Album Reviews

Producer Norman Granz's “songbook” concept, made possible by the invention of the LP, proved to be one of his most popular and enduring ideas. Ella sang Rodgers and Hart, Cole Porter, and of course Gershwin, but this one, pairing two of the biggest names of the last musical century, with Ella performing with three ensembles, was perhaps Granz's most ambitious undertaking. Ella and the Duke were signed to different labels, and both had busy concert and recording schedules, but after Ella performed with Ellington at a Jazz at the Philharmonic date, Granz set about getting the two together in a recording studio for a songbook production.

A new 180g 2LP edition of Elton John’s classic January 1972’s Honky Château album has just been released, and it includes two sides comprising solely of unreleased session demos. Mark Smotroff gives us his take on the expanded edition one of the Rocket Man’s most hailed early LPs, the one that kicked off an incredible chart runs of six consecutive No. 1 albums. . .

In January 1993, Elvis Costello spearheaded a fascinating album inspired by a newspaper article about a professor from Verona, Italy who had taken it upon himself to write replies to letters that were addressed to Shakespeare’s tragic — and imaginary — character, Juliet Capulet. Called The Juliet Letters, Elvis’ song cycle imagined and brought these letters to life, as backed by a highly talented string quartet known as The Brodsky Quartet. It may be a good time for reconsidering this wondrous recording, now that The Juliet Letters is available on 180g 1LP limited-edition purple vinyl. Read on to discover more about this new vinyl edition of one of Elvis Costello’s most ambitious musical works. . .

While American soul music— northern urban and southern rural—and UK-via-the-Caribbean-derived Ska course through the veins of the fourth Elvis Costello and the Attractions album,  the flesh thankfully remains white limey. 

Listening to Elvis makes clear his indebtedness to Dean Martin and Bryan Ferry’s to Elvis. No doubt Paul McCartney was imitating growing up too. There’s not been a voice like it since, which for detractors is a good thing.