Singin' With Peggy And Friends, Jazzy Tunes And Big Band Sounds From Krzysztof, Les and Ambrose, Plus An Oklahoma Flamer Secret Song!

Ain't Miss Peggy lookin' fresh?

Dorothy Jams, Ann's Big Blast, Judy Goes On (And On), Plus Gobs Of Gershwin And An Isolated Time Secret Song!

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A Deluge Of Divas, Hess' Devil, Dreamy Music And - Hot-cha! - Here Comes Liza, Plus A Jinx-You're-It Secret Song!

Sometimes too much is just too delicious, like the name Anna Maria Alberghetti. Ahhhhh. Doesn't it just slip off your tongue? An actress and an operatic singer, Anna, pictured above, is one of many divas crowding this delightful collection, a Cheerfully Delectable Exclusive! just for you.

Sittin' Around With Liza, Doubling Up With Teresa, Monographic Formica, Plus A Zombie Dubstep Secret Song!

She may sing "What use is sitting alone in your room?" but dammit if Liza doesn't have more fun sittin' 'round than any person I know. Whether in a hot-cha! pose like above, or kicking up her heels forty years later below, nobody - and I mean nobody - works the sittin' biz like Liza! Sit, Liza, sit! Liza can hand-jive, of course, but did you know she can feet-jive, too? There really is no one like her.

Liza's so versatile, that before "Cabaret," she tried to break into the soft-rock market with "Come Saturday Morning," which didn't quite work, or at least not as much as going soft rock did for Streisand a decade later.

Undaunted, Liza next tried for country-soul in 1970's "New Feelin'" - a hot-cha Cheerful Exclusive! - the strategy being that she wouldn't sing rock songs, but instead, the Gershwin and Porter standards she was known for, but with a new country-soul vibe. That means twangy guitars, female gospel back-up singers and organ riffs on numbers like "Stormy Weather" and "How Long Has This Been Goin' On."

The reception was (ahem) mixed, at best, but it's fascinating to listen to now. Why? Because whatever musical milieu you put her in, Liza will always be Liza. Whether she's sittin' or not!

Like most rock, pop or electronic groups in the 80's and 90's, the group below frequently posed for pictures wandering about - thoughtfully, ponderously, slightly wind-blown - through moody wooded landscapes. I have no idea why I'm bringing this up, except to say that it never made much sense to me. But then a lot of things don't.

Like, why do some groups, who start out so fantastic, suddenly vanish after only one CD or so? Case in point is Mono, a forgotten, but singular, vocal trip-hop group. Heavily influenced by 1960's-era soundtrack composers (especially John Barry in his groove-a-licious phase), the group found some success in the U.S. with their 1998 CD "Formica Blues," but from there, the party was over. They disbanded after its release.

Once you listen to this CD - with haunting vocals by Siobhan De Mare and still modern-sounding production by Martin Virgo - you'll be left scratching your head. Were they too cool and sophisticated, or did they just get lost in the shuffle with similar-seeming, though less inventive, groups during that time? We'll never know, but trust me, you so want this CD. You really-really do.

Get this. More than a few people snickered when allegedly "helium-voiced" singer Teresa Brewer decided to move from pop to jazz.

They were soon eating those words, for Teresa, in what seemed like just a few short years, became almost universally beloved by the jazz community. The voice was as child-like and sunny as always, but you didn't need to listen all that closely to realize that jazz must have been her true calling all along. All the greats wanted to work with her, like Duke Ellington...

...in "Duke & Teresa," her 1973 LP which wins you over right from the start when she sings, "Swing with Duke! Swing with Duke!" She also worked with Count Basie...

...on 1973's "The Songs Of Bessie Smith," paying tribute to the renown blues singer in a sparkling set of her signature tunes. I've yet to meet anyone who hasn't had a smile brought to their face by listening to Teresa. Yes, she's that much fun.

Will the Secret Song File ever smile - even when hugged by her bestie? Probably not, but that's just the way she is. Will this endlessly inventive, experimental-electronica composer ever lose his touch? Let's hope not, because his latest 2-CD opus is thrilling, confounding and mesmerizing all at once.

Who is it? Hmm. How to put this. Okay, I got it. You know those things that chase after Brad Pitt in "World War Z?" No, I'm not talking his hair-styling crew (given how gorgeous his highlights and cut look throughout the movie) (but then his hair is always flawless). You know what's chasing after him, right? Okay, so spell it incorrectly. That's the name of this artist. And remember, no matter what the Secret Song File is doing, her hair will always be fierce.

Remember when hair conditioner was called cream rinse? Yeah, I liked it better that way, too. 

Give a hair-flip in the comments if you like!

