Lee Wiley - As Time Goes By

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1991
Time: 64:17
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 147,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:55) 1. This Is New
(2:52) 2. You're a Sweetheart
(3:22) 3. My Ideal
(2:58) 4. You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby
(3:50) 5. Who Can I Turn to Now?
(3:12) 6. Can't Get Out of This Mood
(3:32) 7. East of the Sun
(3:01) 8. Limehouse Blues
(3:11) 9. As Time Goes By
(2:46) 10. Keepin' Out of Mischief Now
(4:06) 11. Stars Fell on Alabama
(3:10) 12. My Melancholy Baby
(2:59) 13. The Ace in the Hole
(4:05) 14. Someday You'll Be Sorry
(3:06) 15. A Hundred Years from Today
(2:57) 16. Blues in My Heart
(3:13) 17. Maybe You'll Be There
(2:57) 18. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
(2:42) 19. I Don't Want to Walk Without You, Baby
(3:14) 20. Make Believe

Shortly before she slipped completely into obscurity, singer Lee Wiley recorded two albums for Victor. This Bluebird CD has ten of the 12 songs from West of the Moon, nine of the 12 originally on A Touch of the Blues, and a rendition of "Stars Fell on Alabama" taken from a sampler album. Wiley, only 41 at the time of these last recordings, was essentially through with her career despite still being in prime form.

Other than "Stars," Wiley is backed by big bands led by either arranger Ralph Burns or trumpeter Billy Butterfield and mostly performs swing standards, including "You're a Sweetheart," "Can't Get out of This Mood," "Ace in the Hole," "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea," and her signature song, "A Hundred Years From Today." An excellent introduction to the work of this unusual and greatly underrated singer.By Scott Yanow
https://www.allmusic.com/album/as-time-goes-by-mw0000270890#review

As Time Goes By

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Lee Wiley - The Dawn of Jazz - the Early Years of Lee Wiley (Remastered)

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2023
Time: 37:51
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 87,6 MB
Art: Front

(3:05) 1. A Hundred Years From Today
(2:05) 2. A Tree Was A Tree
(2:56) 3. You're An Old Smoothie
(2:50) 4. I Got A Right To Sing The Blues
(2:58) 5. Hands Across The Table
(3:16) 6. Time On My Hands
(3:12) 7. Got The South In My Soul
(3:06) 8. Let's Call It A Day
(3:11) 9. Careless Love
(3:06) 10. Easy Come, Easy Go
(3:46) 11. Take It From Me
(4:14) 12. I've Got You Under My Skin

The Dawn of Jazz - the Early Years of Lee Wiley

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Lee Wiley - Music of Manhattan, 1951

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:06
Size: 155,6 MB
Art: Front

(3:36) 1. Street of Dreams
(3:11) 2. Oh, Look at Me Now
(1:49) 3. Hallelujah
(4:38) 4. Manhattan
(2:58) 5. Manhattan
(4:18) 6. Ghost of a Chance
(3:02) 7. Sugar
(3:07) 8. I've Got a Crush on You
(3:48) 9. Sugar
(2:23) 10. Anytime, Anyday, Anywhere
(3:04) 11. Oh, Look at Me Now
(2:26) 12. Deed I Do
(3:24) 13. That's for Sure
(1:42) 14. 'S Wonderful
(2:08) 15. I've Got a Crush on You
(1:26) 16. Anytime, Anyday, Anywhere
(2:30) 17. Street of Dreams
(2:52) 18. Manhattan
(1:48) 19. Deed I Do
(3:13) 20. I've Got a Crush on You
(4:02) 21. I'm Comin' Virginia
(3:47) 22. Down to Steamboat Tennessee
(1:45) 23. Baby, Won't You Please Come Home

These 1951 selections come from transcription discs and live appearances at Storyville, a Town Hall Concert, and the Rustic Lodge. Wiley was a great vocalist, often associated with Chicago Dixieland musicians. Her primary influence was Ethel Waters, and she had much in common with Billie Holiday as well.

