Dedicated to George Wein who passed away earlier this month
This video is something I have always wanted to make for years but never got around to doing it. This is one of Billie Holiday's sets at the famed George Wein Storyville Club in Boston. It is October of 1953 and Lady Day has been making the rounds trying to make her "comeback" by appearing in magazine articles, touring the country and making appearances on television (her comeback story was taped the same month).
This is personally my favorite live recording of Lady. The host of the radio broadcast says that the show is taped without the artist's knowledge so they can perform "at their natural, relaxed best" and this performance is no exception. This recording marks the start of Lady's autumn years. Her voice is starting to sound like the Lady we would later know during the middle and latter part of her Verve years. Her performance is very languid, especially in the way she sings and falls behind the beat in each song. Pay close attention to how she introduces "I Only Have Eyes for You" where she almost, and seductively, growls the first line. She is in great spirits here, interacting frequently with the crowd laughing and at one point telling them that she wants to "put them in a mood" before she starts singing "Willow Weep For Me" which I think is her best version. She really swings "Too Marvelous for Words" as well and you can hear a few exclamations from patrons as they listen.
This is truly one of Billie Holiday's greatest live recordings, I wish there were more air checks of her nightclub performances in the 1950s because that is when we really hear her in her element as shown in this 1953 date.
I hope you enjoy!