Here is Anita O Day in excellent vocal form joining forces with Billy May, one of the most prolific arrangers of the Hollywood recording studios in the 50s and 60s. To back her, May led three big-sized groups staffed by top musicians, and provided the swinging, tasteful charts in these two excellent albums dedicated to the songbooks of Cole Porter and Rodgers & Hart. Miss O'Day treats this handful of great evergreen songs in her usual compelling manner and with innate musicianship. She was gifted with a wide vocal range and a level head: that is to say, she sang smoothly without panic or strain at either extreme of her range, and remained consistently impressive in projection, phrasing, and flexibility. There is much to groove within this set and, be it for pop or jazz fans, listening to this great singer is sure to be an incomparable musical pleasure.
R**R
Yes, get this one too!
As a professional musician and arranger I was blown away by this set of songs, particularly the first set using the big band. I ordered 4 more copies to give away. The first 10 seconds of the first chart leaves you gasping. She sounds like she's having so much fun!
M**N
The sound is great. The arrangements are great
It's hard to believe that these recordings are over 50 years old. The sound is great. The arrangements are great. The songs and the singer arebeyond great. One of the best purchases I've made in a while.
J**3
Not what I ordered
The CD I got was just Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter and didn't include the Rodgers and Hart cuts. The Porter cuts are good but a little fast for my liking.
C**R
Brilliant recording
Anita O'Day and Billy May's Orchastra are an unbeatalble combination!:-DWith the music and lyrics by Rogers and Hart it's as good as it's gonna get!
D**Y
Three Stars
average at best
M**I
Two great albums combined into one
While Anita found Billy May difficult to work with according to Chapter XI in her autobiography High Times Hard Times , the two albums that make up this compilation turned out beautifully in my opinion.As always when a product page has sound samples like this one does I encourage prospective buyers to listen and let their ears make the final decision. There is nothing I can say in words that will top samples from the actual music.The first 12 tracks are the original ones from Swings Cole Porter (the re-release of that album contains additional tracks.) Anita's ability to swing is infectious, and I have always loved Anita's phrasing and ability to settle comfortably into any tempo. More importantly, Porter's compositions are notoriously difficult for most vocalists, yet Anita goes through a repertoire of some of Porter's best works effortlessly. Swings Rodgers And Hart makes up the final twelve tracks. I love this album because of Anita's rendition of one of my favorite songs: Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered. I measure a vocalist's ability to sing a ballad by who well they handle that song. I give her an A+ on that track, and extra credit because the track is 4:21 long. Would be that the rest of the tracks were as extended. Two of my other favorite tracks on the album are I Could Write a Book and It Never Entered My Mind. Those choices reflect my personal taste and are subjective. The best way to determine if the songs (and their arrangements and backing ensembles) are to your own taste is to listen to the sound samples on this page. Trust your ears and not my blathering.If you add the prices of both of the albums this one is a bargain. Better still, both of these albums and six more are on the value-priced set titled 8 Classic Albums , which contains some of her best work from her Verve years.
Trustpilot
2 months ago
2 weeks ago
