Sue Raney - Late In Life

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:55
Size: 117,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:05) 1. I Didn't Know What Time It Was
(4:44) 2. At Last
(2:16) 3. Till Him
(5:02) 4. Late In Life
(2:31) 5. You Are Not My First Love
(3:10) 6. The Second Time Around
(4:07) 7. It Amazes Me
(4:36) 8. You Taught My Heart To Sing
(4:21) 9. On My Way To You
(3:11) 10. Something New In My Life
(4:58) 11. My Ideal/Long Ago And Far Away
(3:30) 12. You Stepped Out Of A Dream
(4:17) 13. When I Look In Your Eyes

I will always remember the day I was with Shelly Markham and he shared his new CD, Things Ive Learned Along the Way. He especially wanted me to listen to one of the songs he had written (with lyrics by Adryan Russ) called Late in Life. I played it and began to get tears in my eyes. It was the most moving and remarkable moment. The song touched me so much, I knew I had to sing it. A few weeks later, I called Shelly and told him that I would like their song to be the title song of my new CD. I asked him, also, if he would be my music director and produce the CD. Fortunately, he said yes and we began to choose songs that followed the same subject mattersongs that tell stories of meeting someone when you least expect ita happening that becomes the most wonderful event of someones life, and the blessing of everything one has always hoped and wished for.

Shelly became not only my producer, but also my arranger and orchestrator providing his innovative musical ideas, his devotion to making everything as perfect as possible (which he did). I am grateful to him for his great talent and enduring friendship. This CD is also a dedication to my most wonderful husband, Carmen, whom I did meet later in my life and felt, when I met him (and still feel), very lucky that we found each other. Thanks to Andy Waterman and Umbrella Media for creating a perfect studio situation, and for lending his expertise to every song. From the beginning of this project to the end result, each moment of this endeavor was, without a doubt, some of the most rewarding musical adventures I have ever had the privilege of experiencing. https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/sue-raney-albums/6252-late-in-life-digipack-edition.html

Personnel: Sue Raney (vcl), Shelly Markham (p), Jeff Driskill (as, ts, cl, fl), Barry Zweig (g), Kevin Axt (b), MB Gordy (d, perc)

Late In Life

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Sue Raney - Rain Songs

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:43
Size: 73,7 MB
Art: Front

(2:11) 1. Rain on the Roof
(2:50) 2. Blue Tears
(2:36) 3. Exactly Like You
(2:32) 4. Wanna' Laugh
(3:18) 5. My Prayer
(2:37) 6. September in the Rain
(2:49) 7. I Get the Blues When It Rains
(2:58) 8. Impossible
(2:09) 9. A Blossom Fell
(2:38) 10. Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams
(2:12) 11. The Whippoorwill Song
(2:49) 12. Rain

Blessed with a beautiful voice from an early age, Sue Raney has performed music ranging from swinging jazz and ballads to cabaret, middle-of-the-road pop and jingles. Her mother was a singer and a great great aunt had been in German opera. Raney started singing when she was four and a year later she first performed in public, at a party in Wichita, Kansas. Because a voice teacher could not be found for her daughter (because of her extreme youth), Raney's mother took voice lessons herself and then passed down what she learned to Sue. A professional before she was a teenager, Raney worked steadily in New Mexico when her family relocated and took several trips out to Los Angeles during a couple of summer vacations. She joined the Jack Carson radio show in 1954 in L.A. when she was barely 14. Raney then appeared on Ray Anthony's television program and became his band's main vocalist. At 18 she started working as a single. She had already recorded for Phillips and then signed with Capitol, recording several middle-of-the-road jazz-influenced pop dates for the company. In the 1960's Raney often appeared on television variety shows, she led her own group and became very active in the studios where her impressive voice helped sell products. By the early 1980's, she was also working as a voice teacher. In the 1990's Sue Raney has sung with the L.A. Voices and Supersax, the Bill Watrous big band and as a single in addition to staying active as a jazz educator and in the studios. Her main jazz recordings were a trio of albums for Discovery in the 1980's; a VSOP/Studio West CD features the singer on various live performances from the 1960's. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sue-raney-mn0000491082/biography

Rain Songs

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Various - Capitol Sings Hollywood

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:43
Size: 134.4 MB
Styles: Vocal, Easy Listening
Year: 1995
Art: Front

