Customer Reviews

Ultra-Lounge: Wild, Cool & Swingin' - Artist Series Vol 3

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Coming from the UK, I had never heard of Mrs. Elva Miller. It was only by a chance listening of NPR's "Annoying Music Show" (streamed over the net) that I was 'introduced' to her. How could anyone so 'bad' get a record deal, I wondered? So I delved further into the net about her, and read her 'story'.

What a wonderful, sweet woman she was (too much to go into, Google her, you know you want to!). There is a joy in these recordings, you can even hear her stifle a giggle in "Downtown". Sometimes she does sound 'extreme', and personally these are the recordings I prefer, but I do not find her 'funny', or these recordings to be comedy, but a pleasure to hear someone singing because SHE ENJOYS IT.

I suppose she does remind me of my mothers embarrassingly terrible singing. However, everyone who hears her, swears that it sounds like their mother too.

Believe me, after a crap day at work, kick your shoes off, put on the CD, and be transported to joy, Joy, JOY! I have become so obsessed, that my friends and I are going to celebrate her birthday, in a way that she would approve of. God bless her!

Mrs Elva Miller
Oct 5, 1907 - July 5, 1997
A truly unique person

I gave this CD 5 stars for one reason--FUN ! There was no one who sang like Mrs. Miller, for which I'm sure many people are grateful ! At the same time, she was a true original--that warbling, off-key vibrato, the dreadful timing, the astonishing whistling breaks--her voice was instantly identifiable.

On this disc, she attacks a number of big hits from the 60s--the Beatles, Chuck Berry, Sinatra ( Frank and Nancy )--no one was safe ! Play this disc for your friends--they will listen in disbelief, then hopefully laugh a lot. As another reviewer advises, don't listen to Mrs. Miller if you are eating or drinking--choking is a definite risk !

I understand that Mrs. Miller is no longer with us, but somewhere the angels are being hugely entertained. It was never clear to me whether or not she "got the joke". Some bad singers are just that--bad--with no redeeming qualities ( hello Yoko Ono ). Mrs. Miller is as much fun today as during her 60s heyday.

So--if you have a good sense of humour--want to have the most talked-about disc at a party--or need to break your lease with a stubborn landlord--you can't go wrong with this gem.

Elva Ruby Connes Miller was truly one of the most amazing voices of the twentieth century. That isn't to say that she has a great voice, or even a good voice, for that matter. What she has is an amazing penchant for an off-key vibrato intensive warbling that makes her second only to Florence Foster Jenkins for most hilarious soprano of the last century. Miller was a fixture in local community theater and amateur productions, and at one point even took her talent to Vietnam to entertain the troops. I am sure they were very entertained. Truly this woman had a heart of gold, even if she had a tongue of lead.

This compilation is stunning in its breadth. The treatment she gives to these songs cannot even be imagined until heard for oneself. She covers a variety of styles, with a heavy concentration of 1960s sugar-pop like "Monday, Monday", "Let's Hang On", and "Yellow Submarine". (Yes, it's true that Ringo sings substantially better than Mrs. Miller.) Particularly entertaining is the truly dreadful altered lyric masterpiece "Queen of the House." I can't imagine having been a supporting musician or recording technician that had to sit through multiple takes of these masterworks.

Listening to this CD is delightfully awful, and I recommend the experience highly to any audiophile who thinks they have heard it all.

Rock on, Mrs. Miller!

Mrs. Elva Miller, the one-take-only vocalist, delivers her way-off-the-beat, off-key renditions of 60's ditties in this very special Ultra Lounge CD. Her jarring, sometimes-soprano, always-compelling voice of these cuts inspires cats to howl.

The first cut, the soft, rhythmic 'Girl from Ipanema', begins innocently enough--soothing enough to nap to--and then Mrs. Miller jolts you with "Ohhhhh, but I watch her so sadly..." in her own inimitable, vibrato-drenched way. Even the 'Yellow Submarine' sound effects are more surreal than the original's, much like Mrs. Miller's vocal interpretations, where she rewrites the melody in the song's hook. And, as if country music wasn't bad enough, she totally crucifies it with 'There Goes My Reason for Livin', where she utilizes a double track of her vocals. I can't even describe what she does to 'A Lover's Concerto', because it's so, so bizarre.

Ever since hearing her 'These Boots are Made for Walkin'' on the Ultra Lounge 'On the Rocks II' CD, I've tried to imitate her stylings and have failed miserably (and I'm no singer). I don't know how anyone can sing like this, no matter how bad they are. I only know she's a very special singer singing very groovy songs in this CD collection, and I whole-heartedly recommend it to music and kitsch lovers.

