Customer Reviews

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook, Vol. 1

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ella's superb interpretations of Porter's songs are truly something which no lover of popular music can resist; from "Begin the Beguine" to "Love for Sale"(v.II) these songs are timelessly sophisticated and no one can sing them as beautifully as Ella! A must!

With the exception of Miss Otis Regrets which is too slow for my taste, these songs are all sung impeccably. The combination of Porter's incredibly witty and daring lyrics, great arrangements, and Ella's crystal clear voice and brilliant phrasing make for a great record. She may not be emotional like Billie Holiday but in my book between the purity of the voice and her timing and phrasing noone does it like Ella (for example, in Always True to You in My Fashion Ella just KNOWS that the key verse is the one beginning "There's an oilman known as Tex" so she gives it a different emphasis. The sound quality is phenomenal too.

Ella's first album in the celebrated Songbook series done for Verve is still one of my favorites. Who could resist Ella's pure voice coupled with Cole Porter's wonderful melodies? The warmth and sweetness of Ella's voice comes through in "All Through the Night," "Do I Love You?," and her incomparable rendition of "Miss Otis Regrets." Other songs swing, such as "Anything Goes" and "Too Darn Hot." I've heard criticisms that the orchestra fails to match the top-notch arrangements of some of the later Songbooks accompanied by other bandleaders, but Buddy Bregman is no hack. The real stars here are Ella and Cole Porter. I never hear one of these songs performed without comparing it to Ella's version. This album is timeless and beautful.

Holy mackerel, no one's reviewed this yet?! If you get one Ella Fitzgerald record, this is it. She personified warmth, nowhere better than on this record. Oh, and by the way, I'd never realized how thoroughly Cole Porter has penetrated American culture until I listened to this record a couple dozen times. To this day, Cole Porter is part of the background music of American life, and that's because of this record.

This has to be my favorite Ella Fitzgerald CD of them all. There are frankly no weak songs on this entire CD. The CD is strongest at the beginning front-loading all the best songs there with the strongest efforts (contrary to another reviewers taste) Miss Otis Regrets, and the best versions of All Thru the Night and Anything Goes that I have ever heard. It is almost as if Cole Porter wrote these songs for Ella herself. Even some of the weaker efforts, if thats what they can be called at the end of the CD are worthwhile. There are times when you buy a CD and you end up saying, wow i could have just bought three or four songs of this for cheaper. Here, you will get your moneys worth.

If you're a Cole Porter fan and an Ella Fitzgerald fan, you get the best of both worlds here. Her interpretations of Mr. Porter's songs make this a listening delight and so darn hot!

If one considers Ella Fitzgerald as one of the very best pop singers and Cole Porter as the king of songwriters, as I do, this is a really winning pair. The only comparable CD that I have is Volume 2 of this combination.

Wow.

Can you say cocktail music? Can you believe that the witty lyrics and word play of Cole Porter can get better? Absolutely.

Ella has a rich voice that makes you smile and slide back into your chair. Tap your glass along with your foot as she swings to Anything Goes. Her rendition of Lets Do It is simply classic.

I discovered this CD years ago and always find someone to share it with a smile. You may experience other collections more upbeat and more bouncy, but Ella comes through like a charm here.

This is how you are supposed to sing Cole Porter. Ella Fitzgerald you're the top! This album charted at #15 in July 1956 on the Billboard Top 100 survey. It is special. The arrangements are big band. Ella constrains herself to a straight forward presentation. They could have easily put out another disc of Mr Porter's material, but this one will do just nicely. She's so far ahead with this album other artist can only see her tail lights. Be sure to get Volume 2 also. 1997 another re-issue occurred with all of these songs and volume two also.

What keeps me from awarding this famous album five stars? Hard to say. Price is a consideration. It is the wonderful Ella, singing the wonderful stuff of Cole Porter, but it's been selling well for more than 45 years. I think by now the price ought to drop by a fiver or so. There are a lot of great jazz records on CD from the 1952-62 era one can buy for less than this one. Second, I like the "Ella in Berlin" live album better, probably because I owned that one in high school in the 60's as my introduction to her, and it has great nostalgic value. Third, the orchestrations by Buddy Bregman, while they don't get in Ella's way, also don't make enough of a splash. This set is a bit low-key for my taste. I do prefer this disc to the one called "Best of the Songbooks", but I think Ella really comes to life either live, or sharing the recorded gig with Louis Armstrong, for instance. Let me switch five of these 16 songs for five that show up on Volume II, and I'd award that fifth star afterall.