Billie Holiday - The Complete Billie Holiday On Verve, 1945-1959 (1993) - [10-Audio CD's - Box set]

That's right: Ten CDs with everything Billie Holiday recorded on Verve Records between 1945 and her death in 1959--not only the songs, but concert introductions, some of the rehearsals, and between-take studio chatter, too. All of which makes for a definitive portrait of Lady Day in her final years. For a long time these recordings were disparaged because it was said her voice was no longer fine and mellow, "ravaged" by hard living, jail time, booze, and drugs. And there's no question that her later tone is darker, more brittle and unstable than it had been in the '30s--but somehow I find myself listening to this music more often than those Brunswick/Columbia or Decca sides, anyway. Like Frank Sinatra, who so often paid tribute to her influence, Holiday's artistry was never based on virtuosity; it was about interpretation, bringing out the emotions in a song and giving a personal reading. She never stopped doing that, and for all the "strange fruit" you'll find in this collection, it's a gold mine.
Condition:NEW. Brand New Factory Sealed

TRACK LISTINGS

Disc 1
1 Body and Soul 3:24
2 Strange Fruit 2:56
3 I Cried for You 2:18
4 Fine and Mellow Live 3:51
5 He's Funny That Way 3:17
6 The Man I Love 3:04
7 Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You 2:20
8 All of Me 1:56
9 Billie's Blues 3:35
10 Trav'lin' Light 3:28
11 He's Funny That Way 2:51
12 Norman Granz Announcement 0:08
13 You Better Go Now 2:56
14 You're Driving Me Crazy 1:30
15 There Is No Greater Love 2:34
16 I Cover the Waterfront 2:58
17 Norman Granz Announcement 0:24
18 East of the Sun (And West of the Moon) 2:54
19 Blue Moon 3:28
20 You Go to My Head 2:54
21 You Turned the Tables on Me 3:26
22 Easy to Love 3:00
23 These Foolish Things 3:34
24 I Only Have Eyes for You 2:52
25 Solitude 3:29

Disc 2
1 Everything I Have Is Yours 3:43
2 Love for Sale 2:56
3 Moonglow 2:58
4 Tenderly 3:23
5 If the Moon Turns Green 2:44
6 Remember 2:35
7 Autumn in New York Common Take - LP 3:40
8 Autumn in New York Rare Take - 78 RPM 3:52
9 My Man 2:36
10 Lover, Come Back to Me 3:35
11 Stormy Weather 3:41
12 Yesterdays 2:48
13 He's Funny That Way 3:11
14 I Can't Face the Music 3:14
15 MC and Leonard Feather Announcements 0:37
16 Blue Moon 2:15
17 All of Me 1:43
18 My Man 2:52
19 Them There Eyes 1:28
20 I Cried for You 3:20
21 What a Little Moonlight Can Do 2:56
22 I Cover the Waterfront 3:17
23 Leonard Feather Announcement 0:21
24 Billie's Blues 11:39

Disc 3
1 Lover, Come Back to Me Live 6:46
2 How Deep Is the Ocean? 2:57
3 What a Little Moonlight Can Do 3:10
4 I Cried for You 2:26
5 Love Me or Leave Me 2:33
6 P.S. I Love You 3:35
7 Too Marvelous for Words 2:11
8 Softly 2:55
9 I Thought About You 2:45
10 Willow Weep for Me 3:05
11 Stormy Blues 3:26
12 Say It Isn't So 3:01
13 I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm 3:55
14 I Wished on the Moon 6:48
15 Always 3:57
16 Everything Happens to Me 6:20
17 Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me 5:00
18 Ain't Misbehavin' 4:39

Disc 4
1 Nice Work If You Can Get It 4:05
2 Discussion: Nice Work If You Can Get It 0:40
3 Mandy Is Two 4:31
4 Prelude to a Kiss 2:46
5 I Must Have That Man! 1:05
6 Jeepers Creepers 2:13
7 Jeepers Creepers 0:51
8 Discussion: Jeepers Creepers 3:25
9 Discussion: Jeepers Creepers 2:27
10 Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone 1:57
11 Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone 2:57
12 Discussion: Moonlight in Vermont 0:52
13 Misery 0:36
14 Restless 2:45
15 Moonlight in Vermont Excerpt / Outtake 2:00
16 Everything Happens to Me 3:26
17 Discussion 0:37
18 I Don't Want to Cry Anymore 4:25
19 I Don't Want to Cry Anymore 2:25
20 Discussion: I Don't Want to Cry Any More 5:32
21 Everything Happens to Me 3:00
22 Discussion 1:48
23 When You Are Away, Dear 1:40
24 Discussion 0:48
25 It Had to Be You 1:54
26 The Mood That I'm In 0:31
27 Gone With the Wind 1:36
28 I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good) 3:17
29 Discussion 2:31
30 A Sunbonnet Blue (And a Little Straw Hat) 0:06
31 I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You 1:32
32 Discussion 2:14
33 I'm Walkin' Through Heaven With You 2:05
34 Discussion 0:42
35 Just Friends 1:01
36 The Nearness of You 1:04
37 Discussion 0:27
38 It's Too Hot for Words 0:21
39 They Say 2:25
40 I Won't Believe It 0:20

