Customer Reviews

16 Most Requested Songs

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I was not a Benny Goodman fan, that is, until I heard a program on National Public Radio about the 1938 concert he and his band put on at Carnegie Hall. As a part of that program, they played a cut from the 2-CD release of the concert recording. This was the 12 minute long, "Sing, Sing, Sing".

That cut was one of the best live recording of music I'd ever heard.

I became a Benny Goodman fan that night.

This CD has four cuts from the 1938 concert. These are, arguably, the four best songs played that night. In addition, unlike the 2-CD concert recording, these cuts have been digitally "cleaned up" and most of the noise from the defects in the master are gone. They are, in and of themselves, GREAT STUFF! Listening to these live recordings of the likes of Harry James, Gene Krupa, and Lionel Hampton, all performing on the same stage, is an exciting experience. Knowing that this was recorded 62 years ago adds an element of timelesness and gives me the impression that I'm hearing one of the great chronicles of music.

This CD, however. contains not only these live recordings but, also, some other great music. For me, a new Benny Goodman listener, most of cuts on this CD have been a real source of pleasure.

I can surely recommend this item.

Because otherwise I would have done it with this one. While I recommend that dedicated Goodman fans should get the RCA collections of his works I have to recommend this CD as an excellent overview of what Benny Goodman was all about. There are four tracks on the CD that I absolutely love. Track 4, _Flying Home_ is a beautiful piece of music, Track 5, _Memories of You_ is a wonderful, melancholy piece. Track 12, _Sing, Sing, Sing_ is 12 minutes long, it is a recording from a 1938 concert and it includes a raucous Gene Krupa drum solo that cannot be beat. This song segues into another number called _Christopher Columbus_ and you can hear some audience noise in the background and some laughter, making you wonder what Benny and the band were up to. Track 8 is a neat rendition of _Why Don't you Do Right_ which some may remember Jessica Rabbit singing in _Who Framed Roger Rabbit_. I would have loved to see Benny Goodman and his orchestra playing live, but failing that this CD is probably the next best thing.

There are a few single-CD Benny Goodman "best of" collections available. This one is probably the best for some very good reasons. It has 16 cuts, more than the other popular collections. There are tunes from Goodman's most famous performance, the 1938 Carnagie Hall concert. Selections from this show include Don't Be That Way, the show's opener, and Sing, Sing, Sing, which may be the most famous swing song of all time. This show was performed when the band was at its height, and included Gene Krupa (the most famous jazz drummer of the swing era), Harry James (trumpet), and Lionel Hampton (vibraphone), all stars who eventually started their own bands. Unlike the 11 cut "This is Jazz - Benny Goodman", it also has Let's Dance, another famous Goodman tune. The sound quality of this CD isn't even that bad, considering the age of the performances. Unfortunately, this collection omits King Porter Stomp (included on "This is Jazz"), but arguably makes up for it with Stompin' at the Savoy, a swing standard co-written by Goodman (and performed at the Carnagie Hall show). Even at full list price, this CD would be a bargain. "16 Most Requested Songs" is a great introduction to Goodman's music, as well as the world of swing, and it would also make an outstanding gift for someone who has only heard songs from the current "swing revivial".

The swing fad of the nineties came and, as everyone knew it would, went. But Benny Goodman reigned supreme in a time when swing was more than just a fad, however, and you can hardly find a more worthwile compilation than this CD. Sing, Sing, Sing is of course the best song from the swing era (with the possible exception of Miller's In the Mood), and the extended version contained on this CD is a treat. Add in Flying Home and How Am I to Know? and you've got a must-have collection for anyone interested in swing. The recordings are live; you can hear the audience react and pull you into their joy. It's hard not to. And if the sound is not as clear and crisp as music recorded today, it's still remarkable for a 1938 recording. Better than you might expect. Turn it up and bop along with the master.

This CD has many of Goodman's most popular songs, and is a great CD to use as an introduction to the music of this jazz great.

If you're new to Benny Goodman, I would recommend a boxed set or double CD in order to get the full flavor of his music. This disc is skimming the surface of his great catalogue and the sound quality is average, at best. The remastering of these songs is sub par, especially on the vocal tracks like "Why Don'tcha Do Right?" The live songs from the Carnegie Hall '38 concert are similarly flawed and sound better on other CD's. It's hard to hear Krupa's magnificent percussion and if you aren't hearing Gene, you aren't experiencing the magic of the man or the band.

A Benny neophyte would be well served by this standard "Greatest Hits" package but again, I caution you on the sound quality.