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Fred Astaire's Finest Hour

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Fred Astaire Format: Audio CD

4.7 16 ratings

$24.29

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MP3 Music, August 12, 2003

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Audio CD, Import, August 19, 2003

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Track Listings

1	Steppin' Out With My Baby
2	Let's Call The Whole Thing Off
3	They Can't Take That Away From Me
4	Cheek To Cheek
5	They All Laughed
6	No Strings (I'm Fancy Free)
7	Puttin' On The Ritz
8	Oh, Lady, Be Good!
9	Isn't This A Lovely Day
10	The Continental
11	'S Wonderful
12	Something's Gotta Give
13	Fascinating Rhythm
14	Night And Day
15	Dancing In The Dark
16	Top Hat, White Tie, And Tails
17	The Afterbeat

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Narrowing down a lifetime career of America's great song-and-dance man is never an easy task! Yet, the Finest Hour certainly picks a knockout lineup showcasing Astaire's voice gliding over classics such as Steppin' Out with My Baby; They Can't Take That Away from Me; Cheek to Cheek; Puttin' on the Ritz; 'S Wonderful; Top Hat, White Tie, and Tails; Something's Gotta Give, and more.

Amazon.com

Fred Astaire might not be the first name that comes to mind when thinking of a jazz singer, but this installment of Verve's Finest Hour series samples 16 songs from the 1952 sessions in which Astaire joined Oscar Peterson and some of Verve's best sidemen to lay down jazzy versions of songs he had made famous in his Broadway and film career, originally released as The Astaire Story. While Astaire was not blessed with great vocal chops, the best American songwriters including George and Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin, and Cole Porter loved him for his unerring sense of rhythm and sympathetic treatment of lyrics, qualities that are well displayed here. Familiar songs include "Steppin' Out with My Baby," "Cheek to Cheek," "They Can't Take That Away from Me," "Night and Day," and "Top Hat, White Tie, and Tails." And for something different, there's also a song recorded with the Pete King Orchestra, "The Afterbeat," written by Astaire himself with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. --David Horiuchi

Product details

Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 5.75 x 0.5 inches; 3.37 Ounces
Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Imports
Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour
Date First Available ‏ : ‎ February 9, 2007
Label ‏ : ‎ Imports
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0000A0I6P
Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1

Best Sellers Rank: #324,908 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl)
- #3,216 in Traditional Jazz & Ragtime (CDs & Vinyl)
- #3,542 in Musical Soundtracks & Scores
- #4,601 in Vocal Jazz (CDs & Vinyl)

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4.7 16 ratings

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4.7 out of 5

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Magpie

When a gentleman sings, people listen

Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2005

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I have always enjoyed Fred Astaire movies, but I never really considered purchasing one of his CDs until recently. I also purchased "Steppin Out" (which I also recommend).

What struck me from the first track is the underrated quality of Astaire's voice. Renowned for his dancing, his voice seemed a secondary quality to his athleticism. This CD is a prime example of what a good jazz singer Astaire was. His voice isn't the loudest or strongest, but there is a soothing, unstressed quality that, like his dancing, is highly enjoyable.

The CD is arranged almost by fame of song - we all recognize the melodies of "Stepping Out with my Baby","They Can't Take that Away from Me", and "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off", but even songs like "Lady be Good" or "Dancing in the Dark" have a timeless sound to them. The whole CD has a smooth jazz, or at times a big band, sound to it, and I listen to it in the car or when I'm housecleaning (though I don't try to dance with any of my appliances). Astaire's voice is very appealing, and I could imagine using this CD in almost any social situation as a soft background sound.

"Fred Astaire's Finest Hour" is a gem of a CD, to be appreciated because as one of the great gentleman actors, Fred Astaire could charm us with his feet, and (however surprisingly), it turns out he could sing too.

4 people found this helpful

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James A. Woronow

Excellant but be aware

Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2006

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These recordings are not the show tunes. As the reviewer noted most of the songs are from a 1952 session with more jazz than big band sound. While Fred's voice has always had a sincerity about the lyrics he sang, I always picture Ginger staring into his eyes. These arrangments lose that particular magic, however the tunes still hold up very well.

While I am an easy jazz fan there is so much plunking on an open body guitar that one can take and this album reaches my limit. Yes, I would buy this CD - just know that Ginger might not approve.

8 people found this helpful

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Alan B. Jonas

Sixty Minutes of Pure Bliss

Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2011

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I always admired Fred Astaire for his exceptional dancing like all his other fans and accepted his singing as just a normal accompaniment. But this CD proves, too, that he is a master with the tune. No wonder Irving Berlin said: "I'd rather have Fred Astaire introduce one of my songs than any other singer I know."
All of his standards are in this treasure from Amazon including "Cheek to Cheek", "Puttin' on the Ritz", "Steppin' Out with My Baby" and "Top Hat, White Tie, and Tails" the latter aptly describing his dancing style and appearance. There's even one of which he wrote the music - "The Afterbeat" which is a real swinger, the last song in this prized collection.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Nikica Gilic

Tin Pan Alley Swing

Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2006

Astaire's vocal abilities are nowhere near the level on which he used to glide across the screen, with or without partners. Uncapable for either jazz phrasing or bellcanto, Astaire was also nowhere near the best of the American popular singers of the era - Bing Crosby or Fred Astaire could lick him any time, Sammy Davis Jr. and Billy Eckstine could outdo him in any aspect of pop singing.
However, this is still very enjoyable CD, most of it made out of sessions with Oscar Peterson's jazz combo, with the glorious trumpet of Charlie Shavers, swinging guitar of Barney Kessel, virtuoso bass of Ray Brown, "driving" and reliable drumms of Alvin Stoller and, on most songs, Flip Philips' expressive tenor sax (yes, and on few occasions Peterson engages in the heavenly sounds of the celeste)...

