I Wanna Be Loved [Digipak]

Performer: Dinah Washington
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Dinah Washington (vocals); George Barnes (guitar); Al Cohn (tenor saxophone); Clark Terry, Ernie Royal, Joe Newman (trumpet); Kai Winding, Billy Byers (trombone); Jack Wilson, Patti Brown (piano); Gary Chester (drums). All tracks have been digitally mastered using 24-bit technology. Arrangers: Quincy Jones; Ernie Wilkins. For this excellent 1961 outing, jazz vocalist Dinah Washington is backed by an orchestra on all but one track. Washington's expressive singing is complemented by the rich, full sound here, and this is due, at least in part, to the intuitive conducting of Quincy Jones, who also arranges many of the tunes. On string-laden renditions of Billie Holiday's "Don't Explain" and "God Bless the Child," Washington evokes the spirit of Lady Day, but places her own stamp on the songs with her delicate phrasing. Clark Terry lends his soulful trumpet playing to a handful of tracks, including the gently swaying "Everybody's Somebody's Fool," but, overall, Jones's orchestra provides the atmosphere here, quietly simmering behind Washington's voice until just the right dramatic moment. Previously available only on vinyl, I WANNA BE LOVED has been carefully remastered for this Mercury/Verve CD reissue, which is a welcome addition to any jazz-vocal collection.

Despite a relatively short career--she died in 1963 at the age of 39--Dinah Washington laid claim to being one of the major jazz voices, and one of the most versatile of all jazz singers. Her voice was rich; she filled everything she sang with heartfelt emotion, and she could make even material of less than stellar quality sound deeply moving. More importantly, she was equally at home (and had hits) with blues, popular songs of the day, and standards; toward the end she also became a major voice of the burgeoning soul movement.

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