Announcing Judy Garland Week

Garland fans will be well aware that June is Judy's month. She was born on 10th June 1922 and died on the 22nd June 1969. So this June I thought I'd do something that I've been meaning to do for a while - celebrate some of my favourite performances in various categories. I could talk about Judy about as long as she could go on singing so this is a win-win. Here's the schedule for the week:

• Monday - Favourite Performances from The Judy Garland Show
• Tuesday - Favourite Duets
• Wednesday - Favourite Film Performances
• Thursday - Favourite Films
• Friday - Favourite Songs

Note that no song will make an appearance in two lists so don't get too outraged when a particular song doesn't make the Friday list!

My love affair with Judy obviously began with The Wizard of Oz and a couple of other films. But I really became acquainted with her voice when I picked up a double album in Woolies. It was 'youthful' Judy and I was captivated, particularly by her duets with Gene Kelly and Bing Crosby. However, I was a little reticent about listening to 'wiser' Judy. It took discovering some YouTube clips of The Judy Garland Show - and one duet in particular - before I bit the bullet and picked up a collection of her Capitol recordings. I never looked back.

I hope next week will prove to be as enjoyable to other Judy fans as it will be to me. Please feel free to comment and share your own favourites. I'm sure there'll be lots of dissent but I'm choosing the songs that speak to me. I could go on till the cows come home...