Astaire is not without charm (particularly if you already like him from his films), and the charm is augmented by such illustrious company; at moments he even completely manages to avoid corny effects of blindly following the melody and rhythm.

It would be too much to say that he actually swings, but this is still good popular American singing, with a jazzy tinge.

The songs, as anyone can see from this site are mostly excellent, so this fact must have helped making this CD so surprisingly enjoyable.

3 people found this helpful

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James Snider

Great Songs, Great Entertainer, poor execution on Astaire's part

Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2007

I hate to disagree with the other reviewers who found this CD enjoyable but I found this CD to be very disappointing. I actually like Astaire's singing voice in the old movies and find his voice on this CD to be pleasant and unassuming however it lacks polish. This CD sounds like Astaire needed to spend a week or two getting his singing talent back up to speed. He sounds like a pleasant amateur who is struggling with the songs. The Amazon samples played on a notebook computer sound excellent. However, playing the CD on a decent player shows all Astaire's weakness as a singer. It is just painful. The songs are excellent and Oscar Peterson's combo is outstanding. It is disappointing that the producers didn't give Astaire an adequate number of takes to get it right. They almost had something wonderful here.

2 people found this helpful

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ゆう

毎日聴いてます

Reviewed in Japan on August 30, 2013

Verified Purchase

他の方のレビューにある通り、本当に音が聴き易く、アステアの歌うＪＡＺＺのＣＤ・・・という感じです。

どの曲を聴いても、アステアのダンスを思い浮かべて楽しい気分に♪

このＣＤを聴いてたら、渋滞の時もイライラしなくて済みました(笑)

アステアのＣＤを購入しようと思っているけど、どれがいいのか迷っている人に、一番お勧めのＣＤです。

4 people found this helpful

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rila

素敵な時間をありがとう☆

Reviewed in Japan on December 30, 2005

Verified Purchase

アステアの歌がもともと大好きだったので

こんなCDがあってすごく嬉しいです！

映画で使われてる曲とはアレンジが違っていてお洒落な感じです。

「The Astaire Story 」からの抜粋らしいです。

私は疲れてる時などはアステアの歌やダンスにホント癒されてます。

どれも素晴らしい曲ばかりで大好きだけど

特に4曲目の「Cheek to Cheek」は最高です！

歌詞通り「天国にいる」気分になれます。

あとは「Continental」

個人的には映画のやつよりこっちの方が好きです（笑）

歌声を聴いてるだけなのにアステアが歌い踊る姿が目に浮かびます。

アステア好きな人は絶対にオススメですよ〜！

12 people found this helpful

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テディ☆

音に満足しました！

Reviewed in Japan on May 17, 2010

Verified Purchase

「コンプリート・レコーディング第2集「夜も昼も」」と一緒に購入しましたが、こちらの方がリマスターされているのか、音がいいです。
というか、好みです、私は聴きやすいから。
原音に忠実なものを好まれる方も沢山居ると思いますが、そういう物は、篭った感じで重たくてスピード感が無いです。
リマスター物？は、すっきり聴きやすく、それでいて演奏の音がそこで鳴っているかのように活き活きしている録音もいいと思いました。
アステアの歌声にうっとりしています♪

7 people found this helpful

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Mr. C. Morris

After Dinner Astaire

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 9, 2013

Verified Purchase

This seems taken from his later years, when his voice is mellow but still in reasonable nick. It seems to cash in on his US TV shows of the 1950s, and maybe the slightly hollow, frenzied Art Deco recordings of the 1930s could have done with a reinterpretation. He did another compilation in the 1970s called The Golden Age of Astaire, which has all the easy listening bells and whistles to compensate for his waning vocals, to cash in with the success of That's Entertainment, perhaps.

The recording here sounds tight and controlled, quite easy jazz. It is not as frisky as his younger or older interpretations. It would be good for a cocktail party or pouring yourself a glass of port in the evening. There is a sense that with the extended jazz solos, Fred has nipped out the studio to smoke a cigarette, or maybe called it a day and headed out to the golf course, returning the following morning to phone his vocal in for the last verse. I would also change the running order of the tracks a bit, I don't personally much like Lady Be Good but it's placed early here.

2 people found this helpful

Frank Leguen

Great recordings

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 9, 2013

Verified Purchase

Nothing new in terms of material but these recordings were made more recently than many of the compilations of Fred Astaire and the sound is really good as are the arrangements. I would say that all of his best known songs are included and the musicians (Oscar Peterson etc) are legends themselves. Well worth the buy.

2 people found this helpful

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