[2:57] 1. Betty Hutton - Stuff Like That There
[2:56] 2. Bob Manning - That Old Feeling
[2:41] 3. Bobby Darin - There's A Rainbow 'round My Shoulder
[1:53] 4. Dakota Staton - On Green Dolphin Street
[2:17] 5. Dean Martin - Louise
[3:01] 6. Ethel Ennis - My Foolish Heart
[3:04] 7. Johnny Mercer - If I Had A Talking Picture Of You
[3:13] 8. Julie London - It Could Happen To You
[2:39] 9. June Christy - They Can't Take That Away From Me
[3:29] 10. June Hutton - My Baby Just Cares For Me
[3:12] 11. Keely Smith - When Your Lover Has Gone
[2:48] 12. Lena Horne - Singin' In The Rain
[2:46] 13. Mark Murphy - Put The Blame On Mame
[3:11] 14. Mel Tormé - Again
[4:02] 15. Nancy Wilson - But Beautiful
[2:54] 16. Nat King Cole - Smile
[3:07] 17. Peggy Lee - Stormy Weather
[4:17] 18. Sue Raney - I Remember You
[2:06] 19. Trudy Richards - You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me
[2:00] 20. Vic Damone - Stella By Starlight

Capitol Records has one of the most distinctive buildings in Los Angeles and if a movie shows the city begin destroyed by aliens or tornadoes it usually involves the destruction of the round building that bears the company's name. Capitol was founded by songwriter Johnny Mercer in 1942, the first major label on the West Coast competing with New York City's Columbia, Decca and RCA-Victor. Starting with artists like Paul Whiteman and Martha Tilton, by the end of the decade the label was recording Bing Crosby, Peggy Lee, Les Brown, Nat King Cole, and Frank Sinatra. While the works of Crosby and Sinatra are exempt from the Capitol Sings series, you will always find familiar singers singing familiar songs, as with the title track sung by Lena Horne, as often as you hear unfamiliar songs sung by forgotten singers, such as Ethel Ennis singing "My Foolish Heart."

"Captiol Sings Hollywood" is Volume 20 in the series and one brings together twenty tracks representing a particular venue (e.g., Broadway) instead of a specific songwriter (e.g., Irving Berlin). Just be aware that if a song originated in a Broadway show that was made into a Hollywood musical then it is exempt from being included in this collection. That would explain why you may well be unfamiliar with most of these twenty songs. "Singin' in the Rain" and "Stormy Weather" are recognizable classics, and the same should be said for Charlie Chaplin's "Smile," sung here by Nat King Cole in one of the best tracks on the album. and June Christy's swing version of "They Can't Take That Away From Me." But after that you may recognize singers like Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, and Mel Torme more than "Louise," "There's a Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder," and "Again." Still you will find a few new little gems on this album, what with Sarah Vaughn's "I Remember You" and Nancy Murphy's saucy "Put the Blame on Mame." That last is from the movie "Gilda" (I mention this because I was drawing blanks on the vast majority of these tracks as to what movies they were culled from and this one immediately jumped to my mind, as did the fact that Anita Ellis sang it for Rita Haywroth).

Despite the unfamiliar songs this is still an enjoyable album, even if it is a lesser one by the standard of the Capitol Sings series. But if you like one of these albums you will certainly enjoy the rest of them. Final Note: On this album Peggy Lee sings Harold Arlen's "Stormy Weather," but on the "Over the Rainbow: Capitol Sings Harold Arlen" the song is sung by Keely Smith. So even when a song by a particular composer or lyricist shows up on more than one album, you will find different cover versions on each album. Again, this simply reflects how deep the Capitol vault is when it comes to these songs. ~Lawrence Bernabo

Capitol Sings Hollywood

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Sue Raney - Christmas Lady

Size: 106,1 MB
Time: 39:00
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Jazz Vocals, Xmas
Art: Front

01. Christmas Lady (2:57)
02. The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year (2:32)
03. A Christmas Love Song (4:31)
04. The Christmas Waltz (3:01)
05. A Marshmallow World (3:01)
06. Christmas Time Is Here - From A Charlie Brown Christmas (2:54)
07. Silver Bells (3:10)
08. White Christmas (2:35)
09. I'll Be Home For Christmas (3:29)
10. Merry Christmas, Darling (2:26)
11. We Need A Little Christmas (1:58)
12. The Christmas Song (3:17)
13. Silent Night (3:03)

Blessed with a beautiful voice from an early age, Sue Raney has performed music ranging from swinging jazz and ballads to cabaret, middle-of-the-road pop and jingles. Her mother was a singer and a great great aunt had been in German opera. Raney started singing when she was four and a year later she first performed in public, at a party in Wichita, Kansas. Because a voice teacher could not be found for her daughter (because of her extreme youth), Raney's mother took voice lessons herself and then passed down what she learned to Sue. A professional before she was a teenager, Raney worked steadily in New Mexico when her family relocated and took several trips out to Los Angeles during a couple of summer vacations. She joined the Jack Carson radio show in 1954 in L.A. when she was barely 14. Raney then appeared on Ray Anthony's television program and became his band's main vocalist. At 18 she started working as a single. She had already recorded for Phillips and then signed with Capitol, recording several middle-of-the-road jazz-influenced pop dates for the company. In the 1960's Raney often appeared on television variety shows, she led her own group and became very active in the studios where her impressive voice helped sell products. By the early 1980's, she was also working as a voice teacher. In the 1990's Sue Raney has sung with the L.A. Voices and Supersax, the Bill Watrous big band and as a single in addition to staying active as a jazz educator and in the studios. Her main jazz recordings were a trio of albums for Discovery in the 1980's; a VSOP/Studio West CD features the singer on various live performances from the 1960's. ~ Scott Yanow

