Nice Work If You Can Get It

Performer: Ella Fitzgerald
Engineer: Bob Simpson
Producer: Norman Granz
Distributor: Fantasy (distributor)

Notes: Personnel: Ella Fitzgerald (vocals); Andre Previn (piano); Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (bass). Recorded at RCA Studios, New York, May 23, 1983. Includes original liner notes by Benny Green. Digitally remastered by Joe Tarantino (1987, Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California). Nearly two decades after her classic Songbooks series of albums dedicated to the works of classic pop composers, Ella Fitzgerald returned to the oeuvre of one of her favorite songwriting teams, George and Ira Gershwin. Accompanied by the Andre Previn Orchestra, Fitzgerald treats the Gershwins' work with wit, style, and obvious affection. The material is stunning, of course. Mournful ballads like "But Not for Me," sprightly patter tunes like "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off" and thunderous showstoppers like "They Can't Take That Away From Me" are all equally outstanding. Previn's usual orchestrations are reined in somewhat, with Fitzgerald taking center stage throughout. Only a disappointingly brief medley of "I've Got a Crush on You/Someone to Watch Over Me/Embraceable You"--each of the three songs deserves its own space--mars this otherwise faultless album.

Through unparalleled ability and judicious choice of repertoire, Ella Fitzgerald became the foremost female interpreter of the 20th-century Great American Popular Song Book. With producer Norman Granz she worked on the "songbook" series, placing on record definitive performances of the work of America's leading songwriters. Fitzgerald had a wide vocal range, but her voice retained a youthful, light vibrancy throughout the greater part of her career, bringing a fresh and appealing quality to most of her material, especially her scat singing. While there are still numerous excellent artists whose work has been strongly influenced by Fitzgerald, the social and artistic conditions that helped to create America's First Lady of Song no longer exist, and it seems highly unlikely that we shall ever see or hear her like again.

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