Customer Reviews

Italian Collection 1

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The clarity of the music and voice from Ms. Francis in the Italian Collection volumes 1 and 2 is exceptional. When the singing started it transported me to Rome, Florence, Venice and Sorrento faster than the Concorde. The breath of her selections covers all of the favorites as well as some lesser known. She translates to English many of the songs making it easier to understand. The music and singing are both luscious and like a good Chianti they won't let you down. I found these albums to be exceptional and they will be enjoyed by all who listen to them even if you are not of the Italian persuasion. An extra technical effort was put into these albums to make them so wonderful. Thank you Connie Francis for a real musical treat. ENJOY-ENJOY-ENJOY!

This CD is a great collection of Italian music by a truely gifted performer. Connie's version of "Il Cielo In Una Stanza" is incredibly beautiful and haunting. "Canta Ragazzina" is a very thought provoking song for those who understand Italian and her singing is captivating. As is always the case when Connie Francis sings in Italian, the listener does not have to understand the language. She is one of the few performers in the world that can communicate through the emotion of her singing and that comes across on every song on this CD. It is an outstanding collection of some old Italian classics and some more modern songs sung like no one else can.

This is a masterpiece. Especially great are the recordings taken from Connie's superb MGM album LOVE ITALIAN STYLE. Connie's vocals are strong and exciting and the Neapolitan Medley is an outtake from her live performance, almost always included in her shows. The selections from MORE ITALIAN FAVORITES are vibrant, and there are several selections from her famous initial album ITALIAN FAVORITES. This 2 CD set offers the possibility of possessing the best from all of her Italian albums.

The Italian Collection, Vol. 1 is a Connie Francis CD that has twenty great Italian hits sung by one of the best singers of the entire twentieth century. Connie's voice is in excellent form on this album; and the sound quality couldn't be better. I also like the artwork. Great!

"Jealous Of You: Tango Della Gelosia" starts the CD with Connie singing so sweetly it whets your appetite for more! Her excellent diction bolsters her performance even further. The musical arrangement is peppy and the brass works well on this number. "Mama" features Connie singing a much more mellow, serious ballad to honor her mother and mothers everywhere. Connie never misses a beat and she croons this number beyond perfection. The strings enhance the natural beauty of "Mama," too.

"Terra Straniera" sounds beautiful as Connie sings this with great sensitivity; Connie's voice sounds great and the percussion together with the strings makes the number very pretty. "Ritorna A Me (Return To Me)" shines like pure gold when Connie sings this flawlessly; her interpretation of this classic Italian tune really impresses me. Moreover, "Non Dimenticar" sounds fresh and new when Connie sings this as beautifully as ever.

"Arrivederci Roma" gets a fine treatment from Connie who bats this one straight out of the ballpark! Connie sings this flawlessly and her voice again stuns me with its beauty. The lush musical arrangement is very beautiful; but make no mistake about it--it's Connie who is front and center here. "Al Di La" again puts Connie's vocals squarely in the spotlight and the music is a beautiful accompaniment to Connie's singing.

"La Paloma" shines like pre gold when Connie performs this like the pro she still remains; and listen for "Portami Con Te." "Portami Con Te" is quite a sensitive love ballad and Connie delivers this with panache. You may easily recognize the melody, too! I am almost positive that the melody is from the song "Fly Me To The Moon."

The CD ends strong with Connie performing "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me;" this is not a true Italian hit but it sure does fit in nicely with everything else here anyway! Connie sings this ballad with heart, soul and passion. The strings are lovely and the percussion enhances "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me."

Overall, this is one fine album from the great Connie Francis. It's terrific to hear Connie singing these incredible, beautiful Italian hits. I highly recommend this for Connie's fans; and people who enjoy Italian classic ballads will not be disappointed.

Hi I just want to tell you that Connie Francis sings Italian songs on this CD. It is positively the best and I wish I can tell her myself. It makes you dream of Italy and being Italian it is well appreciated. She makes you cry with Mama and fall in love with the other songs. She has a full range of music spectrum and also sings pop songs that are very enjoyable to listen to. The Italian is the one I absolutely love. I would recommend this to anyone. Volume 2 also, get it all. she's wonderful and has great talent. Lots of Love: To Connie her talent is enjoyed and appreciated. Warm Regards: Cathy Alexander(NH)

This review is a little late but this two disc collection culled from her Italian LP releases are a MUST HAVE. The standout selections come from her last Italian release "Love Italian Style" which was recorded in Milan. Her voice is powerful and fluid and the orchestrations are pure genius. I'm not Italian, but after hearing this disc--I felt like one. Just another example of Connie's unique ability to submerge herself and become part of the song. Perhaps this is why she has baffled the critics for years and is terribly underrated today--because you could never pidgeonhole her or classify her. She was always too versatile to be labelled. Another splendid compilation. Volume II is equally magnificent. There is contention about Connie never being inducted into the R&R Hall of Fame. She should be because she was the first female to break into an entirely male dominated territory and on her own terms. But Connie Francis is not a "rocker" per say. She is the finest intrepretar of the pop standard around today. And she's still going strong!

You NEED this, you KNOW you WANT it, and you'll LOVE it...just don't neglect to go for SECOND HELPINGS with Volume 2. One of the pinnacles of Connie's career were her Italian offerings, and let's face it, the little Italian Girl sure could SING IT.........quick, remember the first time you heard her sing "MAMA"?...."TANGO DELLA GELOSIA"?...."AL DI LA"? Connie had a way of doing that to you...crystalizing moments forever with absolute "defining-moment" performances. Recommendations that you should acquire something come no stronger than this...just don't forget that there is a volume 2 that rounds out her GREAT Italian performances perfectly.

Its a very good Connie Francis Album. My favourite songs on the album are "Non Dimenticar" , "Mama" , "Tango Delle Rose". These songs sounds just like she sang them some 30 years ago. The voice is just the same. Its quite remarkable. I also rate highly the songs "Return to me" and "Addio me amor". The other songs also are very good but on some of them sometimes her voice lacks finesse(not much - sometimes just the end of the song) perhaps due to the constraints of the Italian language itself or perhaps she is not so young anymore. These songs would have been perfect otherwise. I would highly recommend this album to anyone.

Love, Italian-American Style

I love this album of Italian/Continental songs sung by Ms. Francis from the 60's. Francis had a lovely voice and it is no surprise that she was the most popular "pop" female vocalist of her day. Her renditions of these songs are just great, with Ms. Francis going from very good sounding Italian to English and back again. I have versions of some of these songs by Italian-born singers of the period such as Mina, Dalida, and Pino Donagio and Francis holds her own quite well alongside those marvelous vocalist. I would like to think that people, after hearing Connie's Italian/American interpretations, would also be interested in hearing the singers I mentioned above, in addition to other fine recording artists born in Italia.
Brava Concetta!
Luigi ~ NYC

To say Connie was a triumph of the nature is not exaggerate. She was by far the best female singer not Italian who sang as anyone else the music of that beloved land. Her vocal inflexions, commitment and above all the absolute involvement in every piece he performed.

And despite her personal disgrace she had the spiritual courage to keep going and shine like an eternal star.