Mainly Romantic [ORIGINAL RECORDINGS REMASTERED] [Import]

Julius La Rosa | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 9, 1999)
• Original Release Date: February 23, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Jasmine Music
• ASIN: B00000I05Y
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #456,550 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Change Partners

2. Our Language Of Love

3. When The World Was Young

4. Out Of This World

5. You Don't Know What Love Is

6. Let Me Sing And I'm Happy

7. My Romance

8. Cheek To Cheek

9. There'll Never Be Another You

10. My Shining Hour

11. Now I Know

12. Moon River

13. When The Sun Comes Out

14. Just Say I Love Her

15. A Fine Romance

16. Aren't You Glad You're You

17. Where Or When

18. If I Had You

19. My Favourite Things

20. Stella By Starlight

See all 23 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Julius LaRosa was born on 2nd January, 1930, in Brooklyn, New York City, of Italian parentage. As a youth he admired the rising star Frank Sinatra but did not imagine following in those footsteps, expecting instead to join his father's radio repair business. However, upon joining his High School's Glee Club for the purposes of avoiding some of the lessons he disliked, LaRosa's aptitude for singing became apparent. Whilst doing his National Service in the Navy he became involved in various entertainment shows and this led to him being 'talent-spotted" to appear on Arthur Godfrey's prestigious radio "Talent Scouts Shows" in 1950. Upon discharge from the Navy, he became a regular guest the following year, then transferred to television. This was the early 1950s and TV was still in its infancy: "I guess I was the first nonentity to appear on television," LaRosa later recalled, and arguably he was one of the first test cases to prove that TV does not need celebrities, it creates them. He became the featured 'boy singer' on the Arthur Godfrey Show, and may have remained so if it were not for his very public sacking on 'live' TV by Godfrey on 19th October, 1953. Arthur Godfrey had a strict training regime for all his cast, and LaRosa had been skipping the obligatory ballet lessons because of other commitments - he had become a client of the GAC booking agency and had already started a successful recording career on the CADENCE label, run by Godfrey's Music Director Archie Bleyer. See also: JASCD494 - Just Forever

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great voice, mediocre sound, so-so back-up arrangements, June 2, 1999

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mainly Romantic [ORIGINAL RECORDINGS REMASTERED] (Audio CD)

This disc makes one point clearly: LaRosa was in great voice when these recordings were made back in the late 50's and early 60's. His barritone was smooth and powerful; and he worked very hard at communicating the music he was singing. If only the quality of the sound on these tracks was better. If only LaRosa was given the quality of back-up instrumentals that were afforded to Sinatra. Then this disc would not have been just good. It would have been a classic.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great CD for Julius La Rosa's fans, January 17, 2004

By 

Frank Jellison (Salem, OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mainly Romantic [ORIGINAL RECORDINGS REMASTERED] (Audio CD)

This CD is a collection of both live and studio recordings from the late 1950's and early 1960's. The live performances, probably from live TV, display a singer with the confidence to do just about anything he wants with his voice. There are no second chances with live performances and he never falters. He had a big voice, a wide range and could swing. Even if you have some his studio recordings from this period the live performances are well worth owning.

The small group recordings are also very well done. It also takes a lot of confidence and talent to sing with a quartet. There is nowhere to hide. As it was pointed out on the liner notes of one of his MGM albums, Julius La Rosa did not need the "Guns of Navarone" in the background when he sang.

There are a number of younger male vocalists who are popular today. None of them have the great voices of Julius La Rosa, Vic Damone, Steve Lawrence or any the other great male singers of the 1950's and 1960's.

The sound quality may be up to the standards of today but and I have heard much worse coming out of the studio recordings of major record labels.

I admit that I am a fan of Julius La Rosa's singing. I've collected most of his studio albums on either CD or LP. I recently purchased this CD and am very pleased with it.
The CD "Better Than Ever", recorded in 1996, might be more to the liking of someone who does not own any of his CDs. The 1985 CD "Julius La Rosa" on Project 3 is also an excellent CD.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Julius at his best!, March 2, 2007

By 

Thomas Bumbera (Maplewood, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mainly Romantic [ORIGINAL RECORDINGS REMASTERED] (Audio CD)

Most of the tracks on this disc were drawn from syndicated public service shows done by and for the Treasury Department (savings bonds plan) in the early 1960s. While not recorded in stereo, the sound quality is perfectly adequate for anyone used to listening to records of the period. More importantly, La Rosa's voice was nearing its peak at the time, and it's wonderful to hear him turned loose on standards that he was seldom permitted to record commercially. The original 16" transcription discs are hard to come by - and how many reading this have a turntable that could play them? - so if you want to hear these first-rate examples of La Rosa tackling the Great American Songbook (just look at that song selection!), get this disc while it's available! Maybe someday RCA/BMG/Sony will reissue his one (1956) RCA album with some bonus tracks? Yeah, right, like they care about what's in their vault!