Betty Carter - The Modern Sound Of Betty Carter (1977 Japanese ABC-Paramount Mono LP)

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Sleeve: VG+
Obi: None

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Betty Carter - The Modern Sound Of Betty Carter Vinyl LP - 1977 Japanese ABC-Paramount Mono Reissue

Betty Carter's distinctive approach to jazz singing, emphasising rhythmic complexity, harmonic sophistication, and fearless improvisation, is showcased across 12 standards on this album. Originally released in the early 1960s and reissued in Japan in 1977 by ABC-Paramount through Nippon Columbia, this mono pressing captures Carter transforming songs like "What A Little Moonlight Can Do", "Stormy Weather", and the self-penned "Jazz (Ain't Nothin' But Soul)" into vehicles for her unique vocal artistry. Arranged and conducted by Richard Wess with production by Sid Feller, the album demonstrates why Carter became known as "the musicians' singer", her ability to bend and phrase melodies with bebop fluency earning respect from instrumentalists and vocalists alike.

Carter's approach differs dramatically from conventional vocal jazz. Rather than simply singing melodies prettily, she treats songs as frameworks for improvisation, stretching time, delaying phrasing, and reharmonising melodies with the freedom of a horn player. This makes her recordings challenging but rewarding, requiring the same active listening as instrumental jazz. On tracks like "Mean To Me" and "Remember", Carter's rhythmic displacement and harmonic substitutions demonstrate why she influenced generations of jazz singers from Cassandra Wilson to Esperanza Spalding.

This Japanese mono pressing offers collectors a quality edition of Carter's early work, before she founded her own Bet-Car label and achieved greater recognition in the 1970s-80s. Nippon Columbia's manufacturing ensures sound quality befitting Carter's sophisticated vocal approach, capturing both her powerful delivery and subtle nuances.