Peggy Lee - Swinging Blues and Beautiful Love Songs by Peggy Lee - Blues Cross Country / If You Go (2012)

One of the most remarkable aspects of Peggy Lees many-faceted personality was her seemingly inexhaustible creativity, amply demonstrated on these two fine albums she made at the peak of her career.

On Blues Cross Country, surrounded by the cream of Hollywood studio and jazz musicians in a stellar orchestra conducted by Quincy Jones, she gives full rein to her twin talents as a nonpareil vocal stylist and gifted lyricist. Seven of the dozen songs on this album are hers. They show her in a many-hued blues moodsad, happy, wistful, celebratory and always swinging. A further great asset is the fact that, in addition to his work as director, Jones is also the arranger of all tunes except San Francisco, by Benny Carter.

On If You Go, she pours her wonderful voice like pure honey into warmly romantic and husky performances of soft, moody ballads. Jones again brings his arranging skills to the table, this time making deft use of strings and woodwinds in varied combinations on an album with songs that sound as if they were written with Peggys breathless, intimate and insinuatingly personal delivery especially in mind.