Best Vintage Dance Bands
If you set out to create a single anthology that charted all the twists and tributaries of that uniquely American river we call jazz, you couldn't do better than this companion set to the PBS series-94 tracks on 5 CDs licensed from virtually every important label in the history of the music. Includes The Pearls Jelly Roll Morton; Charleston James P. Johnson; West End Blues Louis Armstrong & His Hot Five; The Mooche Duke Ellington; Singin' the Blues Frankie Trumbauer & His Orchestra featuring Bix Beiderbecke; Moten Swing Benny Moten's Kansas City Orchestra; Strange Fruit Billie Holiday; Three Little Words Art Tatum; Body and Soul Coleman Hawkins; In the Mood Glenn Miller; Take Five Dave Brubeck; So What Miles Davis; Giant Steps John Coltrane; Desafinado Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd, and many more classics.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It is easy to list regrettable omissions from this set (and many reviewers have done so) and just as easy to point out how impossible it is to do full justice to a century of music that had multiple sources and spread rapidly to a plethora of sub-genres (and many reviewers have done that too). The British Trad Jazz that took hold in the early 50s and is still going strong (Chris Barber, Kenny Ball and their followers) is another indispensible part of Jazz history that finds no place in this collection."
"That being said, each of the four better discs in the set leaves much to be desired as a "listening experience." With such different styles and aesthetics encompassed on each disc, you're not likely to just put one on and enjoy the whole thing-and none of the discs are, or even could have been, arranged as coherent sets."
"Best $5.00 I have spent on some great music.Yes,it was a used CD set but plays perfect and everything was included."
"the best way to learn about most styles of 20th century jazz!"
"This 5-CD set is a great introduction to jazz music."
"terrific music, it's been a long time sense I heard original jazz."
Ella recorded some incredible live albums-and this one, taped at a jazz festival on the French Riviera in '64, is among the best. Ella, Tommy Flanagan, Roy Eldridge and the rest of her band thrill the crowd with Hello, Dolly!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It's Ella."
"Ella uses her voice for angelic purely versions of `Summertime', `Somewhere In The Night', and `Someone to watch over me' (A beautiful Gershwin song she did first wonderfully in 1950 with pianist Ellis Larkins, who unfortunately passed away at the end of 2002), and for making growls like in Perdido and Them There Eyes. If you listen to her earlier 1960s recordings, you'll notice she started growling (I hope it's the right word in English) in this year. Maybe it was the spirit of the those days... You can see that after her 1964 success "Can't Buy Me Love" (of which the Beatles their selves thought it was an honour to have their songs sung by Ella Fitzgerald) she started another way of singing. A nice and very cheerful song is `Cutie Pants', written by Ella's former husband Ray Brown (who also passed away at the close of 2002). Then the last encore is a beautiful slow version of How high the moon, better than the one she recorded with the Frank DeVol Orchestra for the album `Hello Dolly'. Ella in Hamburg was NOT boring (in my opinion) but just a bit weird (on And The Angels Sing Flanagan beats too hard on the piano, and Ella's voice isn't too beautiful on the Ellington Medley, maybe it was ruined by the yelling on A Hard Day's Night)."
"The packaging is very nice too, although a little too cumbersome and extravagant without needing to be, since the only interesting things inside are the slim booklet and the CDs. I prefer "Ella In Hollywood", with a set list that had some open-ended songs she could scat her heart out on, or imitate Louis Armstrong, or forget the lyrics to, which always adds up to a lot of fun. What makes this show better than, for example, "Ella In Hamburg" (which is boring) is the song selection, a different band, and a bit more improv and fun. But as always she's pitch-perfect, absolutely brilliant, highly creative, and was still able to evoke that sweet, pure, dreamy sound from her voice that she usually attains at least once per song. She could hit notes effortlessly and sustain them perfectly, to the point where anyone who doesn't get a big smile of amazement and happiness on his or her face must be tone-deaf. It would be easier to deal with this if Verve had put some kind of disclaimer about it on the package, but they didn't, in fact they brag how good it sounds and they charge a high price to reflect that. It's worth overlooking not only for the casual fan who won't mind it, but also the fanatics, because of the quality of the performances and the high rarity of all the unreleased tracks."
"I say that, in contrast with another review that you can read here, and I can prove it: Ella in Hollywood was moving, but Ella wasn't in a great voice (she sang many sets during those nights, so she was tired)."
"This Cd was a little steep in price at just around $ 38.00 BUT worth every penny, They wouldnt be charging that amount of money if this CD wasnt the great cd it is."