Christmas Lady

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Sue Raney - In Good Company

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 1990
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:41
Size: 129,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:01)  1. After You've Gone
(5:48)  2. Mood Indigo
(5:49)  3. These Foolish Things
(3:18)  4. Love Walked In
(4:15)  5. Poor Butterfly
(3:58)  6. I'm Getting Sentimental over You
(4:08)  7. How Deep Is the Ocean?
(3:23)  8. Indian Summer
(4:51)  9. Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye
(4:53) 10. My Foolish Heart
(5:13) 11. 'Tis Autumn
(4:06) 12. The Man I Love
(3:51) 13. (Back Home Again In) Indiana/Donna Lee

Vocalist Sue Raney performs an assortment of ballads and standards in conventional singer/big band format. The backing orchestra includes several West Coast session and studio pros: trombonist Bill Watrous, drummer Jake Hanna, trumpeter Conte Candoli, and saxophonist Bob Cooper, plus arranging and piano veteran Alan Broadbent. ~ Ron Wynn http://www.allmusic.com/album/in-good-company-mw0000676537

Personnel: Sue Raney (vocals); Alan Broadbent (piano); Conte Candoli (trumpet); Bill Watrous (trombone); Dick Nash (trombone); Bob Cooper.

In Good Company

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Sue Raney - Autumn In The Air / Singles

Album: Autumn In The Air
Size: 127,1 MB
Time: 53:59
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1997
Styles: Jazz/Pop Vocals
Art: Front

01. Looking Back (5:58)
02. I'll Never Go There Anymore Time Was Medley (4:24)
03. The Song Is Ended (3:55)
04. Once Upon A Summertime/The Summer Knows Medley (3:43)
05. Here's To Life (3:42)
06. I'll Be Seeing You (3:15)
07. Autumn In The Air (4:46)
08. When The World Was Young/Young And Foolish Medley (3:47)
09. Some Other Time (2:50)
10. Why Did I Choose You (3:33)
11. They Can't Take That Away From Me (3:01)
12. This Is All I Ask (5:47)
13. Over The Rainbow (5:12)

Sue Raney, a top studio singer for years and a beloved, well-respected vocal coach, had not recorded a full showcase for quite some time before making this CD in 1997. Blessed with a very appealing voice, Raney is accompanied by pianist Dick Shreve, whose sensitivity is a major asset to the date, and, on six of the 13 selections, bassist Bob Magnusson. Emphasizing ballads that often have the theme of the singer being in the autumn of her life, Raney manages to avoid sounding dreary or downbeat. In fact, the joy heard in her voice (one knows immediately that she loves singing and that she has complete control over her "instrument") allows her to uplift and make fresh such familiar material as "The Song Is Ended," "I'll Be Seeing You" (taken at a medium tempo), "Over the Rainbow" and even the overrecorded tearjerker "Here's to Life." Other highlights include Shreve's haunting "Autumn In the Air," "Some Other Time" and "This Is All I Ask." Sue Raney's improvising is quite subtle, but even when she sings material fairly straight, her dramatic pauses and placement of notes make the music special. Available from the Spanish Fresh Sound label, this is one to look for. ~by Scott Yanow

MC
Ziddu

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Album: Singles
Size: 101,3 MB
Time: 41:14
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Jazz/Pop Vocals
Art: Front

01. What's The Good Word Mr. Bluebird (2:09)
02. The Careless Years (3:06)
03. Don't Take My Happiness (2:41)
04. Please Hurry Home (1:56)
05. Periwinkle Blue (2:19)
06. My My, How The Time Goes By (2:07)
07. The Restless Sea (3:11)
08. Everybody Loves My Baby (2:51)
09. I Don't Look Right Without You (1:56)
10. Swingin' In A Hammock (2:05)
11. The Word Got Around (2:01)
12. One-Finger Symphony (2:28)
13. Wait Until Dark (2:05)
14. Parade (2:17)
15. Early Morning Blues And Greens (2:44)
16. Knowing When To Leave (2:33)
17. Til There Was You (2:36)

