Anita O'day [Import] [Original recording remastered]

Editorial Reviews
Album Details
Japanese 20bit Remaster featuring a Limited Edition LP Style Slipcase for Initial Pressing.

Tracks:

S'Wonderful/They Can't Take That Away From Me
Tenderly
Old Devil Moon
Love Me Or Leave Me
We'll Be Together Soon
Stella By Starlight
Taking A Chance On Love
Them There Eyes
I've Got The World On A String
You Turned The Tables On Me
Bewitched, Bothered & Bewildered

Amazon.com

In the mid-1950s, the Oscar Peterson trio (with bassist Ray Brown and guitarist Herb Ellis) served as a house rhythm section for Norman Granz's Verve label and his Jazz at the Philharmonic tours. Stars in their own right, they were also superb accompanists, propelling Granz's swing-era giants to some of their best performances of the era. This 1957 date is a superbly swinging session that may be Anita O'Day's finest hour in the recording studio. Although she first found fame as a singer with big bands like Gene Krupa's, O'Day's freewheeling style was most at home in a small group setting. Here she sings swing tunes at breakneck tempos and adds boppish scat with genuinely instrumental fluency. O'Day's wistful treatments of ballads are graced by luminous accompaniments, by Ellis on "I've Got the World on a String" and Peterson on "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered." --Stuart Broomer

Customer Reviews:

Into the Ether........................2006-11-25

I read today of the passing of Anita O'Day into the place now sheltering my Aunt Sarah who made her way the day before. Knowing a bit about both lives it's a phenomenal truth that some are just too dear for this world... What a place they must be in now. I've always loved this album, it was my favorite O'Day in no small measure due to the Oscar Peterson trio...My favorites S'Wonderful/They Can't Take That Away From Me ,We'll Be Together Soon ,Taking A Chance On Love ,Bewitched, Bothered & Bewildered.....her beautiful clear bell voice, the up tempo, the sound of someone in love with sound. Too bad reality was so hard on her. Reading of her life is the realization that a diamond was hidden in life's charade.Such disharmony. Putting this music on tonight to think of her dying....somethings took me away from the here into the there. She was an artist that understood transformation through sound. These tunes dance.

Great swinging jazz vocals & quartet.......2006-07-31

She can swing better than most and has a wonderful, original voice. One of the best jazz vocalists ever. And unique in many ways (style, melody, tempo, moods etc). The musicians behind Anita? Oscar Peterson is superb on piano, complemented perfectly by his three partners on bass, guitar and drums.
A great album and she belongs in every jazz vocal collection.

Anita .......2006-02-24

Released on Verve in 1956 "The Most ' is a superlative jazz album that showcases O'Day 's sexy and musical voice. Great tracks include Tenderly and Stella. Oscar Peterson Quartet is cookin' on all tracks and Herb Ellis solo on Them There Eyes is a knock out!

Ray Hood

I never get tired of this album.......2005-12-02

I discovered Anita O'Day late but she has the right combination of swing, verve and general light touch to keep me from changing the CD in my player. I love Ella Fitzgerald and Ella has better pipes but for some reason I get tired of Ella faster than Anita - don't ask me why Anita is more interesting but she is.

Very, Very Nice.......2004-02-09

The legendary head of Verve, Norman Granz, knew his business, and signing Anita O'Day was no exception. Though this is not her best Verve album ('Time For Two' with Cal Tjader claims this distinction) it is superb. (My favorite track is probably 'Stella By Starlight'; the best rendition of this gorgeous standard that I've ever heard.) Grab this one -- and 'Time For Two'.

Average customer rating:

Anita O'Day a Jazz Icon
Anita O'Day at her very best in Tokyo
Anita at her best surfaces after 44 years in the vault

Live in Tokyo '63
Anita O'Day
Manufacturer: Kayo Stereophonics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Swing General | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Essential O'Day: Basin Street West 1964
Waiter, Make Mine Blues
Anita O'Day - Live at Ronnie Scott's
Anita O'Day and the Three Sounds
High Times Hard Times

ASIN: B000MMLPF0
Release Date: 2007-03-06

Tracks:

Boogie Blues
Trav'lin' Light
Honeysuckle Roe
Avalon
Bewitched
You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
Night and Day
Let's Fall In Love
Sweet Georgia Brown
Tea For Two
Stella By Starlight
Love For Sale
Get Out Of Town
That Old Feeling
Four Brothers

Album Description

This astounding soundtrack to the 1963 live televised concert from Japan is destined to become the quintessential Anita O'Day concert. Anita is backed by a full orchestra. This particular concert has never been released, until now. It is a classic performance capturing Anita at the pinnacle of her Verve period. Bob Corwin on piano with Toshiyuki Miyama and The All-Star Orchestra and Takeshi Inomata and His West Liners. Arranged by Buddy Bregman.

Customer Reviews:

Anita O'Day a Jazz Icon.......2007-05-14

I first heard Miss Anita O'Day in 1956 at a friends house and have never ceased listning. she was a natural jazz voice and her interpretations of the lyrics swung every time.whether in front of some of biggest bands or small groups. this album is a glowing example and I do not why it so long to be released.

