Dinah Washington was a best-selling artist on the R&B charts during this period but she was also a very versatile singer who could easily handle swinging jazz, schmaltzy ballads, blues, and novelties with equal skill. The second of these seven three-CD sets in Mercury's
Complete program mostly finds
Washington being accompanied by studio orchestras although
the Ravens join her on two numbers and drummer
Jimmy Cobb heads a couple of jazz groups (including one with both
Ben Webster and
Wardell Gray on tenors). Not every selection is a classic but the quality level is quite high and the packaging is impeccable. Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow