Side By Side [Original recording remastered]

Side By Side [Original recording remastered]

ASIN: B00000IKVA

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
The sound of Johnny Hodges's alto saxophone--a tone of ethereal smoothness combined with slyly familiar blues phrasing and a capacity for both wit and romance--may be the most identifiable sonic marker of Duke Ellington's music, and it's much in evidence on the two small group sessions on this CD. One, from 1959, has Hodges and Ellington in a sextet with two great Basie alumni, drummer Jo Jones and trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison. The combination generates extraordinary swing, especially on the opening "Stompy Jones," with Ellington's percussive chords and Jones's drums generating enough power to drive a big band. Hodges and Edison maintain the big-band illusion, fuelling one another's solos with supportive riffs, while Ellington seems to revel in the wide-open spaces, soloing on "Going Up" with an expansive and almost casual brilliance. Though Duke is absent from the second date on this CD, featuring a septet recorded in 1958, his alter ego, Billy Strayhorn, plays piano in appropriately ducal fashion. This band has an even stronger Ellington flavor, with tenor saxophonist Ben Webster and trombonist Lawrence Brown adding their unique sounds to a joy-filled session that recalls Duke's small group recordings of the '30s. --Stuart Broomer

Side By Side,Duke Ellington,Johnny Hodges,Polygram Records,Big Band,Jazz,Jazz Music,Pop

Side By Side By Sondheim (1976 Original London Cast)
Average customer rating:

3 Stars for the material alone...

The best version of "I Remember Sky"

A Sondheim Treat

THE BEST COMPILATON OF SONDHEIM'S WORK

A Great Return Visit

Side By Side By Sondheim (1976 Original London Cast)
Stephen Sondheim
Manufacturer: RCA Victor Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Follies (Highlights from the 1971 Original Broadway Cast)

ASIN: B000002W29
Release Date: 1990-02-20

Tracks:

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum: Comedy Tonight/Love is in the Air
Company: The Little Things You Do Together
A Little Night Of Music: You Must Meet My Wife
Company: Getting Married Today
Evening Primrose: I Remember
Follies: Can That Boy Foxtrot!
Follies: Too Many Mornings
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Company: Barcelona
Company: Being Alive
The 7% Solution: I Never Do Anything Twice
Follies: Beautiful Girls/Ah, Paree!/Buddy's Blues/
Follies: Broadway Baby
Company: You Could Drive a Person Crazy

Tracks:

Everybody Says Don't
There Won't Be Trumpets
Anyone Can Whistle - Kernan, David
Send in the Clowns
Pretty Lady
We're Gonna Be All Right
A Boy Like That
The Boy From...
If Momma Was Married
Losing My Mind - McKenzie, Julia
Could I Leave You? - Kernan, David
I'm Still Here
Side by Side by Side

Customer Reviews:

3 Stars for the material alone..........2007-04-11

Erratic performances mar this cast recording of a revue consisting of what was, up until then, the "best" of Sondheim. British accents make Sondheim's wonderful New York/Broadway vernacular sound way too prim and proper. Particularly egregious is the most overwrought "Losing My Mind" ever committed to tape. It's simply awful. Other peformances range from okay to "yawn." A better buy is the 1973 Sondheim benefit concert "Sondheim Evening: A Musical Tribute" (1973 Concert Cast)Warner Brothers CD (with a few bonus tracks; it's tough to beat Larry Kert, Angela Lansbury and other Sondheim show veterans' interpretations.

The best version of "I Remember Sky".......2007-03-23

Cut to the chase - listen to David Kernan sing "I Remember Sky." Listen to him get to the last lines of the song - the "I Remember Day" ending. Unforgettable. Yor're in the moment of the character in the play, what he is feeling, what it would be like. Get this. P.S. For those who have trouble identifing with a department store dummy,pretend you are a mother of two kids in diapers who has not, basically, been out of the house for 82 weeks! Such poignancy! I don't have to pretend.

