What Are You Listening To?

[Dennie]

The Classic Rosemary Clooney -- CD

Rosemary Clooney

2001 RCA Records

Rosemary at her best!, March 15, 2005
By John Dziadecki (Louisville, CO USA)

This review is from: The Classic Rosemary Clooney (Audio CD)

This is a treasure throve selection of Clooney's RCA 1958-1962 recordings. Rosemary is in her vocal prime. Abetted by Bob Thompson, Billy May, Perez Prado and Nelson Riddle, this diverse grouping of styles works well for this disc. The main thing here is the voice and Rosemary's voice is breezy, bouncy and personable. Two tracks from the Crosby/Clooney "Fancy Meeting You Here" are infectous highlights on this toe-tapping excursion. This, indeed, is the classic Rosemary Clooney.

Packaging and presentation are great. The four page insert has very informative liner notes and six photos. My only complaint here is the short playing time of 35 minutes. RCA has 100 years of music and they couldn't include a few more of their own Rosemary tracks? Still, what's here sounds great. Really great. Highly recommended.

1 You Took Advantage Of Me
2 Give Me The Simple Life
3 It Could Happen To You
4 By Myself
5 Fancy Meeting You Here
6 Too Marvelous For Words
7 I Only Have Eyes For You
8 April In Paris
9 I Get Along Without You Very Well
10 Something's Gotta Give
11 It Happened In Monterey
12 Magic Is The Moonlight
13 Anytime
14 This Ole House

 

[No-L]

Cool stuff, Dennie!!!
My college vocal jazz group performed with Rosemary Clooney once. She was fabulous!
Eva Cassidy is one of my favorites. What a shame she passed.

 

[No-L]

 

[No-L]

 

[No-L]

 

[Dennie]

Best of Ella & Louis -- Remastered CD

Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong

1997 Verve Records

Truly the sweetest, most satisfying of jazz cd's out... November 3, 1999
By A Customer
Format:Audio CD

I was reading books to my daughter at Border's, when overhead I kept hearing the sweetest, purest, angelic voice singing to Louis Armstrong's playing. I knew it had to be Ella. Sure enough it was the best of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. I right away went and purchased the best CD of jazz I've ever heard. It's not just because the songs are popular again, because of movies like.."When Harry Met Sally." You just have to hear Ella and Louis together, they compliment each other. Her voice is pure and just so..perfect; his is raspy and undefinably cool. Truly a masterpiece for all time!

Track listing
1. Let's Call the Whole Thing Off
2. Love Is Here to Stay
3. Nearness of You, The
4. Stars Fell on Alabama
5. Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You
6. They Can't Take That Away from Me
7. Autumn in New York
8. Summertime
9. Tenderly
10. Stompin' at the Savoy
11. Under a Blanket of Blue
12. I Wants to Stay Here
13. I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
14. There's a Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon for New York
15. You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart)

 

[No-L]

^^^good stuff

 

[Dennie]

Cool stuff, Dennie!!!
My college vocal jazz group performed with Rosemary Clooney once. She was fabulous!
Eva Cassidy is one of my favorites. What a shame she passed.

Hi No-L,

Yeah, Eva was great and we lost her too soon.

Have you seen Debby Boone's tribute to her late mother-in-law?

1. "Blue Skies" 3:50
2. "I'll Be Home" 3:12
3. "Best Is Yet to Come" 2:46
4. "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" 4:26
5. "Mood Indigo" 4:28
6. "It Might As Well Be Spring" 4:27
7. "Van Heusen Medley: But Beautiful/Moonlight Becomes You/Like Someone in" 5:29
8. "You're Gonna Hear from Me" 3:04
9. "It Never Entered My Mind/In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" 5:32
10. "I've Grown Accustomed to His Face" 4:03
11. "Time After Time" 3:11
12. "The Music That Makes Me Dance" 3:59
13. "You Are There" 3:23
14. "Blue Skies" (Demo - Hidden Track) 0:49

I've had it on my "wish list" since it came out and I have my "used music" dealer looking for a copy. I bet it is great. Debbie has a great voice and is so much more than "You light up my life"! LOL

I know Amazon has it, but for me, part of the fun is finding it used and Cheap(er)! bscene-drinkingcheers:


Dennie

 

[No-L]

I haven't seen or heard it, but you have raised my curiosity now!