If you've ever heard of something called KARAOKE and have been forced to sit through it, you should know that Mrs. Miller lives in all of us, or maybe atleast many of our close acquaintences. I personally like Mrs. Miller but hate Karaoke.

Mrs. Miller was the epitome of a loveable housewife singing music with the most non-hip and non-understanding of innocence and that is what makes this album great... She tried so hard and was so diligent and serious. And the risks she took! Sure she could have sung opera or inspirational music, and got laughed at far less (actually probably ignored) - - but whether or not her recording career was a joke on HER, the fact that she accepted the challenge to record such unlikely (then) pop and rock and roll material is what made her GREAT.

In the end, Mrs. Miller was definitely the ED WOOD of vocal-dome period. Yet as bad as she was, it is so entertaining to hear her sing and share it with other people... for this reason I highly recommend this album... (P.S. Its ashame they never filmed her life story and got Shelley Winters to play her !)

The first time I listened to this CD I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants, it's wonderful. Here is a woman who tried so hard to share herself with the world. She sang her heart out, even on a USO tour. But she really can't sing, especially not the 60s chart-toppers that she tries to cover. When singing "Downtown", she seems to totally forget the tune and rhythm at one point, and the backup singers start singing "Down - town" before her, and she has to jump in late, laughing. It's like listening to great aunt ethel singing in the shower. I've had some friends question why I would purchase a CD that sounds like a compilation from the song booth at a Six Flags Theme Park, but it puts me in a good mood and gives me a really good laugh whenever I listen to it. Absolutely worth the money.

Was there ever a more ORIGINAL singer than the late Elva Miller? For that matter, was there ever a singer who infused more VIBRATO into their vocals either?! Listening to this collection never fails to bring a smile to my face, as one can hear her utterly SINCERE approach to each song, missed tempos, off notes and half-forgotten lyrics only ADDING to the overall CHARM of her unique style. ALL the songs presented here bring a grin to my face on even the bleakest day, but a special favourite of mine is her PRICELESS version of "The Shadow Of Your Smile":you HAVE to hear it, tee hee! THAT song alone is worth the price of this record! That she covered the gamet from lounge music standards to current Pop favourites of the day put her MILES ahead of other singers at that time.
She truly embodied the phrase "It's hip to be square"!

Many years ago I met a man in the Los Angeles area who knew Mrs. Miller.
He said something that has stuck in my mind:"You know, she really didn't make much money, but LOVED every minute of it and ALWAYS gave a SINCERE feel to each song she sang!" All these years later I'm left to wonder just how many performers NOW would STILL want to perform if they WEREN'T making a fortune doing so? Hell, for that matter just how many-in this age of too many poseurs-always give a sincere feel to their performance?

ROCK ON, Elva! The angels must be smiling!

I used to work at HMV records, and would always try to see if i could find the alltime cheesiest, worst, so-bad-it's-good novelty cd in the whole store. For awhile i thought the award had gone to Mary Schneider Yodels The Classics (which is another howler that you have to hear to believe!). One day while straightening out the cd racks i came upon Mrs. Miller and had an instant gut feeling that i'd found the winner. I put it on and almost wet my pants from laughing so hard. You will never hear one woman massacre and totally demolish so many great songs all on one disc. You have to hear her to believe her. Imagine if you will, a woman who looks like a 50-year-old drag queen belting out songs from the 50s and 60 like she was doing kareoke in a bar and you'll have an idea of what to expect. Many times during the songs she'll add her own sounds and ad libs to make an already hilarious version sound even more unbearable. Put this on at a party and see how long your guests can keep a straight face. The songs are so painfully bad that you'll only be able to stand a minute of each cut, if that. The comedy value of this cd cannot be beat. I've called up friends long-distance on the phone just to play bits and pieces of Mrs. Miller and they all cracked up from laughing so hard. This is the novelty cd of the century.

Go ahead - - play your Metal Machine Music and your Nurse With Wound and your :zoviet-france: and your Merzbow and your Obituary (!) at your next little get-together. All I ask is that somewhere in the middle of it all you also play just one track from the venerable Mrs. Elva Miller.

Here is Uncle Autumfair's Absolutely Unconditional Guarantee: it will be Elva who will be remembered, discussed and ruminated over for weeks to come.

Mrs.Miller is re-released on Capitol Records 33 years after her last Capitol album. The album has inspired a Mrs.Miller renaissance across the world, as this hidden talent emerges from obscurity to once again bask in the lime light of the pop world. A fantastic CD! Check out more information on Mrs. Miller at:

www.mrsmillersworld.com