[.ca] Ella And Louis

From Amazon.co.uk:
What we have here is the mating of honey and molasses. Or is it the sound of melted butter over gravel? Never mind--sweeter, more joyous music has never been recorded (although the follow-up, Ella and Louis Again, may be even better). You can't listen to these two without smiling. It's such an inevitable pairing that you wonder what titanic forces of nature could have kept Ella and Satchmo apart until they made this record together in 1957, accompanied by the Oscar Peterson trio and Buddy Rich on drums. The songs are standards--extraordinary standards, of course, like "Moonlight in Vermont" and "A Foggy Day"--but nirvana is reached on "Cheek to Cheek". Heaven. --Jim Emerson

Slow, but wonderfully invigorating.:
If ever there were magic caught on a recording, it happened on one day in August 1956 in Los Angeles when these six musicians worked together to produce it. Ella and Louis are the vocalists, Louis alternating on trumpet. The Oscar Peterson Trio and Buddy Rich, drums, complete the sextet. The tracks, all perennial favorites at the time, are ensured of immortality by this recording. All items are slow moving, but such is the buoyant, easy rhythm these artists set you will find the effect is wonderfully invigorating. Australian and Californian listeners might agree with me that the sound of Louis Armstrong's trumpet playing is similar to the sound produced by an improvised arrangement of eucalyptus leaves on a player's lips.

Touches the Soul:
What a wonderful experience.... I've been cycling through this CD over and over since I bought it. It really keeps me warm and relaxed. I find myself swaying (even while driving) and singing along seems to be unavoidable. I'll be buying the rest of the Island series now!

Convergence without Compromise:
You could not have more of a contrast between two voices between Ella and Louis. Ella's: like a glass of warm milk, silky and smooth. Louis': like a bear hug, rough and tumble. Who would think this combination would work? Both artists had such huge successes singing on their own and have such distinct styles, that you would think that their voices would conflict with each other in an egomaniacal disaster. And yet there is a convergence without compromise. Their voices play off of each other, complementing each other's features, and yet nothing is lost in each's distinctness. They both bring everything they have to the table, and magically somehow, the table is big enough to fit everything. And then there is Louis' trumpet, with such tone that you'd think there was a third voice on this album. Such raw emotion, it almost speaks to the listener. This might sound like the most pretentious statement of the week, I must admit. Yet listen to the interplay of voices in "Cheek to Cheek", the trumpet solo in "Moonlight in Vermont", the tranquility of "The Nearness of You", the subtle swing of "They Can't Take That Away From Me" and you will see that what I said doesn't even come close to encapsulating what this record is. I don't feel this way about too many albums, jazz or not. I don't go out and make statements like this frequently; I am almost ashamed at how culture-snobbish it sounds. But it's sincere. Listen to this album, and you'll see what I mean.

Convergence without Compromise:
You could not have more of a contrast between two voices between Ella and Louis. Ella's: like a glass of warm milk, silky and smooth. Louis': like a bear hug, rough and tumble. Who would think this combination would work? Both artists had such huge successes singing on their own and have such distinct styles, that you would think that their voices would conflict with each other in an egomaniacal disaster. And yet there is a convergence without compromise. Their voices play off of each other, complementing each other's features, and yet nothing is lost in each's distinctness. They both bring everything they have to the table, and magically somehow, the table is big enough to fit everything. And then there is Louis' trumpet, with such tone that you'd think there was a third voice on this album. Such raw emotion, it almost speaks to the listener. This might sound like the most pretentious statement of the week, I must admit. Yet listen to the interplay of voices in "Cheek to Cheek", the trumpet solo in "Moonlight in Vermont", the tranquility of "The Nearness of You", the subtle swing of "They Can't Take That Away From Me" and you will see that what I said doesn't even come close to encapsulating what this record is. I don't feel this way about too many albums, jazz or not. I don't go out and make statements like this frequently; I am almost ashamed at how culture-snobbish it sounds. But it's sincere. Listen to this album, and you'll see what I mean.

A desert island disc for sure!:
Two of the greatest popular musical performers of the 20th century, "Ella and Louis" together make beautiful music. "Stars Fell on Alabama," "Cheek to Cheek," "A Foggy Day," "Can't We Be Friends?," "They Can't Take That Away From Me," "Under a Blanket of Blue" - this is an unbeatable collection of pop standards. Truly a desert island disc.

• Can't We Be Friends?
• Isn't This a Lovely Day?
• Moonlight in Vermont
• They Can't Take That Away from Me
• Under a Blanket of Blue
• Tenderly
• Foggy Day
• Stars Fell on Alabama
• Cheek to Cheek
• Nearness of You
• April in Paris