Dinah Washington - Jazz Profile: Dinah Washington (1997)

This set is a bit out of place in this collector's series, for it is really a gap-filler, mostly comprised of Dinah Washington recordings from her last two years that have not (with a few exceptions) been included in other CD reissues. Washington was at her best prior to 1959, but her later recordings are not without interest. Backed by an unidentified big band with occasional strings (why is no personnel given?), the music is superior to Dinah's later Mercury records and shows that she was still very much in her prime. Also obvious is how much of an influence she became on many black female singers that followed her. An excellent overview of her last period, recorded just prior to Washington's premature death, the 14 selections (highlighted by "The Blues Ain't Nothin'" and "I Wanna Be Around") are taken from six of her seven Roulette albums.