Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Cole Porter Songbook

WHAT NYMITH SAYS

Cover critique: Very hipsteresque, which is funny on such a conservative, commercial record. Black turtleneck, hand on hip, sideways glance - Ella's got the moves down. Interesting that the colour palette is dominated by salmon and teal. Three and a half stars.

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The Songbook series was one of the biggest things on the late 50s market, a cementing of The Great American Songbook as cultural heritage and probably the reason Ella Fitzgerald became the female equivalent to Frank Sinatra as the "voice of jazz." The albums were a huge crossover success in the pop market and the first one of the series, Ella Sings the Cole Porter Songbook, is always high on the list of greatest albums of 1956. I don't think I can rate it so highly though.

Cole Porter (1891 -1964) was one of the greatest songwriters of the early 20th Century. He wrote truly fabulous melodies, some of them so good it hardly even matters who sings them provided they leave the melody alone. A song like 'Anything Goes' or 'Begin the Beguine' inspires a cheerful disposition any time I hear them. Lyrically, he could be astonishingly clever with word games and sly phrases - but he could also be embarrassingly stupid with the same technique. Much of his work hinges on displays of wit but he could also write some of the most emotionally intense numbers in the Songbook, often hinged on overwhelming and frustrated desire. However, it is important to remember that Cole lived an extravagant playboy lifestyle, one which is reflected in every one of his songs - above all else he sought to entertain, flaunting his cleverness at every opportunity.

Which brings me to Ella Fitzgerald, and more importantly, Ella's persona. Ella was never a playgirl - she was fully "girl next door" material right up to the Sings Gershwin album, and a lady ever after. I'm sure she had a good sense of humour in her personal life but when singing she was always very straight and that leaves this tribute album trapped by a misfortune rare in music and often seen in film: miscasting. Just listen to 'Ridin' High,' and try to convince yourself that Ella really is in character and "slap-happy." When compared to Lena Horne's exuberant rendition of 'Ridin' on the Moon' from the following year's Stormy Weather it becomes clear which one of them was cut out for such material.

Or take a song like 'Miss Otis Regrets,' a perfectly heartless murder ballad for the drawing room crowd to chuckle at. The only way it can prove affective is if it's sung with exaggerated solemnity and the versions by Marlene Dietrich and Bryan Ferry are standout examples for that reason. Ella just sings it - no irony, no theatre. The result is pleasant enough to hear but boring. Or look at 'Love for Sale,' a horrifying prostitute's song that scandalized people when Cole unveiled it (especially since it was originally sung by a white girl). Ella and the orchestra perform it as gently as possible, as if trying to convince the audience that it's really a metaphor or something. Lame.

This leaves only the straight songs as towering triumphs: 'Night and Day,' 'All Through the Night,' 'In the Still of the Night' (night must have been his muse)... Graceful songs of longing and desire - pure class. And plenty of the album goes in this category ('I Get a Kick out of You,' 'Begin the Beguine,' 'Get Out of Town,' etc). There are even some surprises, special note going to 'I Love Paris,' a fluffy number that, owing to a combination of stately melody and Ella making a small but significant lowering of pitch ends up being nothing short of dramatic. I have no idea why she didn't sing that way on 'Love for Sale.'

Not every performance is that inspired - stuff like 'Do I Love You?' and 'Why Can't You Behave?' are mushy and maudlin. Some of the songs demand a higher energy level to come alive, such as 'Just One of Those Things.' This is a negligible criticism since double albums always have some filler - it's just part of the package. But Ella Sings the Cole Porter Songbook is supposed to be a tribute to a great artist and once they start padding it out with Cole's second-rate numbers it does damage to the whole listening experience.

Cole wrote a whole series of joke songs, and always enjoyed a double entendre or two - and those of us who've heard her version of 'My Heart Belongs to Daddy' on Songs in a Mellow Mood' already know what an ill fit that style is on the Lady of Jazz. So here there's an unnecessary and somewhat stilted rendition of 'Let's Do It,' while a tune such as 'Too Darn Hot' is really only fit for a showgirl like Mitzi Gaynor in the first place; it's a throwaway piece and Ella can't tap into the teasing flirtiness of it. Joke song 'You're the Top' tries so hard to be clever that it becomes incredibly tacky and absurd and I have trouble imagining which of the singers could have done a good job with it. Then there's really horrible stuff like 'Always True to You in My Fashion' which should never see the light of day in any case and a puzzling inclusion of 'Don't Fence Me In' (which was a poem by "cowboy poet" Robert Fletcher that Cole set to music on commission for a film that never got made - and which Cole claimed was his least favourite of his own compositions).

So the verdict is that if all the filler and uninspired bits were left out you'd be left with a single LP worth of material and the result would be Ella Sings Cole Porter, a sublime listening experience wholly consistent in mood. Total elegance, accessible to anyone with ears. Instead they decided on a Major Statement and I found listening just to this first Songbook rather exhausting. The thought of hearing them all done in this style just does me in. It's a pity they didn't take the opportunity to celebrate all the great singers of the era - they could have given the Cole Porter Songbook to Peggy Lee and split up the others for maximum variety, saving Ella's entry for Duke Ellington. Even the greatest singers have their tonal limitations. However, it is well worth checking out this material and saving out the songs you like.

WHAT TICHARU SAYS

The producers must have been thinking this is it, here we have the definitive versions of all these songs once and for all, and they certainly had a good chance but here we are listening how many centuries later and well, there are better versions. How can say that? It's Ella Fitzgerald, greatest of great singers, wow! Well yes she was amongst the very elite, with the right band and the right material. and when all those other intangibles like hormones and moonlight come together one fine singer. Clear expressive voice and she could really belt it out when she was jammin' but Cole Porter songs don't really swing do they. Cole Porter songs are a bit over-worked much like this record.

There are some gems in this collection and everyone will have a different opinion about the highlights. For me, most of the arrangements without the string section work pretty well despite the backing band sounding a bit too Lawrence Welk. I count a dozen tracks or so that rise from the muck.

Muck??? Why so harsh Tich?

Sorry! I could describe it as a warm blanket in front of a cozy fire with a nice cup of hot chocolate and Ella Fitzgerald Sings Cole Porter spinning on the turntable/CD player/internet radio streaming service. Truth is I fell asleep and when I was awake I skipped ahead a lot. If you're looking for something like gauze, sometimes that's just the thing, here you go. Get this record.