Anita O'Day at her very best in Tokyo.......2007-04-11

Anyone wishing to understand the fully greatness of that most swinging and original of jazz singers need look no further than this sizzling release. Never before on CD, this is an unedited, live concert featuring O'Day fronting a top-notch Japanese band playing her famous arrangements. It's all here: her sensual sound, her hip, flip attitude, her incomparable use of musical time, her unparalleled improvisational gifts, an entire arsenal of talents focused on the task at hand. If you already know and love O'Day, grab this one with confidence. If not, what a voyage of discovery this disc will provide. Freeman Gunter

Anita at her best surfaces after 44 years in the vault.......2007-04-07

Kayo Stereophonic has has a real knock out with this sound track of a TV concert songstress Anita O'Day performed in Tokyo 44 years ago during the acme of her jazz singing career. With a minimum of comments and a maximum of music, the late legend offers 15 of her best-known tunes from her years with Verve and her own Emily label. Kayo has issued or reissued other O'Day CDs in recent years, and this is the best of the bunch. Anita plus fine tunes, sound quality and musicianship from two Japanese groups add up to a real bargain. Agent Robbie Cavolina and producer Takao Ishizuka have outdone themselves in adding this to the Kayo inventory.

Average customer rating:

Cat Woman
Eureka!
Fellas she can't get...Are fella's she ain't met....
An absolute must have for any serious jazz collector...

Pick Yourself Up with Anita O'Day
Anita O'Day
Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Swing General | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Jazz General | Traditional Jazz & Ragtime | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

Traditional Pop | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music
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Anita Sings the Most
Anita O'Day Sings the Winners
Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May
Incomparable!
Anita O'Day's Finest Hour

ASIN: B0000046OM
Release Date: 1992-11-17

Tracks:

Don't Be That Way
Let's Face The Music And Dance
I Never Had A Chance
Stompin' At The Savoy
Pick Yourself Up
Stars Fell On Alabama
Sweet Georgia Brown
I Won't Dance
Man With A Horn
I Used To Be Color Blind
There's A Lull In My Life
Let's Begin
I'm With You
The Rock 'N' Roll Waltz
The Getaway And The Chase
Your Picture's Hanging Crooked On The Wall (Previously Unissued)
We Laughed At Love
I'm Not Lonley (Previously Unissued)
Let's Face The Music And Dance (alternate take)
Ivy (Previously Unissued)
Stars Fell On Alabama (alternate take)

Customer Reviews:

Cat Woman.......2002-09-10

I have a cat who runs out to greet me every night, then insists on walking me around the block (more than one neighbor has done a double take at discovering Emmy is not a dog). At bedtime she waits til the light's out, then shoos my other two cats out of the bed before depositing herself opposite my face, exactly an arm's length away. If I try to lessen the space, her paw is immediately on my nose, maintaining the crucial distance that marks her difference from her human counterparts.

For anyone who's allergic to cats, Anita O'Day has to be the closest surrogate--more companionable than Andrew Lloyd Weber's version, yet more detached than Peggy Lee's (thinking of her dubbed voice on "Lady and the Tramp"). In fact, like Peggy Lee--not to mention Dinah Shore, Doris Day, Rosemary Clooney, Ella, Sarah--Anita is very much a product of the swing era and the big bands, perhaps epitomizing its hot sounds more effectively than any other female singer, most notably on her recorded duet with Roy Eldridge, "Let Me Off Up town."

But the difference between this survivor and her peers is the unmistakable ethos of "cool" that insures you and Anita will always remain strangers to each other. She purrs "Stars Fall on Alabama" and embraces you with buttery vibrations on "Young Man a Horn," yet she remains as autonomous and inscrutable as the "Sweet Georgia Brown" who appears no less dangerous than Circe or Medusa in Anita's singular portrayal of her (she does so visually in the remarkable film documentary, "Jazz on a Summer's Day"). And when Anita sings "I Won't Dance," you'd better believe it--don't ask her!

If vulnerability, innocense, and charisma are not high on your list of criteria for jazz singers, this recording belongs in the pantheon of great recorded examples of the Great American Songbook. One caveat: Anita's singing may "too much" in the most positive sense, but the "muchness" of this remastered collection seems counterproductive, as at least 5 of the 9 bonus tracks merely serve to detract from the focused excellence of Anita's singing on the main program. The producers should have known what cat lovers have long since discovered: the strongest relationships are not based on the expectation of reciprocated generosity.

Eureka!.......2001-12-10

It's a solid gas (if you can imagine such a state) to bump into this album again! I owned it on vinyl when it came out around 1960, and lost it to a jazz drummer on Mountain Drive in Santa Barbara. He also copped my girl friend, but that's another story. I almost played the grooves off that platter while I had it, and can pretty much remember the whole thing still. Very glad to find it again, and to recommend it to you.