Blessed with a beautiful voice from an early age, Sue Raney has performed music ranging from swinging jazz and ballads to cabaret, middle-of-the-road pop and jingles. Her mother was a singer and a great great aunt had been in German opera. Raney started singing when she was four and a year later she first performed in public, at a party in Wichita, Kansas. Because a voice teacher could not be found for her daughter (because of her extreme youth), Raney's mother took voice lessons herself and then passed down what she learned to Sue. A professional before she was a teenager, Raney worked steadily in New Mexico when her family relocated and took several trips out to Los Angeles during a couple of summer vacations. She joined the Jack Carson radio show in 1954 in L.A. when she was barely 14. Raney then appeared on Ray Anthony's television program and became his band's main vocalist. At 18 she started working as a single. She had already recorded for Phillips and then signed with Capitol, recording several middle-of-the-road jazz-influenced pop dates for the company. In the 1960's Raney often appeared on television variety shows, she led her own group and became very active in the studios where her impressive voice helped sell products. By the early 1980's, she was also working as a voice teacher. In the 1990's Sue Raney has sung with the L.A. Voices and Supersax, the Bill Watrous big band and as a single in addition to staying active as a jazz educator and in the studios. Her main jazz recordings were a trio of albums for Discovery in the 1980's; a VSOP/Studio West CD features the singer on various live performances from the 1960's. ~by Scott Yanow

Singles

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The Chuck Berghofer Trio - The Film Music Of Ralph Rainger: Thanks For The Memory

Size: 184,2 MB
Time: 78:36
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2008
Styles: Jazz
Art: Front

01. Miss Brown To You ( 5:09)
02. Easy Living ( 5:47)
03. Sweet Is The Word For You ( 5:02)
04. Please ( 4:32)
05. Blue Hawaii ( 4:21)
06. If I Should Lose You (Feat. Sue Raney) ( 5:04)
07. Havin' Myself A Time ( 4:20)
08. Faithful Forever ( 4:08)
09. June In January ( 5:24)
10. Moanin' Low ( 4:39)
11. Here Lies Love ( 5:52)
12. I Wished On The Moon ( 5:29)
13. Love In Bloom ( 4:12)
14. Thanks For The Memory (Feat. Sue Raney) ( 3:45)
15. For These Memories...Thanks! (10:44)

Personnel: Jan Lundgren (p), Chuck Berghofer (b), Joe La Barbera (d), Sue Raney (vcl on #6 & 14)

Following his tribute to film composer Bronislau Kaper, record producer Dick Bank has turned his attention to another great talent who’s overdue for recognition. Ralph Rainger was a virtuoso pianist who enjoyed a fruitful collaboration with lyricist Leo Robin at Paramount Pictures in the 1930s. The result was a cavalcade of hit songs, many of which went on to become standards and also jazz perennials, including…

“Easy Living,” “I Wished on the Moon” (lyric by Dorothy Parker), “If I Should Lose You,” “Blue Hawaii,” “Love in Bloom,” “Please,” and “Thanks for the Memory.” (Rainger is less recognized as a pioneer in film scoring, as he often worked without credit in the early 1930s, when multiple composers would contribute to a movie’s underscore.)

To interpret the selections, Bank called on three of the finest jazz players in Los Angeles: pianist Jan Lundgren, drummer Joe La Barbera, and the great bassist Chuck Berghofer, who has never served as a leader on a record date—until now. Appropriately enough, he states the melodic line on several of these tunes, giving them a fresh, lively approach. This is impeccably tasteful straight-ahead jazz.

In addition to the titles mentioned above, the disc includes “Moanin’ Low,” Rainger’s first hit, with words by Howard Dietz, “Faithful Forever” from Max Fleischer’s animated feature Gulliver’s Travels, and many others.

A bonus track features Rainger in a rare, somewhat “canned” radio interview from 1937 that concludes with the composer playing a florid piano rendition of “Love in Bloom.” Then he and Leo Robin perform the same song at a famous 1940 ASCAP concert that took place in San Francisco.

An accompanying booklet fills us in on Ralph Rainger’s life and untimely death, and includes some publicity articles that appeared under his and Leo Robin’s byline in the 1930s along with photos and sheet music covers. I can’t think of a better tribute to an unsung figure from Hollywood’s—and popular music’s—golden age. ~Leonard Maltin

The Film Music Of Ralph Rainger

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Sue Raney - Sue Raney Volume II

Styles: Vocal Jazz

Year: 2004

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 48:38

Size: 111,7 MB

Art: Front

(2:22)  1. Someone To Watch Over Me

(1:57)  2. I Hear Music

(2:10)  3. Trouble Is A Man

(2:59)  4. Breezin Along With The Breeze

(2:36)  5. Little Girl Blue

(2:24)  6. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams

(1:28)  7. Deed I Do

(1:59)  8. Love Me Or Leave Me

(1:56)  9. No Place To Go

(2:41) 10. Five Definitions Of Love

(2:47) 11. With A Little Help From My Friends

(2:58) 12. My Love Is A Wanderer

(3:58) 13. Umbrellas Of Cherbourg (Watch What Happens)

