Mit aufgerissenem Mund sitzt der verdutzte Hörer da und kommt aus dem Staunen nicht mehr heraus. Wie in einer Twilight-Zone-Episode taucht man ein in die bizarre Welt der Bobolina: Darf das sein, was nicht sein kann? „Black Hole Sun“ in Orchesterfassung mit Bobo als Chanteuse? Darauf muß man erst mal kommen! Doch es kommt noch doller: Neben weiteren Cover-Versionen im „The-London-Seesion-Orchestra-plays-romantic-alternative-Hits“-Stil (z. B. „Forbidden Colours“) gibt es auch eigene Kompositionen der kleinen, offensichtlich übereifrig wandlungsfähigen Sängerin, die uns zu Beginn ihrer Karriere mit kurzweiligem Folk-Rock überraschte und dann die Orientierung verlor…
Jazz critic Will Friedwald has stated that Julie London's records were so popular in the 1950s mainly because she looked so drop-dead gorgeous on the album covers. The marketing hook behind Calendar Girl may just be the main example for those critical of London's musical career, since its sleeve has made it a prized collector's item. The famous wraparound cover depicts cheesecake shots of London posed for every month of the year, while original issues of the album included a more-than-suggestive insert photo of the singer stretched out in bed. While Friedwald's correct about London's physical beauty, he's wrong in suggesting that the vocalist didn't have the talent to go along with her looks. Like Chet Baker, Julie London had an extremely limited vocal range but she did the most with what she had, possessing a special knack for torch songs that cast her in the role of a woman constantly being destroyed by love in general and by men in particular…
The younger pop-influenced and tabloid-friendly Katherine Jenkins might have recently stolen her thunder, but Lesley Garrett was the first, and some would say most authentic, contemporary British female soprano to crossover to the mainstream. While she's recently gained more attention for her appearances on Strictly Come Dancing and Comic Relief Does Fame Academy, and her Classic FM radio show, The Very Best of Lesley Garrett is the chance to remind everyone of the hugely powerful vocals which propelled her from the English National Opera's principal soprano to chart-bothering operatic superstar.