Jo Stafford - The Columbia Hits Collection

On this CD you'll find a full 28 of her 32 chart hits, many of them never before on CD. With notes, lovely artwork and sound befitting one of the great pop singers of all time. Album Description

Jo Stafford CD

Great CD By Jo Stafford. So many great songs that she made famous. Just loved this music. September 24, 2008

Jo Stafford sold these songs without even trying--and that's no small feat !!!

Columbia Hits Collection gives is so many of Jo Stafford's wonderful hit songs from her recording years at Columbia Records. Jo's voice is in excellent form throughout this album; and the sound quality is really rather good. The artwork is tastefully done as well.

The CD starts with Jo Stafford singing her heart out on the classic love song "You Belong To Me." The percussion enhances the natural beauty of this number and Jo never misses a beat! "Keep It A Secret" also works very well; Jo Stafford sings this very well and I can even detect her ability to belt out a tune like few others ever could! This is very impressive. "If" is another lovely number; this love ballad gets a very sensitive treatment from Jo Stafford and I'm convinced that Jo's rendition is THE definitive rendition of this classic love ballad.

"Tennessee Waltz" is a number I usually associate with Patti Page; but when Jo Stafford sings this it truly shines just as if I never heard it before! Jo sings this with panache and the fine musical arrangement for "Tennessee Waltz" complements Jo's singing perfectly. "In The Cool, Cool, Cool Of The Evening" also sounds perfect; this duet is very pretty and it all holds its own very well. "It's Almost Tomorrow" certainly gets a royal treatment from Jo Stafford as she delivers this torch song with style and grace.

"Somebody" features Jo Stafford squarely in the spotlight--and that's OK by me! The strings enhance the beauty of this number and Jo gives this a very sensitive treatment. Great! "A Fool Such As I (Now and Then There's)" has some excellent horn work and Jo sings this tune without a flaw. I always thought this was an Elvis Presley song but apparently this song existed before Elvis Presley recorded it. Jo's romantic version gets a slower than normal tempo and it works just great.

"Early Autumn" is a very pretty melody that I enjoy hearing when Jo Stafford sings it; and listen also for "With A Little Bit Of Luck" which was also in the show My Fair Lady. "With a Little Bit Of Luck" has a rousing rendition by Jo Stafford and a male chorus to bolster her performance; and it's a very fine tune. "Kissin' Bug Boogie" is a very cute number even if there is some surface noise--it's a good number. The CD ends very well with Jo Stafford performing "Teach Me Tonight;" this timeless love song has a fresh flavor to it when Jo sings it; "Teach Me Tonight" is a most romantic tune and it leaves you wanting more.

Don't be surprised if after the CD finishes playing you almost instinctively reach for the "play" button on your CD player to listen to this album all over again! Jo Stafford amply proves her vocal prowess on this CD and this is also a great place to start for newcomers to Jo's artistry. It's an excellent CD for fans of classic pop vocals, too.
May 3, 2008

One Of Pop Music's Most Prolific Female Hit-Makers

After being part of numerous hits for the Tommy Dorsey orchestra, both as a solo singer and as part of The Pied Pipers, Jo went solo in 1944 with Capitol and, to 1950, gave that label over 50 hit singles, including 10 memorable duets with Gordon MacRae. She was even part of Red Ingle & His Natural Seven's 1947 # 1 Temptation [Tim-Tayshun], billed as Cinderella G. Stump.

Late in 1950 she switched to Columbia, along with husband and orchestra leader Paul Weston, where, to 1957, she added another 29 hit singles, including six duets with Frankie Laine, and as reviewer Peter Harris has pointed out, they are ALL here and beautifully remastered.

In the fold-out insert you get four pages of background notes by Gene Lees, written in July 2001, a partial discography of the contents [chart but no label details], and several nice photographs of Jo, including a rare shot with sisters Christine and Pauline, one each with Laine and MacRae, and another with husband Paul.

Just a masterful effort by Corinthian Records of Beverly Hills and one which comes most highly recommended. August 20, 2007

Lovin' it

It's hard to find a good selection of oldies, but I had plenty to choose from. I'm happy with the CD. April 10, 2007

Jo Stafford Hits from the 40's and 50's

This is such a wonderful CD - we wanted to hear some of the songs Jo Stafford had in the 50's when we were dating. She has a great voice and almost all the songs on this CD were fabulous! March 11, 2007

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