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Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
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Track Listings
| Disc: 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Blues In The Night | |||
| 2. Let's Fall In Love | |||
| 3. Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin' All The Time) | |||
| 4. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea | |||
| 5. My Shining Hour | |||
| 6. Hooray For Love | |||
| 7. This Time The Dream's On Me | |||
| 8. That Old Black Magic | |||
| 9. I've Got The World On A String | |||
| 10. Let's Take A Walk Around The Block | |||
See all 12 tracks on this disc
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| Disc: 2 | |||
| 1. When The Sun Comes Out | |||
| 2. Come Rain Or Come Shine | |||
| 3. As Long As I Live | |||
| 4. Happiness Is A Thing Called Joe | |||
| 5. It's Only A Paper Moon | |||
| 6. The Man That Got Away | |||
| 7. One For My Baby (And One More For The Road) | |||
| 8. It Was Written In The Stars | |||
| 9. Get Happy | |||
| 10. I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues | |||
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See all 16 tracks on this disc
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Product Description
From Amazon.com
Recorded in 1960 and '61, this is one of the last and very best of Fitzgerald's songbooks spotlighting individual composers. Arlen's lyrical songs, filled with bluesy touches and abstractions from the blues form, are perfect jazz fodder (he wrote for Duke Ellington at the Cotton Club, circa 1930), and beautiful tunes in their own right. Fitzgerald is in peak voice; she's attentive to the nuances of soulful lyrics (Ira Gershwin's "The Man That Got Away"), and lightly teases some witty ones (like Johnny Mercer's "Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive"). Billy May's big-band arrangements are models of self-effacing fleetness--punchy without hysteria, smooth without syrup--and enlivened by alto saxophonist Benny Carter and trumpeter Don Fagerquist. But May also brings a delicate sensibility to introductory verses, interludes, and tender ballads. Strings on a few tracks are for variety, not window-dressing. Arlen's graceful American art songs have never had a better showcase--even if they could have skipped "Ding! Dong! The Witch Is Dead." --Kevin Whitehead
Chronique amazon.fr
Commencé à Los Angeles en août 1960, l'enregistrement de ce recueil de chansons d'Harold Arlen ne s'acheva qu'en janvier 1961. Ella Fitzgerald n'y consacra pourtant guère de temps, Norman Granz, son producteur, économe sur les séances, les limitant à cinq. Billy May n'apprécia guère cette méthode de travail qui l'empêcha de parfaire ses arrangements en studio. Ce fut donc leur seule collaboration. On ne peut que le regretter à l'écoute de ces deux disques, beaucoup plus variés que ses autres "songbooks". Destinant ses chansons à une grande quantité de spectacles, films, comédies musicales, théâtres de Broadway, Arlen avait en effet l'habitude de s'associer à de très nombreux paroliers, Johnny Mercer – Ella lui consacra un "songbook" quelques années plus tard –, Ira Gershwin et Leo Robin restant les plus célèbres. Le manque d'unité du répertoire ne trouble point la chanteuse, habituée à des mélodies qui, pour certaines d'entre elles, font depuis longtemps son bonheur. --Pierre de Chocqueuse
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
A timeless recording!,
By Jim Holtz (Madison, Wi United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Sings The Harold Arlen Songbook (Audio CD)
One of Ella's & this series' best! I never thought Ms. Fitzgerald could take on the challenge of doing a complete Harold Arlen set so successfully. I use to think a belter like Judy Garland could only do his melodies justice. I was wrong! Here, Ella showed that good taste & restraint works just as well! Don't get me wrong, Ella still used projection & dramactics to display the needed emotion for each song but she did it subtlety. She never overwhelmed which critics of Ethel Merman would say. Now to the songs! There are several I didn't know until I heard this tribute. Let's Take a Walk Around the Block sure romaticized the depreesion. Ella surely knew how to have fun with this dated song & still keep it fresh. This Time the Dreams on Me, which is also on the Johnny Merecr Songbook, makes me say they don't write them like that anymore. Arlen & Mercer were unbeatable. Why can't sophisticated love lyrics like that be written as often today. The classics on these 2 discs, which there are many, have never been done better! Blues In the Night opens the set with a 7 minute version that never gets boring. This was before Hey Jude & American Pie. I've never heard Ella in better voice, belting out the song in an original arrangement of this overdone but fabulous song! Accentuate the Positive is joy, gospel, & glorious pop all wrapped together. Both songs with opposite moods show how versatile Ella's singing was. With everyone knowing Ding Dong the Witch is Dead, it took Ella to record it. Why didn't Verve release it orginally? Ella has has much fun with this dark novelty song as she must have had with her own sweeter but tragic A Tisket A Tasket. Fitzgerald is up there on the fun tunes. I must mention arranger Billy May doing the impossible of taking a big band & having them deliver an unique, fresh, creative, bright & brassy back-up jazz sound. Only the saxes on My Shining Hour sounds out of place. Another complaint is that songs such as Right as the Rain & Anyplace I Hang My Hat should have been included. Still, so many Arlen masterpieces are. In conclusion, if one desires timeless material done by a timeless artist; this double album is it.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ella, and Billy May...,
By daantjededaan (Netherlands) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Sings The Harold Arlen Songbook (Audio CD)
Tonight I played the album which made me a devoted Ella Fitzgerald fan; it is Ella Fitzgerald sings the Harold Arlen Songbook. From the first time I played the LP my father left me, I loved her voice, and the atmosphere on this particular recording. I liked the swinging but sophisticated arrangements by Billy May. And right now when I switch my music off, I read on the Internet Billy May has passed away. He has the age for it (87), but it is a great loss anyway, although I didn't know he was still with us.Ella sings beautiful (especially on the second dis): Over the Rainbow, Happiness is just a thing called Joe, One for my baby, the man that got away... listen to them; learn to love Ella, and think of Billy May... both their genius are somewhere over the rainbow now.
4.0 out of 5 stars
ELLA AND BILLY MAY,
By ALAIN ROBERT (ST-HUBERT,QUÉBEC) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Sings The Harold Arlen Songbook (Audio CD)
If you don't know other songbooks from the ELLA's 16 collection,you might enjoy those two cds a lot.But many of those excellent songs have been covered so well by the likes of SINATRA,GARLAND etc.that you are bound to be disapointed.ELLA is not at ease with with BILLY MAY's driving orchestral direction.Compare MAY's wonderful work with ANITA O'DAY(SWINGS COLE PORTER)to experience the difference.It's simply a mismatch.However,if you don't pay attention to these sorts of details,you can buy it eyes closed,because no songbook of ELLA is without interest.THAT OLD BLACK MAGIC and BLUES IN THE NIGHT were allready famous songs at that time;GET HAPPY will forever be associated with JUDY GARLAND.My favorite here is MY SHINING HOUR.A medium FITZGERALD can still be a crowd pleaser.
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