A Sondheim Treat .......2006-08-26

Sondheim is definitly one of the most amazing broadway composers of the 20th century hands down. And this MUSICAL REVUE displays some of his best pieces with great performers. The show goes through many of his early shows. The orchestration is just on piano which adds such simplistic beauty that Sondheim loves. I would suggest this CD to ANYONE. It displays great music, great theater, and a great lyricist/composer. Favorite songs: "The Little Things You Do Together" and "I Remember"

THE BEST COMPILATON OF SONDHEIM'S WORK.......2004-06-27

While America was celebrating it's independece, something great was brewing on the other side of the ocean. Sondheim himself had his share of doubts. He said in a telegram "Go ahead but I cannot think of anything more boring, other than the book of Kells". His doubts were soon removed. It moved to Broadway and went through many hosts. Still, the original is the only one recorded. All the songs are performed to perfection, except two. The first is "Comedy Tonight" It really needs the full orchestra to work. Second, "Losing My Mind" is not so performed so well.Otherwise this recording is great. The songs are great. Some are obscure, and some are mega-hits, i.e "Send in the Clowns". A must for anyone who wants to become more famillar with one of Broaways last giants.

A Great Return Visit.......2003-01-27

I was reminded of this recording when given the CD of 'Hey, Mr Producer' recently (soundtrack of a celebration of Cameron Mackintosh productions). Hearing the original cast members of 'Side by Side' reassembled for the occasion, inspired me to track down this recording: it is literally impossible to obtain in Australia.

For any lover of Sondheim, this recording is an absolute must. It encapsulates the immense talent of the man - the unforgettable music and the delicious wordplay of his lyrics - up to 1976 at least. And for the uninitiated too - give this one a go. I can pretty much guarantee that you'll gain an appreciation for the work on first hearing. And the liner notes are insightful and informative too.

Of particular interest is the track 'The Boy From...'. If this doesn't have you in stitches, you need your funny bone checked out. I first heard it some years ago sung as an audition piece for the role of Squeaky in a Sydney (Aust) production of Sondheim's 'Assassins'. Each of the memorable numbers on this recording provided me with a great return visit to the work of a man who will surely be remembered as one of the greatest composer/lyricists of our time.

Average customer rating:

Unsung Sondheim

Valuable only if you don't have any of these songs elsewhere

Unsung Sondheim
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Varese Sarabande
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000067CMJ
Release Date: 2002-06-04

Tracks:

Saturday Night - Stan Chandler
Love's A Bond - Walter Wilson
All For You - Davis Caines
In The Movies - Marilyn Cooper
What Can You Lose? - Judy Kuhn
Incidental Music From 'Invitation To A March' - Dave Rodgers
That Old Piano Roll - Lynnette Perry
They Asked Me Why I Believe In You - Rebecca Luker
No, Mary Ann - Jason Crade
Truly Content - Judy Kaye
Water Under The Bridge - Debbie Cravitte
Incidental Music From 'The Enclave' - Bjorn Messaget
There's Always A Women - Kaye Ballard
The Two Of You - Crista Moore
Multitudes Of Amys - Michael Rupert
Goodbye For Now - Liz Callaway

Customer Reviews:

Unsung Sondheim.......2007-05-20

What a collection of unsung Sondheim tunes. At times I wondered why these songs had been dropped from shows. Well sung by the various artists.

