Broadway star Gwen Verdon didn't make too much of a dent in the jazz-pop market, but this fine album from the late '50s makes one wish she had. Cut after she had established herself in productions of +Can-Can and +Damn Yankees, The Girl I Left Home For finds Verdon reveling in fine selection of rarely heard Tin Pan Alley songs -- in a jazz context at least. Helped out by Joe Reisman's fluid blend of pop gloss and lounge swing, Verdon mixes in well-known numbers like "The Lady Is a Tramp" and "Ain't Misbehavin'" with obscure novelties like "Hot Night in Alaska" and Cole Porter's "Mr. and Mrs. Fitch" (from +The Gay Divorce). Taking off some of the glib edge plied by many a Broadway siren, Verdon judiciously balances vocal theatrics with some loose and spontaneous phrasing. At times, she even sounds a bit like Blossom Dearie, who, like Verdon, had a knack for nicely dusting off less well-traveled gems from the stage. Topped off with the benignly exotic, Latin-tinged "Sand in My Shoes" and "No-Talent Joe," The Girl I Left Home For will definitely please fans of vintage vocals, especially those who like their pop with a heavy dose of show tune humor and allure.
- 1. Ain't Misbehanvin'
- 2. Sand In My Shoes
- 3. It's A Hot Night In Alaska
- 4. Mister And Missus Fitch
- 5. Bettin' On A Man
- 6. Why Can't I?
- 7. I've Got The World On A String
- 8. Jenny
- 9. Find Me A Primitive Man
- 10. No-Talent Joe
- 11. Lady Is A Tramp, The
- 12. Daddy
