Weekend Extra: Lee And Barbour

The Rifftides post three weeks ago with the video of Peggy Lee’s and Frank Sinatra’s “Nice Work if You Can Get It” brought so much comment that another Lee installment seems justified. Here she is with her husband Dave Barbour on guitar. The song is Lee’s composition “Maňana,” a huge hit in 1947. In the current DVD pick (center column), I mention Lee’s devotion to Barbour. In this clip, there is more evidence of it, and of the kind of playing that made him one of the great jazz guitarists of his era. This performance has an air of carefree fun, but the musicianship–by husband and wife–is serious.

This CD has a few of Lee’s recordings from the 1940s, with Barbour leading the bands and playing guitar. This boxed set from Mosaic has even more of their collaborations, plus Barbour also playing for June Christy on some tracks. It includes transitory pop recordings, but there is a high ratio of quality to ho-hum.