Both had rather raw, “whiskey soaked” timbres and laid-back attacks, and made up for limited ranges and power with excellent taste, sensitivity and the ability to freshen melodies by improvising on them. She was known for her sensitive ballad performances, but sang blues convincingly as well. Her accompanists here include some fine trumpeters, Billy Butterfield, Buck Clayton, Muggsy Spanier, and Red Allen, and pianist Joe Bushkin.

She’s very relaxed and sure of herself. And she’s wonderfully unpretentious. Pianist Stan Freeman, who worked with her, said Wiley “didn’t know what she was singing half the time.” Maybe, but she interprets lyrics meaningfully, accenting words and syllables astutely. Though her vocals have a weary quality, she never gets maudlin, and there are times when she’s buoyant. By Harvey Pekar
https://jazztimes.com/archives/lee-wiley-music-of-manhattan-1951/

Personnel: Vocals – Lee Wiley; Bass – John Field (tracks: 7 to 13), Milt Hinton (tracks: 16 to 20), Mort Stuhlmaker (tracks: 1 to 5); Cornet – Jack Honeywell (tracks: 21 to 23), Muggsy Spanier (tracks: 7 to 13); Drums – Barrett Deems (tracks: 7 to 13), George Wettling (tracks: 1 to 5), Jo Jones (tracks: 16 to 20); Orchestra – Ray Bloch And His Orchestra (tracks: 15); Piano – Dave Bowman (tracks: 6), George Wein (tracks: 7 to 13), Joe Bushkin (tracks: 1 to 5 16 to 20); Trumpet – Billy Butterfield (tracks: 1 to 6), Buck Clayton (tracks: 16 to 20), Henry "Red" Allen (tracks: 21 to 23)

Music of Manhattan, 1951

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Lee Wiley - Night in Manhattan

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1951
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:16
Size: 168,2 MB
Art: Front

( 3:26) 1. Manhattan
(37:21) 2. I've Got a Crush on You
( 3:18) 3. I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance With You
( 3:10) 4. Oh! Look at Now
( 2:53) 5. How Deep Is The Ocean
( 2:50) 6. Time on My Hands
( 3:15) 7. Street of Dreams
( 3:33) 8. A Woman's Intuition
( 3:10) 9. Sugar
( 2:28) 10. Anytime, Anyday, Anywhere
( 2:34) 11. Soft Lights and Sweet Music
( 3:12) 12. More Than You Know

Sensual and dignified, sophisticated and warm, Lee Wiley has inspired outbursts of sheer poetry from many a captivated listener. Her sound induces a "marvelous," "ticklish" sensation, akin to "running your hand over a piece of fine Harris tweed," marveled producer Dave Garroway. She "blows smoke rings, each note a puff that melts into wisps of vibrato," conceptualized author Will Friedwald. Her voice and style "have long since made me extremely eager to go to bed with her," disclosed critic James Frazier. Not content with this daring confession, he also bluntly labeled her "one bitch of a singer."

Protested singer and Wiley scholar Barbara Lea: "She had more fire, more rhythm, more roughness, more silkiness, more deep personal warmth, than the job description of Pop Singer called for." Asked writer Richard Hadlock, in an open letter to Wiley, "Lee, have you ever wondered why so many… from road-tough musicians to jaded pub-crawlers, act like kids on Christmas when they hear you sing?" (Wiley did wonder.) The eulogies could go on for pages, but the point is clear enough: Lee Wiley is a singer with a certain mystique.

The Wiley mystique was generated by both personal and professional circumstances, and further fed by some willful biographical manipulation by her musical associates, her record labels, and the artist herself. Nicknamed "Pocahontas" and characterized as regal by her friends, Wiley descended from the princess of a Cherokee tribe and from an English missionary who married an American parishioner... according to publicity material. Her birth date remains uncertain - initially given as 1915, then moved back to 1910, still more recently to 1908 - and revisionism has taken over the more sensational aspects of her biography (running away from home in the late 1920s, temporary blindness after a fall from a horse in the early 1930s, a near encounter with tuberculosis in the mid-1930s, etc,).

