Singer Dakota Stanton mixed jazz and R&B in a style that sounded like she scribbled “For A Good Time Call…” on every juke joint in America. Her delivery was a mix of Ruth Brown’s earthiness and Dinah Washington’s sass,with a dash of Sarah Vaughan’s brightness and clarity with the subtlety and nuance of a Whoopee Cushion. She swung hard and swung often, with this two disc, 55 song collection from her Capitol label days delivering some of the sassy grooves to hit your ears.
Her earliest material is a collection of singles, beginning from 1954 and she is digging deep with some hip swaying “My Heart’s Delight,””No Mama, No Papa” and “A Little You.” She’s backed by Nelson Riddle for “A Dangerous Ange” and “ It Feels So Nice” before tearing into her debut seductive album The Late Late Show that has her sitting on your lap for a luscious “Misty,” “My Funny Valentine” and “What Do You See In Her?”. This is her ‘go-to” album as it also includes a swinging “Broadway” and twinkle in the eye title track. “Crazy Ye Calls Me” shows her range on the title track of her follow-up, with a take of “No Moon At All “ creating a long shadow. When she gets going, she sounds like she’s having a party in the back seat of the car, oozing on “Night Mist” as she ooh’s, guffaws and shrieks on a sweaty vocal lap dance of tunes such as “My Heart’s Delight”, “Abracadabra” and “Can’t Live Without Him Anymore.” She joins together with George Shearing’s band for some unforgettable moments on “Confessin’ The Blues” and “In The Night” and swings with Harry “Sweets” Edison on a galloping “Cherokee” and a seductive hot under the collar “Too Close For Comfort.”
Stanton had a style that could feel comfortable dressed up and uptown or with dirt under the nails and oozing with BBQ sauce. That was her allure and she wore it well; this one’s a treat for those who are tired of today’s singers that have technique, but no feeling.