QUEEN OF BEBOP The Musical Lives of Sarah Vaughan

In a youthful voice, narrator Allyson Johnson delivers this substantial biography of the great jazz vocalist Sarah Vaughan. As fans know, Vaughan’s speaking voice was high pitched and childish sounding, which is how Johnson realistically presents the many Vaughan interviews. But this is also a scholarly piece of music history, and Johnson’s overall peppy narration seems too lighthearted at times. Nevertheless, it’s a worthwhile listen for any Vaughan fan or student of American jazz, offering insight into Vaughan’s remarkable innate talent and astonishingly poor life choices. As Johnson recounts the early days of Vaughan’s career and her central role in the development of bebop, listeners can envision how her naïve passion for the purity of the music interfered with her ability to make sensible business decisions. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2017]