OPEN POST: Manor Music Monday With The Gorgeous Pam Garner!

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Greetings music sloots, and welcome to another edition of Manor Music Monday! As we near the winter holidays, I think back to the year we've all had - and how we all need a break from the madness. For me, vocal jazz always does the trick. So what do we need tonight? We need DJ Li'l Scratch, who'll be cranking tunes at the Manor's own "Moist Muffin Lounge and Dinette." What will he be playing? A gal you may not have heard of, and I bet'cha you'll take her for granted once you listen to her - or at least the first time around. Some things sneak up on you.

Confused? I'll explain. When I first played Pam Garner's 1960 LP, "Pam Sings Ballads For Broken Hearts," I was contemplating the herculean effort it might take to rearrange and scrub my work station (contemplation is such hard work!). The LP ended and I thought, "Meh, Pam's okay." My desk remained a mess.


But a day later, while preparing chicken breasts and realizing that I was out of paprika - such a necessary spice! - I abruptly stopped in my tracks. Pam's LP was again playing and she was singing "Lush Life." And I wondered, "Is this one of the loveliest, purest, versions of this song I've ever heard? Yes. Yes it is." Some singers are so dazzling, yet so subtle, that it takes a second listen to realize how dazzling they truly are.

I don't know much about Pam beyond a few factoids. She released only two LPs, was born in Texas in the late 1930s, where she performed country music before shifting to jazz and pop, and lived most of her life in the UK and Canada. She also appeared on "The Steve Allen Show" in the 1950s, shared a manager with Abbey Lincoln, while her "Broken Hearts" LP was conducted by a very young John Williams. And that's it. Following this, she began another career as an in-demand art therapist in Canadaland, working with children and adults in mental health settings and hospitals.

As for more about her years in music, she's yet another sphinx wrapped in a riddle wrapped in decoupage made of tiny jigsaw pieces from four different puzzles. What I do know is that her deceptively artless, clear-as-a-bell vocals are entrancing. Trust me, she's the relaxing, yet reviving, balm you need right now. Give a listen to her version of "Lush Life" below, and click through for the rest of the album. You'll be glad you did.


What are you listening to this week? DJ Li'l Scratch wants to know.
Till next time...purr, bitches, purr! 🐾
Photo Credits: Getty Images; Columbia Records

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