 

[Dennie]

Cool stuff, Dennie!!!
My college vocal jazz group performed with Rosemary Clooney once. She was fabulous!
Eva Cassidy is one of my favorites. What a shame she passed.

That must of been amazing! Wow!

Congratulations!

Dennie

 

[Dennie]

So much music, so little time......

The Great American Songbook -- 2 CD Set

Nancy Wilson

2005 Blue Note Records

One of three excellent Nancy Wilson compilations issued simultaneously by Capitol Jazz in 2005, THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK cherry-picks from the many standards that the pop/jazz vocalist recorded for the label between 1959 and '69. Here the often-underrated singer, who delicately balances emotion and clear enunciation, works with ensembles both large and small, and her various collaborators include conductor Billy May, saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, bassist Ron Carter, and pianists George Shearing, Hank Jones, and Joe Zawinul.

Just a few highlights of this collection are a rollicking big-band rendition of "What a Little Moonlight Can Do," a sauntering take on the Harold Arlen/Truman Capote-penned "Sleepin' Bee," and a gorgeously minimal version of "In a Sentimental Mood," which showcases Wilson's mellifluous voice. Although Wilson truly shines in a small-group setting, she can capably front an orchestra, as revealed on "It Never Entered My Mind" and other numbers. With 44 tracks that boast beautifully remastered sound, this well-compiled two-disc set should help to deservedly raise Wilson's profile.

DISC ONE

1 All of You -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
2 The Things We Did Last Summer -- with The George Shearing Quintet
3 The More I See You -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
4 The Nearness of You -- with The George Shearing Quintet
5 Never Will I Marry -- with The Cannonball Addereley Quintet
6 What A Little Moonlight Can Do -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
7 Little Girl Blue -- orchestrated and conducted by Milt Raskin
-- orchestra including string choir arranged by George Shearing
8 Tonight -- arranged by Jimmy Jones
9 Sometimes I'm Happy -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
10 Secret Love -- arranged and conducted by Jimmy Jones
11 A Sleepin' Bee -- with The Cannonball Adderley Quintet
12 Fly Me To The Moon (In Other Words) -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
13 On The Street Where You Live -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
14 You Don't Know What Love Is -- orchestrated and conducted by Milt Raskin
-- orchestra including string choir arranged by George Shearing
15 This Time The Dream's on Me -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
16 Sophisticated Lady -- orchestrated and conducted by Milt Raskin
-- orchestra including string choir arranged by George Shearing
17 Dearly Beloved-- arranged and conducted by Jimmy Jones
18 My Ship -- arranged by Jimmy Jones
19 My Shining Hour -- arranged and conducted by Jimmy Jones
20 I'm Gonna Laugh You Out of My Life -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
21 Back In Your Own Backyard -- orchestrated and conducted by Milt Raskin
-- orchestra including string choir arranged by George Shearing
22 People Will Say We're In Love -- arranged and conducted by Billy May

DISC TWO

1 Bewitched -- arranged and conducted by Gerald Wilson
2 Try A Little Tenderness -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
3 At Long Last Love -- arranged and conducted by Sid Feller
4 In A Sentimental Mood -- with The Hank Jones Quartet
5 When The Sun Comes Out -- arranged and conducted by Jimmy Jones
6 I Thought About You -- with The Hank Jones Quartet
7 Darn That Dream -- with The Hank Jones Quartet
8 The Very Thought of You -- arranged and conducted by Gerald Wilson
9 Like Someone In Love -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
10 Angel Eyes -- arranged and conducted by Oliver Nelson
11 My One And Only Love -- arranged and conducted by Sid Feller
12 The Song Is You -- arranged and conducted by Gerald Wilson
13 Lush Life -- arranged and conducted by Billy May
14 It Never Entered My Mind -- arranged and conducted by Oliver Nelson
15 Prelude To A Kiss -- with The Hank Jones Quartet
16 By Myself -- arranged and conducted by Dave Cavanaugh
17 Glad To Be Unhappy -- with The Hank Jones Quartet
18 Time After Time -- arranged and conducted by Sid Feller
19 Hello Dolly -- arranged and conducted by Sid Feller
20 Supper Time -- with The Hank Jones Quartet
21 Someone To Watch Over Me -- arranged and conducted by Gerald Wilson
22 You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To -- arranged and conducted by Jimmy Jones

