Bob Dorough & Bill Takas - Beginning to See the Light

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 1976
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:58
Size: 105,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:39) 1. Simon Smith and the Dancing Bear
(5:48) 2. Better Than Anything
(6:58) 3. I'm Beginning to See the Light
(5:25) 4. A Hundred Years from Today
(2:53) 5. I'm Hip
(4:44) 6. Nothing Like You
(3:41) 7. Small Day Tomorrow
(4:52) 8. Norwegian Wood
(3:51) 9. Because We're Kids
(5:01) 10. I've Got Just About Everything

This CD reissue from Bob Dorough's label Laissez-Faire reissues a 1976 appearance at Concerts by the Sea. The pianist-vocalist performs duets with bassist Bill Takas that range from a couple of children's songs ("Simon Smith and the Dancing Bear" and Dr. Seuss' "Because We're Kids") to remakes of such "hits" as "Better than anything," "I'm Hip" and "I've Got Just About Everything." In general this concert gives one a good all-round picture of Dorough's singing and piano talents; an acquired taste that is worth developing. By Scott Yanow
https://www.allmusic.com/album/beginning-to-see-the-light-mw0000964246


Personnel: Bass – Bill Takas; Piano, Vocals – Bob Dorough

Beginning to See the Light

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Bob Dorough, Bill Takas - Sing And Swing

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:29
Size: 124.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 1984/2011
Art: Front

[4:35] 1. Everything Happens To Me
[4:41] 2. Bijou, I'm Crazy For You
[7:49] 3. When Sunny Gets Blue
[4:56] 4. Be Careful, It's My Heart
[2:53] 5. It's Not Easy Being Green
[5:43] 6. Route 66
[5:07] 7. Moonlight In Vermont
[5:44] 8. Yardbird Suite
[7:15] 9. Quiet Nights
[5:42] 10. Better Than Anything

Bass – Bill Takas; Piano, Voice – Bob Dorough.

Although neglected and underexposed most of his life, Bob Dorough is an adventurous, risk-taking master of vocalese (the process of writing and singing lyrics to instrumental jazz solos) and scat singing who has directly or indirectly influenced Mark Murphy, Michael Franks, Mose Allison, and Kurt Elling. The Arkansas native started out on piano in the 1940s, then took up singing in the early '50s (when he played for boxer Sugar Ray Robinson, an entertainer at the time). From 1954-1955, Dorough lived in Paris, where he recorded with singer Blossom Dearie. The improviser launched his own recording career when he signed with Bethlehem in 1955 and recorded the excellent Devil May Care, which introduced the defiant title song and lyrics to Charlie Parker's "Yardbird Suite." But sadly, he recorded only sporadically after that. In 1962, Dorough co-wrote "Comin' Home Baby" (a hit for Mel Tormé) with Ben Tucker, and in 1966, he recorded his second album, Just About Everything, for Focus. In the early '70s, he began writing and directing the series of educational children's TV programs, Schoolhouse Rock. Though instructional material became his bread and butter, Dorough recorded obscure jazz dates for 52 Rue East, Orange Blue, Pinnacle, Boomdido, Laissez-Faire, and other tiny labels in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1997, a 73-year-old Dorough received some long-overdue attention from a major label when the Capitol-distributed Blue Note released Right on My Way Home. Too Much Coffee Man followed in the spring of 2000. His Sunday brunch residency at New York's Iridium club culminated in 2004's live offering Sunday at Iridium and, at a sprightly 82 years of age, Dorough traveled to England for a series of live dates. The tour culminated in a recording session that spawned the charming Small Day Tomorrow album in 2006. ~bio by Alex Henderson

Sing And Swing

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