Customer Reviews

Little Things Mean a Lot

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

1. They re Either Too Young Or Too Old
2. When They Ask About You
3. The Wonder Of You
4. Should I Tell You I Love You?
5. My Heart Belongs To Daddy
6. Waitin For The Train To Come In
7. Honestly I Love You
8. A Bushel And A Peck
9. When I Dream (I Always Dream Of You)
10. To Be Loved By You
11. Are You Looking For A Sweetheart?
12. Lonely
13. Heartless Heart
14. A Little Lie
15. Take Everything But You
16. Little Things Mean A Lot
17. I Don t Think You Love Me Any More
18. In The Chapel In The Moonlight
19. (Don t Let The) Kiddygeddin
20. I Want You All To Myself
21. Forgive Me
22. Come Spring
23. Only Forever
24. Go On With The Wedding
25. True Love
26. Will I Always Be Your Sweetheart?

Little Things Mean A Lot is an excellent two CD set of songs and ballads by the incomparable Kitty Kallen. I was unaware that Kitty's career spanned such a long period of time; but here were have great tracks from 1939 to 1954. Kitty could take a song after hearing it no more than just twice and she would deliver it with panache and energy. This two CD set really shouldn't be out of print; I agree with the reviewer who writes that this may very well be Kitty's best compilation available at this time.

The first CD starts out with "Love For Sale" which a very young Kitty Kallen recorded in early 1940 with Jack Teagarden & His Orchestra. Kitty sounds great even though the quality of the sound is somewhat average. "The Moon And The Willow Tree" shines equally bright when Kitty sings this once more with Jack Teagarden & His Orchestra. Kitty never sings a superfluous note and that's grand. "Wham (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam)" is a playful tune that I think you're sure to love. Listen also for "Moonlight Becomes You" that Kitty recorded with Bobby Sherwood & His Orchestra. "Moonlight Becomes You" is a very romantic number and the brass works very well in the musical arrangement. Then there's one of my personal favorites, "They're Either Too Young Or Too Old;" Kitty sings this with style and she is accompanied very ably by Jimmy Dorsey & His Orchestra.

"It Could Happen To You" features Kitty front and center--right where she belongs! The strings enhance the arrangement and Kitty sings this sweetly and as clear as a bell. Harry James & His Orchestra do a fine job helping Kitty out with this charmer. "Wouldn't It Be Nice?" is another tune I think you're love if you like this type of music.

The second CD continues the hits. "It's Been A Long Long Time" and "Waitin' For The Train To Come In" showcase Kitty's great vocal prowess as she sings two huge hits from the end of the World War II era. Listen also for Kitty to do wonderfully on "My Heart Belongs To Daddy;" Artie Shaw & His Orchestra sound great and with Kitty on board they make "My Heart Belongs To Daddy" is real gem. Kitty also does her own rendition of "The Aba Daba Honeymoon;" she sings this without ever missing a note and Richard Hayes sings very well, too. What a playful tune!

"Lonely" gets the royal treatment from Kitty Kallen as she is accompanied by the great Jack Pleis & His Orchestra. Kitty really outdoes even herself on this one! "I Don't Think You Love Me Anymore" again sees Kitty paired up with Jack Pleis & His Orchestra; this elegant torch song strikes me with its beauty and it's truly a classic ballad. "I'm A Lonely Little Petunia" has another great arrangement and the second CD ends with what is probably Kitty's best hit ever, "Little Things Mean A Lot." "Little Things Mean A Lot" is a ballad that will never be outdated; and this song belongs to the great Kitty Kallen. Kitty's excellent diction helps to make "Little Things Mean A Lot" a huge, blockbuster hit.

The CD comes with liner notes, we even get song credits! Geoff Milne writes an informative essay about Kitty's career, too.

Kitty Kallen is clearly one of the best female vocalists the world has ever seen. Once in a very long while, all the stars in all the heavens align just so--and a star is born to give us unforgettable performances. Such a star was the great Kitty Kallen; and her fans are sure to want this two CD set.

Bring this back into print!

Please note that this review relates to the double CD released on the Jasmine label, and not to any other release with a similar or identical title to which Amazon may have linked this review.

On both sides of the Atlantic, Kitty is best remembered (if at all) for Little things mean a lot. That song was a British and American number one hit. In Britain, where it was her only hit, it gives her the dubious distinction of being the first artist to have a number one hit without so much as grazing the lower reaches of the chart with a different record. While her British chart history is a poor reflection of the quality of her music, she at least had that one big hit. On closer inspection, Kitty had a long and distinguised career that would have been longer but for various vocal problems that ultimately forced her premature retirement. This compilation covers Kitty's career from 1940 to 1954. Kitty sang with various bands before launching her solo career, but here you get the best of her band music as well as the best of her solo music. Jasmine don't always present their compilations in chronological running order but with this set, it was the only sensible way to do things. They made just one deviation, moving Kitty's biggest and most famous hit to the end so that it closes the set, which seems entirely appropriate.