 

[Dennie]

Red Hot + Blue - A Tribute To Cole Porter -- CD

Various Artists

1990 Chrysalis Records

Amazon.com

There's a long tradition of artists banding together for a noble cause, but--needless to say--good intentions are no guarantee of good art. Fortunately, the twain do meet and the project even succeeds with creative flair in this compilation. It kicked off the Red Hot AIDS Benefit series back in 1990 and in fact launched its own sort of minigenre, including theme albums devoted to George Gershwin and Duke Ellington. In fact, this eclectic mix of Cole Porter covers interpreted by a wide swath of contemporary artists unfurls a pretty ambitious agenda in addition to its message of AIDS awareness and compassion. Here, the legacy of this ultra-sophisticated, closeted master of the popular song from the era of the "lost generation" is presented as a source of rejuvenating inspiration. Porter's craft seems validated by the very flexibility of the original songs as they get retrofitted to encompass styles ranging from U2 and Tom Waits to Jungle Brothers. There's an occasional miscalculation (Debbie Harry and Iggy Pop's didactic "updating" of Porter's bon vivant wit doesn't compare well with the original), but moments of stunning fusion abound (Sinéad O'Connor and Annie Lenox contribute especially memorable gems). Instead of getting lost in translation, Red Hot + Blue adds a whole new dimension to the art of swellegance. --Thomas May

1. I've Got U Under My Skin - Neneh Cherry
2. In the Still of the Night - Neville Brothers
3. You Do Something to Me - Sinéad O'Connor
4. Begin the Beguine - Salif Keita
5. Love for Sale - Fine Young Cannibals
6. Well Did You Evah? - Debbie Harry, Iggy Pop
7. Miss Otis Regrets/Just One of Those Things - Kirsty MacColl, , The Pogues
8. Don't Fence Me In - David Byrne
9. It's All Right with Me - Tom Waits
10. Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye - Annie Lennox,
11. Night + Day - U2,
12. I Love Paris
13. So in Love - k.d. lang
14. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire - Thompson Twins
15. Too Darn Hot - Erasure
16. I Get a Kick - Jungle Brothers
17. Down in the Depths - Lisa Stansfield
18. From This Moment On - Jimmy Somerville
19. After You, Who? - Jody Watley
20. Do I Love You - Aztec Camera

 

[Rope]

Rope

 

[Rope]

Rope

 

[Dennie]

Saturday Night Fever - Soundtrack -- Remastered CD

Various Artist

1995 Polydor Records

Amazon.com

The double-disc soundtrack to the blockbuster Saturday Night Fever (available on a single CD) marks both the zenith and the nadir of disco. It was such a popular sensation that it catapulted the music to stratospheric levels of mainstream popularity, and the album was the bestselling movie soundtrack of all time (until The Bodyguard, and then Titanic). But "Disco Fever" became so hot, it could only flame out just as quickly (along with the careers of the Bee Gees). With this record, disco became a phenomenon and a fad. The Bee Gees' contributions are the strongest, especially the once-ubiquitous "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever," and they still hold up. Then there's Walter Murphy's "A Fifth of Beethoven," a trivial piece of pop ephemera that may have set new standards for ephemeral triviality. How often will you listen to this record--and how much will you play when you do? There's no telling--but it remains a classic piece of pop history, and when you're in the mood it's a good thing to have around. --Jim Emerson

Side A:

"Stayin' Alive" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:45
"How Deep Is Your Love" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:05
"Night Fever" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 3:33
"More Than a Woman" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 3:17
"If I Can't Have You" performed by Yvonne Elliman, produced by Freddie Perren – 2:57

Side B:

