Vaughan, Sarah & Clifford Brown: Sarah Vaughan (Verve Acoustic Sounds Series) LP

This studio recording from 1954, a self-titled album recorded for EmArcy, was later reissued as Sarah Vaughan With Clifford Brown to denote the involvement of one of the top trumpeters of the day. Vaughan 'played' her voice with a musical creativity, as if it were a 'real' instrument, and on this album, she is matched with musicians of equally high quality. The band includes Brown on trumpet, Herbie Mann on flute, and Paul Quinichette on tenor, each of whom have plenty of space for solos (most of the songs are close to the five-minute mark). Vocally, the singer is arguably at the zenith of her career here, pausing and lingering over notes on the standards "April In Paris," "Jim" and "Lullaby Of Birdland." This all-analog 180g vinyl LP reissue was mastered from the original analog tapes by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound, pressed at QRP, and comes housed in a Stoughton tip-on gatefold jacket.