Her looks most certainly contributed to the Wiley allure. Her brother Ted once reported that everybody wanted to marry the tall, strikingly attractive Oklahoman with corn-colored hair and olive skin. ("Everybody" included the eight-times-married bandleader Artie Shaw, whose offer was declined by the twice-married singer.) One motivation for her long retirement (from about the age of 50 until the years preceding her death from cancer, in 1975) was the apparently high price that Wiley placed on physical attractiveness. It was her contention in 1971 that "singing includes a number of things ... aside from the voice ... these girls who are trying to get up on the bandstand at forty years old ... doesn't make any sense to me."

An enigmatic personality likewise fueled the fascination. Various oral and written accounts paradoxically depict her as difficult and easy to work with; proud and/or bitter about the treatment received from the music business; heavily addicted to alcohol but outspokenly intolerant of other musicians' addictions; foul-mouthed, even unkind to other singers yet fiercely loyal to those within her own circle; hesitant while speaking though assured when singing. Friends and colleagues further portray her as a woman with a strong sense of integrity and a fierce sense of independence, traits that caused her to give up on various "golden" opportunities to further her career. The best documented of such opportunities happened in 1935 when she departed from a feature role in the top-rated Kraft radio show because its producers refused to give billing to composer Victor Young, who was then personal and musical partner.

Wiley's relatively small discography further contributes to her mythic status. Over a four-decade career, she recorded less than ten albums and about 40 singles; live and radio broadcasts make up for the remainder of her material in circulation. Thus her mystique stems not only from her biography and her persona, her looks and her sound, but also from a sort of bittersweet adoration accorded to great but under-recorded artists.
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/musicians/lee-wiley

Night in Manhattan

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Lee Wiley - At Carnegie Hall

Styles: Vocal, Swing, Cabaret 
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:09
Size: 143,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:30)  1. Intro
(2:42)  2. Back Home Again In Indiana
(0:15)  3. Announcement
(2:21)  4. When I Fall In Love
(4:35)  5. You Lucky To Me
(0:12)  6. Announcement
(2:47)  7. A Love Like This
(3:15)  8. Moon River
(0:15)  9. Announcement
(4:16) 10. Come Sunday
(3:04) 11. I'm Coming Virginia
(2:34) 12. A Woman Intuition
(4:18) 13. Sugar
(0:19) 14. Announcement
(2:07) 15. Manhattan
(3:24) 16. Someone To Watch Over Mee
(2:01) 17. Street Of Dreams
(2:02) 18. Some Sunny Day
(2:58) 19. Chicken Today And Feathers
(3:52) 20. A Ghost Of A Chance
(1:44) 21. Any Time, Any Day, Anywhere
(1:17) 22. 'S Wonderful
(1:12) 23. Somebody Loves Me
(1:26) 24. Soft Lights And Sweet Music
(2:20) 25. The Man I Love
(2:11) 26. Any Time Any Day Anywhere

Lee Wiley was a superior singer whose style feel between swing and cabaret. She gave straightforward interpretations of lyrics yet also had a strong sense of swing. Discouraged by the music business, Wiley retired in 1958 when she was still in her prime. She made a brief return during 1971-72 when she recorded a final album and performed at the first Newport in New York Jazz Festival. The latter concert has been released for the initial time on this Audiophile CD and is Wiley's final recording. Accompanied by cornetist Bobby Hackett, pianist Teddy Wilson, guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, bassist George Duvivier and drummer Don Lamond, Lee Wiley sounds in surprisingly good form. Although her voice had deepened a little, she is quite recognizable and had not declined at all. Before a loving crowd (that sounds quite delighted to get the rare chance to see her), Wiley sings 11 songs. Best are "Indiana," "You're Lucky to Me," an emotional "Come Sunday" and "Sugar." Although she forgets the words at one point on "Manhattan" (a surprise request from George Wein), Lee Wiley does quite well and exits on top. The remainder of this CD is comprised of ten songs recorded at a rehearsal in 1952 with Wein himself on piano, bassist John Field and drummer Marquis Foster. The trumpeter is listed as Johnny Windhurst but I would opt for Bobby Hackett. Although quite informal (and some of the renditions are under two minutes), this rehearsal is an important addition to the relatively slim discography of the charming Lee Wiley. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-carnegie-hall-concert-mw0000913043