Kitty joined the Jack Teagarden Orchestra in 1939 and recorded four tracks with them that year, but none of them are included here. Four tracks recorded in 1940, together with three radio transcription tracks from 1941 and 1942, represent Kitty's music with the Jack Teagarden Orchestra. After leaving Jack, Kitty did some studio work that included the vocals on one track for the Bobby Sherwood Orchestra on Moonlight becomes you (track 8 on CD 1). Kitty later replaced the equally brilliant Helen O'Connell in the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra. This was an extremely successful move in commercial terms although Kitty wasn't happy working for Jimmy and left at the earliest opportunity, one year after she joined. This period is represented by five tracks including four American top five hits, two of which (Star eyes, Besame mucho) featured Kitty duetting with Bob Eberly while the other two (They're either too young or too old, When they ask about you) featured Kitty as sole vocalist. Besamo Much, a number one hit, gave Kitty her first chart-topper of any kind.

With such success, Kitty must have had very good reasons to quit, but after another short spell doing studio work, she landed another top job, this time with the Harry James Orchestra, this time replacing the outstanding balladeer Helen Forrest. Kitty spent a year and half working for Harry James, after which they parted amicably when Harry advised Kitty to go solo. Kitty's work with Harry James is well represented here, with eight radio broadcast tracks followed by six of their eight American hits together. The six hits include two number ones (I'm beginning to see the light, It's been a long long time), a number two hit (I'll buy that dream) and three other top ten hits (I don't care who knows it, 11:60 p.m., Waitin' for the train to come in). Their only other hits together (Guess I'll hang my tears out to dry, Yah-ta-ta yah-ta-ta) didn't make the top ten. Chart completists might wish that these tracks had been included, but all the selected tracks are of a high quality and if Jasmine decided that the selected tracks were better than those omitted, I trust them. All those tracks occupy the remainder of the first CD and the first three tracks of the second.

Kitty's solo career started mainly with TV and live performances, though she recorded a one-off track with Artie Shaw (My heart belongs to Daddy, track 4 of CD 2 here). When Kitty finally recorded some solo music for Mercury, she had four American hits. Aba daba honeymoon (a duet with Richard Hayes), Kiss me sweet and Juke box Annie are included, though Our lady of Fatima (a top ten hit) is excluded, its place being takemn by two non-hit duets with Richard Hayes (Honestly I love you, Good luck good health God bless you). Kitty later recorded four tracks in a reunion session with Harry James, all included here though they yielded no hits.

Kitty then signed for Decca and her early recordings for that label occupy the final eleven tracks of the second CD here. Among those tracks are Kitty's first four American hits for Decca (Are you looking for a sweetheart?, Little things mean a lot, In the chapel in the moonlight, I want you all to myself). Apparently, Kitty's big hit was originally released as the B-side of another track here (I don't think you love me anymore) but the single was flipped over and the rest, as they say, is history. The follow-up single (In the chapel in the moonlight) was a top five hit in America that failed to chart in Britain, though British charts in those days didn't contain many records.

This compilation shows that Kitty was a brilliant and versatile singer who could have had a career to compare with Peggy Lee, if things had gone well for her. They didn't but we can still enjoy the music that Kitty was able to record. When it comes to her early music, this is the best compilation yet released. Another compilation The Kitty Kallen Story covers her whole career but Kitty didn't have many hits after 1954, so as that compilation misses out a lot of her early hits that you'll find here, maybe this is the best Kitty Kallen compilation out there.

Kitty Kallen sang with a lot of big band orchestras in her time; and this CD gives us many of her best numbers when she performed with their musical accompaniment. Kitty never sounded better than she does on this album; she was a young songbird who could take anything and weave it magically into the most beautiful ballad ever. The quality of the sound on this CD is excellent and I really like that artwork, too.

The album starts with Kitty performing the title track which was also her signature song, "Little Thing Mean A Lot." Kitty sings this as Jack Pleis & His Orchestra provide a lovely musical arrangement to go with her vocals. The strings are well used in the musical arrangement, too. Kitty worked a great deal with Jack Teagarden & His Orchestra; we get a wonderful track by them called "Love For Sale." Kitty's voice is as clear as a bell and I'm very impressed. Kitty never falters, either! In addition, "The Moon and the Willow Tree" features Kitty with Jack Teagarden's Orchestra again; that big band style arrangement works wonders for this ballad as Kitty sings her heart out every step of the way.

