Cora Lee Day / Debby Moore - My Crying Hour / My Kind of Blues (2020)

My Crying Hour
Cora Lee Day (1914-1996) was virtually unknown when she recorded 'My Crying Hour' in 1960, the only album in her brief singing career, before becoming an actress. She bore a striking vocal resemblance to another legendary Day, the immortal Lady Day Billie Holiday but her voice still has that certain intangible quality that singles her out as a rare-find on the jazz scene and is sure to catch your ear. Under the direction of pianist Jimmy Jones and with a number of skillful arrangements, Cora Lee gained the drive and confidence to sing an engaging repertoire of fragile, moving songs in the manner that came most natural to her soft and intimate.

My Kind of Blues
Debby Moore (1925-2017), who once sang with Earl Hines, was a Fifties pop singer whose light, warmly caressing voice and ability to read a lyric and phrase well showed a frank jazz awareness. It s no surprise, then, that she was able to get a quintet of this quality for this mix of blues and standards. Although the group is cast in a mainly accompanying role, it could call on Harry Sweets Edison s swinging solos and delightful backing for the singer who also contributes the novelty of whistling on a couple of tracks in a style not unlike the trumpeter s as well as Jimmy Jones s elegant soloing and Barry Galbraith s funky guitar. The result was 'My Kind of Blues,' a consistenly interesting debut album, with the singer generating her lithe, detached swing and getting her own groove going.