Nancy Wilson – Something Wonderful

Thanks! Share it with your friends!

Close

Something Wonderful was the second album by the American vocalist Nancy Wilson, it was released in October 1960 by Capitol Records, and arranged by Billy May.

Critical Reception

The album spawned one of Wilson’s all-time signature songs, “Guess Who I Saw Today”. Another highlight was “What a Little Moonlight Can Do”, which was, as critic Pete Welding wrote in his liner notes to the 1996 three-CD set Ballads, Blues & Big Bands: The Best of Nancy Wilson, “a song so closely associated with the sublime Billie Holiday (that) few would even have attempted it, let alone brought it off so well, with just the right blend of lightheartedness and sincerity.”

The AllMusic review by Nick Dedina awarded the album 4 stars and stated:” This fine album was sadly lost in the shuffle when it was released the same year as another Nancy Wilson album, The Swingin’s Mutual!, her highly successful collaboration with the George Shearing Quintet. This is a shame, because Something Wonderful is one of Wilson’s best albums, and her tastiest, with famed big-band arranger Billy May. … Something Wonderful remains one of Nancy Wilson’s most jazz-oriented sessions, and it’s a welcome addition to her catalog.”

Track listing:
“Teach Me Tonight” (Gene de Paul, Sammy Cahn) – 2:51
“This Time the Dream’s on Me” (Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen) – 2:19
“I’m Gonna Laugh You Out of My Life” (Cy Coleman, Joseph Allen McCarthy) – 2:40
“I Wish You Love” (Léo Chauliac, Charles Trenet) – 2:00
“Guess Who I Saw Today” (Murray Grand, Elisse Boyd) – 3:27
“If Dreams Come True” (Edgar Sampson, Benny Goodman) – 1:49
“What a Little Moonlight Can Do” (Harry M. Woods) – 2:27
“The Great City” (Curtis Lewis) – 2:43
“He’s My Guy” (Gene de Paul, Don Raye) – 2:28
“Something Happens to Me” (Marvin Fisher, Jack Segal) – 1:58
“Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)” (T-Bone Walker) – 2:28
“Something Wonderful Happens” (Del Guerico, Gamse, Thorn) – 2:47

Personnel:
Nancy Wilson – vocals
Billy May – arranger, conductor
Pete Candoli – trumpet
Frank Beach – trumpet
Conrad Gozzo – trumpet
Mannie Klein – trumpet
George Roberts – trombone
Si Zentner – trombone
Murray McEachern – trombone
Lloyd Ulyate – trombone
Ben Webster – tenor saxophone
Justin Gordon – flute
Emil Richards – vibraphone
Milt Raskin – piano & celeste
Jack Marshall – guitar
Joe Comfort – bass
Shelly Manne – drums

__________________

Released: October 1960
Recorded: May 1960
Studio: Capitol (Hollywood)
Length: 29:57
Label: Capitol
Producer: Dave Cavanaugh, Tom “Tippy” Morgan