PEGGY LEE - MIRRORS (1975-2001) RM / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 
Intelligent, evocative, understated, and mature are words that come to mind when describing this 1975 recording. The album is the reflection of a middle-aged woman pondering her present life while romanticizing the past, knowing full well that, in the words of the last song, "We're longing for a simpler time that never was." Written and produced by Leiber & Stoller, and sung in the soft, breathy style of Peggy Lee, the listener is taken through a journey of songs that often evoke a sense of melancholy, even when the lyrical content seems upbeat, such as on "I've Got Them Feelin' Too Good Today Blues." Thoughtful and understated arrangements by Johnny Mandel do a superb job of supporting but never overpowering the lyrics or the vocal style of Lee. Several songs musically evoke what is implied in the title. "Professor Hauptmann's Performing Dogs," for instance, brings to mind sounds reminiscent of the circus. In less skilled hands, musically representing what is lyrically conveyed might not work, but in the talented hands of Leiber, Stoller, and Mandel, it works wonderfully. This is an album where it is apparent the singer, songwriters, and arranger all worked together to make an album worthy of the talents of everyone involved -- they certainly succeeded in that goal. by Michael Ofjord 
Tracklist:
1     Is That All There Is? 4:21
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
2     Ready to Begin Again (Manya's Song) 3:26
Arranged By, Conductor – Perry Botkin, Jr.
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
3     Some Cats Know 4:18
Arranged By, Conductor – Meco Monardo
Engineer [Recording] – Carmine Rubino, Pete Romano
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
4     I've Got Them Feelin' Too Good Today Blues 2:20
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
5     A Little White Ship 3:10
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
6     Tango 5:21
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
7     Professor Hauptmann's Performing Dogs 5:40
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
8     The Case of M.J.2:54
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
9     I Remember 2:51
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
10     Say It 3:58
Jerry Leiber / Frank Loesser / Jimmy McHugh / Mike Stoller
11     Longings for a Simpler Time 3:54
Jerry Leiber / Mike Stoller
Credits:
Accordion – Stephen Paietta
Arranged By, Conductor – Johnny Mandel
Bass – Joe Mondragon, Ray Brown
Cello – Anne Goodman, Dennis Karmazyn, Edgar Lustgarten, Jackie Lustgarten, Jesse Levy
Cello, Bass – Fred Seykora
Drums, Percussion – Alvin Stoller, Emil Radocchia, Gene Estes, Jack Ranelli, Joseph Porcaro, John Guerin, Ken Park, Kenneth Watson, Larry Bunker, Mark Stevens, Victor Feldman
Guitar [Banjo] – Dennis Budimir, John Pisano, Tommy Tedesco
Harp – Corky Hale
Horns – Alan Robinson, Marilyn Robinson, Vincent DeRosa
Keyboards – Artie Kane, Clare Fischer, Don Grusin, Michael Lang, Mike Melvoin, Varda Ullman
Trombone – Charles Loper, Chauncy Welsch, Richard Nash, Kenneth Shroyer, Mike Vlatkovich, Phillip Tule
Trumpet – Buddy Childers, Charles Findley, Joe Burnett, Malcolm McNab, Paul Hubinon, Anthony Terran
Tuba – John Johnson, Bill Masonheimer
Viola – Allan Harshman, Barbara Thomason, David Schwartz, Julien Barber, Virginia Majewski
Violin – Arnold Belnick, Assa Drori, Betty Lamagna, Blanche Belnick, Carl Lamagna, Elliot Rosoff, Erno Neufeld, Gerald Vinci, Guy Lumia, Harry Bluestone, Irving Geller, John Pintavalle, Marcy Dicterow, Mari Tsumura, Norman Carr, Paul Shure, Richard Sortomme, Shari Zippert, Sheldon Sanov, Tony Posk, Wilbert Nuttycombe, William Kurasch
Woodwind – Abe Most, Bill Perkins, Bud Shank, Gene Cipriano, George Young, Georgia Alwan, Harry Klee, Jack Nimitz, Jerome Richardson, John Neufeld, Norman Benno, Ronald Langinger, Tom Scott