Fellas she can't get...Are fella's she ain't met...........2000-06-08

This is my all time favorite Anita O'day Album. Anita O'day is five steps beyond amazing. Her vocal style can't be beat. Every song she sings gets the special O'day treatment and is forever more her own. The track listing of this album is just chocked full of winners! My favorite is Anita's rendition of 'Stars Fell On Alabama'. Its beautiful and moving. You can just feel the magic of the moment she is describing. Other super hits include the slinky 'Sweet Georgia Brown', the peppy 'Pick Yourself Up' and the bittersweet 'There's A Lull In My Life'. Also, this Cd gives you alternative takes on songs and the rockin bonus tracks 'Getaway and The Chase' and the classic 'Rock and Roll Waltz'. This is one of the records I play when I want to get into a good mood. It always makes me smile. Bottom line, Its a FANTASTIC album at a SUPER price. Don't miss it!

An absolute must have for any serious jazz collector..........2000-03-02

Anita O'Day is one of the greatest jazz singers to emerge from the 40's, and was and is the best bebop singer from the 50's till present. This re-issue of the lp PICK YOUSELF UP WITH ANITA is one of her best lp's and is highly reccomended as are all of her verves. HIGHLY RECOMENDED.

Tracks:

Take The 'A' Train
Tenderly
Interlude (A Night In Tunisia)
Four
Early Autumn
Four Brothers
Sing, Sing, Sing (With A Swing)
My Funny Valentine
Frenesi
Body And Soul
What's Your Story, Morning Glory
Peanut Vendor (El Manisero)
Whisper Not
Blue Champagne
Stompin' At The Savoy
Hershey Bar
Don't Be That Way
Peel Me A Grape
Star Eyes

Customer Reviews:

A great catalogue of an amazing musician's work.......2007-01-10

I didn't discover this talented musician (Anita O'Day) until about a week or two before her unfortunate death at age 87. Her unique sound (I think which reminisces at times Judy Garland territory, but that's just a personal opinion), uncanny scatting abilities and amazing sense of swing engaged me enough to dig into her long musical legacy--and, since I adored her take on Miles Davis' "Four" after hearing it, I knew this was the CD to start out with (since it features "Four" as the, of course, fourth track), and it is indeed great. This re-release features the original set list from the first printing of Anita O'Day Sings the Winners and much more. "Four" happens to be my favorite song here and O'Day gives a tremendous performance with some brilliantly written lyrics (see album insert for details), but that's because it's the first song I heard from O'Day (and my favorite to date) and therefore I'm biased...but opener "Take the 'A' Train" (a classic), the amazing "Interlude (A Night in Tunisia)" (another favorite) and the scatwonderful "Four Brothers" make for perfect listens; "Frenesi," "Body and Soul," "Stompin' at the Savoy" and "Hershey Bar" are all wonderful as well. Songs like the Latin-influenced "Peanut Vendor" and standards like jazz favorite "My Funny Valentine" are only improved upon by O'Day's wonderfully brash, but confident, vocal delivery. Though she may no longer be here, her music lives on to this day...and Anita O'Day Sings the Winners is definitely an album to purchase for ANY music listener!

wish i'd known about her earlier..........2005-08-11

I watched a poorly produced jazz concert DVD, "Jazz on a Summer's Day" and didn't pay attention to O'Day because I was upset that the video showed footage of the the people during Monk's performance.

this is a great CD. all female jazz vocalists should give it a listen!

You MUST buy this CD!.......2004-09-09

This is the CD I live by. My greatest influence as a jazz singer is Anita O'Day and this is THE album to have. She scats like an instrumentalist of the highest degree and her phrasing is impeccable!! If you don't have one of her CD's yet, this is the one to purchase!

Stunning.......2002-08-23

This is one of the greatest albums done by any female jazz vocalist. Every track is superb but what Anita does with "Body and Soul" is nothing short of amazing. Her "Early Autumn" is purely gorgeous. She's in excellent voice, inventive, surprising, versatile (she's such a good uptempo singer people forget she does ballads beautifully with tenderness but none of the histrionics lady singers tend to love) and the accompaniments are first rate. The bonus tracks are from some of her finest recordings. This is what great jazz singing is all about and the production values, as with all of O'Day's Verve issues, are first-rate. I always loved this cover, too, but the Japanese cover is more glamorous.

A must-have........2002-06-02

Anita O'Day, whose singing career began in the big band era, was in the prime of her life when she recorded this LP for Verve in 1958. Amazingly, "Winners" was cut in only two days of that year, April 2 & 3, with Russ Garcia and His Orchestra on the first day (tracks 7-12), and the band of Marty Paich on the second (tracks 1-6). This CD has so many great cuts, it could have been called "The Very Best of Anita." "Take the A Train," "Peanut Vendor" and "Frenesi" are especially good. This is, without question, one of the best female vocalist recordings out there. Unfortunately, the six bonus tracks detract from the CD. But, that complaint aside, "Winners" easily rates 5 stars in my book.