Dolores Swings, Liza Springs, Helen Stings, Plus More Herrmann And A Dirty Water Lily Secret Song!

Dolores Gray was born too late! She had a striking face and a great figure, yes, but she could also act and dance and sing. She had "It," as they say. Unfortunately, her rise was in the 1950's, just when the major studios were headed toward collapse, and when musicals, once churned out by the yard full, were sputtering toward irrelevance (save for a few final hurrahs like "The Band Wagon") (though even that was a clunker). If her rise had occurred just one decade earlier, she would have been a huge star. 

So back then, where did that leave Dolores? Mostly in blah musicals you likely skip past on TCM, such as "It's Always Fair Weather," and tired comedies like "The Opposite Sex," a bland remake of "The Women." Luckily, Dolores could always count on supper clubs and cabarets - her extravagant shows are legendary - and she reportedly knocked 'em dead in the first UK stage production of "Annie Get Your Gun."  

Even better, one night on Broadway, a curtain burst into flames, creating a huge blaze while she was singing on stage, but Dolores refused to stop - even with the arrival of fire trucks. Terrified, audiences watched as fireman leaped up onto the stage, rushed behind her and noisily put out the roaring fire. "I just kept singing louder and louder to drown out the noise," she later said. She won a standing ovation by show's end, and an award for bravery from the NYC fire department commissioner. 

"It's not a very happy life unless you make it very big," she once noted, and she didn't just make it big, she lived big. In public, she was always outrageously attired and jeweled (that get-up above is tame for her), and attended only the swankiest clubs and eateries - and with a different man on her arm each night, even though she was married. 

Oh, and throughout her entire life, she sang with a bullet lodged in her lung - which couldn't be removed - from a gangland shoot-out in Chicago when she was a girl (I swear I'm not making this up). "Miss Dolores Gray," a Cheerful Exclusive! contains some of her best numbers. A few tracks in the beginning are a bit dicey in terms of recording quality, but trust me, stay with it. Dolores delivers. 

You may not have heard of Dolores, but of course you know Liza. Hot-cha! Jazz-hands! Me and my Cuban Luvuh have been to see her twice in the past few years, and while the voice has gotten a bit rough - she can't reach those high notes now, though she tries - her energy on stage is even more astounding than it's ever been before (if that's even humanly possible) (in her case it is).

While we were watching her perform last time, I noticed some under-twenty-five audiences members enjoying the show. They'd never heard her sing, but they knew her from TV, likely by way of "Arrested Development" and her many late night talk show appearances. If you're one of those wee ones, hold on tight. This Cheerful Hot-cha Exclusive! is just for you. This is how Liza really sounds. If you already know Liza (like I know Liza), then rejoice. This LP's a goodie.

Now that you've been blindsided by Liza, it's time for Miss Humes to come in and finish the job.

In yet another Cheerful Exclusive!, Miss Helen Hughes is here with her 1974 blues-and-jazz LP "The Incomparable Helen Hughes," which includes more than a few songs written by the diva herself, like the naughty "Contact Me, Poppa" ("Contact me, Poppa, if you want my engine to turn!" she promises) and the lovelorn "I Cover The Waterfront."

She was called "the human trumpet" given her ability to swing and phrase like a good trumpeter. She doesn't stray far from the melody - no wild improvisation for her - but instead uses rhythm and sharp intonation, toying with a song's lyric for her own intent (in this way, she prefigures Della Reese). Present day "hipsters" (shudder) have supposedly re-discovered Humes, but you and I were onto her long before they were, weren't we? (say "yes").

Before we part company, I mustn't forget my devoted Herrmann-heads! As promised, here's part 3 and 4 of this fantastic 14 part collection, this time including the complete restored soundtracks for "The Ghost And Mrs. Muir" and "The Day The Earth Stood Still" (the latter with alternate tracks!).

Some people just don't behave the way you want them to, and so must be dealt with properly. This was the case at The Secret Song File's prom not too long ago. I mean, he was cute and all (blonde ringlets!) (that blue leisure suit!), but he was only halfway likable.

And wouldn't you know, "halfway likable" perfectly describes this dirty diva's very latest CD, which means the first half's terrific - really, no joke - but the second-half's just plain wretched. What to do, what to do. Keep or kill?

In the past, she told us we're beautiful and dressed like a mangy truckstop hooker who'll do you for a can of Red Bull and a SavOn register coupon. She's still dressing like a hooker - even on that awful talent show - and yet she can still sing. At least in the first half. I'll leave the keeping or killing up to you.

If you live in Colorado, the country knows what you're doing right now. 
And the country is jealous. 
Well played, Colorado, well played.

Leave a few puffs or a bit of resin in the comments if you like!