Customer Reviews

Misty Miss Christy

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

(Sorry Yma and Jeri, you're very close.) I've listened to this cd at least a billion times and it's never grown old on me. Although I love Something Cool and Duet, this is my favorite June Christy cd for it has the right mix of slow and cheerful songs.
Why is June Christy my favorite singer? Because she is unique. She stamps her identity upon her songs, not only with her sincere singing but also with her music, which I've always have found to be peculiar. I can't think of another singer who uses the oboe so much in her work.
There are songs in this cd that still give me shivers like The Wind and Round Midnight, which Christy sings the definite version of. Her songs aren't just songs, they're stories. You can see June pulling up that collar!
Also look out for the last track Intrigue, sadly hidden. Sing Something Simple is adorable too.

I became obsessed with this album after finding it in a box of my grandmother's records and was thrilled to find it on CD, although wax does it justice too--The Misty Miss Christy is such an engrossing time capsule that, after a few listens, you won't believe your luck. June's versatile, wide-ranging voice is amazing for the moods it conveys without ever losing the "cool" sound. Its combination of innocence and passion are at times magically conveyed through Pete Rugulo's arrangements of classic jazz/big band songs of love won, lost, and sought. There's something almost eerie about the way this album sticks with you, and once you hear June sing "For All We Know" no one else's version will ever sound right. Christy's work with Stan Kenton never really let her stand out; this is June at her cool best.

Someone else has already mentioned this, but it's worth repeating...This album is worth the price of admission alone just for June's reading of 'Round Midnight. This is my absoulte favorite vocal version of this song. This phrasing is dead on - bound to give you chills. This is the album that introduced me to Miss Christy, and still my favorite.

Two other reviews on this page already express how good this set is. Only thing I could really add is that "Round Midnight" is quite possibly the most stunning moment in June's entire catalog.

I loved the "Something Cool" CD but tended to be naturally skeptical that the rest of someone's catalog could measure up to that classic. "The Misty Miss Christy" closed the deal for me, making me a dedicated June Christy fan. Although I'm also especially fond of "Dearly Beloved", "A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening", "Sing Something Simple" and of course, "For All We Know" (no, not the Carpenters song) every song is, well - it doesn't get any better than this.

Sitting in a bar, listening to Kenton's Dynaflow. That was oh, so long, long ago, yet I heard it played on a local radio station last month. Kenton's timeless. And following Dynaflow, Kenton comes back with Tampico as sung by June Christy who lives on through CDs like The Misty Miss Christy. How can you not be romantic listening to such a velvety and seductive voice as June's? And try to explain to me how anyone can be romantic when today's music jumps and jerks and dancing looks more like kick-boxing than dancing? Or when a great voice with range today is one which can scream the highest note and warble on the way down. Dancing is dancing, not jerking and grunt. Dancing is touching bodies. Try not to touch and not hold someone close when June Christy sings, My Heart Belongs To Only You. Can't be done, Bubba. Romance lives! This is a great CD of one of my all time favorite lady vocalists.

Yes indeed there is a sublime misty quality to her voice. If you like Mel Torme, then June is for you. There was a wonderful and unique tone to American women singers of the 40's and 50's. They possessed a power and perfect pitch that rode high on the wave of a full orchestra. June is no exception and whatever you are doing you have to just sit for a while to listen to her wonderful interpretations. I'm not sure why she never made it as big as her counterparts, perhaps her voice was a little too unique for her time. But today, judging by the wonderful reviews she receives here, there is a new appreciation for this artist. One of the greats and if this is your first album there can be no finer introduction. God Bless you June.

I well remember the day this LP came out--people talked as much about he lamp behind June on the cover as the music inside (Capitol's covers were as excellent as its music). This was the followup to "Something Cool" ("Duet" with Kenton being considered a special project) and June's favorite of all her albums. It is a gem start to finish--so very, very beautiful with June in superb vocal form, Pete Rugolo's eccentric arrangements striking and haunting, the whole project seamless start to finish. "Day Dream" (June's second recording of that one but the first one, a single, had never come out) and "I Didn't Know About You" always grabbed me by the heart and shook me but everything on this album soars. And has it stood the test of time!

June Christy was a classy singer and this album, along with Something cool, is one of her two best albums. I don't know (or care) if one is better than the other. June's albums, even apart from these two, were all of an incredibly high quality anyway.

On this album, June demonstrates that she can sing the soft, romantic songs, but she can also sing more upbeat songs, too, just to make sure you don't fall asleep - not that you'd want to.

When June sings Lovely way to spend an evening, my immediate though is - Absolutely! Listening to June's music is just that. The choice of songs, the production, the voice - all are just perfect.

Considering the quality of this album, and the acclaim it has received through the years, perhaps the really remarkable thing is that none of these songs have been covered to death. Perhaps other singers felt they just couldn't compete.

If you like fifties music with a bit of jazz, a bit of pop, a lot of romance and an abundance of quality, buy this, but don't just stop here - look at June's other great albums of the fifties and early sixties, and buy as many as you can afford. You won't regret buying any of them.

Know how it is when you purchase a CD but whenever you play it you program only a couple of favorite cuts? This is not one of those; every song is wonderfully phrased, cleanly executed. It is a pleasure to spin the whole thing. Other reviewers have commented on their favorites in this Christy collection and I am really surprised that nobody has mentioned "Intrigue" - classic Christy voice and a classic Rugolo accompaniment.

June Christie in the 50's was what Norah Jones is today: an interpreter of jazz in a unique fashion with a voice of silk. Her renditions of "That's All" and "'Round Midnight" are two of the best recorded by anyone, anytime. Fantastic styling.