Average customer rating:

Anita the Lionheart
Great collection by a peerless singer

Anita O'Day's Finest Hour
Anita O'Day
Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Jazz General | Traditional Jazz & Ragtime | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

Traditional Pop | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Anita O'Day Sings the Winners
Anita Sings the Most
Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May
Pick Yourself Up with Anita O'Day
Anita O'Day and Billy May Swing Rodgers and Hart

ASIN: B00004WIP7
Release Date: 2000-09-26

Tracks:

Honeysuckle Rose
Little Girl Blue
Let Me Off Uptown
An Occasional Man
Four Brothers
Tea For Two
Boogie Blues
God Bless The Child
What Is This Thing Called Love?
The Ballad Of The Sad Young Men
The Way You Look Tonight
When Sunny Gets Blue
Peel Me A Grape
Sing, Sing, Sing
Them There Eyes
Anita's Blues
Sweet Georgia Brown
The Party's Over

Amazon.com

No jazz singer has ever swung harder or scatted with more infectious enthusiasm than Anita O'Day. This selection of her Verve recordings from 1954 to 1962 shows just how many contexts O'Day could enliven with her presence. Some of her earliest hits are heard here in reprised but still effective form. The 1956 version of "Let Me Off Uptown," with partners Gene Krupa and Roy Eldridge, rekindles its original energy, and arranger Gary McFarland creates a driving 1961 revision of "Boogie Blues." She's clearly comfortable at the fastest tempos, singing "Tea for Two" and "Them There Eyes" at breakneck speed, enjoying matching improvisational wits with an elite assortment of musicians including Oscar Peterson and Phil Woods. A few ballads, like "God Bless the Child" with just Barney Kessel's guitar for accompaniment, provide effective contrast. O'Day is terrific, also, on two wittily steamy selections with Cal Tjader from 1962, "An Occasional Man" and "Peel Me a Grape." --Stuart Broomer

Customer Reviews:

Anita the Lionheart.......2001-04-23

She may have been overshadowed by Ella Fitzgerald in Norman Granz's "Verve" company but to my ears Anita O'Day belongs to pantheon of all-time great jazz singers.This compilation presents the cream of 14 albums she recorded for "Verve",and as 8 of them are out of print,this is the only way to hear some otherwise rare and forgotten gems.If her voice mirrors her soul,Anita O'Day must have been very cool,ironic lady but just when you think she never let herself go,she surprises with poignant version of "God Bless The Child" (from her loving tribute to Billie Holiday) which she sings with real understanding and feeling.After all the vocal fireworks,her worldless vocalising and fast-scatting,it came as surprise to notice that O'Day was actually NOT born with big/pretty/beautiful voice,but its a sheer power of her personality that somehow works for her.There is something of a "bad girl" in her,which I find very appealing and while so many of commercialy succesful singers of her time had vanished together with their cheerful smiles,work of cynical and cool Anita O'Day stands the test of time perfectly.(Note: the drummer John Poole,who worked with her for decades is present on a few selections.With so many great musicians behind her,O'Day still sounds more ballsy than all of them)

Great collection by a peerless singer.......2001-04-05

Anita O'Day's recorded output includes quite a few undisputed masterpieces, and this collection brings just about all of them together on one CD. O'Day's supreme mastery of time and swing makes her one of the great jazz singers of the bop era, up there with Sarah Vaughn, Carmen MacRae and Little Jimmy Scott. Her sly, sexy cover of "Peel Me a Grape" is a classic. Her big band roots serve her well as she belts out "Sing, Sing, Sing", "Four Brothers" (completely scatted) and (of course) "Let Me Off Uptown" (with Roy Eldridge, her old Gene Krupa bandmate). And her Mach 4 romp through "Them There Eyes" (propelled by Oscar Peterson's stunning Lisztian piano solo work) will have you gasping in amazement-- she pushes every word out for a few lines, then jettisons whole lines to make room for scatting, then re-works the whole lyric into a relaxed half-time line while the rhythm sections furiously keeps up the bop beat underneath. Well worth a listen!

Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May

Average customer rating:

Anita's voice could swim around words and music as she effortlessly sold every song she ever sang !!!
Nice up-tempo versions of excellent songs...
Two reviews in one
ANITA TAKES CHANCES
Easier to Love

Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May
Anita O'Day
Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Swing General | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Jazz General | Traditional Jazz & Ragtime | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

Traditional Pop | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Anita O'Day and Billy May Swing Rodgers and Hart
Anita Sings the Most
Anita O'Day Sings the Winners
Pick Yourself Up with Anita O'Day
Anita O'Day's Finest Hour

ASIN: B0000047CF
Release Date: 1991-05-21

Tracks:

Just One Of Those Things
Love For Sale
You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
Easy To Love
I Get A Kick Out Of You
All Of You
Get Out Of Town
I've Got You Under My Skin
Night And Day
It's Delovely
I Love You
What Is This Thing Called Love
You're The Top
My Heart Belongs To Daddy
Why Shouldn't I
From This Moment On
Love For Sale
Just One Of Those Things

Customer Reviews:

Anita's voice could swim around words and music as she effortlessly sold every song she ever sang !!!.......2007-06-14

Anita O'Day remains one of the greatest singers of the entire twentieth century. Anita could take a tune and inject it with a type of electricity that was all her own. Never afraid to scat, change tempos or just play with intonation and syllables, Anita displayed a boldness and flair that set her apart from many vocalists. This CD proves it.

The CD starts with the twelve tracks that were on the 1959 record album entitled Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter With Billy May; and then we get a few bonus tracks Anita did with other arrangers.

