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Classic Album Review | Billie Holiday: The Best Of

This came out in 2000 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):

 


During her tragically short life, Billie HolidayLady Day, as sax man Lester Young dubbed her —had plenty of reasons to sing the blues. She was beset by racism, drugs and troubles with the law (she was even busted for heroin possession on her deathbed).

Sadly, this mistreatment continues in the form of second-rate, quick-buck cash-ins like this two-CD set. These 20 tunes (which could easily fit on one disc) were lifted from old 78s (some from bluesman Jeff Healey’s giant collection) and radio broadcasts from Holiday’s stints with Teddy Wilson, Eddie Heywood and Frankie Newton in the ’30s. Yes, tracks like Strange Fruit and God Bless the Child are some of her best, but these scratchy, muted affairs are hardly classic versions. And the lack of liner notes, photos or recording info is just plain cheap, dismissive and disrespectful. Don’t get me wrong; every note Holiday produces is pure magic. And hey, every Billie disc out there is potentially one less Britney disc. Still, Holiday deserves better than this after all she went through.