The Very Best of Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 2, 1999)
• Original Release Date: October 12, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Cleopatra
• ASIN: B00000K0MV
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #180,786 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty bloody excellent...., January 27, 2005

By 

Review Lover "ReviewLover" (At a place...) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Very Best of Marilyn Monroe (Audio CD)

Marilyn Monroe, as an actress, I can only stand in small doses. Her movies are excellent, all of them have something worthwhile and redeeming - even the more mundane offerings like 'Bus Stop' and 'Niagra' are finely-crafted pieces of film - and the more sublime ones like 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' and 'Some Like It Hot' are honest-to-God classic examples of the comic genius of both 1950s Hollywood and Monroe herself.

For all that, however, I can still only watch the pink and fluffy Goddess for short bursts before I long for something that takes itself a little more seriously.

And that's when I turn to this!

Monroe as a singer I could listen to forever and a day. Worthy of a far higher degree of praise than popular culture has traditionally accorded her, Monroe's singing is a very rare experience indeed. Her range is impressive, and her style is actually quite thought-provoking - listen to the contrast between the bubblegum-light 'Down In The Meadow' and the melancholic, heavy 'River of no Return', and you'll appreciate the fact that, at least as a singer, Monroe was more than capable of shrugging off her Fantasy Gal image for a deeper and more developed means of communication.

This CD is particularly noteworthy for having all the classics, and also some rarer gems like 'I'm Gonna File My Claim' and 'After You Get What You Want, You Don't Want It', both great numbers that are so often omitted from Monroe anthologies and such. Her interpretation of 'A Fine Romance' is one of the best ever, and her pairing with the immaculate Jane Russel on 'Little Girl from Little Rock' is worth the price of the CD alone.

If you look at all of the most vocally revered female songstresses of this period - Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, Judy Garland - all of them have very fine voices, and an unusual vocal 'hook' - Billie's high acid melancholia, Nina's deep bass ad-libbing, and Judy's rolling, emotional high notes - and Monroe is no different. Her quivery, quirky soprano is fascinating to listen to, and matches her public personality as well as Ms. Julie Andrews' voice matches hers. It brings great depth to what would otherwise have been a relatively ordinary voice - but that's an advantage true of all singers.

One to own and listen to again and again, 'The Very Best of Marilyn Monroe' is something anyone with an appreciation of female vocalists will absloutely treasure.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Very Best of Marilyn Monroe, June 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Very Best of Marilyn Monroe (Audio CD)

This a a very good collection of songs that Miss Monroe sang from circa 1953 - 1962. The clarity of this CD and variety of songs that span her tragically short career will be appreciated by those who enjoyed her highly artistic and vocal talents. I truly recommend buying this CD!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a must-have for all those marilyn monroe fans!, December 20, 1999

By 

JELLA - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Very Best of Marilyn Monroe (Audio CD)

I've long been wanting to hear Marilyn Monroe's music since I'm only 22 but I'm familiar w/ her success story in Hollywood & I've never seen her movies & thank God I found her album here in Amazon. All the best songs from Ms. Monroe are compiled in this album... including the very famous "Happy Birthday, Mr. President". This is truly a collector's item & I'm glad I didn't miss this chance to own her music. I love Marilyn! Thank you Amazon.com for making it happen!