Personnel:  # 1-16:  Lee Wiley - vocal;  Bobby Hackett - cornet;  Teddy Wilson - piano;  Bucky Pizzarelli - guitar;  George Duvivier - bass;  Don Lamond - drums
# 17-26:  Lee Wiley - vocal ;  Johnny windhurst - trumpet ;  George Wein - piano ;  John Field - bass;  Marquis Foster - drums

At Carnegie Hall

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Lee Wiley, Billy Butterfield & His Orchestra - A Touch Of The Blues

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:37
Size: 88.4 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 1958/1986/2012
Art: Front

[3:25] 1. The Memphis Blues
[2:40] 2. From The Land Of The Sky-Blue Water
[2:57] 3. The Ace In The Hole
[4:04] 4. Someday You'll Be Sorry
[3:08] 5. My Melancholy Baby
[3:05] 6. A Hundred Years From Today
[2:56] 7. Blues In My Heart
[3:12] 8. Maybe You'll Be There
[2:57] 9. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea
[2:43] 10. I Don't Want To Walk Without You
[3:13] 11. Make Believe
[4:12] 12. A Touch Of The Blues

Lee Wiley (vcl), Billy Butterfield (tp, lead), Nick Travis, Joe Ferrante, Tony Faso (tp), Cutty Cutshall, Rex Peer (tb), Hank D'Amico, Toots Mondello, Al Cohn, Nick Caiazza, Gene Allen (saxes), Moe Wechsler (p), Mundell Lowe, Barry Galbraith (g), Milt Hinton (b), Don Lamond (d), Al Cohn, Bill Finegan (arr).

"The stellar A Touch of the Blues pairs Lee Wiley with an exceptional band led by trumpeter Billy Butterfield, whose warm, beautiful tone proves a sympathetic counterpoint to Al Cohn and Bill Finegan's otherwise dark, melancholy arrangements. While a title like A Touch of the Blues guarantees the listener few surprises, the album consistently avoids the familiar bluesy clichés -- Wiley's sensuality and sophistication suggest emotional depths to make such gestures redundant anyway. And like her more celebrated songbook sessions, the material here is expertly selected, complementing Wiley's inherent strengths while affording her the latitude to stretch out in new directions." ~Jason Ankeny

A Touch Of The Blues mc
A Touch Of The Blues zippy

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Lee Wiley - Sings The Songs Of George & Ira Gershwin And Cole Porter

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 51:48

Size: 118.6 MB

Styles: Standards, Vocal jazz

Year: 1989

Art: Front

[3:27] 1. How Long Has This Been Going On

[3:27] 2. My One And Only (What Am I Gonna Do )

[2:53] 3. Sweet And Low Down

[3:17] 4. 's Wonderful

[3:20] 5. I've Got A Crush On You

[3:01] 6. Someone To Watch Over Me

[3:29] 7. Sam And Delilah

[3:12] 8. But Not For Me

[3:25] 9. Looking At You

[3:04] 10. Let's Fly Away

[3:11] 11. Why Shouldn't I

[2:52] 12. Hot-House Rose

[3:05] 13. You Do Something To Me

[3:25] 14. Find Me A Primitive Man

[3:12] 15. Easy To Love

[3:20] 16. Let's Do It

Lee Wiley was the first jazz singer to record a full album (eight songs in the '78' days) dedicated to the music of one composer; her "songbooks" preceded Ella Fitzgerald's by more than 15 years. The greatest recordings of her career were these four projects, the first two of which are on this Audiophile reissue. Wiley, who had an introverted and quietly straightforward yet sensuous (and somewhat smoldering) style, is heard singing eight songs apiece by the Gershwins and Cole Porter. Her accompaniment includes all-star groups headed by pianist Joe Bushkin and trumpeter Max Kaminsky (which include tenor-saxophonist Bud Freeman, clarinetist Pee Wee Russell and on four songs Fats Waller), a quartet with Bushkin and trumpeter Bunny Berigan, and Paul Weston's Orchestra. Wiley's renditions of such songs as "How Long Has This Been Going On," "I've Got A Crush On You," "Someone To Watch Over Me," "Let's Do It" and "Easy To Love" are both memorable and haunting. This reissue is a gem as is the followup Audiophile release of Rodgers & Hart and Harold Arlen songs. ~Scott Yanow