(2:24) 14. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams

(3:28) 15. Burnt Sugar

(2:26) 16. I Ain't Got Nobody

(2:03) 17. Deed I Do

(1:55) 18. Breezin Along With The Breeze

(2:01) 19. Goodbye Charlie

(1:57) 20. Bluesette

Sue Raney, who has always had a beautiful voice, first gained some recognition for her work in jazz and popular music in the late 1950s. She has been a fixture in Los Angeles ever since, becoming a well-known vocal coach and teacher in addition to continuing her solo career. The second volume of previously unreleased material from Studio West features Raney in four different settings. Nine selections team her with a quartet led by pianist Page Cavanaugh that perfectly fits her singing. Two songs have her joined by Page 7 (a septet led by Cavanaugh), there are five numbers with a quartet co-led by clarinetist Buddy DeFranco and accordionist Tommy Gumina, and the remaining four selections are with the 1970 version of Shelly Manne & His Men. The performances are usually brief but Raney takes advantage of each moment, stretching her repertoire from swing standards to the Beatles"With a Little Help From My Friends" and Michel Legrand's "Umbrellas of Cherbourg." Highlights include "Trouble Is a Man," "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams," and two versions apiece of "Breezin' Along With the Breeze" and "'Deed I Do." Because Sue Raney has never recorded often enough, this set of rarities is particularly recommended to listeners unfamiliar with the talented singer. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/volume-ii-mw0000152127

Personnel: Sue Raney (vocals); Tommy Gumina (accordion); Buddy DeFranco (clarinet); Shelly Manne & His Men, Page Cavanaugh Quartet.

Sue Raney Volume II

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Sue Raney - When Your Lover Has Gone

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 1960
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:47
Size: 87,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:00)  1. When Your Lover Has Gone
(3:06)  2. I Stayed Too Long At The Fair
(2:22)  3. If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)
(3:29)  4. My Ideal
(2:26)  5. It Looks Like Rain In Cherry Blossom Lane
(3:03)  6. It's Easy To Remember
(4:02)  7. Moon Song
(2:59)  8. Heart And Soul
(3:03)  9. If You Were There
(3:21) 10. My Silent Love
(4:20) 11. I Remember You
(2:30) 12. I'll See You In My Dreams

Blessed with a beautiful voice from an early age, Sue Raney has performed music ranging from swinging jazz and ballads to cabaret, middle-of-the-road pop and jingles. Her mother was a singer and a great great aunt had been in German opera. Raney started singing when she was four and a year later she first performed in public, at a party in Wichita, Kansas. Because a voice teacher could not be found for her daughter (because of her extreme youth), Raney's mother took voice lessons herself and then passed down what she learned to Sue. A professional before she was a teenager, Raney worked steadily in New Mexico when her family relocated and took several trips out to Los Angeles during a couple of summer vacations. She joined the Jack Carson radio show in 1954 in L.A. when she was barely 14. Raney then appeared on Ray Anthony's television program and became his band's main vocalist. 

At 18 she started working as a single. She had already recorded for Phillips and then signed with Capitol, recording several middle-of-the-road jazz-influenced pop dates for the company. In the 1960's Raney often appeared on television variety shows, she led her own group and became very active in the studios where her impressive voice helped sell products. By the early 1980's, she was also working as a voice teacher. In the 1990's Sue Raney has sung with the L.A. Voices and Supersax, the Bill Watrous big band and as a single in addition to staying active as a jazz educator and in the studios. Her main jazz recordings were a trio of albums for Discovery in the 1980's; a VSOP/Studio West CD features the singer on various live performances from the 1960's. ~ Scott Yanow https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/sue-raney/id18823089#fullText

When Your Lover Has Gone

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Sue Raney - Songs for a Raney Day

Styles: Vocal Jazz

Year: 1959

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 31:43

Size: 74,3 MB

Art: Front

(2:49)  1. I Get the Blues When It Rains

(2:58)  2. Impossible

(2:09)  3. A Blossom Fell

(2:38)  4. Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams

(2:12)  5. The Whippoorwill Song

(2:49)  6. Rain

(2:11)  7. Rain on the Roof

(2:50)  8. Blue Tears

(2:36)  9. Exactly Like You

(2:32) 10. Wanna' Laugh?

