Mel Torme Sings Fred Astaire

by Mel Torme

Overview

Though it's sometimes relegated to second or third place among Torme's best albums of the '50s (behind Mel Torme and the Marty Paich Dek-Tette and It's a Blue World), it's difficult to hear how Mel Torme Sings Fred Astaire can't be the best album of his entire career. Featuring an artist at the peak of his ability and talent, a collection of top-drawer songs from the best pop composers ever, and a swinging ten-piece that forms the perfect accompaniment, Sings Fred Astaire is one of the best up-tempo vocal albums ever recorded. Coming hot on the heels of Mel Torme and the Marty Paich Dek-Tette in 1956, this tribute to Hollywood's most stylish dancer finds Torme obliging with his nimblest and most elegant singing. Even while Marty Paich's band takes "The Way You Look Tonight" and "Cheek to Cheek" at a breakneck pace that Astaire himself would've had trouble with, Torme floats over the top with death-defying vocal acrobatics. He's breezy and sophisticated on "They Can't Take That Away from Me," ecstatic and effervescent on "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails" (matching an exuberant solo by trumpeter Pete Candoli), and even breaks out an affectionate croon for "A Foggy Day." A collection of perfect hard-swinging pop with a few ballads thrown in for good measure makes Sings Fred Astaire a masterpiece of the vocal era. ~ John Bush

Product Details

Release Date:	06/07/2024
Label:	Ultra Vybe
UPC:	4526180699675
Rank:	243090

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Mel Torme   Primary Artist,Drums,Vocals
Marty Paich   Primary Artist,Guest Artist,Piano
Jack Montrose   Guest Artist,Sax (Tenor),Tenor (Vocal)
Herb Geller   Guest Artist,Alto,Sax (Alto),Alto (Vocals)
Pete Candoli   Trumpet
Max Bennett   Bass
Bob Enevoldsen   Tenor (Vocal),Trombone (Tenor),Trombone (Valve),Sax (Tenor)
Vincent DeRosa   French Horn
Albert Pollan   Tuba
Jack DuLong   Baritone,Sax (Baritone),Baritone (Vocal)
Don Fagerquist   Trumpet
Alvin Stoller   Drums

Technical Credits

Ira Gershwin   Composer
Joseph F. Laredo   Liner Notes
Johnny Mercer   Composer
Tom Moulton   Mastering,Remastering,Compilation Producer
Dorothy Fields   Composer
Rick Essig   Engineer
Marty Paich   Leader,Arranger
Lyn Bradley   Reissue Package Design
Jaclyn Levine   Reissue Coordination
Abbey Anna   Reissue Coordination
George Gershwin   Composer
Irving Berlin   Composer
Jerome Kern   Composer