Dolores Gray - Warm Brandy: The Capitol Years

Lush and Sultry!

Dolores Gray, fabulous, Tony-Award winning (for a show which ran on Broadway only 1 week!) star of stage and Fifties screen, gives beautiful renditions of standards on this, her only studio album. Somewhat of a cult figure (for all the Right reasons!), Gray was a strong vocalist in the tradition of Ethel Merman, fully capable of projecting over and above a big Broadway orchestra and to the very last row of the balcony in those pre-amplification days; she needed no body microphone to be heard distinctly and clearly. This album was a departure for her: soft ballads, lushly orchestrated, and sung in a sultry, whispery, close-to-the microphone voice. The selections are romantic rather than melancholy, and are perfect for a candle-light dinner, or a relaxing soak in the tub after a hard day.

While this album has been on cd before, first as a Japanese import, then as part of EMI's British two-albums-on-one-cd series, this release is crucial for the addition of several singles Gray also recorded for Capitol, including a great (and different) rendition of one of her signature songs, "There'll Be Some Changes Made", which she sang in the MGM film "Designing Woman." Her costars in that production, well worth seeking out on DVD, were Gregory Peck, Lauren Bacall, and in his only onscreen appearance, Broadway and Hollywood dancer-choreographer Jack Cole.
Looking forward to Decca Broadway hopefully re-issuing her Phillips LP "Dolores Gray Live at London's Talk of the Town" on cd!
Designing Woman June 1, 2007

welcome back, Miss Gray!

Broadway star...movie actress...Dolores Gray had many hats during her long showbusiness career, but the talented songstress only recorded one album, under a brief contract with Capitol Records. WARM BRANDY makes it's compact disc premiere here, and no doubt many people will be anxious to grab it.

To the hardcore Broadway musical fans, Dolores Gray is one of the all-time classic voices. She rose to fame playing the title role for the 1947 London production of "Annie Get Your Gun", then got cast in Broadway's notorious flop "Carnival in Flanders". Gray moved to Hollywood in the mid-1950s, where she snagged roles in the M-G-M movies "Kismet", "Designing Woman", "The Opposite Sex" and "It's Always Fair Weather". Mainstream movie fame alluded her, and she returned to Broadway to star as Frenchie in the musical version of "Destry Rides Again", and later played Lorraine in the ill-fated "Sherry!". Gray replaced Angela Lansbury in the 1974 London production of "Gypsy"; played Dorothy Brock for the Broadway and touring productions of "42nd Street", as well as Carlotta in a 1986 London revival of "Follies". She sadly passed away in 2002.

During her time with M-G-M, Gray recorded a series of singles as well as her WARM BRANDY album for the Capitol label. Here on this compact disc from DRG, her entire Capitol output has been compiled for the very first time.

WARM BRANDY features a mix of musical theatre favourites and jazz standards, and Gray wraps her velvet chops around each and every one of them. Highlights include "You Go to My Head" (sung in an arrangement that'll definitely go to YOUR head!), "You're Getting to Be a Habit With Me" (a 1930s chestnut), and "Shangri-La" (another exotic number which works well with Gray).

The series of bonus singles will also thrill the long-time Gray fans: "There'll Be Some Changes Made" (from the "Designing Woman" soundtrack), "Fool's Errand", "I'm Innocent", and "My Mama Likes You".

The remastering job for WARM BRANDY is a little muddy in places, but the selection of bonus singles are as fresh as paint.

[DRG 5257]

Further Listening (more titles with Dolores Gray):
Spotlight on Dolores Gray
Annie Get Your Gun; Broadway Musical Seri
Two on the Aisle (1951 Original Broadway Cast)
MGM's Kismet: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
It's Always Fair Weather (1955 Movie Soundtrack) (Rhino Handmade)
Destry Rides Again (1959 Original Broadway Cast)
Stairway to the Stars (Original 1989 London Cast) March 18, 2007

At Last....Dolores Gray at Her Finest

This jazzy collection of ballads contains the album "Warm Brandy" and all additional sides recorded by Dolores Gray at the height of her fame in 1957. Long out-of-print, this is a pristine example of this premiere vocalist who has unjustly been largely forgotten. Dolores Gray was primarily a Broadway performer (check out "Two on the Aisle" and "Destry Rides Again" as two Original Cast Recordings that showcase her at her finest). She had a voice for the ages, superior to Merman and all of her contemporaries. Unfortunately, her tempestuous nature undermined her career but what she left us is of the highest quality. She worked briefly for MGM (her Lalume in "Kismet" is definitive) and displayed a natural flair for wry comedy that was never fully utilized. Our loss.

Still, it is that magnificent voice that remains eternal and "Warm Brandy" is quite an unusual foray for Gray. Here, she eschews the roof-raising sound that was better than the "Merm" for a gentler, jazzier approach to some classic material. Quite a sophisticated album, "Warm Brandy" displays the broad range of Gray's instrument and her exquisitely warm and nuanced interpretations are the antithesis of that famous "belt". One can't imagine Merman or any of Gray's contemporaries pulling this off so effectively. From the gentle opener "Shangri-La" to the sultry "How Long Has This Been Going On", Gray shows she's got the goods. Her pitch, phrasing and intonation are perfection itself, but it is her interpretive ability that makes these songs live. "Speak Low" may be definitive, and "Don't Blame Me" smolders with her special brand of sexy cooing. As a bonus track (one of four) we get "There'll Be Some Changes Made", a brassy piece of dynamite from Gray's last movie, "Designing Woman", and Gray shines in her most familiar element.

Still, "Warm Brandy" is class in every respect and deserves to find an audience who'll rediscover the immense talent Ms. Gray possessed. Let us never forget. March 17, 2007

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