Includes FREE MP3
version
of this album.
or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
Sell Us Your Item
For up to a $0.60 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Color:
Image not available

To view this video download Flash Player

 

Commodore Master Takes

Billie HolidayAudio CD
4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

Price: $11.30 & FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
  Special Offers Available
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
 : Includes FREE MP3 version of this album.
   Provided by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. Terms and Conditions. Does not apply to gift orders.
Only 2 left in stock (more on the way).
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
Want it Tuesday, May 28? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
Complete your purchase to save the MP3 version to Cloud Player.

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
MP3 Music, 16 Songs, 2000 $9.49  
Audio CD, 2000 $11.30  

Listen to Samples and Buy MP3s

Songs from this album are available to purchase as MP3s. Click on "Buy MP3" or view the MP3 Album.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Samples
Song Title Time Price
listen  1. Strange Fruit 3:13$1.29  Buy MP3 
listen  2. Yesterdays 3:26$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  3. Fine And Mellow 3:18$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  4. I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues 2:56$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  5. How Am I To Know? 2:47$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  6. My Old Flame 3:05$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  7. I'll Get By (As Long As I Have You) 3:01$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  8. I Cover The Waterfront 3:34$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  9. I'll Be Seeing You 3:33$1.29  Buy MP3 
listen10. I'm Yours 3:18$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen11. Embraceable You 3:18$0.69  Buy MP3 
listen12. As Time Goes By 3:16$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen13. He's Funny That Way 3:18$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen14. Lover, Come Back To Me 3:20$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen15. Billie's Blues 3:10$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen16. On The Sunny Side Of The Street 3:02$0.99  Buy MP3 


Amazon's Billie Holiday Store

Music

Image of album by Billie Holiday

Photos

Image of Billie Holiday
Visit Amazon's Billie Holiday Store
for 623 albums, 5 photos, discussions, and more.

Special Offers and Product Promotions

  • Buy a CD or a vinyl record, get a $1 Amazon MP3 Credit. Limit one promotional credit per customer. Here's how (restrictions apply)
  • Includes FREE MP3 version of this album Here's how (restrictions apply)

Frequently Bought Together

Commodore Master Takes + Billie Holiday: The Complete Decca Recordings + Lady Day: The Master Takes & Singles
Price for all three: $99.92

Buy the selected items together


Product Details

  • Audio CD (February 8, 2000)
  • Original Release Date: February 8, 2000
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Label: Polygram Records
  • ASIN: B00003G1JG
  • Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Music
  • Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #87,637 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

These historic recordings--made mostly in 1939--represent a crucial period for Billie Holiday, who had already achieved some success as a jazz singer recording for Columbia but had yet to really reach her peak as a performer or icon. The Commodore Master Takes, recorded for Milt Gabler's small independent label, were a step towards Holiday's eventual infamy, thanks notably to the recording of "Strange Fruit," a controversial song about lynching that Columbia Records simply refused. Recording with several small bands that seemed to understand the nuances of her voice perfectly, Holiday is in full command of her faculties here, without a trace of her later deterioration. Instead, we have a singer bearing all the bittersweet conviction of the best blues stylists. Songs like "How Am I to Know?" and "My Old Flame" simply smolder, and the band's support is understated, not overpowering. Holiday is the show here. In its own way, that sets a precedent, considering this was still the big-band era, and a jazz singer with such sparse backing was still an anomaly. Excellent liner notes by Orrin Keepnews--who explains how his own relationship with Billie Holiday was sometimes rocky--complete the picture. --Joe S. Harrington

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars
(10)
4.9 out of 5 stars
3 star
0
2 star
0
1 star
0
What makes this a treat is Billie's singing, which is o-so sublime. "bobida"  |  3 reviewers made a similar statement
Her voice was like no other, and her phrasing almost always perfect. J. Powell  |  2 reviewers made a similar statement
The music that plays certainly provides the perfect accompaniment to Billie's vocals, too. Matthew G. Sherwin  |  1 reviewer made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
45 of 45 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars fine and mellow November 24, 2001
By joe
Format:Audio CD
The "official" amazon.com review above says that these recordings wrre made "mostly" in 1939, which is misleading; four of the tunes, among them "Strange Fruit," were recorded then, but the other twelve are from 1944. The reviewer also says that the recordings contain no traces of her later "deterioration," but I hear considerably more raggedness here than on the earlier Columbia recordings. This isn't a criticism; these sides, I think, strike just the proper blanace between the chipper just-one-of-the guys vibe of the Columbias and the sometimes oppressively tragic atmosphere of the later Verve albums.

