It never failed, that when I’d play the “Blindfold Test” on an early 40s song by vocalist Peggy Lee, especially her material with guitarist Dave Barbour, no listener ever thought it was Miss Lee, let alone a white singer. Usually the names like “Billie Holiday” would come up, as Miss Peggy Lee was one of the most emotionally expressive and yet subdued singers of the 20th Century. This 400+ page biography, in brutally honest writing, takes you through her early years with an abusive step mother, toxic marriage and other relationships, peppered between her musical high points of her days with Benny Goodman’s Orchestra, the many songs she penned and popular hits that connected with America in each and every decade, not an easy thing to achieve. Who else can lay claim to singing songs that range from swing to R&B to pop to Disnney?
She gives a rich background to her most popular songs, as well as giving a bit of name dropping. But what comes out most of all throughout the book (which includes some exquisite and personal poetry at the end) is her spirit, which shows the flexibility in which she was able to turn a lyric. Is that all there is? Yes, and it’s enough.