The Cosmopolitan Marlene Dietrich

Marlene Dietrich | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 23, 2011)
• Original Release Date: August 3, 1993
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Legacy/Columbia
• ASIN: B0000028VY
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #164,207 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

The Cosmopolitan Marlene Dietrich by Marlene Dietrich

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dietrich at her Best, February 11, 2001

By 

J Keistler "[e-mail]" (Lake Jackson, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cosmopolitan Marlene Dietrich (Audio CD)

This is my second purchase of this CD; it's actually a melding of two of her old LP's. The German work on here was on an LP, and the other work on another. I loved the German LP until I heard the CD with its improved sound quality. I don't speak German, but I love her work in German. "Time On My Hands" sounds so much better by her in German than I've ever heard it in English! It's a shame the Amazon sampler doesn't include her rendition of "La Vie en Rose". Somehow, it comes across as much softer, more intimate than the matchless Piaf. It's my second-favorite version behind Piaf's. I'm least attracted, and listen least, to her 'updated' works such as the song with Clooney on here. It seems a little too 'sanitized' for me. Whether Dietrich was a singer or not will probably always be a subject for debate. What is beyond argument, however, is her ability to take a song and make that song uniquely hers. Who'd have ever thought that she would tackle "Surrey With a Fringe on Top"?

I recommend, still, that if you can own only one of Dietrich's CD's, this is the one because of the beautiful German recordings. A great price, too!

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For all you rock 'n' roll and gangsta rap fans, August 8, 2000

By 

TUCO H. "H. TUCO" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cosmopolitan Marlene Dietrich (Audio CD)

I hate most old time Hollywood singers and jazz standards of any kind but Dietrich is a special case. She totally transcends all categories. She is the ultimate 'romantic' singer, in the sense that there isn't a trace of mawkishness to be found in her personality. You can play a classic Dietrich song like 'Time on my Hands' after anything anybody else plays and thinks is hip and it will always be hipper. That groovy, surreal German voice; that allure of the total woman; that mystery and glamour; that andorgyny and instant 'noir.' Dietrich can pull more emotion and pain out of a song just by talking through most it than others can singing in 4 octaves.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A surprisingly very good vocal CD., June 8, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Cosmopolitan Marlene Dietrich (Audio CD)

From Dietrich's 30's movies, you wouldn't expect her to sing as well as she does on this CD, compiled from her 50's studio sessions for Columbia. Informitive liner notes by author of "Jazz Singing" Will Friedwald, are a definite plus, and lot's of glamorous photos inside. Dietrich sounds best singing in german, highlights are German versions of American jazz standards "Time On My Hands," "Surrey With The Fringe On Top," and "Lili Marlene." Another gem is the duet with young Rosemary Clooney "Good For Nothing." And in English Dietrich sings the difinitive version of "No Love, No Nothin'" If you want sultry vocals, and want to hear the under-rated Dietrich really sing, try this CD, she might shock you with her vocal abilities, on this CD she really can sing, and very well. Don't judge her as a vocalist till you've heard this. Recommended