White Gardenia
White Gardenia is an album by jazz saxophonist Johnny Griffin with brass and strings which was recorded in 1961 and released on the Riverside label. Intended as a tribute album to jazz singer Billie Holiday, who had died two years earlier, she had sung all of the songs, except for the title track, which is the only original composition by Griffin on the album. The white gardenia was the flower Holiday often wore in her hair. The orchestral arrangements were written by Melba Liston and Norman Simmons. Reception. Richard Cook and Brian Morton wrote in their "Penguin Guide  to Jazz on CD": "A delightful, smoothly orchestrated tribute to Lady Day that manages to be more than just pastiche" with the strings serving "mainly for depth of focus and harmony, rather than as emotional treacle." The AllMusic site review by Scott Yanow stated the arrangements were "tasteful, and the lyrical music is well-performed, if not overly memorable. Worth checking out". Release notes. A review of "White Gardenia" in "DownBeat" from March 1962 indicates that the album was in fact released not until about that time. Riverside also released the title track as a single with "Good Morning, Heartache  as B-side (R 4514), and a 7 EP with four tracks, adding "Detour Ahead" and "No More" (SE-2056). In 1973, the album was reissued on a double LP coupled with another recording by Griffin with Orchestra from May and June 1960, originally released as "The Big Soul-Band" ("Big Soul" on Milestone). "White Gardenia" was later reissued on CD as part of the Original Jazz Classics series on OJCCD 1877-2. "Tracks 1, 7 and 9 were recorded on July 13, tracks 2, 5 and 8 were recorded July 14, and tracks 3, 4, 6 and 10 were recorded  on July 17, 1961."