Sings The Songs Of George & Ira Gershwin And Cole Porter

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Lee Wiley - Sings The Songs Of Rodgers & Hart And Harold Arlen

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 48:14

Size: 110.4 MB

Styles: Standards, Vocal jazz

Year: 1980/1990

Art: Front

[3:11] 1. Baby's Awake Now

[3:24] 2. Here In My Arms

[2:52] 3. You Took Advantage Of Me

[3:00] 4. A Little Birdie Told Me So

[3:28] 5. A Ship Without A Sail

[2:51] 6. I've Got Five Dollars

[3:13] 7. Glad To Be Unhappy

[2:29] 8. As Though You Were There

[3:16] 9. Let's Fall In Love

[2:52] 10. Moanin' In The Mornin'

[2:40] 11. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea

[2:53] 12. Stormy Weather

[2:46] 13. Down With Love

[2:53] 14. I've Got The World On A String

[3:23] 15. Fun To Be Fooled

[2:56] 16. You Said It

Lee Wiley pioneered the "songbook" concept, for which a singer exclusively interpreted the work of one composer. Her Gershwin and Cole Porter projects of 1939-40 were major successes, as is the music on this Audiophile reissue. In a fairly straight but strangely sensuous manner, Wiley sings eight songs apiece by Rodgers & Hart and Harold Arlen while backed by a variety of all-star players associated with Eddie Condon, including pianist Joe Bushkin, trumpeters Max Kaminsky, Billy Butterfield and Bobb Hackett, tenor saxophonist Bud Freeman, and Ernie Caceres on baritone and clarinet. Although many of these songs have been interpreted countless times since, few singers have reached the emotional peaks that Lee Wiley scaled in her versions of "A Ship Without a Sail," "Let's Fall In Love," "I've Got the World On a String," "Down With Love" and especially "Glad to Be Unhappy." This set (along with the previous one) belongs in every serious jazz collection. ~Scott Yanow

Sings The Songs Of Rodgers & Hart And Arlen

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Lee Wiley - The Great American Songbook

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 77:09

Size: 176.6 MB

Styles: Jazz vocals

Year: 2012

Art: Front

[2:43] 1. I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues

[4:13] 2. I've Got You Under My Skin

[3:13] 3. 's Wonderful

[3:10] 4. But Not For Me

[3:25] 5. How Long Has This Been Going On

[3:23] 6. A Ship Without A Sail

[2:48] 7. You Took Advantage Of Me

[3:01] 8. You Do Something To Me

[3:07] 9. Easy To Love

[2:36] 10. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea

[2:48] 11. Stormy Weather

[3:03] 12. The Man I Love

[2:58] 13. Someone To Watch Over Me

[3:09] 14. It's Only A Paper Moon

[3:09] 15. Body And Soul

[2:44] 16. Time On My Hands

[3:10] 17. Tea For Two

[3:13] 18. I Don't Stand A Ghost Of A Chance With You

[3:22] 19. Manhattan

[3:05] 20. Oh! Look At Me Now

[3:23] 21. I've Got A Crush On You

[2:25] 22. My Heart Stood Still

[3:08] 23. Glad To Be Unhappy

[2:37] 24. My Romance

[3:05] 25. My Funny Valentine

Wiley was born in 1910 in Ft. Gibson, OK; early press reports claimed lineage from a Cherokee princess, as well as a birthdate five years later than the true one. Whatever her background, she began singing at an early age, influenced by the "race records" of the day by Mildred Bailey and Ethel Waters. She left Oklahoma for New York City as a teenager, and made a few demos in the late '20s before hiring on with Leo Reisman. Her first hit, "Time on My Hands," came in 1931 with Reisman, and earned her solo billing on a few radio programs. Wiley also began recording her own sides for Kapp, backed by the Casa Loma Orchestra, the Dorsey Brothers, and Johnny Green.

