The cover photograph on this CD shows Messieurs Boulez and Zimerman beaming from ear to ear as well they might for the top ranking work they have done on these concerti. The Ravel concerti have received fine treatment on other CDs but no matter how many other interpretations you have; this CD will be a most worthy addition. Zimerman is a technical wizard receiving knowing support from Boulez and sumptuous DG sound. Highest recommendation.

The Andsnes--Kitayenko performance of the Piano Concerto--a warhorse if ever there was one--is the finest that I have ever heard. There is a great temptation for overkill in performing this but here it is played with quietly poetic but deeply felt emotion and with great flair in the robust third movement. Andsnes' traversal of the Lyric Pieces is on an equal footing with the legendary Gilels treatment(on DG Originals). This is one of the great bargains in classical music. Two CD's for the price of one mid-priced CD: vintage wine performances at a beer price.

Guy Lombardo enthusiasts will probably consider the bucks to be expended on this set a dreadful waste of cash but if you are partial to bop-oriented jazz it will give you years of boundless pleasure. At the very least it is a splendid coffee-table item but the music is the thing. On every track Monk shows his inventiveness, versatility and his hipness; truly a giant of modern jazz. An excellent booklet (LP size) with extensive (Grammy winning) notes accompanies this set. Highest recommendation

Lost City was close to being Universal's last serial effort. It is not as dull as some of their other serial efforts but it is not very good either. Very noticeable is Universal's penchant for saving money by framing their serial plots around available stock shots. In Lost City the cliffhangers for chapters 2,3 and 4 were lifted from the 1943 Maria Montez-Jon Hall epic White Savage and many more "liftings" are prevelant in other chapters. If you want an exotic serial go with "Drums of Fu Manchu", one of Republic's finest.

This compilation contains Milhaud's best known works and with the composer conducting with great verve and elan, nuance and quality of interpretation are all there. My favorite, the joyous Suite Provencale is superbly played. There is also the jazz oriented La Creation du Monde, the nostalgic Saudades do Brasil with its swaying rhythms and the comedic Le Boeuf sur le Toit with its "Crazy Horse Saloon" humor. A good introduction to a most interesting French composer and heartily recommended.

In this sillyass but amusing serial the Shadow does not have invisibility as he did in the radio series. This is given to the Black Tiger a peevish, prissy old fogey who fancies himself a leader of men. With numbskull underlings this fancy is not difficult to achieve and it is most amusing to hear these swaggering tough guys give out with a lot of sheepish "Yes sirs" to the Black Tiger's demands. As usual Horne gets a lot of comic mileage with the antics of the villains. Still one wonders why the Shadow was not made invisible so he could "cloud men's minds". Perhaps the producer did not want to spend the extra time and money on special effects or perhaps Horne himself felt that with his bad guys there wasn't any minds out there to cloud. 2 1/2 stars.

Besides being a superb interpreter of Delius, Elgar and Vaughan Williams Barbirolli shows himself in this set to be a most worthy Sibelian. Some may complain that his tempi are slow at times but Barbirolli never fails to make these symphonies interesting and often gloriously inspiring. A big plus is the crystal clear sound; you can really hear those woodwinds (so important in Sibelius) and what an impact those cellos make at the beginning of the bleak and somber 4th symphony. There is also a generous allotment of some of the shorter pieces. Whether this is a top choice will depend on the listener but I think it holds its own against some of the top choices out there including Davis--Boston Symphony (Philips Duo) and Ashkenazy--Philharmonia (London).

In 1946 Universal decided to drop the production of B films and serials. This was no great loss to anyone, particularly serial aficionados. The scriptwriters of Scarlet Horseman produced an overly complicated, bloated story as though they were working on a million dollar epic but a cardboard story,stiff and artificial dialogue and one dimensional characters defeated them. Gang Busters and Adventures of Smilin' Jack, both 1942 and both on VHS would be much better acquisitions. 1 1/2 stars.

It is easy to put off buying this set when looking at the recording date (1955) and the fact the sound was originally monaural. Don't make that mistake. These are Ravel performances of the very highest order. For me Perlemuter is to Ravel's piano music what Gieseking is to Debussy's. Even in the 2 concertos Perlemuter and Jascha Horenstein (was he inspired by Perlemuter?}reach new heights. The sound is good enough to bring out every nuance. every subtlety. 155 minutes of suberb music at the price of one medium priced CD is quite a bargain.

"Eyes in the Night" was director Fred Zinneman's first feature film after having, among other things, directed some MGM short subjects, notably some of their "Crime Does Not Pay" entries. Here he directed a tidy little thriller which is a little slow in getting started but builds tension and suspense as it goes along. The plot deals with a blind detective and his seeing-eye dog who become enmeshed with enemy agents. There is a quiet intelligence to this film which is noticeable in other early Zinneman efforts, particularly "Kid Glove Killer", another good MGM "B" not on home video and "The Seventh Cross". The villains are shrewd and resourceful not given to "for the fatherland" melodramatics of so many other films of this period. A solid first feature from a fine director.