"Just One Of Those Things" starts the CD as if it were a piñata that's just been struck wide open; Billy May's typical use of the horns works well as Anita weaves her magic from the start. Anita sings this as a true jazz song and a classic both at once. "Love For Sale" gets a flashy treatment by both Anita O'Day and Billy May; the tempo changes enhance the beauty and drama of the number.

Other gems in the track set copied from the 1959 record album include "I Get A Kick Out Of You;" this song explores the joys of being with your one true love. Anita and Billy May start this slow with an opening verse; and when the tempo increases you can feel the jet engines whizzing faster than you've ever felt them! Anita doesn't always stick to the melody as she sings the lyrics; this proves her excellent ability to do any and all vocal gymnastics.

"I've Got You Under My Skin" gets the royal Latin treatment from Billy May's arrangement; and naturally Anita more than keeps up with May's work. Anita's voice oozes femininity as she uses her voice to jump up, down and all about on this number. Anita truly performs "I've Got You Under My Skin" to perfection!

"It's Delovely" boasts an energetic yet romantic flavor to it; the tempo may be fast but make no mistake: Anita O'Day sings this with passion and Billy May's arrangement shines like pure gold! The arrangement makes great use of the horns. "What Is This Thing Called Love" features Anita singing with confidence as she scats, plays with the tempo of her vocals while Billy May's tempo stays much more constant, and pours her heart and soul into performing this number as only she could.

We also get bonus tracks that reflect Anita's genius with other arrangers. I love the passion and forcefulness of Buddy Bregman's arrangement for the trombones on "You're The Top;" Anita's voice is in excellent form once again for this number. The romantic number "My Heart Belongs To Daddy" shows how Anita could get away with singing this number by occasionally leaving out the "My" in "My Heart Belongs To Daddy." And you know what? Anita does it with such a natural talent that it works very well. Jimmy Giuffre's arrangement works well, too, for "My Heart Belongs To Daddy."

"From This Moment On" begins with a beautiful piano flourish and Anita whizzes through this ballad without stumbling--and she doesn't sing a superfluous note, either! This number shines and stands as a highlight of this CD. The final track, another interpretation of ""Just One Of Those Things" has different tempo changes than the first version on this CD; the arrangement by Ralph Burns also features guitarist Tal Farlowe.

The liner notes include the recording dates for each song and Will Friedwald contributes a fine essay about Anita O'Day and her work with the different arrangers on this album.

Anita O'Day is something to be personally experienced; I can't quite find the words to completely convey the high octane, forceful energy and electricity with which she performed countless songs throughout her very long career. This CD would be a "must-have" for Anita's fans; and people who enjoy classic jazz will enjoy this CD, too. If you want to become better acquainted with the artistry of Anita O'Day, this CD is also a great place to start.

Enjoy!

Nice up-tempo versions of excellent songs..........2007-01-09

Since Anita died in late 2006, and was still performing sporadically up to her final year of life, meaning well into her mid-80's, this 1959 release can't even be called "Mid-career O'Day." She started making records with the Gene Krupa Orchestra before the bombing of Pearl Harbor, so at the time of this project, she was about 20 years into a 60-year gig as a paid jazz vocalist. And I do mean "jazz" because Anita never did achieve "pop" stardom or true mass appeal. This offering is quite cheerful, but while it reveals Anita's originality and devotion to jazz arrangements, it also demonstrates her weakness. O'Day did not quite have the ability to "act" a lyric and inhabit a song situation, the way Doris Day, for instance, had in the same era. That is not a harsh criticism---Ella Fitzgerald did not always make the lyric she was vocalizing warm and intimate and believable, either, for all her greatness. Anita was for fun, not for bringing the listener's own tangled love story to life via bittersweet empathy. An even better CD than this one for understanding O'Day is "Let Me Off Uptown" which features her 1940-42 tracks with Krupa. That one makes you want to get up and dance...fast. This one's 18 tracks show that Cole Porter had great enough skills so that songs he meant to be done slowly can survive and thrive when speeded up by a singer the quality of Anita O'Day. If you are an O'Day fan, you'll need this one in the collection, for sure, and Billy May and his men contribute a great deal to the success of this release. If not already a fan, it might make you one, but I'm betting that her early work with Krupa will please you even more.

Two reviews in one.......2004-11-02

The title to this review refers to the fact that I consider this album the perfect companion of Anita O'day Sings Rodgers and Hart so I'm speaking here about the two albums and I suggest to everyone the purchase of both. Anita was accompanied here like in the R&H album by Billy May who has been a spectular choice for Anita. Some people seem unable to catch impressive Anita's vocal genius. She's one of the best Jazz singers in the whole history of Jazz music. She's so personal, so charismatic, so graced with talent that hearing her singing Little Girl Blue or Bewitched (R&H album) is incredibly rewarding. She flies over May's powerful or tender arrangements like only a master Jazz musician can do. She hadn't Vaughan unreachable instrument and her black attitude (Vaughan has been the greatest of them all, no doubt about it), she wasn't divine. She was human, but with an impressive talent of her own. She hadn't Holiday black tragedies to tell. She was white, she wasn't discriminated (even if she surely saw some bad things travelling with black people in those days) so she sang like a white girl, with a white blues feeling, with perfect intonation, perfect time and an originality that hook me every time I hear her sing. She can really enlight a song or a lyric. She's incredible. I really love Anita and probably the two albums (Cole Porter and R&H) are some of the best music she's ever recorded. Billy May prepared for her thunderous arrangements with her voice in mind and the results of course became legendary.