"A Fifth of Beethoven" performed Walter Murphy, produced by Thomas J. Walentino – 3:03
"More Than a Woman" performed by Tavares, produced by Freddie Perren – 3:17
"Manhattan Skyline" performed by David Shire, produced by David Shire & Bill Oakes – 4:44
"Calypso Breakdown" performed and produced by Ralph MacDonald – 7:50

Side C:

"Night on Disco Mountain" performed by David Shire, produced by David Shire & Bill Oakes – 5:12
"Open Sesame" performed and produced by Kool & the Gang – 4:01
"Jive Talkin'" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Arif Mardin – 3:43
"You Should Be Dancing" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:14
"Boogie Shoes" performed by KC and the Sunshine Band, produced by H. W. Casey, Richard Finch – 2:17

Side D:

"Salsation" performed by David Shire, produced by David Shire & Bill Oakes – 3:50
"K-Jee" performed by MFSB, produced by Bobby Martin & Broadway Eddie – 4:13
"Disco Inferno" performed by The Trammps, produced by Ron Kersey – 10:51

"Jive Talkin'" was not contained in the film.

 

[Rope]

Rope

 

[Dennie]

HIStory - Past, Present and Future -- 2 CD Box Set

Micheal Jackson

1995 Epic Records

The KIng Of Pop, December 9, 2010
By David A. Smith "Dr. Satan2011" (Webberville, Mi, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: History Past, Present and Future Book I (Audio CD)

this is one of Michael Jackson's most popular cd since thriller. this two disc set is awesome. love this album. the best songs on this disc are

Billie Jean, black or white, bad, man in the mirror, thriller, beat it, don't stop til you get enough, wanna be startin' somethin, heal the world, scream, they don't care about us, money, 2bad

 

[Dennie]

Keb' Mo' -- CD

Keb' Mo'

1994 Epic Records

Amazon.com

Every few years, an acoustic guitar player decides he wants to be the next Robert Johnson and endears himself to the blues world--Rory Block, John Hammond Jr., and Taj Mahal have crossed this road in the past. Veteran backup guitarist Kevin "Keb' Mo'" Moore has the freshest approach to pulling it off, turning Johnson's devil-obsessed classics "Come on in My Kitchen" and "Kindhearted Woman Blues" into friendly folk music on this 1994 debut. Unlike many of the great bluesmen, the personable Moore doesn't aspire to be evil or even rebellious; he writes terrific songs (most notably the opening "Every Morning" and "Dirty Low Down and Bad") and performs them with talent and charisma. --Steve Knopper

"Every Morning" - 3:00
"Tell Everybody I Know" - 3:10
"Love Blues" - 3:02 (Moore & Powell)
"Victims of Comfort" - 3:21 (Kimber & Moore)
"Angelina" - 3:47 (Graper & Moore)
"Anybody Seen My Girl?" - 2:56
"She Just Wants to Dance" - 3:29
"Am I Wrong?" - 2:19
"Come on in My Kitchen" - 4:09 (Robert Johnson)
"Dirty, Low Down and Bad" - 3:08
"Don't Try to Explain" - 3:58
"Kindhearted Woman Blues" - 3:29 (Johnson)
"City Boy" - 4:05

 

[Dennie]

Without A Net (Live) -- 2 CD Box Set

Grateful Dead

1990 Arista Records

Without a Net is a recording of the Grateful Dead performing live in concert. It was released in 1990. The album is dedicated to Clifton Hanger, a name keyboardist Brent Mydland used to sign in hotel guestbooks. Mydland died during this album's post-production of a drug overdose. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA on November 27, 1990.

