By Rom Watson
c. February 12, 2015
Sometimes the things that make an immediate favorable impression on me end up fading from my favor, while the things that earn my admiration slowly over a long period of time end up nearer my heart.
One example is the compositions of Stephen Sondheim. His songs usually require repeated listenings in order to be fully appreciated.
Another example is a singer whose voice needs to grow on you. In my life, that singer was Jo Stafford. For those too young to remember World War II, Jo Stafford was very popular on the radio, first with the Pied Pipers vocal group, then with Tommy Dorsey’s band, and then as a solo singer.
I’m convinced Jo Stafford is one of the greatest singers ever recorded. She was perfect. To this day she remains the most technically perfect singer I have ever heard. Yes, Ella Fitzgerald had a more luscious vocal quality, and Barbra Streisand conveys more emotion when she sings, but I am continually floored by the perfection of Jo Stafford.
However, when I first heard her on a CD my wife bought, I thought that her voice was pleasant but nothing special. Hearing a subsequent CD, a compilation of Capitol Records recordings, did nothing to change my opinion. So how did I come to regard her as a great singer? The Portrait Edition.
In 1994, our friend Guy called and told us he had just purchased a 3-CD Jo Stafford boxed set, and that they were still on sale. Since my wife liked Jo Stafford, we went to Tower Records and bought one for ourselves.
The audio quality of The Portrait Edition is much better than that of the two Stafford CD’s we already owned. The song selection is better as well, as the tracks were chosen by Jo Stafford and her husband, Paul Weston, who arranged much of her material during her career. However, the main reason The Portrait Edition changed my opinion of Jo Stafford is that it made me listen closely.
In those days my car didn’t have a CD player, so in order to listen to The Portrait Edition while driving, I had to dub the songs onto audiocassettes. (Something I did not do with our other Stafford CD’s.) While playing the cassettes I started to sing along, and without even thinking about it I breathed when she breathed.
That woman had lungs of steel. She would sing long, complicated lines on a single breath and make it sound so effortless that a casual listener wouldn’t even notice the difficulty of what she was doing.
Singing along with her is what elevated my opinion. Yes, her voice may have been somewhat generic, but what she did with her voice was excellence personified. Some people don’t seem to value perfection, but for those of us who do, and who listen closely, Jo Stafford’s recordings provide countless hours of pleasure.
The other reason I hold Jo Stafford in high regard is her sense of humor. What other singer of her era had an alter ego? What other singer of her era won a Grammy for Best Comedy Album by deliberately singing badly? The fact that she could sing so well as herself, and then sing so horribly as Darlene Edwards, proves that her command of her voice was phenomenal. Even thinking about “Darlene Edwards’” rendition of The Last Time I Saw Paris makes me chuckle.
Reflecting on my experience with Sondheim songs and Jo Stafford’s voice, I am left to wonder what other things might slowly earn my admiration over time. Things, and perhaps even people, which I may have dismissed as pleasant but nothing special.
I will endeavor to listen closely.
Did not know about alter ego. Thanks..kk
I enjoyed your piece about Jo. It was simple and with just with the right words.
I remember her and it was nice to be reminded by reading it.
My “relationship” with Jo Stafford is comparable to yours in the sense that it took quite a while for me to warm up to her – but, when I finally did, it became a lifetime commitment. I was aware of her for years: my initiation into her singing was by way of her recording of “Jambalaya” on a compilation LP of mid-’50’s pop hits – the recording made no particular impression on me because I thought it a novelty song that wasn’t particularly catchy. And, while the vocal is without flaw, the performance bore no indication that I was listening to an especially talented singer.
Years go by and my interest in singers increases. There are periodic instances when I read a magazine article in which Jo Stafford is mentioned as an exemplary singer or when a singer in conversation with me cites Jo Stafford as a personal favorite; consequently, my curiosity about her increased. And, yet, I would remain unimpressed with what I would hear – not that any of what I heard was bad, but I simply didn’t detect anything arresting in her approach to the material.
Nevertheless, I would continue to read enthusiastic comments about her singing by other singers I truly did admire. For instance, I can remember reading an interview with Judy Collins in which she praised Jo Stafford’s recording of “Barbara Allen” – so, I would think I need to give Jo Stafford more chances. As an attentive listener of jazz, my curiosity was aroused when I became aware of her album “Jo + Jazz”, so I got it….and, at the time, was not bowled over….but more on that album later.
Unfortunately, I don’t have an “Aha!” moment in which the right record caused her values to come into focus. Instead, if my memory is correct, I heard her recording of “I’ll Walk Alone” on yet another compilation album – and it was the confluence of accompaniment, recording engineering and the hitherto unknown-to-me earnestness of her delivery that got my attention. And it was that quality of what I’ll refer to as a no-nonsense serenity delivered in melodious comfort that I sought to find again…and again…
Usually, when one refers to someone or something as an “acquired taste”, it’s meant to refer to someone or something you initially flat-out dislike but, with repeated acquaintance, an admiration and appreciation is developed. In fact, I first heard that phrase when reading liner notes to a Mabel Mercer album, who herself indeed (for me, anyway) was an acquired taste. But I think the same holds true for Jo Stafford – the difference being that I never disliked her….but, with increasing exposure to her skillfulness in deploying her instrument, I’ve grown to admire her so very strongly.
A final word about “Jo + Jazz”: even though I was left rather cold when I first heard this album, it has since become my favorite “sing along” album. I am not a “real” singer in the sense that I sing in front of people as a performer. Having said that, at my most pretentious, I suppose I could slip and think of myself as a real singer because I sing around the house and with friends with whom I am most comfortable a LOT. But I digress: the point is that “Jo + Jazz” for me is so comfortable – and, by and large, the songs are positive.
Thanks for your observations on Jo Stafford.
Your friend,
Guy
Guy,
Thank you for your thoughtful and in-depth response to my article. “No-nonsense serenity delivered in melodious comfort” is a perfect description of Jo Stafford’s style, and I wish I’d written it. Along with “The Portrait Edition” boxed set, “Jo + Jazz” and “G.I. Jo” are my favorite Stafford albums, and I often sing along with them. Thank you for recommending them to me so many years ago.
Your friend,
Rom
Brussels Sprouts… They have earned my admiration over time… It’s the way my wife cooks them! 8^)
Brussel sprouts were not allowed in the house when I was a child. My father hated them. I never tasted them till I was an adult, but I like them just fine.