ANITA TAKES CHANCES.......2003-10-14

You probably heard PORTER tunes done by ELLA or SINATRA,and that's interesting.With ANITA ,the approach is more risqué but so rewarding in the end.ANITA is a singer who likes to takes chances,and on this 1959 session,she is matched with BILLY MAY,who was born to work with the often difficult O'DAY.What fun it is to hear them do relectures of the famous PORTER tunes,even if you know them by heart!So, you may like that album a lot if you are game ,or hate it if you are not,it's just as simple as that.The lyrics to YOU'RE THE TOP are not the originals,but work just the same with YOU'RE THE BOP,SARAH and YARDBIRD among the word changes made to the song.One wonders though what PORTER thought of the liberties taken with his songs.This is ANITA O'DAY in full command and in her prime.A message to VERVE:will you please release the 1960 ANITA O'DAY swings RODGERS AND HART with BILLY MAY in north AMERICA?

Easier to Love.......2002-09-01

I've always felt Anita O'Day deserved better from me. Her inerrant ear, impressive vocal technique and sexy, intimate sound all should have added up to recordings that would get no fewer playings than Ella's. But Ella's simplicity and transparency always did better by the song to my ears.

Tracks:

I Get A Kick Out Of You - Louis Armstrong
My Heart Belongs To Daddy - Anita O'day
I've Got You Under My Skin - Ella Fitzgerald
After You, Who? - Helen Merrill
So In Love - Dinah Washington
Too Darn Hot - Mel Torme
Just One Of Those Things - Sarah Vaughan
Get Out Of Town - Shirley Horn
Love For Sale - Billie Holiday
From This Moment On - Anita O'day
Night And Day - Fred Astaire
Give Him The Ooh-La-La - Blossom Dearie
Ev'rything I Love - Morgana King
Miss Otis Regrets (She's Unable To Lunch Today) - Ella Fitzgerald
All Of You - Helen Merrill
Your'e The Top - Louis Armstrong
Most Gentlemen Don't Like Love - Betty Carter

Customer Reviews:

SUPER PORTER RENDITIONS.......2003-02-14

Volume 2 of the complete COLE PORTER songbooks on VERVE is a clinger all the way.Songs like EVERYTHING I LOVE,GIVE HIM THE OOH-LA-LA and MOST GENTLEMEN DON'T LIKE LOVE are not often recorded.ANITA gives us a typical treatment of MY HEART BELONGS TO DADDY which means her way;The ELLA renditions are not from the songbooks of 1956;i personnaly enjoy AFTER YOU,WHO from the magical voice of HELEN MERRILL and SO IN LOVE done in cha-cha by that maneater par excellence DINAH WASHINGTON.This is an excellent tibute to COLE PORTER,well worth buying.

Excellent compilation!.......2002-08-11

Terrific versions of classic Porter songs recorded by jazz's greatest vocalists... It's hard to go wrong with this CD. This is the second volume of the Cole Porter's songbook and it is appreciably better than the first volume, which was titled "Night & Day"

I get a kick out of Cole Porter.......2001-01-07

This is an excellent compilation of Cole Porter's famous and not-so famous but nonetheless excellent songs. A wonderful tribute to a wonderful man.

Average customer rating:

America's Ace Drummer Man!
lightning strikes and pounding thunder

Drummer Man (Verve)
Gene Krupa with Anita O'Day and Roy Eldridge
Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Swing General | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Classic Big Band | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

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Similar Items:

Best of Big Bands: Drum Boogie
Krupa & Rich
Drum Crazy
The Gene Krupa Story
The Drum Battle: Jazz at the Philharmonic

ASIN: B0000046ZM
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Let Me Off Uptown
Rockin' Chair - Roy Eldridge
Opus 1
Fish Fry - Roy Eldridge
Drummin' Man
Drum Boogie - Roy Eldridge, Eddie Shu
Boogie Blues
Leave Us Leap - Roy Eldridge, Eddie Shu, Jimmy Cleveland, Dave McKenna, Aaron Sachs
Slow Down
Wire Brush Stomp - Aaron Sachs
That's What You Think
After You've Gone - Roy Eldridge, Aaron Sachs

Customer Reviews:

America's Ace Drummer Man!.......2004-02-01

This is a fantastic session done for Verve Records in 1956 of Gene with an all-star studio orchestra featuring Roy Eldridge and Anita O'Day. The album recaptures some of Krupa's greatest hits in glorious hi-fi sound. I think drummers suffered the most from the poor recording technology of the thirties and forties, and it is to the credit of producers like Norman Granz that veterans of the Swing Era like Krupa were able to re-record their hits in living stereo sound. This album captures everything that made Krupa a legend. While Krupa had slowed down some by this time due to various health problems, his drums constantly drive the band. Krupa demonstrated that sheer musicianship is more important than technique and speed (a lesson that a lot of drummers never seemed to learn). Nevertheless, the drum breaks during "Drummin' Man" and the blistering solo on "Wire Brush Stomp" are some of the most exciting sounds ever produced on a drum set. Also well-featured in this album are the two biggest stars to have emerged from Krupa's band, Roy Eldridge and Anita O'Day. Their humorous and swinging interplay on "Let Me Off Uptown" is one of the highlights of this set. Also, Roy lights off some fireworks with his rendition of "After You've Gone" (my second favorite version of the song after the one by the original Benny Goodman Trio, complete with Gene Krupa). This album demonstrates the confident brilliance that only comes with maturity, and the fact that no one ever has or will again propel a big band like that drummin' man, Gene Krupa!