In the concert halls of New York, Shanghai, Paris, Berlin and Moscow, in Tokyo, Los Angeles, Vienna, Amsterdam and Rome the audiences celebrate Max Raabe and his Palast Orchester with incredible enthusiasm.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"If you came from a home of European immigrants where foreign language music was heard, there is a good chance this will hit some buttons for you too. Music is a funny thing, it hard to predict what someone will like, but this CD is great in its scope and delivery and is the finest example of the style described above."
"We absolutely love Max Raabe & the Palast Orchester."
"A dry sense of humor and a precise performance."
"The reedy voice of Max Raabe, somewhat reminiscent of Fred Astaire's, is perfect in these songs, some of which are familiar American classics and others presumably German pop tunes of the period."
"There is quite a bit of sutle humor with the guys in the band. We like the music from that era and we especially like the way Max Raabe and The Palast Orchestra perform."
"Being fans of the German Comedian Harmonists as well as the King's Singers who revived their music some 30 years ago, we immediately ordered the DVD of "Heute Nacht oder Nie"."
"First, this is a nice collection of his songs and many that I had not heard before even though I have seen him three times, live in concert."
"So when I heard about her fixation with his voice and his music I bought Heute Nacht Oder Nie: Live in New York for her as a surprise."
Best Stride Piano
If you set out to create a single anthology that charted all the twists and tributaries of that uniquely American river we call jazz, you couldn't do better than this companion set to the PBS series-94 tracks on 5 CDs licensed from virtually every important label in the history of the music. Includes The Pearls Jelly Roll Morton; Charleston James P. Johnson; West End Blues Louis Armstrong & His Hot Five; The Mooche Duke Ellington; Singin' the Blues Frankie Trumbauer & His Orchestra featuring Bix Beiderbecke; Moten Swing Benny Moten's Kansas City Orchestra; Strange Fruit Billie Holiday; Three Little Words Art Tatum; Body and Soul Coleman Hawkins; In the Mood Glenn Miller; Take Five Dave Brubeck; So What Miles Davis; Giant Steps John Coltrane; Desafinado Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd, and many more classics.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It is easy to list regrettable omissions from this set (and many reviewers have done so) and just as easy to point out how impossible it is to do full justice to a century of music that had multiple sources and spread rapidly to a plethora of sub-genres (and many reviewers have done that too). The British Trad Jazz that took hold in the early 50s and is still going strong (Chris Barber, Kenny Ball and their followers) is another indispensible part of Jazz history that finds no place in this collection."
"That being said, each of the four better discs in the set leaves much to be desired as a "listening experience." With such different styles and aesthetics encompassed on each disc, you're not likely to just put one on and enjoy the whole thing-and none of the discs are, or even could have been, arranged as coherent sets."
"Best $5.00 I have spent on some great music.Yes,it was a used CD set but plays perfect and everything was included."
"the best way to learn about most styles of 20th century jazz!"
"This 5-CD set is a great introduction to jazz music."
"terrific music, it's been a long time sense I heard original jazz."
Best Classic Big Band
The Big Band era was a unique time in musical history, for it was a time when quality and public taste coincided to encourage memorable performances, many of which were captured on recordings.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Great classic music, purchased for seniors home."
"What a great collection!"
"Great, nostalgic listening."
"Lots of cool music."
"This is some timeless music that will forever!!!"
"Sound is " OK " only."
"The disk is so cheaply made and so thin that my Bose New Wave Music System has to try and re-try several times to load it because of the lack of "oomph" needed for it to realize a disk is there to be loaded."
Best Contemporary Big Band
The Big Band era was a unique time in musical history, for it was a time when quality and public taste coincided to encourage memorable performances, many of which were captured on recordings.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Great classic music, purchased for seniors home."
"What a great collection!"
"Great, nostalgic listening."
"Lots of cool music."
"This is some timeless music that will forever!!!"
"Sound is " OK " only."
"The disk is so cheaply made and so thin that my Bose New Wave Music System has to try and re-try several times to load it because of the lack of "oomph" needed for it to realize a disk is there to be loaded."
Best Retro Swing
"Brian Setzer combines his big band leanings with his Stray Cat upbringing to create the year's best all-around holiday album.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It's a great non-traditional rockabilly and big band combo Christmas record!"
"Ann-Marget sings "Baby It's Cold Outside" with Setzer-- pure fun and such a tight orchestra!"
"Great price, excellent holiday LP."
"An instant classic that rolls through songs with all the conviction and energy that Brian's live concerts have."
"No concerns./\. I would give this a real good rating."
"A fun Christmas album, the white vinyl pressing was good quality."