"Judy at Carnegie Hall" is easily, one of the most essential albums anybody could ever need. It is by far the greatest "live" performance ever recorded. The fact that the album has never once been out-of-print, does kind of give you a slight idea of how popular it has been over the years. Here, on 2-Discs, we get the complete concert, recorded April 23rd, 1961. With Mort Lindsay and his orchestra.
This has got such an amazing set of songs, and they are all sung so perfectly. A number of these "live" recordings beat any of the studio recordings of them, over the years. The performance of "After You've Gone" is one of the most powerful you are likely to hear, and the length of this concert is well over 2 hours (and for once, I would happily of wanted it to go on for another 2 hours). The arrangements and orchestrations are brilliant, and to hear the performer "live" is one of the greatest things you can get, something that is lost in the studio versions. Complete with a number of songs, by such great writers as Gershwin, Berlin, Mercer, Arlen, and ending with the great "Chicago", this couldn't possibly be any better. A unbeatable great performance, but a truly amazing singer. Her voice is at its best here.
The reissue here, is so great, that it makes it even more better to hear. The sound quality is perfect, and its amazing to think how long ago it was this was recorded. They clearly took their time to produce this album for the great reissue, along with the great booklet inside. A very well written account of the performance, and it makes you even more jealous if you were not one of the people who was there. This is one of the most enjoyable albums you would be ever likely to own. You cant go without this CD. Highly recommend.