Leslie Uggams: Try To See It My Way (1972)

A musical career came virtually by inheritance to African-American entertainer Leslie Uggams. Her father sang with the Hall Johnson Choir, and her mother was a chorus dancer. At age 6, Leslie was appearing with Ethel Waters in the TV sitcom The Beulah Show; at eight, she was featured on Paul Whiteman's TV Teen Club; and from eight to twelve, she sang on tour in big-city theatres and showed up in guests spots on shows starring the likes of Arthur Godfrey, Milton Berle and Garry Moore. A graduate of the Professional Children's School of New York, Uggams "retired" from show business at age 12--only to reemerge as a contestant (and singer) on the TV game show Name That Tune. Later on in 1960, Uggams was showcased to perfection as the offscreen singer of "Old Time Religion" in the opening scenes of the movie Inherit the Wind. While a student at Julliard in 1961, Ms. Uggams was hired to be regular female vocalist on Sing Along With Mitch, an otherwise all-male (and all-white) songfest hosted by Mitch Miller. A major star by 1969, Uggams became the first black female performer to host her own TV series since Hazel Scott in the '50s; alas, The Leslie Uggams Show became the latest in a long list of casualties to its powerhouse competition Bonanza. The next two decades were a kaleidescope of lofty heights and dismal depths for Uggams. But when she triumphed, it was big-time: She was brilliant as Kizzy in the groundbreaking 1977 TV saga Roots, and no less superb in a key role on a 1979 mini-series, Backstairs at the White House. In 1983 she won an Emmy as co-host of the short-lived NBC series Fantasy. Uggams also enjoyed a notable recording career and Try to See It My Way is one of her best Lps from the '70s. It was produced by Dionne Warwick for Sonday Records in 1972, and it has got unmistakable background vocals by the lady herself. Highlights of the album are the upbeat 'Love Is a Good Foundation,' 'Oh Lord, What Are You Doing to Me' and the version of 'Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever'. http://www.starpulse.com/
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Leslie Uggams sings 'If He Walked Into My Life,' from Jerry Herman's musical Mame, 1993:

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Leslie Uggams singing 'Someone to Watch Over Me', 1982: