Personnel:

Rita Reys (vcl), Dick Bezemer, Donald Byrd (tb), Lars Gullin (as, bs), Toon Van Vliet, Hank Mobley, Ira Sullivan (ts), Ove Lind (cl), Gunnar Svensson, Hasse Eriksson, Jerry Van Rooyen, Rob Madna, Horace Silver, Kenny Drew, Pim Jacobs (p), Mat Mathews (acc, arr), Bo Kallstrom (vib), Rolf Berg, Barry Galbraith (g), Simon Brehm, Chris Bender, Doug Watkins, Wilbur Ware, Milt Hinton (b), Wessel Ilcken, Jack Noren, Art Blakey, Osie johnson (d), Tom Dissevelt, Jan Corduwener (dir)

After an early plunge into the pop music of the time, singer Rita Keys (1924-2013) came to jazz when, in 1943, she met Wessel Ilcken (1923-1957), Hollands then best drummer. She became his wife, and the influence of his teachings, allied to the impact on her of recordings by such American singers as Sarah Vaughan and Billie Holiday helped her forge a very personal style.

This collection of songs sets her wonderfully cool voice and sophisticated approach against backgrounds which, though different, reflect her ability to stamp her personality on diverse circumstances to produce equally interesting performances. Regardless of context, her artistry is supremely evident throughout. Every song is approached with an instinctive musicianship and feeling for the lyrics, and an innate sense of phrasing, which fill each performance with an inescapable atmosphere.

TRACKLIST:

CD 1

01. Deed I Do (Rose-Hish) 3:07

02. Over the Rainbow (Arlen-Harburg) 2:49

03. Lullaby in Rhythm (Goodman-Sampson-Profit-Hirsh) 3:03

04. Hes Funny That Way (Moret-Whiting) 3:05

05. Exactly Like You (McHugh-Fields) 2:30

06. Theres a Small Hotel (Lorenz-Hart) 2:32

07. My Funny Valentine (Rodgers-Hart) 2:58

08. Wailing for Weelink (Bezemer) 3:11

09. I Should Care (Weston-Stordahl-Cahn) 2:38

10. There Will Never Be Another You (Warren-Gordon) 2:26

11. For Minors Only (Van Rooyen) 3:10

12. Its All Right with Me (Porter) 2:37

13. Gone with the Wind (Wrubel-Magidson) 2:34

14. But Not for Me (G. & I. Gershwin) 2:09

15. Moonlight in Vermont (Suessdorf-Blackburn) 2:35

16. Ill Wind (Arlen-Koehler) 3:26

17. Youd Be So Nice To Come Home To (Cole Porter) 3:35

18. Taking a Chance On Love (Duke-LaTouche-Fetter) 2:34

19. I Cried for You (Freed-Arnheim-Lyman) 3:29

20. That Old Black Magic (Arlen-Mercer) 2:55

21. My One and Only Love (Mellin-Wood) 4:14

22. Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year (Frank Loesser) 3:40

CD 2

01. Old Devil Moon (Harburg-Lane) 2:39

02. Star Eyes (Raye-De Paul) 4:16

03. The Song Is You (Kern-Hammerstein II) 3:12

04. Keepin Myself for You (Youmans-Clare) 3:09

05. Falling In Love with Love (Rodgers-Hart) 2:33

06. Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most (Wolf-Landesman) 3:55

07. Hes My Guy (Raye-De Paul) 2:19

08. (There Is) No Greater Love (Jones-Symes) 3:18

09. Please Be Kind (Chaplin-Cahn) 4:05

10. Where Are You? (McHugh-Adamson) 3:43

11. They Didnt Believe Me (Kern-Reynolds) 3:14

12. Only a Moment Ago (Rose-Ager) 3:04

13. You Stepped Out Of a Dream (Kahn-Brown) 2:44

14. Its Mine After All (Darwin-Mathews) 3:00

15. When the Blues Come On (Cohn) 3:56

16. All of You (Porter) 2:30

Sources CD 1:

