Maxine Sullivan: Shakespeare

January 13, 2020

Maxine Sullivan: Shakespeare

One of the most interesting albums singer Maxine Sullivan recorded in the 1970s was Sullivan, Shakespeare, Hyman in June 1971. The album's subtitle says it all: "Maxine Sullivan sings the songs of William Shakespeare as set to music by Dick Hyman." Dick, of course, has been one of the most prolific and versatile jazz pianists as a performer and recording artist and as a composer and arranger. Recorded for Monmouth Evergreen Records, the album at first glace would seem like a yawn, a high-culture overreach that imposes the Bard on Sullivan, draining jazz of its essential oils.

Quite the contrary. The album is alive with original music and arrangements, and Sullivan was put to the test, giving listeners an opportunity to hear how she takes on material that wasn't readily familiar to anyone except Dick. The musicians on the album accompanying Sullivan were Rusty Dedrick (tp,flhrn), Dick Hyman (p,harpsichord), Bucky Pizzarelli (g), Milt Hinton (b) and Don Lamond (d). [Photo above of Dick Hyman]

Dick was first asked to come up with melodies for a series of Shakespearean ballads in 1961 while working with the Arthur Godfrey TV and radio shows. Paul Kapp, who founded General Music Publishing Company and was associated with the Godfrey shows, suggested the idea. [Photo above of Maxine Sullivan at the Village Vanguard in 1947 by William P. Gottlieb]

Columbia's A&R executive Ernie Altschuler heard Dick's songs on the Godfrey show and asked Dick to come up with Bardian tunes for Earl Wrightson, a singer with an earnest and seemingly dated musical-theater voice. The result was Shakespeare's Greatest Hits. Wrightson's album has not aged well, though the songs retain their charm.

Fast forward 10 years. Though the liner notes on the Sullivan album say that the pieces were performed first by other singers, Dick said he had Sullivan in mind when he originally wrote them. Dick knew Sullivan from accompanying her on two earlier albums produced by Leonard Feather—Leonard Feather Presents Maxine Sullivan (1956) and A Tribute To Andy Razaf (1957).

All of the lyrics on the Sullivan songs were based on original Shakespeare verses. The album goes by fast, since the longest song is 3:18 and the shortest is 1:34. Here are the songs and the related Shakespeare plays:

When That I Was a Little Tiny Boy (Twelfth Night; Act V, Scene 1)
O Mistress Mine (Twelfth Night; Act II, Scene 3)
Will You Buy Any Tape? (The Winter's Tale; Act 14, Scene 3)
Winter and Spring (Love's Labour Lost; Act V, Scene 2)
It Was a Lover and His Lass (As You Like It; Act. V, Scene 3)
Take O Take Those Lips Away (Measure for Measure; Act IV, Scene 1)
Blow, Blow Thou Winter Wind (As You Like It; Act Ii, Scene 7)
Under the Greenwood Tree (As You Like It; Act Ii, Scene 5)
Sigh No More, Ladies, Sigh No More (Much Ado About Nothing; Act II, Scene 3)
Come Away, Come Away, Death (Twelfth Night; Act II, Scene 4)
When Daffodils Begin to Peer (The Winter's Tale; Act IV, Scene 2)
Lawn as White as Driven Snow (The Winter's Tale; Act IV, Scene 3)

What I love about this album is that the songs are unknown, so instead of listening to familiar standards, this is off-beat, forcing you to listen to the quality of Sullivan's execution. In addition, the music is bouncy and upbeat, as if they were written for a musical. Interestingly, Sullivan sounds a lot like Peggy Lee here. She leaves lots of space, her voice is soft and all of the songs are jaunty. And it's a joy to hear Dick Hyman play piano and harpsichord behind her. [Photo above of Maxine Sullivan and Bob Wilber in 1969]