Torchy (album) explained

Torchy!
Type:	studio
Artist:	Carmen McRae
Cover:	McRae Torchy.jpeg
Released:	1956
Recorded:	December 16, 29 & 30, 1955, New York^[1]
Genre:	Vocal jazz
Length:	36:25
Label:	Decca DL-8267
Chronology:	Carmen McRae
Prev Title:	By Special Request
Prev Year:	1955
Next Title:	Blue Moon
Next Year:	1957

Torchy! is a 1956 album by jazz singer Carmen McRae arranged by Jack Pleis and Ralph Burns.^[2] ^[3]

Jason Ankeny described the album as "a lush, potently atmospheric collection of romantic ballads rendered for maximum impact" and that the "...sheer intensity of McRae's vocals render orchestration virtually moot. Few singers have equaled her conviction or her fierce intelligence, and her interpretations of songs like "But Beautiful," "My Future Just Passed," and "We'll Be Together Again" pack a devastating emotional punch."^[2]

Track listing

"Last Night When We Were Young" (Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg) – 2:38
"Speak Low" (Kurt Weill, Ogden Nash) – 3:07
"But Beautiful" (Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke) – 2:55
"If You'd Stay the Way I Dream About You" (Arthur Herzog, Jr., Irene Kitchings) – 2:47
"Midnight Sun" (Lionel Hampton, Burke, Johnny Mercer) – 3:45
"My Future Just Passed" (Richard A. Whiting, George Marion, Jr) – 3:18
"Yesterdays" (Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach) – 2:33
"We'll Be Together Again" (Carl T. Fischer, Frankie Laine) – 3:04
"I'm a Dreamer, Aren't We All" (Ray Henderson, Buddy DeSylva, Lew Brown) – 2:40
"Good Morning Heartache" (Ervin Drake, Irene Higginbotham, Dan Fisher) – 3:20
"Star Eyes" (Don Raye, Gene DePaul) – 3:08
"I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You" (Victor Young, Bing Crosby, Ned Washington) – 3:10

Personnel

Carmen McRae – vocals
Ralph Burns, Jack Pleis – arranger

Notes and References

Cf. with Carmen McRae 1950s sessionography on Jazzdiscography.com
Web site: [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=torchy!-mw0000510911|pure_url=yes}} Torchy]. Allmusic. October 7, 2015.
Web site: Carmen McRae – Torchy! at Discogs. discogs.com. October 10, 2015.