AMG Review of Formative Years

JT Griffith
All Music Guide

The Doris Day of the early 1940s is not the stereotype that persists today. Her transition from swing band vocalist to pop vocalist and then film icon effectively left her early jazz work relegated to the periphery of her stardom. This is a shame since her early singing career draws comparisons to such luminaries as Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. The three best collections of this early material include the double album Complete Doris Day With Les Brown, the six-CD box set It's Magic, and this two-CD set. The buyer investigating Day's early music will find the 145-track large set to be daunting and might first enjoy the 42-track Complete Doris Day With Les Brown. The argument for Formative Years lies in its track selection. Disc one include 24 songs from her collaboration with the Les Brown Orchestra as a jazz and dance band vocalist. This part includes such standouts as Johnny Mercer's "Dig It," Irving Berlin's "I Got the Sun in the Morning," and the moody ballad "We'll Be Together Again." The second disc contains songs from when Day left the band to pursue a solo career. Imagine a one-disc sampler from each of the larger sets and you will have a good idea about what to expect from Formative Years, which collects a healthy does of music from Doris Day's jazz and initial pop vocal phases. The Formative Years may be the best introduction to the jazzy, 1940s Doris Day because it presents the evolution of her musical career from her beginning work to her popular breakthrough. The collection should appeal to those who want a more complete overview without the cost of the larger set. After a few listens to The Formative Years, Complete Doris Day With Les Brown will become the next essential purchase.