lightning strikes and pounding thunder.......1998-12-13

Gene krupa, Roy Eldridge, and Anita O'day come together to produce a masterpiece that has no equal. This album should be timecapsuled to represent what it means to truly swing.

Average customer rating:

Great music, great price!
One-stop shopping for early Anita!
The high point of all her ensembles
Great music at a low price

Young Anita
Anita O'Day
Manufacturer: Proper UK Boxed Sets
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Swing General | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Classic Big Band | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Contemporary Big Band | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Jazz General | Traditional Jazz & Ragtime | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

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Pop | Imports | Stores | Music

Pick Yourself Up with Anita O'Day
Mrs. Swing
Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May
Anita O'Day Sings the Winners
High Times Hard Times

ASIN: B00005BCFR
Release Date: 2001-05-28

Tracks:

Alreet
Georgia On My Mind
Fool Am I
Let's Get Away From It All
Just A Little Bit South Of North Carolina
Slow Down
I Take To You
Green Eyes
Let Me Off Uptown
Kick It
Stop! The Red Light's On
The Walls Keep Talking
Two In Love
Stop! The Red Light's On
How Do?
Coppin' A Plea
Bolero At The Savoy
Skylark
Bolero At The Savoy
Thanks For The Boogie Ride
Pass The Bounce
Side By Side
Harlem On Parade

Tracks:

Fightin' Doug Mac Arthur
That's What You Think
Barrelhouse Bessie From Basin Street
Deliver Me To Tennessee
Massachusetts
'Murder', He Says
Ride On
Build It Up, Paint It Nice, Tear It Down
I Lost My Sugar In Salt Lake City
You Betcha!
In A Little Spanish Town
I'm Going Mad For A Pad
And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine
The Lady In Red
Gotta Be Gettin'
Tabby The Cat
Gotta Be Gettin'
Wish You Were Waitin' For Me
And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine
Are You Livin' Old Man?
I Want A Grown Up Man
Travellin' Man

Tracks:

Them There Eyes
Memories Of You
How Come?
I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me
Ain't Misbehavin'
Penthouse Serenade
Lonesome Road
I Can't Give You Anything But Love
Rosetta
Opus No.1
(Did You Ever Get) That Feeling In The Moonlight?
Boogie Blues
Chickery Chick
In The Middle Of May
Tea For Two
Harriet
Ace In The Hole
Sometimes I'm Happy
What Is This Thing Called Love?
Hi Ho Trailus Boot Whip
I Told Ya I Love Ya, Now Get Out
It's Different When It Happens To You

Tracks:

How High The Moon
I Ain't Gettin' Any Younger
Malaguena
Key Largo
Malaguena
What Is This Thing Called Love?
September In The Rain
Jamaica Mon
Don't Kick It Around
So Much Of Nothing To Do
Poor Simple Simon
Blues For Bojangles
Your Eyes Are Bigger Than Your Heart
Tennessee Waltz
Yea Boo
Something I Dreamed Last Night
If I Could Steal You From Somebody Else
You Took Advantage Of Me
Once There Lived A Fool
I Apologise
Black Moonlight
Lovesick Blues

Album Description

Anita O'Day is the epitome of a jazz singer. A fearless performer and a vocal risk-taker, In other words a true jazz singer. This box set features her early adventures with Gene Krupa, Stan Kenton and her first solo sides, fresh and invigorating. This box features 89 tracks and includes a 52 page illustrated booklet that tells her story and provides track and session details as well as including many archive images. Tracks include: 'Georgia on my Mind', 'Let me Off Uptown', 'Bolero at the Savoy' and 'Tennessee Waltz'. Four standard jewel cases housed in a slip-box. 2001 release.

Customer Reviews:

Great music, great price!.......2004-11-19

I purchased this box set with very little prior knowledge of this genre of music and I am extremely pleased with it. I played this at my workplace and many of my coworkers complimented the music. Some people might criticize the albums' quality of sound but I think that's just part of the allure -- to give you that "old-time" feel. It's a great starter set at a great price. This music lifts the spirits and makes a room smile!

One-stop shopping for early Anita!.......2004-08-25

Having owned several expensive French imports for the various years of early Anita O'Day performances, I can say that the Proper Box set is an incredible value. They have taken almost all of her early performances with various small groups and large bands (including Krupa, Kenton, and Basie!) and put them all in one place, in chronological order and with decent sound. What's more, they put out an excellent booklet, with biography, photos, and complete discocraphy...kind of a mini-mosaic! Unlike some of her later, more sophisticated (and occasionally flat) performances, she is heard on these discs with a slightly less husky voice and always spot-on in tune and musically swinging.