Valuable only if you don't have any of these songs elsewhere.......2006-10-07

In the early 90's this was a fascinating CD, as it gave listeners a chance to hear many of Sondheim's "lost treasures" which might otherwise be gone forever. (The man does not do "trunk songs" which can be dropped into other shows.) Time, however, has not been kind to this collection. The first four tracks from "Saturday Night" have some bouncy charm (I never realized before how naughty the lyrics for "Love's a Bond" are), but with the glorious complete cast album released a few years ago with David Campbell in the lead, they've now been rendered redundant. (And "In The Movies," though boasting endearing vocals, suffers with all of its context and intercutting songs gone.) "What Can You Lose" can't measure up to Madonna and Mandy Patinkin's sensitive performance on her "I'm Breathless" album (and that would hardly qualify as "unsung"). "That Old Piano Roll" is fun but slight, and "Truly Content" mines the same lyrical phrase over and over till the fun wanes, despite Judy Kaye's winning vocals. "Water Under the Bridge" is one of the weakest songs Sondeheim's probably ever done, and deserves obscurity. Other, better songs here with often exquisite renditions are nonetheless available on other discs, and thus again hardly qualify as "unsung": "I Believe In You," a sweet and lovely song, is on Bernadette Peters' second "Sondheim Etc." CD (though Rebecca Luker's warm, enchanting rendition here is nothing to sneeze at), Mandy Patinkin frantically covered "Multitudes of Amys" on "Experiment," Madeline Kahn and Peters jousted with "There's Always a Woman" on the "Anyone Can Whistle" cast album from the mid-90's (props to Kaye Ballard's biting performance here though), Streisand covered "Goodbye for Now" on "The Movie Album" (and gave it a poignancy and depth it probably doesn't really deserve for such a drab little song). What's left? A cheerful, seemingly menage-a-trois ditty called "The Two of You" (which, bizarrely, was apparently written for "Kukla, Fran and Ollie"). A just plain wonderful "No, Mary Anne," which combines an impassioned performance, hard-bitten realism and sweeping romanticism into something quintessentially Sondheim. (The liner notes indicate that Sondheim expected this to be a parody of a big hit song, "like 'Hello Dolly!'" Those who know anything about Sondheim--and the yawning chasm between his style and Jerry Herman's--may find their heads exploding at that one.) Two endless instrumental pieces from "The Enclave" and "Invitation to a March" (tracks #6 and #12) that are mostly remarkable for how uninteresting they are. The liner notes are outstanding and offer lots of intriguing perspective (listening to "Multitudes of Amys," and you just might wish that "Company" had ended as it was orginally intended to). If you don't have CDs by Peters, Madonna, Streisand, et all, this is a great introduction; otherwise, bump it way down the priority list.

Average customer rating:

My favorite singer
Karen Oberlin Is Pure Velvet...
The Return of Doris (or at least the next best thing)
A magnificent tribute album

Secret Love: the Music of Doris Day
Karen Oberlin
Manufacturer: Original Cast Record
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Twelve Times Romance

ASIN: B00006J067
Release Date: 2002-08-19

Tracks:

Close Your Eyes
Que Sera Sera
Nobody's Heart
While the Music Plays On
Yes
Secret Love
I'll Never Stop Loving You
I'll See You in My Dreams
Tulip Or Turnip
It's Magic
I'd Rather Be with You
The Night We Called It a Day
I Got Lost in His Arms
Sentimental Journey
Little Girl Blue
Put 'Em In A Box, Tie 'Em With A Ribbon
How Are Things in Glocca Morra
We'll Be Together Again

Album Description

Most people think of Doris Day as a Hollywood girl-next-door who sang in her films. Posterity hasn't quite placed her where she belongs: among a handful of truly great singers - Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Rosemary Clooney - who made lyrics sound so personal and true that you forgot you were hearing a so-called "performance." James Cagney, Day's co-star in Love me or Leave Me, summed up her gifts: "The touchstone is simplicity, the simple line of performance, directly to you, uncluttered." In her best and worst films, in "The Comb and Paper Polka" or in the Rodgers & Hart score of the movie Jumbo, Day's utter genuineness never fails to touch the heart.

So it is in Karen Oberlin's jazz-inspired salute to Day. For the last few years, Karen has charmed cabaret and theater audience in and out of New York, her hometown. Were this 1945 - the year that Day brought Les Brown's orchestra to its peak of glory with her vocal on "Sentimental Journey" - swing bandleaders would be vying for Karen's services. But we're lucky to have her here now: a singer who, like Day delivers each song with warmth, honesty, and no frills; who radiates positive energy; and who makes you feel she's by your side, singing in your ear.

-- James Gavin, author of Deep in a Dream: The long night of Chet Baker

Customer Reviews:

My favorite singer.......2006-12-09

This is without a doubt my favorite CD ever. I have been fortunate enough to hear Ms. Oberlin perform live many times in NYC and this CD almost captures the beauty of her live performances.

