ProJazz.net

There is something magical and thoroughly original in the singing style of Al Hibbler. To put into words what happens exactly when he opens his wonderful pipes is difficult at best. His unique phrasing, his octave slides, his foggy, deep-throated quality, taken separately, might spell a limited performer. Add them up, together with Hibbler’s highly personalised interpretation of a song – and what is says – and you have what is without question one of the most convincingly soulful, compelling voices in today’s musical world. Duke Ellington, an intellectual man with a gift for an occasional phrase, was so sold on what he called Hibbler’s ‘tonal pantomime’ that he featured him as band singer for eight years. Al Hibbler is a sadly neglected singer who, blind from birth, was an influence on Ray Charles. Affectionately known as ‘Hibble’, he found fame and commercial success in 1955 with the original version of “Unchained Melody”, a song over a forty year span has periodically re-entered the charts by different performers. This Jasmine CD couples two American Decca albums from 1956 and 1957, both beautifully orchestrated by Jack Pleis. Two original LPs on one Jasmine CD with 24 tracks in total playing for over an hour. Full page re-production inside booklet of each original LP front cover and original sleeve noted reproduced in full (Editorial Reviews).

Track Listings:
1 Tree with Chorus
2 Sweet Slumber with Chorus
3 Do Nothin’ Till You Hear from Me with Chorus
4 Very Thought of Your with Chorus
5 On a Slow Boat to China
6 Because of You
7 What Would People Say
8 Just a Kid Named Joe
9 I Hadn’t Anyone Till You
10 I’ll Get Along Somehow
11 It’s Been a Long, Long Time with Chorus
12 Town Crier with Chorus