Despite spectacular cuts from Sarah Vaughan and Dinah Washington, this set of classic female jazz singers really belongs to the two geniuses Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone. On one hand, the GOAT Ella, with peerless tone and an endless well of tongue-tripping playfulness to draw from. On the other, Nina’s commanding power and commitment to absolute emotional truth, a force that could reshape entire genres (hear how she makes the blues her own on “Do I Move You?”)
1. Ella Fitzgerald & Duke Ellington and His Orchestra