(3:18) 11. My Prayer

(2:37) 12. September in the Rain

Blessed with a beautiful voice from an early age, Sue Raney has performed music ranging from swinging jazz and ballads to cabaret, middle-of-the-road pop and jingles. Her mother was a singer and a great great aunt had been in German opera. Raney started singing when she was four and a year later she first performed in public, at a party in Wichita, Kansas. Because a voice teacher could not be found for her daughter (because of her extreme youth), Raney's mother took voice lessons herself and then passed down what she learned to Sue. A professional before she was a teenager, Raney worked steadily in New Mexico when her family relocated and took several trips out to Los Angeles during a couple of summer vacations. She joined the Jack Carson radio show in 1954 in L.A. when she was barely 14. Raney then appeared on Ray Anthony's television program and became his band's main vocalist. At 18 she started working as a single. She had already recorded for Phillips and then signed with Capitol, recording several middle-of-the-road jazz-influenced pop dates for the company. In the 1960's Raney often appeared on television variety shows, she led her own group and became very active in the studios where her impressive voice helped sell products. By the early 1980's, she was also working as a voice teacher. In the 1990's Sue Raney has sung with the L.A. Voices and Supersax, the Bill Watrous big band and as a single in addition to staying active as a jazz educator and in the studios. Her main jazz recordings were a trio of albums for Discovery in the 1980's; a VSOP/Studio West CD features the singer on various live performances from the 1960's. ~ Scott Yanow  https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/sue-raney/id18823089#fullText

Songs for a Raney Day

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Sue Raney - Complete Capitol Years 1956-1960 (2-Disc Set)

"In the late '50s and early '60s, Capitol Records had two leading jazz-oriented pop singers on its roster -- June Christy and Peggy Lee -- and then added another young singer, Sue Raney. Raney cut a few albums which seemed to quickly disappear, never to be heard from again until now [...] On the 1958 release 'When Your Lover Has Gone,' Raney is supported by the estimable Nelson Riddle, whose arrangements and orchestrations have graced the recordings of many of the top singers of the last four decades (among the more notable, Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra). The second album, 'Songs for a Raney Day,' was cut under the leadership of another Hollywood music icon, Billy May. His arrangements on this album are much softer than the blaring brass a la the discs he cut with Sinatra and Anita O'Day. This is a gentler, softer May, appropriate for an album of songs that capture the essence and moods of rainy weather. Although very young when these sessions were recorded, there's more than a hint of the consummate artistry that was to characterize Raney's singing over the next 40 years. The style, diction and appreciation for good melodies which became a staple of Raney's albums are already evident, and each album has well-known standards. But there are songs penned by composers not often recorded, like Ann Ronell's "Rain on the Roof," a reminder that Ronell did much more than "Willow Weep for Me." Unfortunately, the promise created by these two albums never quite materialized. Raney, despite her outstanding recordings, never entered studios with the frequency commensurate with her talent, which doesn't say much for the music business." ~Dave Nathan

Album: Complete Capitol Years 1956-1960 (Disc 1)

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 57:28

Size: 131.6 MB

Styles: Vocal jazz

Year: 2013

[2:48] 1. Everytime

[3:08] 2. The Careless Years

[2:09] 3. What's The Good Word Mr Bluebird

[2:37] 4. Don't Take My Happiness

[1:53] 5. Please Hurry Home

[2:38] 6. Till There Was You

[3:00] 7. When Your Lover Has Gone

[3:08] 8. I Stayed Too Long At The Fair

[2:22] 9. If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)

[3:30] 10. My Ideal

[2:26] 11. It Looks Like Rain In Cherry Bloss

[3:04] 12. It's Easy To Remember

[4:02] 13. Moon Song That Wasn't Meant For Me

[2:56] 14. Heart And Soul

[3:04] 15. If You Were There

[3:20] 16. My Silent Love

[4:19] 17. I Remember You

[2:30] 18. I'll See You In My Dreams

[2:07] 19. My My How The Time Goes By

[2:16] 20. Periwinkle Blues

Complete Capitol Years 1956-1960 (Disc 1)

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Album: Complete Capitol Years 1956-1960 (Disc 2)

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 49:29

Size: 113.3 MB

Styles: Vocal jazz

Year: 2013

Art: Front

[2:48] 1. Ever

[3:08] 2. The Restless Sea

[2:42] 3. I Don't Look Right Without You

[2:53] 4. Swingin' In A Hammock

[2:05] 5. I Get The Blues When It Rains

[2:33] 6. Impossible

[2:08] 7. A Blossom Fell

[2:43] 8. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams

[2:05] 9. The Whipoorwill Song

[2:45] 10. Rain

[2:31] 11. Rain On The Roof

[2:27] 12. Blue Tears

[3:12] 13. Exactly Like You

[2:33] 14. Wanna Laugh

[1:52] 15. My Prayer

[2:00] 16. September In The Rain

[2:00] 17. Biology

[2:30] 18. Too Soon

[1:59] 19. The Word Got Around

[2:25] 20. One-Finger Symphony

Complete Capitol Years 1956-1960 (Disc 2)

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Sue Raney - Listen Here

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:42
Size: 127.5 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2012
Art: Front