Her popular fortunes fell however, after the threat of tuberculosis kept her from singing for more than a year. In the late '30s, Wiley began recording sides for the Liberty music shop. The results were a series of unique sessions, each organized around the work of one composer (first the Gershwins, then Cole Porter, Rodgers & Hart, and Harold Arlen) and released on the standard catalog album -- four 10" records played at 78 rpm -- for a grand total of eight songs by each composer. These "songbook" recordings also utilized the cream of the era's hot jazz musicians, including Eddie Condon, Bunny Berigan, Pee Wee Russell, Joe Bushkin, Fats Waller, and Jess Stacy; the latter became her husband for several years during the '40s. Wiley also performed often with Stacy's big band and with smaller groups led by Condon during the '40s. She signed to Columbia in 1950 and recorded several additional albums, including the excellent Night in Manhattan. ~John Bush

The Great American Songbook

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Lee Wiley with Billy Butterfield & His Orchestra - A Touch Of The Blues

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 38:30

Size: 88.2 MB

Styles: Standards, Vocal

Year: 1958/2012

Art: Front

[3:24] 1. The Memphis Blues

[2:40] 2. From The Land Ofthe Sky Blue Water

[2:57] 3. The Ace In The Hole

[4:04] 4. Someday You'll Be Sorry

[3:08] 5. My Melancholy Baby

[3:05] 6. A Hundred Years From Today

[2:55] 7. Blues In My Heart

[3:12] 8. Maybe You'll Be There

[2:55] 9. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea

[2:41] 10. I Don't Want To Walk Without You

[3:13] 11. Make Believe

[4:11] 12. A Touch Of The Blues

The stellar A Touch of the Blues pairs Lee Wiley with an exceptional band led by trumpeter Billy Butterfield, whose warm, beautiful tone proves a sympathetic counterpoint to Al Cohn and Bill Finegan's otherwise dark, melancholy arrangements. While a title like A Touch of the Blues guarantees the listener few surprises, the album consistently avoids the familiar bluesy clichés -- Wiley's sensuality and sophistication suggest emotional depths to make such gestures redundant anyway. And like her more celebrated songbook sessions, the material here is expertly selected, complementing Wiley's inherent strengths while affording her the latitude to stretch out in new directions. ~Jason Ankeny

A Touch Of The Blues

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Lee Wiley & Ellis Larkins - Duologue

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 34:55

Size: 79.9 MB

Styles: Standards, Vocal jazz

Year: 1954/1984

Art: Front

[2:27] 1. My Heart Stood Still

[2:50] 2. Looking At You

[3:25] 3. You Took Advantage Of Me

[2:36] 4. By Myself

[2:37] 5. My Romance

[3:29] 6. Give It Back To The Indians

[3:04] 7. Mountain Greenery

[2:58] 8. It Never Entered My Mind

[3:19] 9. Perfume And Rain

[3:02] 10. My Funny Valentine

[2:46] 11. Then I'll Be Tired Of You

[2:17] 12. Glad To Be Unhappy

Although only 38 at the time of this recording and still in her musical prime, singer Lee Wiley was already thought of as a has-been, and was finding it increasingly difficult to locate work. Her sophisticated, gentle, yet sincere swing style was out of favor by the mid-'50s, but she still had something to say. This CD reissue features her haunting voice showcased on eight numbers with a quartet that includes trumpeter Ruby Braff, pianist Jimmy Jones, bassist Bill Pemberton and drummer Jo Jones; the best are "My Heart Stood Still," "My Funny Valentine" and especially memorable versions of "It Never Entered My Mind" and "Glad to Be Unhappy." Although pianist Ellis Larkins, who is heard on four unrelated unaccompanied solos, gets co-billing on the CD, he and Wiley never actually meet. ~Scott Yanow

Duologue

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