Her rendition of How Are Things in Glocca Morra is the greatest version ever sung. She now owns that song!!

Karen Oberlin Is Pure Velvet..........2005-02-18

Listen to the soft, dreamy, vocal styling of Karen Oberlin and it will take you back to a simpler, more romantic time. Listen, and you will be carried back to a little restaurant, a beautiful, vocalist at the piano, melting your heart. Many of these standards including, "I'll See You in My Dreams," are envisioned in the abstract...gathered in your memories...take the time to close your eyes and listen. Karen's performance is just so soothing. I listened to every facet of these classics, trying to find the dagger that will take me out of my "journey." It wasn't there. Oh yes, this is about Doris Day, or is it? I'm listening to Karen singing to me, right now. That's all that matters.

The Return of Doris (or at least the next best thing).......2005-01-28

Probably because she first came to my attention as a movie star--and as the polar opposite of the screen sirens who stirred the hormones of a teen-aged boy--Doris Day somehow never reached me as a singer. It's been only in recent years that her voice, with its consistency, vibrancy, power and freshness, inerrant pitch and sublime musicality, has led me to collect her recordings. There's no question in my mind now that she was the real deal--a seasoned trouper who learned her craft in the '40's and could hold her own in front of any of the big bands--probably even without a microphone. There's an "edge" to every one of her performances, but nothing was forced. Moreover, as anyone who has seen her as Calamity Jane knows, she was the complete package: the voice, the persona (if that's an accurate term for so natural a presence), and the indomitable, unflagging spirit were all one.

Karen Oberlin's generous album (18 tunes!) is both a heartfelt homage to the great forebearer and a sparkling and highly personal set of performances that would do any present-day singer proud. She replaces Doris's tightly spinning vibrato with a smoother, more "contemporary," tone and employs more dynamic contrasts than Doris, allowing today's sensitive microphones to catch subtle shadings and vocal inflections. On "Que Sera," for example, the second "will be" in "whatever will be, will be" becomes not a repetitious iamb but an unexpected trochee in the artist's playful, dramatically effective emphasis on "will." On "It's Magic" she practically makes us associate the magical with the miraculous in her slight pause and then embracing of the critical word.

Credit, too, the always surprising arrangements of pianist Peter Firth and the sensitive accompaniment provided by two of New York's finest--David Fink (ironically, a favorite bassist of Andre Previn, who accompanied Doris on one of her most memorable albums) and Kenny Washington (also the preferred drummer of hard boppers like Johnny Griffin).

Oberlin includes the little-known jewels, such as R&H's "Nobody's Heart," alongside the '50's Hit Parade songs. But even the latter sound like staples in the Great American Songbook (newly minted ones at that) thanks to the inspired musicianship, good taste, and respect for the overseeing muse that is in abundant evidence throughout the project. The entire program is a labor of love, one that no listener (even someone who doesn't remember Doris) can't help but love.

A magnificent tribute album.......2003-02-06

This is one of three Doris Day tribute albums that I own. All are brilliant, but in different ways. None of them are straight copies and there are fewer songs that they share in common than one might expect. Karen's interest in Doris's music was really stirred when she heard some of the early jazzy recordings that Doris made with Les Brown. Karen firmly believes that Doris is not taken as seriously as she should be, so this album avoids anything lightweight. The style of the album is jazz, using piano, bass, drums, guitar, tenor sax and flugelhorn.

Whatever will be will be (Que sera sera) is given a completely different arrangement, created especially for Karen, which brings out the true meaning of the song. The result is impressive. Karen states that two her favorite albums are Duet and Day by night. Doris recorded Close your eyes twice, once for each of those albums. Karen's version opens this set. Yes and Nobody's heart are two other songs on Duet that Karen covered for this album, which also includes The night we called it a day from Day by night.

Secret love, I'll never stop loving you, It's magic and Sentimental journey are four famous classics here, all exquisitely covered by Karen. I'm not sure if How are things in Glocca Morra? really belongs in this collection, but I love that song as much as Karen does, and Doris did actually sing the song.