Tracks #1 & 2, from 78 rpm Artist (Swd) B3095

Tracks #3 & 4, from 78 rpm Artist (Swd) B3097

Tracks #5 & 6, from 78 rpm Artist (Swd) B3131

Track #7, from 45 rpm Philips (Du) P17415 H

Tracks #8-11, from 45 rpm Philips (Du) 422 051 PE

Tracks #12-16, from 45 rpm Philips (Du) 422 080 PE

Tracks #19-22, from 45 rpm Philips (Du) 422 259 PE

Tracks #17-22 issued as "The Cool Voice of Rita Reys" (Philips (Du) B 08006 L)

Also issued in U.S. with the same title (Columbia CL 903)

Sources CD 2:

Tracks #1,3-5, from the 45 rpm "The Song Is You" Philips 422 145 PE

Tracks #1-12, issued as "The Cool Voice of Rita Reys #2" (Philips (Du) P 08010 L)

Also issued in the U.S. as "Her Name is Rita Reys" (Epic LN 3522)

Tracks #13-16, from the album "New Voices" (Dawn (USA) DLP 1125)

Personnel on CD 1

Tracks #1-4: LARS GULLIN QUARTET

Lars Gullin, alto (#1,2) & baritone (#3,4) sax; Gunnar Svensson, piano; Simon Brehm, bass; Wes Ilcken, drums.

Recorded in Stockholm, March 2, 1953

Tracks #5-6: OVE LINDS SEXTET

Ove Lind, clarinet; Bo Kallstrom, vibes; Hasse Eriksson, piano; Rolf Berg, guitar; Gunnar Almstedt, bass; Jack Noren, drums.

Recorded in Stockholm, September 24, 1953

Track #7: THE WESSEL ILCKEN QUINTET

Dick Bezemer, trombone; Toon Van Vliet, tenor sax; Jerry Van Rooyen, piano; Chris Bender, bass; Wessel Ilcken, drums. Arrangement by Bezemer and Van Rooyen.

Recorded in Hilversum, January 17, 1955

Tracks #8-11: THE WESSEL ILCKEN QUINTET

Jerry Van Rooyen, trumpet & arranger; Toon Van Vliet, tenor sax; Rob Madna, piano; Dick Bezemer, bass; Wessel Ilcken, drums. Rita Reys, out on #8 and 11.

Recorded in Hilversum, August 16, 1955

Tracks #12-16: THE WESSEL ILCKEN QUINTET

Ack Van Rooyen, trumpet; Herman Schoonderwalt, baritone sax; Rob Madna, piano; Dick Bezemer, bass; Wessel Ilcken, drums. Jerry Van Rooyen, arranger.

Recorded in Hilversum, February 16, 1956

Tracks #17-20: THE JAZZ MESSENGERS

Donald Byrd, trumpet & arranger (#17); Hank Mobley, tenor sax; Horace Silver, piano & arranger (#18); Doug Watkins, bass; Art Blakey, drums. Gerry Van Rooyen, arranger (on #19,20).

Recorded in New York City, May 3, 1956

Tracks #21-22:

Donald Byrd, trumpet; Ira Sullivan, tenor sax; Kenny Drew, piano; Wilbur Ware, bass; Art Blakey, drums; Horace Silver, arranger.

Recorded in New York City, June 25, 1956

Personnel on CD 2

Tracks #1-6: Orchestra Arranged & Conducted by TOM DISSEVELT

String and woodwind sections; also featuring Karel Reys, alto sax; Pim Jacobs, piano; Rudy Jacobs, bass; Wessel Ilcken, drums.

Recorded in Hilversum, March 25, 1957

Tracks #7-12: Orchestra Arranged & Conducted by JAN CORDUWENER

String, brass and woodwind sections; also featuring Pim Jacobs, piano; Rudy Jacobs, bass; Wessel Ilcken, drums.

Recorded in Hilversum, March 26 & 27, 1957

Tracks #13-16: MAT MATHEWS QUINTET

Mat Mathews, accordion & arranger; Harry Lookofsky, viola; Barry Galbraith, guitar; Milt Hinton, bass; Osie Johnson, drums.

Recorded in New York City, May 1957

Original recordings produced by Artist Fonogram (#1-6), Michiel de Ruyter and George Avakian (CD-1 #17-22).

Compiled for CD release by Jordi Pujol

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