Tormé

by John BushMost of Mel Tormé's albums for Verve and Bethlehem during the 1950s concentrated on material either carefree (usually up-tempo) or reflective (mostly down-tempo), but 1958's Tormé blended the two. For every bouncy single like "That Old Feeling" or "I'm Gonna Laugh You Out of My Life," Tormé sinks into the depths with "Gloomy Sunday," "The House Is Haunted (By the Echo of Your Last Goodbye)," or his dramatic eight-minute reading of "Blues in the Night." All this makes for a bit of emotional confusion while listening to Tormé, but the LP pulls together for the most part.