Tracks:

Mama's Talkin' Soft (from "Gypsy") (Styne-Sondheim) - Lindsay Ridgeway and Sarah Chapman
Come Down from the Tree (from "Once on This Island") (Flaherty-Ahrens) - Lillias White
Sweet River (from "110 in the Shade") (Jones-Schmidt) - Sally Mayes
Like Everybody Else (from "West Side Story") (Bernstein-Sondheim) - Judy Malloy, Richard Roland, Sal Viviano
What Am I Doing Here? (from "Promises, Promises") (Bacharach-David) - Liz Callaway
Tick Tock Goes the Clock (from "Promises, Promises") (Bacharach-David) - Lisa Mayer, Judy Malloy, Debbie Pavelka
The Job Application (from "Ballroom") (Bergman-Bergman-Goldenberg) - Karen Morrow
Big Fat Heart (from "Seesaw") (Coleman-Fields) - Debbie Gravitte
Where Do I Go From Here? (from "Fiorello") (Bock-Harnick) - Liz Callaway
Ten Percent (from "Chicago") (Kander-Ebb) - Harry Groener
Marking Time (from "Pippin") (Schwartz) - Michael Rupert
Older and Wiser (from "Bye Bye Birdie") (Strouse-Adams) - Michele Pawk and Tammy Minoff
Flaemmchen (The Flame Girl) (from "Grand Hotel") (Wright-Forrest) - Lynnette Perry
When I Went Home (from "Peter Pan") (Charlap-Leigh) - Michelle Nicastro
Guess We May as Well Stay Married Now (from "I Do! I Do!") (Jones-Schmidt) - Glory Crampton and Guy Haines
I'm Naive (from "Sugar") (Styne-Merrill) - Jane Krakowski and Sal Viviano
Take It in Your Stride (from "Annie Get Your Gun") (Berlin) - Liz Larsen
Pink Taffeta Sample Size Ten (from "Sweet Charity") (Coleman-Fields) - Lynne Wintersteller
If I Can't Take It with Me (from "Goldilocks") (Anderson-Ford-Kerr-Kerr) - Alet Oury

Average customer rating:

Original Recordings, Vol. 2

Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Side by Side [Over She Goes] - Billy Mayerl,
Intro/County Wedding/The Dance Goes On/I Breathe on Windows [Over ...]
Four Aces (Suite): Ace of Hearts
Bats in the Belfry
Nimble-Fingered Gentleman
Mistletoe
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Aquarium Suite: Morrish Idol
Aquarium Suite: Fantail
Aquarium Suite: Whirligig
Orange Blossom
Parade of the Sandwich-Board Men
Phil the Fluter's Ball
Runaway Love (Selection): Intro/Two Hearts in Harmony/We Can't Do ...
Stepping Tones (Suite): Hop-O'-My-Thumb
Fools Rush In
All the Things You Are
Sweet Nothings
Sweet William
Resting
Fireside Fusiliers

Average customer rating:

Best of Broadway: Cats

Manufacturer: Reader's Digest
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00006314V
Release Date: 2002-03-12

Tracks:

42nd Street: Lullaby Of Broadway - London Promenade Orchestra
West Side Story: Somewhere - London Promenade Orchestra
Finian's Rainbow: Look To The Rainbow - The Sunset Strings
Pal Joey: I Could Write A Book - Rosemary Squires
South Pacific: A Wonderful Guy - The Romantic Strings Orchestra
Anything Goes: Medley: You're The Top/Let's Do It, Let's Fall In Love - Rita Williams
Kismet: And This Is My Beloved - The Romantic Strings Orchestra
Cats: Memory - Roger Williams
9:15 Revue: Get Happy - Rosemary Squires
Show Boat: Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man - The Romantic Strings Orchestra
Brigadoon: Come To Me, Bend To Me - Lee Roberts And His Orchestra
Oklahoma: People Will Say We're In Love - Lee Roberts And His Orchestra

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Jazz Music

Jazz Music