Customer Reviews

The Best of Peggy Lee - The Capitol Years

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Although nothing short of a comprehensive box set can do full justice to Peggy Lee, this collection will be a welcome addition to any collection, for it includes a number of essential tracks as well several less often heard but equally impressive recordings.

In general, the collection focuses on recordings that have a distinctly bluesy undercurrent, such as "Why Don't You Do Right" and "Fever." At the same time, the collection also manages to find room for such light pop recordings as "Call Me," a killer live recording of "Well Alright, Okay, You Win," and a surprisingly effective cover of River's "Seventh Son."

Regardless of the specific track, Lee's vocals are superior on every recording and her interpretations--here ranging from the drop-dead restrait of "For Every Man There's a Woman" to the sassy "I'm A Woman"--are Peggy Lee at her finest, irreproachable throughout. Strongly recommended.

The Best of Peggy Lee - The Capitol Years is a single CD with some mighty fine songs by the great Peggy Lee. Peggy Lee could sing better than most any chanteuse ever could with maybe a few exceptions at the most; and this CD proves it! The artwork is very lovely and the quality of the sound is excellent. Great!

"Why Don't You Do Right (Get Me Some Money Too)" features a young Peggy Lee singing her heart out; she never sings a superfluous note and the big band arrangement stuns me with its beauty. The music that accompanies Peggy as she sings is just right to go along with her vocals. "For Every Man There's A Woman" also comes from Peggy's years with Benny Goodman & His Band; Peggy clearly was a natural talent and her voice is rich, warm and very vibrant. I love it! Listen also for "Fever." "Fever," in case you don't know, was one of Peggy Lee's greatest hits ever--it's a terrific song and Peggy delivers it flawlessly. This song about romance always pleased Peggy's adoring audiences. The finger snapping is a very creative type of percussion, too.

There's also a live track of Peggy singing "Alright, Okay, You Win." This showcases Peggy's vocals and the men who harmonize with her do an excellent job! "Hallelujah, I Love Him So" is another classic Peggy Lee hit; and boy, oh, boy, does this sound great when Peggy Lee belts this out! "I'm A Woman" is another song that celebrates her womanhood; and the percussion marks the beat very well. "I'm A Woman" is a very strong number that Peggy sings with passion; you can tell she really enjoyed singing this number--it's all THAT good.

"Call Me" shines like silver and gold when Peggy Lee delivers this so professionally; she never misses a beat and the brass is used very well in the musical arrangement. In addition, "The Thrill Is Gone (From Yesterday's Kiss)" is a strong tune that Peggy makes all her own as she plays just a wee bit with the tempo and adds a few subtle key changes. "The Thrill Is Gone (From Yesterday's Kiss)" is clearly a major highlight of this album.

"Please Send Me Someone To Love" is yet another romantic ballad that features Peggy's character dreaming of the joys of being with her one true love. Peggy sings this without a flaw and "Please Send Me Someone To Love" is a number I really like a lot. "Mama's Gone, Goodbye" has an elegant musical arrangement to help Peggy perform this like the great chanteuse she always was--how's about that piano? It's grand.

The CD ends with Peggy Lee performing "I'm Gonna Go Fishin'." "I'm Gonna Go Fishin'" makes a strong, jazzy ending for this album; Peggy sings this so well that you're hungry for more the moment the CD ends. Don't be surprised if you find yourself pushing the "play" button on your CD player the instant this album ends!

Peggy Lee was--and remains--one of the very, very best female vocalists of the entire twentieth century. Peggy is one of the very few women who could really take a song and embellish it beautifully with fantastic interpretations of those numbers. I highly recommend this for fans of the great Peggy Lee.

Generally interesting best of recordings of PEGGY with CAPITOL.What is MISS LEE's greatest strenght is that she can take ordinary songs and transform them so it seems they are better when she sings them.FEVER is a perfect example;this song was also recorded by ELVIS in the early sixties.You should not be disapointed if you buy that record.However be warned,if you need one collection from PEGGY,you must buy the 1952-1956 DECCA collection which really shows her wide range better than this.Long time fans will enjoy this side of PEGGY LEE.

This album contains most everything you need to know and hear about Peggy Lee. It's a worthy addition for your collection if you like Diana Krall, Jane Monheit, Tierney Sutton, or Diane Schuur. All of these singers have their roots in and owe a debt of gratitude to Miss Lee, Frank Sinatra's favorite singer, as she was the pioneer of the cool, sultry, effortless sound. "All right, okay, you win" shows as well that she was respected by the instrumentalists she worked with. Recommended.

Peggy Lee's smooth,silky voice captures the essence of any song-be it ballads or swing. She sings from the heart and I could listen to her for hours.

Peggy Lee was well before my generation but I remember her name and know I heard so much about her,
I thought well let's check her out.
Well she is a WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!
No wonder my folks said rock and roll was not music,
I hate to admit it but compared to Peggy and many from her generation they are totally right..
If you like Jazz & Blues and think you have heard it all,
You are Wrong!!!
I was just memorized when I heard her. I honestly did not expect to hear such a incredible artist.
I know now why my parents and people before them always spoke of her with a wonderful tone and much respect,
She is a Icon or as we say now a Diva!
I have one more of her CD's coming. I can hardly wait,
Thank goodness we have the means to preserve classics and legends like Peggy Lee. I honestly just love her..
Sometimes really good things are never forgotten, Thanks goodness Ms Peggy is one of them.....
Thanks also to Amazon and it's suppliers for making it affordable for we regular people to gather the past and enjoy what our families did
when we were playing outside in the sand box.

if you want peggy this is peggy : jack % KVLU lamar university public radio beaumont texas

I checked this CD out after reading the Leiber/Stoller autobiography Hound Dog. This great songwriting team wrote about working with the Coasters, Drifters, Elvis, and many more. Things got very interesting with Peggy Lee. One of their songs is featured. I'm A Woman is definitely a classic. But it's hard not to think of an old perfume commercial. Ditto for Irene "Granny" Ryan's performance on the old Hollywood Palace program. That one got included on a DVD set of The Beverly Hillbillies. It's also on YouTube. Sadly, this CD doesn't include Is That All There Is? Leiber and Stoller wrote extensively about the recording of that song. Fortunately, someone put it on a newsgroup for me to hear. The CD could have held a few more songs. Peggy Lee is one singer that couldn't be put in a box. She got her start during the big band era. One track reunited her with former boss Benny Goodman. But she also liked the blues. One of the best cuts is her rendition of Ray Charles' Hallelujah, I Love Him So. Some tracks are live versions. Perhaps her best known song was Fever. It's on this CD! How many songs got covered on both the Muppet Show and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine? Elvis was one of many artists who took a stab. But it remains her song. The liner notes are very good. You even find out which album originally included a song. This is a good introduction to Peggy Lee's career. But keep looking for more from her Capitol years. Don't forget her recordings for other labels.

Get this CD and put on "Fever" and "See See Rider". Those two songs alone will school you. Peggy Lee can smolder! I got this CD even though I had most of the songs on it from other compilations. The one song that I wanted was "See See Rider". Peggy Lee can be sexy without being tawdry, and she can maintain the mood throughout the entire arrangement. You just don't listen, you get drawn into the selection. How does she do it, and why can't so many other singers even come close to her restrained emotion and passion? I don't know. She is one of a kind and if you like singers with class and raw talent, with a generous helping of technique and magic, then this is the lady for you. Give "Fever" and "See See Rider" a whirl and see if you don't agree.

I'd recommend this CD to anyone who is a fan of Peggy Lee, the quality is good and the song choices are great.