Considering how exciting an album Anita Gravine's I Always Knew was in 1985, it is surprising that she has not caught on as one of the top jazz singers. In the mid-'60s, she sang with the bands of Larry Elgart, Buddy Morrow, and Urbie Green. Gravine made her solo debut with Dream Dancing on Progressive in the early '80s; I Always Knew really displayed her appealing voice, solid sense of swing, and versatility. But since then, her only jazz recording, Welcome to My Dream (recorded in 1986, but not released on Jazz Alliance until 1993), was something of a critical disappointment. ~ Scott Yanow