Ella celebrates her 40th birthday, and we get the present.

Celebrating her Big 40 in Rome in April, 1958, Ella Fitzgerald recorded this concert with her longtime trio of Lou Levy on piano, Max Bennett on bass, and Gus Johnson on drums. As always, they remain in the background, keeping their accompaniments simple so that Ella can soar with the material which made her famous. All the songs on this CD, which are standards of her repertoire, will sound familiar to her fans, so don't expect to discover new songs. She is doing here what she has always done--singing with perfect diction, wonderful control, sensitive pacing, and remarkable interpretation in blues, scat, and swing styles.



The album starts and ends with a bang. "St. Louis Blues," six minutes long, gets the audience going as she wails, swings, and scats to an uptempo beat, with cymbals getting a workout from the percussionist. The final song, "Stompin' at the Savoy," a wonderful seven minutes long, brings in Oscar Peterson, Herb Ellis, Ray Brown, and Gus Johnson. Here she relaxes, audibly giggles, sings with a smile in her voice, and gives Peterson a solo. In between these, two songs stand out for me: "Angel Eyes," sung as a bluesy ballad, is full of pathos and emotion, while "I Loves You, Porgy" gets a slower, more contemplative treatment than usual, as she draws attention to the words and begs Porgy to allow her to stay.



A wonderful Fitzgerald album containing some of her best songs, this recording was made when Ella was at the height of her powers, her voice and control allowing her to do anything she wanted to do. Almost fifty years later, the music is still fresh and fun to listen to, and those fans looking to fill in their collection will find this a wonderful cross-section of her styles and most requested songs. Mary Whipple

Ella swings

Unlike some of the staid studio recordings that suppress her verve with strings, this high audio quality live recording captures her energy and swings.

Swinging Angel's Thrilling Rome Concert (4.5 stars)

Ella Fitzgerald's live recording, recorded in the Italian capital on her 41st birthday and for the first time published in 1988 -- yes, after 30 years -- is often overlooked, probably due to its late appearance in the catalogue, but, in fact, sets a standard for what a live jazz vocal album should sound like.

At 41, Ella's incomparable voice is pristine in quality (as showcased, for instance, on classic "Sophisticated Lady"), full of swinging power ("St. Louis Blues", "That Old Black Magic"), touchingly intimate ("These Foolish Things") and hailing the greats like Frankie and Elvis.

But if there's something for which to buy this (the previously mentioned tracks are more than enough), it's her imitation of long-time pal Louis "Pops" Armstrong in "Can't Give You Anything" -- you must hear to believe.

The trio Levy-Bennett-Johnson do a good job, leaving Ella's voice up in front. And the closer "Stompin' at the Savoy" welcomes the great Oscar Peterson on stage and lets Ella once again change the lyric and quip "Oscar -- we're through" -- a hint of the great mood there was in Rome back in 1958. Introductions by Verve label 'father' Norman Granz are also a good thing to be included and show the atmosphere.

To compare, listen to "I Loves You Porgy" here and on the "Best of Ella and Louis" -- the two versions are rather different.

The only song this set would do without quite well is probably Duke Ellington's "Caravan", lacking anything memorable.

However, if you would like to own just one CD of the great voice belonging to the Lady Named Ella, with "Live in Rome" you can't go wrong.