[3:08] 1. Listen Here
[4:12] 2. My Melancholy Baby
[3:02] 3. A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
[4:35] 4. The Bad And The Beautiful
[3:36] 5. The Music That Makes Me Dance
[5:49] 6. He Was Too Good To Me
[5:04] 7. You'll Never Know
[4:46] 8. Skylark
[3:51] 9. It Might As Well Be Spring
[3:17] 10. It Never Was You
[5:16] 11. You Must Believe In Spring
[5:05] 12. There Used To Be A Ballpark
[3:54] 13. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

One of the most underappreciated jazz vocalists of the past half-century, Sue Raney is also proving one of the most durable. Raney, who has been singing professionally since age 14, delivered a trio of excellent albums for Capitol while still in her teens and early 20s, then endured a peripatetic recording career that involved multiple labels and occasionally lengthy gaps (filled with teaching and jingle work—as both writer and performer). Through it all, she has never stopped plugging and, remarkably, still sounds as vibrant and clarion-pure as ever.

In recent years, Raney has formed a mutually beneficial alliance with pianist Alan Broadbent. It was Broadbent at the helm, as arranger, conductor and accompanist, on Raney’s previous album, the silken Doris Day tribute Heart’s Desire. Here it’s just Broadbent and Raney, two thoroughbreds shaping an exemplary exercise in simpatico intimacy. They open with Dave Frishberg’s tenderly introspective “Listen Here,” then keep the tempo on simmer through a spectrum of major league ballads, extending from the romantic coziness of “My Melancholy Baby” and “You’ll Never Know” to the hazy heartache of “He Was Too Good to Me” and “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.”

The pace quickens slightly for a sprightly “It Might as Well Be Spring” and a shimmering “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square.” But the standout piece in this sea of marvelous tracks is Raney and Broadbent’s gorgeously realized treatment, neither too maudlin nor too wistful, of Joe Raposo’s “There Used to Be a Ballpark.” ~Christopher Loudon

Listen Here

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Sue Raney - Happiness Is A Warm Sue Raney

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:09
Size: 80.5 MB
Styles: Vocal
Year: 1964/2007
Art: Front

[3:24] 1. Be Warm
[2:22] 2. Beautiful Friendship
[2:55] 3. Sunday In Savannah
[2:34] 4. The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise
[2:19] 5. Lorna's Here
[3:55] 6. I'm Painting The Town Red
[2:12] 7. Wait Till The Sun Shines Willie
[2:58] 8. Better Luck Next Time
[2:42] 9. As Long As I Live
[4:00] 10. Statue Of Snow
[3:40] 11. My Future Just Passed
[2:03] 12. I'm In Love With The Honorable Mr. So And So

Move past its silly title and Sue Raney's Philips label debut is an absolute delight. An effervescent, briskly paced set that wisely eschews the turgid standards often heaped upon singers of Raney's ilk, it captures her at her most purely engaging. Ralph Carmichael's finger-popping arrangements are an essential component of the music's considerable charm, he keeps the tempos brisk and the melodies sharp, perfectly complementing Raney's saucy vocals (which have never sounded better). And yes, the title is awful but it is appropriate -- Happiness Is a Warm Sue Raney captures an irrepressible joie de vivre that's undeniably infectious. ~Jason Ankeny

Happiness Is A Warm Sue Raney

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Sue Raney - Heart's Desire: A Tribute To Doris Day

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:00
Size: 116.7 MB
Styles: Easy Listening
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[4:23] 1. Que Será, Será (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)
[2:53] 2. Sentimental Journey
[4:05] 3. I May Be Wrong
[4:28] 4. Secret Love
[3:09] 5. Everybody Loves A Lover
[3:38] 6. It's Magic
[2:14] 7. Put'em In A Box, Tie'em With A Ribbon
[4:04] 8. My Dream Is Yours
[3:52] 9. Lullaby Of Broadway
[4:08] 10. I'll Never Stop Loving You
[2:28] 11. Shanghai
[3:49] 12. With A Song In My Heart
[2:35] 13. Love Me Or Leave Me
[5:10] 14. Heart's Desire

A wonderful record come true, recorded in Hollywood at the legendary Capitol Studio A, it was cut featuring the same hallmark sound that made Capitol a world-wide celebrity between the classic labels in jazz. Backed by a large ensemble -including brass, reeds, rhythm and strings- singer Sue Raney performs here as touchingly as if she were back in 1957, when Capitol Records made the teenage Sue its newest Cinderella, and her idol Doris Day was America’s favourite singing sweetheart on film. Her partner on this CD is two-time Grammy-winning pianist and arranger Alan Broadbent, who can evoke the mellow big band swing of Doris Day’s early years with Les Brown, making her classic repertory sound like a swirling cloud of memories.