"Bésame Mucho" has Kitty singing with Jimmy Dorsey & His Orchestra; this works on several different levels at once. "They're Either Too Young Or Too Old" is an awesome number Bette Davis sang in the movie "Thank Your Lucky Stars;" but of course Bette's singing can't quite compare to Kitty's stunning vocal prowess. Bette Davis was talented, too; but she was talented much, much more as an actress. In addition, "I'm Beginning To See The Light" pairs Kitty with Harry James & His Orchestra; they make this number very vibrant. I love it! There's another gem when Kitty performs "Yah-Ta-Ta, Yah-Ta-Ta, Talk, Talk, Talk" also with Harry James & His Orchestra; this cute tune sounds fresh and new when Kitty sings it.

"It's Been a Long, Long Time" also pairs Kitty with Harry James & His Orchestra; and wow, how they do this one up right! Kitty never lets go of a superfluous note and the music complements her vocals to perfection--and beyond! "Waitin' For The Train To Come In" is a number I first heard sung by Peggy Lee; but Kitty's rendition shines every bit as bright and it's a major highlight of this album.

"My Heart Belongs To Daddy" showcases Kitty singing at her best with Artie Shaw & His Orchestra; together these gifted artists make this shine brighter than silver and gold combined! I also like "When I Dream I Always Dream Of You" which again has Kitty singing with Harry James & His Orchestra; they sure made this quite powerful and that's grand. "In The Chapel In The Moonlight" shows Kitty weaving even more magic as she coos a wondrous rendition of this tune with Jack Pleis & His Orchestra; and the album ends very strong with Kitty Kallen performing "I Want You All To Myself" with Jack Pleis & His Orchestra.

Kitty Kallen could sing with any of the best big bands and this CD proves it. I heartily recommend this CD for Kitty's fans; and people who like that big band sound will not be disappointed.

Great selection of most of her big hits. Well mastered with good freq and dynamic range. Almost no surface noise so presume compiled from sources not far from the original or very carefully digital clean up. Playing time is generous.
If you like her vocals you wuld also like Kay Starr, Helen Ward, Helen Forrest, early Lena Horne, Patsy Cline, Francis Langford, Jo Stafford, Ella Fitzgerald, Polly Bergen, Betty Carter, early Doris Day and others I forget.
The CD is clean and easy to play but I miss the timbre of those excellent loud electric 10" 78's recordings of the dying days of "standards" before the awful compression of early microgroove LP's took over. They just suit the big band era so well!
While I'm on it - why don't modern vocalists let the band have a go, just by way of variation! Modern arrangements give little thought to the ebb and flow of the piece with vocalist and the band (just a backing) hammering away in unison. Swing era arrnagements had vocal passages often late in the piece once the melody was well established or short vocal lines dropped in at approp. lulls in the piece.
Anyway - buy this CD if you can find one - it's good.

Track Listings
Disc: 1
1. Love For Sale
2. You You Darlin
3. Moon And The WIllow Tree
4. Wham (Re Bop Boom Bam)
5. Has Anybody Here Seen Jackson
6. Swing Without Words
7. Heaven is Mine Again
8. Moonlight Becomes You
9. That Wonderful Worrisome Feeling
10. Besame Mucho
11. Star Eyes
12. They're Either Too Young Or Too Old
13. When They Ask About You
14. It's Been So Long
15. It Could Happen To You
16. My Beloved Is Rugged
17. Amor Amor
18. Where Or When
19. There Goes That Song Again
20. Wouldn't It Be Nice
21. If I Knew Then
22. I'm Beginning To See The Light
23. I Don't Care Who Knows It
24. 11:60 PM

Disc: 2
1. I'll Buy That Dream
2. It's Been A Long Long Time
3. Waitin' For The Train To Come In
4. My Heart Belongs To Daddy
5. Kiss Me Sweet
6. Juke Box Annie
7. Honestly I Love You
8. Aba Daba Honeymoon
9. Good Luck Good Health God Bless You
10. To Be Loved By You
11. Like The Moon Above You
12. When I Dream
13. Still You'd Break My Heart
14. Are You Looking For A Sweetheart
15. Lonely
16. Heartless Heart
17. Little Lie
18. Take Everything But You
19. I Don't Think You Love Me Anymore
20. In The Chapel In The Moonlight
21. Polly Pigtails
22. I'm A Lonely Little Petunia
23. I Want You All To Myself
24. Little Things Mean A Lot