The Wizard of Oz and Other Harold Arlen Songs

Shorty Rogers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 25, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Drg
• ASIN: B0006MT4MC
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #309,475 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. We're Off To See The Wizard

2. Over The Rainbow

3. The Jitterbug

4. The Merry Old Land Of Oz

5. If I Only Had A Brain

6. Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead

7. My Shining Hour

8. Get Happy

9. Blues In The Night

10. Let's Fall In Love

11. That Old Black Magic

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Swingin' down the yellow-brick road, August 21, 2006

By 

Bomojaz (South Central PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Wizard of Oz and Other Harold Arlen Songs (Audio CD)

This is a tribute album to Harold Arlen, with about half the tunes coming from THE WIZARD OF OZ, and all of it spotlighting Shorty's arranging skills. Shorty is an excellent arranger, very sophisticated and very ambitious. Solo space is limited in this big band outing, but Jimmy Giuffre, Herb Geller, Pete Jolly, Barney Kessel, Bill Holman, and Larry Bunker all contribute excellent solos throughout the proceedings. On the up-tempo wailer GET HAPPY about 8 different soloists jump in for 8 bars each: tag team jazz at its finest. THAT OLD BLACK MAGIC starts off in an Afro-Cuban bag and then goes straight 4/4 for the mellow solo spots. The entire brass section is tightly muted for the theme statement on LET'S FALL IN LOVE, and then the mutes come out and the contrast is really nice. DING DONG! THE WITCH IS DEAD swings like crazy with the rhythm section really pushing hard. Shorty's arrangement of IF I ONLY HAD A BRAIN is particularly attractive, as is Jimmy Giuffre's clarinet theme statement on the slow BLUES IN THE NIGHT. All in all, this is a most handsome big band recording of Arlen tunes, swinging and engaging from beginning to end.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth Searching For!, July 1, 2008

By 

Steven Jay (Denver CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Wizard of Oz and Other Harold Arlen Songs (Audio CD)

All of trumpeter/arranger Shorty Rogers' recordings from the 1950s (which were quite influential on both arrangers and cool-toned soloists) are well worth searching for. Unfortunately, many are out of print, including half of this excellent LP; the second side has been reissued on the Bluebird CD Swings. On the first side, Rogers and his Orchestra (which includes such fine soloists as Jimmy Giuffre on clarinet and tenor, valve trombonist Bob Enevoldsen, altoists Bud Shank and Herb Geller, guitarist Barney Kessel and pianist Pete Jolly) perform five familiar songs from Oz, plus "The Jitterbug," which did not make it into the final cut. This date is rounded out by fresh versions of five of Arlen's most famous songs, including "Get Happy," "Blues In the Night" and "That Old Black Magic." Wonderful music.