Doris Day in 1951

Lullaby of Broadway / Genre: Traditional Pop / Grade: B

On Moonlight Bay / Genre: Traditional Pop / Grade: B

I’ll See You In My Dreams / Genre: Traditional Pop / Grade: B+

Doris Day had a beautiful voice — pure in tone like Ella Fitzgerald’s — but was often paired with novelty backing singers, milquetoast male duet partners and unimaginative nostalgic orchestrations.

The best songs she released in 1951 were the slower, sadder ones: “The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else)” is a perfect counter to the back-and-forth Danny Thomas duet, “Ain’t We Got Fun,” the corny opener of I’ll See You In My Dreams.

Elsewhere, the inconsequential tunes (plenty of ‘em On Moonlight Bay) are generic yet carry a late-1940s suburban charm.

Of the three soundtracks Day released in 1951, I’ll See You in My Dreams is the best of the bunch. For the most part, it foregoes corniness, and you might even catch a tear during “It Had to Be You.” But, for the most part, these LPs are forgettable relics of their time.