); Marty Paich & His Orchestra. Producers: Norman Granz, Hal Mooney, Creed Taylor. Compilation producer: Bryan Koniarz. Tracks: Honeysuckle Rose, Little Girl Blue, Let Me Off Uptown, An Occasional Man,Four Brothers, Tea For Two - (live), Boogie Blues, God Bless The Child, What Is This Thing Called Love?, The Ballad Of The Sad Young Men, The Way You Look Tonight, When Sunny Gets Blue, Peel Me A Grape, Sing, Sing, Sing, Them There Eyes, Anita's Blues, Sweet Georgia Brown, The Party's Over.

Anita O'Day, whose sassy renditions of "Honeysuckle Rose," "Sweet Georgia Brown" and other song standards that made her one of the most respected jazz vocalists of the 1940s and '50s, has died.

Once known as the "Jezebel of Jazz" for her reckless, drug-induced lifestyle, O'Day lived to sing and she did so from her teen years until this year when she released "Indestructible!"
In her prime, O'Day was described as a scat singer and a natural improviser whose unique interpretations energized the most familiar songs. She inspired many singers, including June Christy and Chris Connor. (I’ve chosen to review Anita’s Finest Hour at www.jazzradio247.com.)
Below is a brief bio on this legendary singer and performer:

Born Anita Belle Colton in Chicago, Illinois on October 18, 1919, O’Day got her start as a teen. She eventually changed her name to O’Day and in the late 1930’s began singing in a jazz club called the Off- Beat, a popular hangout for musicians like band leader and drummer Gene Krupa. In 1941 she joined Krupa’s band, and a few weeks later Krupa hired trumpeter Roy Eldridge. O’Day and Eldridge had great chemistry on stage and their duet “Let Me Off Uptown” became a million-dollar-seller, boosting the popularity of the Krupa band. Also that year, “Down Beat” magazine named O’Day “New Star of the Year” and, in 1942, she was selected as one of the top five big band singers.
After her stint with, Krupa, O’Day joined Stan Kenton's band. She left the band after a year and returned to Krupa. Singer Jackie Cain remembers the first time she saw O’Day with the Krupa band. “I was really impressed,” she recalls, “She (O’Day) sang with a jazz feel, and that was kind of fresh and new at the time.” Later, O’Day joined Stan Kenton’s band with whom she cut an album that featured the hit tune “And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine”

In the late’40s, O’Day struck out on her own. She teamed up with drummer John Poole, with whom she played for the next 32 years. Her album “Anita”, which she recorded on producer Norman Granz’s new Verve label, elevated her career to new heights. She began performing in festivals and concerts with such illustrious musicians as Louis Armstrong, Dinah Washington, George Shearing and Thelonious Monk. O’Day also appeared in the documentary filmed at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1958 called “Jazz on a Summer Day”, which made her an international star.

Throughout the ‘60s Anita continued to tour and record while addicted to heroin and in 1969 she nearly died from an overdose. O’Day eventually beat her addiction and returned to work. In 1981 she published her autobiography “High Times, Hard Times” which, among other things, talked candidly about her drug addiction. More biographical information reprinted with permission from http://www.npr.org

Recorded between June 28, 1954 and February 27, 1962. Includes liner notes by Will Friedwald. Digitally remastered by Jeff Willens (Universal Mastering Studios-East). This is part of Verve's Finest Hour series.

Upon listening to this disc, I’ve realized I’ve heard so many of the renditions of Honeysuckle Rose and Sweet Georgia Brown done by numerous singers over the course of my lifetime. Anita had such a clear and distinctive voice. She also swung with passion and had a unique jazz voice, that separated her from the pact of great vocalists in her era. This woman will be missed for her unique musical contributions to the Jazz canon.
The album Anita’s Finest Hour is a compilation of many of her great performances over the last several decades. It was released in 2000, but captures her performances with the Marty Paich Orchestra, Bill Holman, and a who’s who in Jazz including Phil Woods, Jerome Richardson, Barney Kessel to name just a few.

This compilation is part of series of Verve releases that features highlights of Anita’s amazing career. Some of the highlights include her duet with Roy Eldridge on “Let Me off the Uptown” and “Honeysuckle Rose”. As I was listening to Anita, I guess I never realized her deep association with so many of the legends in the Jazz business. She is represented by some of the best arrangers and bands in the music business. These musicians make her unique vocal renditions just stand out all the more.

What really intrigues me about her voice is her uncanny sense of reliable pitch, and her expressive quality. Her tone so strikingly clear and defined. There was power also, she was able to shine both in big and small ensemble collections. I wish I had been more tuned in to her music before now. Being an instrumentalist, I love vocalists, but I still am swayed by instrumental recordings. As I get older I’m learning, vocal recordings penetrate my soul deeply. Especially, by the masters of the musical phrase. Anita was one of these people.

I love so many of these performances on this compilation. I believe you will too. To think of the many people she affected in this business, is truly remarkable when I stop to think about it.

God Bless you Anita, and your music will shine in our world for a long time to come!!