Red Hot + Rhapsody: The Gershwin Groove

Red Hot AIDS Benefit Series | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 6, 1998)
• Original Release Date: October 6, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Polygram Records
• ASIN: B00000C2FQ
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #35,509 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A refreshing, and sometimes surprising take on Gershwin, November 3, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Red Hot + Rhapsody: The Gershwin Groove (Audio CD)

Like most of the Red, Hot releases, this CD is eclectic. The joys are found in the individual performances as opposed the the album as a whole. If you ever wondered about the african-american influences on George Gershwin, listen to Baaba Maal's take on "Bess you Is My Woman Now" it will break your heart with its beauty. Skye and Hubert Laws show us again why "Summertime" is one of the most covered songs of all time. Smoke City reinvents "They Can't Take That Away From Me" with their island, trip-hop beat. And, don't miss taking a journey with David Bowie and Angelo Badalemente on "Foggy Day" - it's moody and delicious.

11 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars so-so if you ask me, August 8, 2001

By 

Karen Robinson (california) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Red Hot + Rhapsody: The Gershwin Groove (Audio CD)

If George Gerswhin heard this cd, he'd probably turn over in his grave. It's just an insult to the man's art to cover his songs by just singing over a Casio beat (refer to tracks 1, 4, 10, 12, 13, and 14). But the biggest disappointments came from the big names on the cd-- namely Natalie Merchant. Her version of "But Not for Me" is soooo boring. Even I can sing it better than she can. Sinead O'Conner didn't do much better with "Someone to Watch Over Me". The only standout track was Clark Terry's "Let's Call the Whole Think Off". Maybe it was best to give these classic songs a 90's facelift and add the drum tracks and all that programming/sampling. Smoke City's "They Can't Take That Away From Me"(song #4) and Sarah Cracknell's "The Man I Love" (song #13) are pretty good. This isn't that bad of a cd, but it could be so much better. Seems like many people liked it by all the 5-star reviews. But if you happen to buy this cd and are a little disappointed, don't be because you're still helping out a wonderful cause.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a lot of good stuff, though not for everyone, October 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Red Hot + Rhapsody: The Gershwin Groove (Audio CD)

Natalie Merchant alone makes this CD worthwhile. There are also 5 or 6 other tracks that I enjoy (Sarah Cracknell, Luscious Jackson, and Smoke City in particular), and the jazzy-grooviness (*for lack of a better word) makes this album a great way to balance your collection. Don't expect to like all the tracks, however; some of these are pretty 'interesting' interpretations and a few I wouldn't want to hear more than once.