Dorothy Fields: Close As Pages in a Book (1993)

The insouciant opener (''It's Not Where You Start''), the triumphant closer (''I'm Way Ahead''), and the title number come as close to perfection as you can expect any performance of show tunes to get. Although Barbara Cook's tremulous, yearning voice seems thinner than it once was, it has lost none of its glorious purity of pitch or spirit on Close as Pages in a Book. Backed by a sumptuous 24-piece orchestra, she's showcased most imaginatively on the tracks arranged by Michael Gibson. A