As another viewer has pointed out, this set contains material that has fallen out of copyright while the artist is still living and she won't receive any royalties from this issue. I suggest he send her a check to salve his conscience and then go back to enjoying the music! Proper has done other great box sets of Django Reinhardt, Fats Navarro, Charlie Parker, and Bud Powell among others and I say more power to them! Another british company, JSP, offers similar box sets with remastering and extensive documentation and Mosaic, the leader in this field actually buys limited copyrights from the parent labels. If you can afford it, Mosaic puts out the highest quality sets.

The high point of all her ensembles.......2003-05-07

Anita O'Day was a singer whose particular virtues become apparent to post-bebop ears only after time. She didn't have the subtle inflection of Billie Holiday, the sheer beauty of Ella Fitzgerald, or the romantic elaboration of Sarah Vaughan. Directness, lack of affectation, energy, enthusiasm, and projection of a working-class, non-kittenish femininity marked her singing.
Unfortunately, O'Day wound up being buried, for the first part of her career, in muscle-bound big bands like the Gene Krupa and Stan Kenton orchestras. Since she only sings during some of the numbers, and even then may be paired with unendurable male romantic leads, and surrounded by corny soloists who belong in Vegas, collecting her work can be like digging around in Paul Whiteman for Bix Beiderbecke solos. People used to put up with it because she danced the whole time, but you don't get that part listening to an old record.
This set fixes that. You're still listening to a lot of second and third-rate jazz music, but at least you know she'll sing in this number.
Of course, this is one of those "re-issue" labels that take advantage of lapse of copyright. You may not care about the record company - they're all jerks, as well as owned by somebody in some country you've never heard of, right? - but the last I heard, Anita O'Day was still alive, and shouldn't artists get some fruits from their labors? She won't get a penny from this.
Five stars for O'Day. Three stars for band mediocrity and questionable re-issue practices.

Great music at a low price.......2001-07-12

It would be difficult to find a better deal for a jazz fan. Compilatons for artists of the stature of Anita are usually much more expensive. Anita O'Day's early recordings have been difficult to find and when available have been costly. This 4 CD set brings together all her comercial recordings from the 40's with a few air-checks and alternate takes.

Anita O'Day is probably best known for her solo career in the 50's, 60's and 70's when she created a style of singing that is still being immatated. Her early recordings show that in her younger years as a big band singer she had as strong an influance on that era as she did in later years. She was one of 4 or 5 female vocalists who defind the the big band style. During the time of these recordings, she was THE big band singer. She was the coolest, the hippest, the swingingest, the brattyest, and the one who taught everyone how to sing a fast song with style and without sounding rushed. You can easily hear this on "Green Eyes" where another singer sings the first chorus in a tense rushed manner, to be followed by Anita at a faster tempo but sailing through it like a cloud on a summer's day. Even Ella Fitzgerald, although promising, was still too young at that time to be at Anita's level. Anita's recordings with the Krupa band are some of the hottest of the big band era. These CD also cover the beginning of her solo career, and the emergance of an even more interesting and intimate style that was to facinate audiences in the 50's 60's and 70's. This collection shows that Anita was always a great artist, even in the beginning of her career, and the price of the collection makes it an unbelievable steal.

Incomparable!
Average customer rating:

Glad I bought it

Incomparable

Great O'Day!

Incomparable!
Anita O'Day
Manufacturer: Umvd Labels
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music
Swing General | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
Traditional Jazz General | Traditional Jazz & Ragtime | Jazz | Styles | Music
Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music
General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music
Traditional Pop | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Pick Yourself Up with Anita O'Day

Anita O'Day and Billy May Swing Rodgers and Hart

Anita Sings the Most

Anita O'Day Sings the Winners

Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May

ASIN: B0000631DB
Release Date: 2002-05-21

Tracks:

It Could Happen To You
Blue Champagne
Avalon
Old Devil Moon
The Party's Over
Why Shouldn't I
Easy Living
Can't We Be Friends
Slaughter On 10th Avenue
If I Love Again
Speak Low
Indian Summer

Customer Reviews:

Glad I bought it.......2007-04-11

Anita is the love of my life. I bought her a drink one night at NYC's Phat Tuesday's where she was working. Yes. I showed up again for her on night two. I also heard Anita one afternoon with Oscar Peterson at Saratoga Performing Arts. This CD passes muster. Everything she does has to be compared to her "Time For 2 Cal Tjaer" CD
Go buy it, folks. She truly is the greatest!!!!

Incomparable.......2002-06-25

The title said it all "Incomparable". Anita O'Day is just one fine "cool jazz" singer. Great music to enjoy!!!

Great O'Day!.......2002-05-27

Anita started the "cool" school of jazz singing - her vocalese & scatting is always musically right, and not just showing off. This album had a strange sound to it when first pressed on LP, but this CD transfer has corrected the flat sound that was inherent. Bill Holman's inventive arrangements propel Anita in one of the most creative sessions that she had for Verve. Anita was always miles ahead of her imitators, and always, the hippest chick in Jazz. And dig that groovy ice-blue eyeliner!

Music:

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