Customer Reviews

Benny Goodman: Farewell

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This dvd is rated a buy. Goodman was as always consistently Goodman at his highest performance standard. His attempt at humor though was a bit trite and not spontaneous, as he would have liked the audience to think.

Artists are Charlie Anatolini. He is one on the few drummers who is not under the mistaken assumption that the audience has come solely to listen to him. Don Haas is an excellent pianist. Peter Witte on base is also good and his solo (1) melodic.
As a guest artist, Sven Agmussen on violin was excellent. Jimmy Maxwell on trumpet could have stayed at home. Although a good section man in a big band, his muted and sporadic playing was barely audable. As for the musical selection, nothing new, but always refreshing to hear these same Goodman standards.

For Benny to swing at his age was truly remarkable.

The second DVD is an audio of that concert and should rather have contained other material.

This isn't Benny Goodman at his best, nor should anyone expect it to be. It does, however, capture his final recorded concert. The king of the clarinet shows an enthusiasm you might not expect as he presents a dozen or so tunes from various eras of his seven-decade career for the umpteen-hundredth time. This Goodman is more mellow than in his early days, when he was known for "the glare" when a band member or spectator damaged the perfection he always strived for. This Goodman is relaxed, smiling and even self-deprecating on occasion. (If he were still living, he probably would even chuckle when he saw that the jewel case and insert misidentify one of the songs. Don't worry; even your Aunt Minnie will know the real title.) Another company has issued this DVD by itself, but this set also includes a CD so you can listen to the music when you don't have time to watch it.

I agree with the previous reviews on this one - Goodman seems relaxed and in good spirits, and plays at a very high level for a man nearing the end of his career. The band is very good, also, particularly considering that it is a mix of American and European musicians who were likely put together for this gig and who did not play together regularly. There are two mistakes in the brief liner notes. The guitarist is Harry Pepl, an Austrian musician; his name is misspelled "Harry Pepe" in the notes. Second, this was not Goodman's final concert performance ever; it was just his final performance in Denmark. Minor issues aside, this is a very enjoyable performance that I recommend highly.