"Sings the Cole Porter Song Book [Vol. 1]" (10/25/1990) Pop Vocal Fitzgerald, Ella, Verve (USA)Personnel includes: Ella Fitzgerald (vocals); Buddy Bregaman (arranger, conductor). Producer: Norman Granz. Reissue producer: Richard Seidel. Recorded at Capitol Studios, Los Angeles, California in February 1956. Includes liner notes by Robert Kimball. Digitally remastered by Dennis Drake (PolyGram Studios). Personnel includes: Ella Fitzgerald (vocals); Buddy Bregman (conductor); Bud Shank (alto saxophone, flute, clarinet); Herb Geller (alto saxophone, clarinet); Ted Nash (tenor saxophone, flute, clarinet); Bob Cooper (tenor saxophone, clarinet, oboe); Chuck Gentry (baritone saxophone, bass clarinet); Pete Candoli, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Maynard Ferguson, Conrad Gozzo (trumpet); Milt Bernhart, Joe Howard, Lloyd Ulyate (trombone); George Roberts (bass trombone); Robert La Marchina, Edgar Lustgarten (cello); Corky Hale (harp); Paul Smith (piano, celeste); Barney Kessel (guitar); Joe Mondragon (bass); Alvin Stoller (drums). Recorded at Capitol Studios, Hollywood, California on February 7-9 and March 27, 1956. Includes original release liner notes by Don Freeman, Fred Lounsberry and Norman Granz and liner notes by Neil Tesser. Personnel: Ella Fitzgerald (vocals). Liner Note Author: Bobby Kimball . Recording information: 02/07/1956-03/27/1956. Though better known for her remarkable scat-singing abilities, Ella Fitzgerald was a genius at interpreting songwriters. It's as if she felt she had to understand and express every nuance of a lyric before she was comfortable enough with it to let fly from her vocal chords. As a result, whenever Fitzgerald was matched with a particularly outstanding set of lyrics, fireworks could be assumed to follow. Cole Porter may be the finest lyricist in pop music history, which obviously makes Fitzgerald's COLE PORTER SONGBOOK VOLUME ONE one of her finest-ever releases. The coupling of lyricist and singer is so perfect that the listing of highlights becomes superfluous. Buddy Bregman's arrangements are slick but never intrusive, catching every bit of musical humor in a saucy tune like "Too Darn Hot" and investing ballads like "Begin the Beguine" with just enough elegance and emotion. This album is simply perfect. One of Ella Fitzgerald's great vocal assets was that throughout her long career, her voice retained an essentially innocent quality. It was in this vocal characteristic, combined with the singer's consummate musical mastery, that Norman Granz heard the ideal vehicle for a selection of readings from the Great American Songbook. Ella's coolly detached approach to interpreting lyrics is nowhere better displayed than on this album of songs by one of the most sophisticated American songwriters, Cole Porter, in which she delivers both his refined dance songs, such as "Begin the Beguine," and his popular classics, such as the regretful "It Was Just One of Those Things," with equal conviction and technical skill. A striking two-CD set featuring arguably history's finest jazz singer singing some of the best-written American pop standards on one of jazz's most prolific labels. Ella Fitzgerald shines as the perfect interpreter of Cole Porter's bittersweet love songs on these 35 tracks from the Verve archives. Recorded and released on LP in 1956, Ella is joined by such luminaries as Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, and Billie Holiday and is backed by jazz legends such as Artie Shaw and Buddy Bregman who envelop the vocalist in lush arrangements of these bright pop standards. In the Verve tradition, the packaging is in-depth and the original liner notes by Norman Granz are reproduced faithfully, evoking that classic LP feel. This collection is one of those rare albums that can be treated as a terrific introduction to a classic artist, as well as remaining a treasured recording for the most scholarly jazz aficionados. [The 1984 Verve reissues separate the double-disc package into two single CDs, volumes one and two.] ~ Zac Johnson