Disc one

"Feel Like a Stranger" (Barlow, Weir) – 7:32
"Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodleloo" (Hunter, Garcia) – 8:00
"Walkin' Blues" (Johnson, arr. Weir) – 5:44
"Althea" (Hunter, Garcia) – 6:55
"Cassidy" (Barlow, Weir) – 6:36
"Bird Song" (Hunter, Garcia) – 12:57
"Let It Grow" (Barlow, Weir) – 11:55

Disc two

"China Cat Sunflower / I Know You Rider" (Hunter, Garcia/trad., arr. Grateful Dead) – 10:24
"Looks Like Rain" (Barlow, Weir) – 8:04
"Eyes of the World" (Hunter, Garcia) – 16:14
"Victim or the Crime" (Graham, Weir) – 8:04
"Help on the Way/Slipknot!/Franklin's Tower" (Hunter, Garcia/Grateful Dead/Hunter, Garcia, Kreutzman) – 19:07
"One More Saturday Night" (Weir) – 4:51
"Dear Mr. Fantasy" (Capaldi, Winwood, Wood) – 5:44

 

[Dennie]

........................... :text-bravo:

Black & White Night DVD/SACD

Roy Orbison & Friends

1988/2005 Image Entertainment

Amazon.com essential video

Few early rockers were more gifted or less honored in their prime than the late Roy Orbison, whose vaulting tenor and vulnerable love songs conjured heartbreak and desire with operatic intensity. This 1987 concert special, originally broadcast on Showtime, came two decades after Orbison had retreated from pop's front lines, yet neither Orbison nor his music coasts on mere nostalgia: in every respect, A Black and White Night survives as a triumphant performance and a superb video production, as well as a first-rate retrospective of Orbison's hits.

Filmed in black and white against the streamlined art deco stage of the since-demolished Coconut Grove in downtown Los Angeles, the concert is buoyed by a remarkable cast of A-list Orbison fans who signed on as his accompanists. Under the direction of producer T-Bone Burnett, the stage band thus includes Jackson Browne, Burnett, Elvis Costello, k.d. lang, Bonnie Raitt, J.D. Souther, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Waits, and Jennifer Warnes, along with the rhythm section from Elvis Presley's fabled late '60s and early '70s touring band. That astonishing lineup is all the more noteworthy for the restraint with which they collaborate--it's evident that those superstars came to honor Orbison, not upstage him, resulting in a gratifying cohesion to the performances.

Orbison himself sounds as powerful as ever, his soaring falsetto cresting as dramatically as it did on the studio versions of the hits that inevitably dominate. Those songs meanwhile confirm that his blue chip admiration society came as much for the caliber of his writing as for his ravishing voice: if he remains best known for the jaunty come-on of "Pretty Woman," Orbison was first and foremost a rock balladeer, capable of bringing lumps to our throats with such classics as "Crying" and "Only the Lonely," or conjuring romantic trances through such gentle charmers as "Dream Baby." On this night, he handled all of them with fervor and finesse. --Sam Sutherland

All tracks composed by Roy Orbison; except where indicated

"Only The Lonely" (Orbison, Joe Melson)
"Dream Baby" (Cindy Walker)
"Blue Bayou" (Orbison, Joe Melson)
"The Comedians" (Elvis Costello)
"Ooby Dooby" (Dick Penner, Wade Moore)
"Leah" (Orbison, Joe Melson)
"Running Scared" (Orbison, Joe Melson)
"Uptown" (Orbison, Joe Melson)
"In Dreams" (Orbison)
"Crying" (Orbison, Joe Melson)
"Candy Man" (Fred Neil, Beverly "Ruby" Ross)
"Go Go Go (Down the Line)"
"Mean Woman Blues" (Claude Demetrius)
"(All I Can Do is) Dream You" (Billy Burnette, David Malloy)
"Claudette" (Orbison)
"It's Over" (Orbison, Bill Dees)
"Oh, Pretty Woman" (Orbison, Bill Dees)


Roy Orbison: lead vocals, guitar, harmonica
Glen D. Hardin: piano
James Burton: lead guitar
Jerry Scheff: upright bass
Ronnie Tutt: drums
Jackson Browne: backing vocals
T Bone Burnett: acoustic guitar; musical director
Elvis Costello: acoustic guitar, electric organ, harmonica
k.d. lang: backing vocals
Bonnie Raitt: backing vocals
J. D. Souther: backing vocals; acoustic guitar; vocal arrangements
Steven Soles: backing vocals
Bruce Springsteen: guitar, vocals
Tom Waits: electric organ, acoustic guitar
Jennifer Warnes: backing vocals
Alex Acuña: percussion
Michael Utley: keyboard