Disc 5
1 I Don't Want to Cry Anymore 0:29
2 I Don't Want to Cry Anymore 3:54
3 Studio Talk; Prelude to a Kiss 0:14
4 Studio Talk; Prelude to a Kiss 0:50
5 Prelude to a Kiss 5:32
6 I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You 4:26
7 When Your Lover Has Gone 0:49
8 Studio Talk; When Your Lover Has Gone 1:00
9 Studio Talk 0:22
10 When Your Lover Has Gone 4:55
11 Gone With the Wind 3:23
12 Studio Talk 0:10
13 Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone 4:19
14 It Had to Be You 4:01
15 Studio Talk 0:08
16 Nice Work If You Can Get It 3:47
17 Come Rain or Come Shine 4:21
18 I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues 5:51
19 What's New? 4:16
20 A Fine Romance 0:46
21 A Fine Romance Take 2 2:44
22 A Fine Romance Take 3 0:18
23 A Fine Romance Take 4 1:16
24 A Fine Romance Take 5 3:18
25 A Fine Romance Take 6 0:26
26 A Fine Romance Take 7 3:12
27 A Fine Romance Take 8 3:32
28 Studio Talk 0:06
29 I Hadn't Anyone Till You 4:03

Disc 6
1 I Get a Kick Out of You 5:39
2 Everything I Have Is Yours 4:29
3 Isn't This a Lovely Day? 4:11
4 Discussion: Misery 1:26
5 Israel 2:18
6 Misery 4:40
7 Discussion 1:16
8 I Must Have That Man! 6:29
9 Discussion 0:27
10 Strange Fruit 5:48
11 Discussion: God Bless the Child 5:50
12 Discussion 1:16
13 God Bless the Child 3:15
14 God Bless the Child 1:08
15 Discussion 1:08
16 God Bless the Child 3:34
17 One Never Knows, Does One? 2:07
18 Discussion 2:00
19 The Beer Barrel Polka 1:19
20 Some of These Days 1:03
21 A Yiddishe Momme 0:39
22 A Yiddishe Momme 2:16
23 Discussion 0:42
24 Lady's Back in Town 2:36
25 Discussion 4:33
26 Discussion 1:13
27 One Never Knows, Does One? 2:38
28 Discussion 1:19
29 (Unknown Title) 1:54

Disc 7
1 Trav'lin' Light 3:07
2 I Must Have That Man! 3:03
3 Some Other Spring 3:36
4 Lady Sings the Blues 3:44
5 Strange Fruit 3:01
6 God Bless the Child 3:58
7 Good Morning Heartache 3:29
8 No Good Man 3:18
9 Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me 4:12
10 Cheek to Cheek 3:35
11 Ill Wind 6:14
12 Speak Low 4:25
13 We'll Be Together Again 4:24
14 All or Nothing at All 5:39
15 Sophisticated Lady 4:48
16 April in Paris 3:02

Disc 8
1 Lady Sings the Blues 2:52
2 Lady Sings the Blues 2:38
3 'Tain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do 2:30
4 Trav'lin' Light 0:44
5 Reading from Lady Sings the Blues 2:06
6 Billie's Blues 3:20
7 Body and Soul 2:39
8 Reading from Lady Sings the Blues 0:55
9 Don't Explain 2:26
10 Yesterdays 1:16
11 Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone 1:43
12 I'll Be Seeing You 2:28
13 Reading from Lady Sings the Blues 2:50
14 My Man 3:13
15 I Cried for You 3:09
16 Fine and Mellow Live 3:15
17 I Cover the Waterfront 3:46
18 What a Little Moonlight Can Do 2:49
19 I Wished on the Moon 3:25
20 Moonlight in Vermont 3:49
21 A Foggy Day 4:40
22 I Didn't Know What Time It Was 5:59
23 Just One of Those Things Excerpt 0:25
24 Studio Talk 0:47
25 Just One of Those Things 5:31
26 Studio Talk 0:29
27 Comes Love 3:58
28 Comes Love 0:38
29 Comes Love 0:18
30 Comes Love 4:00

Disc 9
1 Day In - Day Out 6:47
2 Darn That Dream 6:19
3 But Not for Me 3:48
4 Body and Soul 6:22
5 Studio Talk 0:45
6 Just Friends 6:26
7 Studio Talk 0:16
8 Stars Fell on Alabama Excerpt 0:36
9 Stars Fell on Alabama 4:29
10 Studio Talk; Say It Isn't So 0:24
11 Say It Isn't So 3:16
12 Studio Talk; Our Love Is Here to Stay 0:25
13 Love Is Here to Stay 3:42
14 Studio Talk; One for My Baby (And One More for the Road) 0:28
15 One for My Baby (And One More for the Road) Excerpt 1:56
16 One for My Baby (And One More for the Road) 5:39
17 They Can't Take That Away from Me 4:10
18 Embraceable You 6:47
19 Let's Call the Whole Thing Off 3:24
20 Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You 5:38

Disc 10
1 Willis Conover Announcement 0:54
2 Johnny Mercer Announcement 0:42
3 Fanfare from "Oh Lady Be Good" 0:11
4 Nice Work If You Can Get It 2:39
5 Willow Weep for Me 3:08
6 My Man 3:30
7 Lover, Come Back to Me 2:05
8 Lady Sings the Blues 3:00
9 What a Little Moonlight Can Do 2:54
10 Fanfare from "Oh Lady Be Good" With Conover Announcement 0:18
11 Leonard Feather Announcement 0:47
12 I Wished on the Moon 2:43
13 Lover Man 3:01
14 All the Way 3:23
15 It's Not for Me to Say 2:26
16 I'll Never Smile Again 3:23
17 Just One More Chance 3:43
18 When It's Sleepy Time Down South 4:05
19 Don't Worry 'Bout Me 3:08
20 Sometimes I'm Happy 2:46
21 You Took Advantage of Me 3:08
22 There'll Be Some Changes Made 2:52
23 'Deed I Do 2:13
24 All of You 2:30
25 Baby Won't You Please Come Home 3:03