Ella at her best

It seems unfair to give this masterful collection four rather than five stars for what can only be termed religious reasons, but there you go. An outstanding CD, capturing Fitzgerald in all her perfection. If you love her, it's all here, but I find myself wishing she put more personality, more emotion, more soul into her music. In that spirit, I take one star and give it to Sarah Vaughan, my favorite jazz vocalist of them all.

The Best of the Best of the Best

It has been awhile since I have read all of the wonderful reviews for this CD. As the man who chose the songs, sequenced them and wrote the album notes, it is one of the high points of my career that so many of you love listening to this CD as much as I did making it. It was indeed a difficult assignment, narrowing down all the songs from Ella's songbook series to just these, but I hope I put in something for everybody. I agree that as a collection, there is no better representation of the best of singing, songwriting and musical arranging available.

Before I sound egotistical about it, remember that the reason the collection is so good is because Ella Fitzgerald is singing; Gershwin, Porter, Rodgers, Hart, Berlin, Ellington, Arlen, Kern and Mercer did the writing; and Bregman, Riddle, May, Strayhorn and Weston did the arranging.

What could possibly be better?

The Great Songbird of the Great American Songbooks

Is there any song in the Songbooks that she did not record?



She was the First Lady of Jazz, she was a multi-Grammy awardee, she was a terrific and versatile singer who has worked with almost all of the jazz giants, the Count, the Duke, the King, the Goodman, the Gillespie, the Ol' Blue Eyes, and the list goes on and on, she has recorded thousands of songs, she was a melody's best friend...the legendary Ms. Ella Fitzgerald.



This is one of the best compilations of the Songbooks series. It features a repertoire of 16 classics. The Top Five tracks for me are: Gershwin Brothers' "Love Is Here To Stay," "'S Wonderful" and "They Can't Take That Away From Me"; Irving Berlin's "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm"; Rodgers and Hart's "Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered." My second choices are: Arlen's "Hooray For Love" and "Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea"; Cole Porter's "Every Time We Say Goodbye" and The Duke's "I've Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)."



This CD is a gem. I highly recommend it. It's a great addition to Great American Songbook collection.