12TH STREET RECORDS

Those in the know have always known about Andy Bey. Like the playground legend who never made it to the NBA, Andy Bey was almost consigned to the fading murmurs of those who caught him in Paris in ‘59, or Birdland in the mid ‘60s. There are few left who remember when Lena, Nina and Carmen crowded into Harlem's Shalimar to hear Bey light up the joint. That tantalizing footage in Let's Get Lost of Bey and his sisters delighting a crowd of partygoers, including Bud Powell, gives us a clue of the years of brilliance that were never committed to vinyl. Aretha Franklin reminisces about when Andy Bey and his sisters "worked the village a great deal. Soon as I finished my gig I'd run over to hear them. Andy never got the recognition he deserved . . . jazz originals . . . brilliant and precious." John Coltrane cited Bey as his favorite vocalist. But, we have been blessed with four records that have changed how we think of Jazz vocals. Between the notes we can only imagine what we've missed.....