White Gardenia

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White Gardenia is a 1961 jazz album by saxophonist Johnny Griffin, featuring brass and strings. It was recorded July 13–17, 1961 at Plaza Sound Studios in New York City and released by Riverside. The album is a tribute to Billie Holiday, who had died two years earlier. All the songs are Holiday’s, except the title track, which is Griffin’s own composition. The title refers to the white gardenia Holiday often wore in her hair. Arrangements were by Melba Liston and Norman Simmons.

Reception: The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD called it a delightful, smoothly orchestrated tribute that’s more than pastiche, with the strings adding depth rather than sentimentality. AllMusic’s review said the arrangements are tasteful and the performance is solid, though not overly memorable. DownBeat noted that the album was released around March 1962.

Release history and format notes:
- Riverside released the title track as a single with “Good Morning, Heartache” (R-4514) and a 7-inch EP with four tracks including “Detour Ahead” and “No More” (SE-2056).
- In 1973, it was reissued as a double LP paired with The Big Soul-Band (Milestone; Big Soul).
- It later appeared on CD in the Original Jazz Classics series as OJCCD 1877-2.

Additional details: The album runs 38:54. The producer was Orrin Keepnews. The album sits in Griffin’s discography after Blues Up & Down (1961) and before The Kerry Dancers (1962).