Ella Fitzgerald
was never thought of as a blues singer but she does a surprisingly effective job on the ten blues songs here, including "See See Rider," "Trouble in Mind," "St. Louis Blues," and
Bessie Smith
's "Jailhouse Blues." She somehow sings more or less in the style of the classic blues vocalists of the 1920s and largely pulls it off. Trumpeter
Roy Eldridge
, who has few solos and is low in the mix, is largely wasted, as organist
Wild Bill Davis
(with assistance from guitarist
Herb Ellis
, bassist
Ray Brown
, and drummer
Gus Johnson
) dominate the ensembles. It's an interesting set. ~ Scott Yanow