“Billie’s Blues” highlights Holiday’s spunk, making it such a memorable listen. The best recording of it is the slower, more sorrowful version she did with Eddie Heywood & His Orchestra in ...

But on “Yesterday I Had the Blues: The Music of Billie Holiday” (Blue Note), the baritone shows he can be a convincing jazz balladeer, sounding almost like an heir to the laid-back Johnny Hartman.