duaneiac

This is 2017. Experts in any field are no longer welcome. "Alternate experts" are all the rage. Make Jazz Great Again!!!!!!!!

This is a fine example of the sort of lovely, technically flawless yet glossy and gutless singing which makes so many people disdainful of jazz singers.

Packed with 10 times the pulse-pounding thrills and excitement of My Dinner With Andre. At least I got to have two night with Maud; it took me that long to get through this movie. Every scene as suitably well lit.

Morgana King -- I guess I would say I appreciate what she does more than I actually like what she does. (I ould place Cleo Laine in that category as well.) This CD is a compilation of material from her Muse albums from 1977-87. Lee Wiley, on the other hand, is one of my absolute favorite singers. This CD gathers material, mostly radio broadcasts, from 1933-59. While not essential (and certainly, no one needs to hear 2 takes of the utterly forgettable tune, "Let's Call It a Day"), any Lee Wiley is welcome Lee Wiley.

Disc 1 of 2. This set is a compilation of recordings she made for Capitol and Bethlehem.

Disc 2 of 2. Brenda Boykin was one of the SF area's musical treasures. I think she has since moved to Europe. This CD (from, I'm guessing, 2001) finds her accompanied by guitarist Eric Swinderman -- think of them as a blues based Tuck & Patti.

Gee -- I don't think I ever even seen that album before!

A couple of cringe-worthy covers from the Dukes of Dixieland:

A weekend spent watching film classics which I'd never seen before. First up -- Good, but a tad overlong for my taste. I had to pause for two naps during this one. A really good movie with an excellent ensemble cast. Wow! Absolutely my favorite of the bunch. A movie which draws you into its own little world from the very first frame. I think the problem with a lot of film musical comedies is that they always try to establish the plot and characters first like any other movie would, then they shift gears when some one breaks out into a song and dance number. Here, right in the opening sequence, before a word is even spoken, the characters effortlessly build up into a joyously vibrant dance just for the heck of it. Thus, the film establishes that's the kind of world this is going to be and so the viewer accepts that as the ground rules. There is a youthful energy throughout the film which is aided by some excellent set & costume designs and Jacques Demy's masterful camerawork. For a 50 year old film, this still looks very fresh today. The story is almost like a Shakespeare comedy of perfectly matched lovers always looking for, but just falling short of meeting, one another. The best known melody from the film would become "You Must Believe In Spring", although those lyrics have absolutely no relation to the lyrics used in the film.

Beautiful cover and it is a fine album to boot!