Blossom Dearie - Blossom Dearie Sings 1973 (45th Anniversary Edition 2017)

Blossom Dearie wrote her first song, "Blossom's Blues," in late 1956, a coy response to similar songs from female singers of the era. The first and last lyrics she would ever write would be, "If you don't like my peaches baby, why do you shake my tree?" In London, in the mid-60's, Blossom was visiting a friend when Brit-rocker Georgie Fame came on the radio. Her friend's children went wild and began to dance around the living room. Blossom was so taken that she sat down at the piano and began a melody, her friend, Sandra Harris, wrote the words, and Sweet Georgie Fame along with Blossom's earliest demo recordings of her own songs were born. From then on Blossom stayed on the music side and let talented friends supply the lyrics. Sweet Georgie Fame, and the real Georgie Fame stayed in England, but ten tracks, all written by Blossom Dearie, were about to make their way back home to New York.

From 1965-1970 Blossom recorded four albums for Fontana Records in England. After her tenure at Fontana ended she started to shop demo recordings, mostly of her own songs, around to record labels in Europe and the United States. In 1972 she crafted together a master tape that was to serve as a delivered album that a label could pick up and release on the spot. She financed, and friend (and fellow jazz artist) Bob Dorough produced. The studio was not exactly state of the art, the bathroom was across the street, but Michel Legrand stopped in, and Johnny Mercer hung out through most of the recording. The most notable of the tracks are "I'm Shadowing You" written with Mercer(pre-Watergate) as well as "Hey John" which was a thank you to new friend John Lennon for digging being on the same television show together.

It was at an unnamed record label in 1973 that the last denial took place. Either the label was not interested or they were offering a paltry sum for the master tape. According to Blossom, she said, "The hell with this!" Took her master, commiserated with her buddy Johnny Mercer, and decided to start her own label. He aptly named it "Daffodil Records" for her. Blossom was the second female artist to produce and shop her own master and the first successful female artist who headed her own record label.

A year after final recording Daffodil Records released, Blossom Dearie Sings. This was because, Blossom Dearie, Sings, Plays Piano, Writes the Songs, Arranges the Music, and Produces the Record wouldn't fit on the record sleeve. However that would be the template for the rest of the Daffodil catalog. Whitney Balliet of the New Yorker supplied the original liner notes starting by saying, "Everything about Blossom Dearie is just right.(musically)" He finished by remarking, "If things go askew or do not fit into her plans, they don't exist."

Blossom Dearie Sings is not just an album, but the determined effort of one of the world's most unique jazz artists to continue her career. Her way. For her fans. Around the time of this album's release Blossom played Carnegie Hall and transitioned from a nightclub entertainer to a concert performer. Thirteen more albums would follow on Daffodil as would hundreds of thousands of international miles of concert tours. All under the direction of Blossom herself. Blossom's family and Daffodil Records are proud to offer this album remastered and in stereo with four bonus tracks.

TRACKLIST

01. I'm Shadowing You
02. Saving My Feeling For You
03. Sunday Afternoon
04. Somebody New
05. I Like You, You're Nice
06. Baby, You're My Kind
07. Home
08. Hey John
09. You Have Lived In Autumn
10. Flame To Fire
11. Baby, You're My Kind (Work Lead)
12. Home (Alternate Version)
13. I Like You, You're Nice (Alternate Version)
14. Sunday Afternoon (Alternate Version)