“Sue has a lot of wisdom to show for those fifty years on record, and as this beautiful album proves, she’s still in her prime.” ~ James Gavin

Chuck Berghofer (b), Joe LaBarbera, Clayton Cameron (d), Gary Foster, Lanny Morgan (as, fl), Terry Harrington, Bob Sheppard (ts, cl), John Mitchell (bars, bcl, bassoon), Jim Walker (fl), Earl Dumler (oboe), Charlie Davis, Carl Saunders, Larry McGuire (tp, flgh), Carmen Fanzone (flgh), Andy Martin, Bruce Otto, Charlie Morillas (tb), Rick Todd, Suzette Moriarty (frh), Charlie Bisharat (violin concertmaster), Kevin Connolly, Julian Hallmark, Joe Ketendjian, Mike Markman, Horia Moroaica, Michele Richards, Norm Hughes, Christine Wu, John Wittenberg, Julie Rogers, Armen Garabedian, Sara Parkins, Joel Pargman, Cameron Patrick, Josefina Vergara, Roger Wilkie (violin), Nancy Roth, Harry Shirinian, Jorge Moraga, Danny Seidenberg, Andrew Duckles (violas), Larry Corbett, Cameron Stone, Miguel Martinez, Vanessa Freebairn- Smith, Armen Ksajikian (cellos), Lou Ann Neill (harp).

Heart's Desire: A Tribute To Doris Day

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Sue Raney - Breathless!

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1960
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:30
Size: 103,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:53)  1. Angel Eyes
(2:09)  2. There Be Some Changes Made
(2:33)  3. Breezin' Along With The Breeze
(2:19)  4. My Lucky Day
(2:34)  5. 'Deed I Do
(3:07)  6. Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring
(2:08)  7. It'S D'Lovely
(2:44)  8. September In The Rain
(1:58)  9. I'm In Love With The Honorable Mr. So And So
(1:58) 10. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams
(2:33) 11. Does Anybody Here Love Me?
(3:16) 12. The Boy Next Door
(1:57) 13. Breathless
(3:14) 14. Holiday For Strings
(2:04) 15. Bluesette
(2:32) 16. Cry Me A River
(2:27) 17. While We'Re Young
(1:53) 18. Some Of These Days

Sue Raney has always had a very attractive voice, a wide range with total control, and the ability to swing in a very appealing fashion. She has recorded relatively few jazz albums through the years, making this previously unreleased collection a bit of a gap-filler. Mostly taken from live radio performances, Raney is heard during 1960-1961 with pianist Page Cavanaugh (in both quartet and septet settings), accompanied by the Buddy DeFranco/Tommy Gumina Quartet in 1963, and joined by a small group headed by Shelly Manne in 1969 or 1970. The focus throughout the generally brief selections is on the singer, who is in prime voice throughout. Highlights include "Angel Eyes," "My Lucky Day," the humorously rapid "Breathless," a slower-than-usual rendition of "Holiday for Strings" and "Bluesette." Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow   http://www.allmusic.com/album/breathless-mw0000594609.

Personnel: Sue Raney (vocals, keyboards).

Breathless

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Sue Raney - All By Myself

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 35:36
Size: 82.9 MB
Label: Blue Note
Styles: Standards, Torch songs
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[2:10] 1. Some Of These Days
[3:55] 2. Trouble Is A Man
[2:25] 3. Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying
[3:06] 4. I'm Gonna Laugh You Right Out Of My Life
[4:09] 5. Here's That Rainy Day
[2:43] 6. What Is This Thing Called Love?
[2:54] 7. All By Myself
[2:44] 8. No Place To Go
[2:34] 9. Just A-Sittin' And A-Rockin'
[3:27] 10. How About Me
[2:21] 11. Maybe You'll Be There
[3:03] 12. Burnt Sugar

In 1963, Capitol Records producer Lee Gillette was looking for a way to amp up the singing career of young crooner Sue Raney. Impossibly young when she entered the music business, Raney nevertheless had the talent, looks, and delivery of a star -- she just needed to shake that "little girl" aspect and tap into a more "adult" vein. Gillette tried to secure Stan Kenton as her backing arranger (for the album that would become All by Myself), but when that fell through, Capitol house arranger Ralph Carmichael was brought on board, and he channeled that stabbing, boisterous Kenton vibe to a T. In fact, the arrangements proved so volatile that Raney wondered how she was going to compete. Well, she mostly succeeded. Some tracks (like the explosive opener, "Some of These Days") find Raney struggling to overcome the blasting brass, which all but bury her vocal line. She was not as forceful as Anita O'Day, nor did she have the shrewd phrasing talents of, say, June Christy, but Raney did have a sweet, sweet voice -- maybe not powerful enough to blast through the more bombastic numbers, but on slow burners (like the über-sensual "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying" or the appropriately melancholy "Here's That Rainy Day") her breathy delivery is stunning. The album's title track is without a doubt the most successful venture here. By peeling away the flash and getting down to an intimate purr, "All By Myself"'s comely arrangement allows Raney to whisper in your ear, which is ultimately the best way she comes across on record. ~J. Scott McClintock

All By Myself

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