Anita O'Day Let Me Off Uptown CD - Import

The 1999 reissue of this title (CK 65625) is a major addition to Anita O'Day's catalog and, secondarily, to Roy Eldridge's and Gene Krupa's CD profile. Anyone who has heard the previous releases of Krupa's music from the early '40s on Columbia and OKeh knows how problematic they are -- the masters sound rough, and the band wasn't half as good as O'Day or trumpet man Roy Eldridge, who came aboard just about when O'Day did and deserves as much credit for its success as she does. Every previous CD release has had a harsh sound and texture that made listening to O'Day, fine as she was, a chore in that setting. Not so this edition, which is sweet and almost lyrical in timbre and brings forth the sultry quality in her singing. O'Day was always known for her "rhythm numbers," and most of this CD just bounces along with a sound that's not too far removed from rhythm & blues, as she and the band keep the beat moving. Reissue producer Nedra Olds-Neal has made the stuff truly sound better than it did on the day of its release, balancing the percussive texture of Krupa's work (and his brief drum solo on "Green Eyes" is a complete mistake), the band's fundamentally broad sound, and O'Day's sweet, sultry tone and sexy enunciation. On "Slow Down" you can even make out the cymbals clearly over the ensemble passages, the detail is so crisp, but there's also a smoothness to the sound that the digital remastering this time out has rescued. The result is a CD that's not only essential to any of O'Day's fans, but to Eldridge's audience (check out his acrobatics on "Watch the Birdie") and Krupa's fans as well. ~ Bruce Eder

Recorded between 1941 & 1945.

Buddy Stewart (vocals); Gene Krupa & His Orchestra.

Personnel: Anita O'Day (vocals); Roy Eldridge (vocals, trumpet); Buddy Stewart (vocals); Frank Worrell, Ed Yance, Teddy Walters, Ray Biondi (guitar); Buddy Wise, Clint Neagley, Harry Terrill, Mascagni Ruffo, Sam Listengart, Adrian Tei, Rex Kittig, Jimmy Migliore, Joe Koch, Johnny Bothwell (alto saxophone); Walter Bates, Don Brassfield, Sam Musiker, Charlie Kennedy, Charlie Ventura (tenor saxophone); Graham Young, Tony Russo, Torg Halten, Don Fagerquist, Joe Triscari, Vince Hughes, Norman Murphy, Al Beck, Shorty Sherock, Mickey Mangano (trumpet); Dick Taylor , Pat Virgadamo, Nick Gaglio, John Grassi, Greg Phillips, Leon Cox, Jay Kelliher, Tommy Pedersen, Babe Wagner (trombone); Joe Springer, Bob Kitsis, Milt Raskin, Teddy Napoleon (piano); Gene Krupa (drums).

Liner Note Author: Tony Watts.

Recording information: 03/12/1941-10/23/1945.

Personnel includes: Anita O'Day (vocals); Roy Eldridge (vocals, trumpet);