These are small-group recordings, but the accompaniments are more low-key than on the Columbias and the instrumentalists get much less solo space. So there is nothing here akin to Holiday's relationship with Lester Young on those earlier recordings. On the other hand, the material on the Commodores is superior; she recorded only the finest standards and blues, as opposed to the hokum she was regularly forced to deal with for Columbia. As for highlights, "Strange Fruit" is a remarkable historical document, more effective as moving propaganda than as a popular song. "I Cover the Waterfront" is one of the best versions of a classic tune, and her version of "How Am I To Know?" is especially striking, as she begins her vocal with a dramatically isolated "Oh!" before beginning her mournful reading of the lyric.

Was this review helpful to you?
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Billie at the Top of Her Game April 25, 2000
Format:Audio CD
A highly-recommended CD. If you prefer Billie Holiday backed by a quartet or piano as opposed to a full-scale orchestra, then this is for you. What makes this a treat is Billie's singing, which is o-so sublime. Her voice is clear, full, and flushed with melancholic phrasing, with none of the harsh tone or roughness that was to creep up in time. Put this CD in your player and be prepared to be transported to a dimly-lit cabaret room in the early '40s, serenaded by Billie's warm, sensual vocals. Some of the songs are cornerstones of the American pop catalog (i.e. I'll be Seeing You, Embraceable You...) that have been covered by other artists such as Sinatra, but Billie makes these songs entirely her own.
Was this review helpful to you?
15 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars You can't go wrong with Lady Day July 4, 2000
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Billie Holiday is the most exquisite jazz vocalist of all time. Her voice was like no other, and her phrasing almost always perfect. But even when she was not perfect and her voice a bit ragged, she still had a connection with every song she sang and every song sounded like it was written for her - she could sing anything and interpret every song to fit her own unique style. This is a great CD because it compiles the music from some of Billie's best years. Her voice is top notch on this CD and the band is truly solid. She was always so much more at home with small bands. Though in my opinion not as essential as the Verve collection (Lady In Autumn), this is still a great collection and highlighting Holiday at her peak.

I am hard pressed to think of a Billie Holiday CD I have not thoroughly enjoyed. It is really hard to go wrong with her recordings.

Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Holiday at her best.
This is a compilation of some of Holiday's best recordings. She has a unique sounding voice that for me carries much more expression than say, Ella Fitzgerald or many others. Read more
Published 11 days ago by Peter Wright
4.0 out of 5 stars relaxed and mellow
Famous detour between Holiday's "Columbia" and "Decca" recordings, "Commodore" dared to record/release "Strange Fruit" and here is the rest. Read more
Published on August 13, 2009 by Sasha
5.0 out of 5 stars Billie is outstanding and so special as always--BRAVO, BILLIE HOLIDAY...
The Commodore Master Takes has excellent songs all performed by one of the greatest songbirds ever, that masterful Billie Holiday, also known as "Lady Day. Read more
Published on July 12, 2009 by Matthew G. Sherwin
5.0 out of 5 stars At her peak
This is the great (and quite possibly the greatest) Billie Holiday at her peak, singing "Fine and Mellow", "I'll Get By", "Billie's Blues", "I Gotta Right to Sing the... Read more
Published on June 25, 2007 by Nikica Gilic
5.0 out of 5 stars vulgar,sweet degrading, tempting
billie can sing life into any song or phrase that she pleases. she can turn the most vulgar of songs into the sweetest; the most degrading of them into the most tempting. Read more
Published on June 1, 2000 by jjjcccbbb
5.0 out of 5 stars she's got a right to sing the blues
Flawless. Billie's wonderfully melancholy voice can make even the sunny side of the street sound shady. Read more
Published on May 2, 2000 by "silo1013"
5.0 out of 5 stars Billie at the Top of Her Game
A highly-recommended CD. If you prefer Billie Holiday backed by a quartet or piano as opposed to a full-scale orchestra, then this is for you. Read more
Published on April 25, 2000 by "bobida"
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Forums

There are no discussions about this product yet.
Be the first to discuss this product with the community.
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 



So You'd Like to...


What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?



Look for Similar Items by Category