A duet album

Nothing Without You; Cleo Laine, vocals; Mel Torme, vocals

In 1992, during my year-long stay in Orlando, Florida, I took a two-week job as a substitute band pianist on the Costa Classica of the Costa Cruise Line. The ship was fairly new, having had its inaugural cruise only one year before. So, on a Saturday morning, I drove down to Ft. Lauderdale to meet the ship.

I had a lot of music to learn. I spent most of the time in rehearsals. But we had a lovely day in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where we declared a one-day boycott on rehearsals. The trumpet player in the band was at the gangway when I got there. Where are you going? “I have a favorite CD store that I like to visit in the Old Town. Wanna’ come along?” Yes, I do.

The selection was awesome, but money was tight. I told myself that I could only afford to get four CD’s. The other three CD’s escape my memory, but Mel Torme and Cleo Laine got lodged in there and they never left.

The first time I heard Cleo Laine, she had a role in the musical “The Mystery of Edwin Drood”, the murder mystery that Charles Dickens had not finished when he died. Ms. Laine sang the role of Miss Angela Prysock and the Princess Puffer. I had acquired the LP of that soundtrack in 1987 and thoroughly enjoyed the voice of Dame Cleo Laine.

The liner notes inside Mr. Torme’s and Ms. Laine’s CD mentioned her marriage to legendary and brilliant British composer, arranger and bandleader John Dankworth. In fact he arranged many of the selections on the CD. In 2006, Queen Elizabeth II made Mr. Dankworth a knight bachelor, creating one of those rare instances where both husband and wife in a marriage held titles in their own right.

Mr. Torme added the following lyrics during their rendition of the title tune on their CD, “Nothing Without You”:

How much is a Dankworth?

He always knows the score.

How much is Citibank worth?

A Dankworth is worth even more.

Another memorable moment has Mel and Cleo singing the song “Girl Talk” where the only two words that they actually sing are at the end: girl and talk. I suppose my favorite track is the “Two Tune Medley” where she sings one portion of a song while he sings a snippet of a completely different song.

I’ve always enjoyed this phenomenon when one tune has the same chord changes as another. Try singing “Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone” along with “Five Foot Two, Eyes Of Blue” some time. You can also sing “It’s A Small Word” over John Williams’ “Raiders Of The Lost Ark” main title.

If you’ve got a spare moment, try singing the closing credit lyrics of “The Beverly Hillbillies” to the tune of “Ghost Riders In The Sky.”

Boy, this blog entry took a strange turn at the end, didn’t it?

Credits: To the people of Puerto Rico, who retain all of the privileges of American citizenship – except the one to vote in Presidential and Congressional elections. That’s not right. I’m just sayin’.