Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - Boswell Sisters, Arlen, Harold
Louisiana Hayride - Boswell Sisters, Dietz, Howard
Shuffle Off to Buffalo - Boswell Sisters, Dubin, Al
Sophisticated Lady - Boswell Sisters, Ellington, Duke
Song of Surrender - Boswell Sisters, Dubin, Al
Sleep, Come on and Take Me - Boswell Sisters, Bunch, Boyd
That's How Rhythm Was Born - Boswell Sisters, Johnson, J.C. [Comp
The Sentimental Gentleman from Georgia - Boswell Sisters, Parish, Mitchell
Coffee in the Morning, Kisses in the Night - Boswell Sisters, Dubin, Al
42nd Street - Boswell Sisters, Dubin, Al
Minnie the Moocher's Wedding Day - Boswell Sisters, Arlen, Harold
The Darktown Strutters' Ball - Boswell Sisters, Brooks, Shelton
If I Had a Million Dollars - Boswell Sisters, Malneck, Matty
It's Written All Over Your Face - Boswell Sisters, Adlam, Basil G.
Charlie Two-Step - Boswell Sisters, Carmichael, Hoagy
Trav'lin' All Alone - Boswell Sisters, Johnson, J.C. [Comp
St. Louis Blues - Boswell Sisters, Handy, W.C.
Dinah - Boswell Sisters, Akst, Harry
The Object of My Affection - Boswell Sisters, Grier, Jimmie & His
With their jaunty, close harmonies, vocal riffing, and deceptively casual fusion of black and white vocal models, New Orleans's Boswell Sisters set a prescient standard for vocal jazz during the late '20s and '30s that wou... more »ld reverberate through pop as well in the decades that followed, essentially cloned but somewhat degrooved by the better-known Andrews Sisters. The Boswells' hometown lode of seminal jazz shaped their romping, good-humored workouts. In addition, Martha (piano), Helvetia (violin, banjo, guitar), and leader Connie (cello, sax, guitar) were spirited accompanists as well as polished, ebullient singers who favored rhythmic dance songs and Tin Pan Alley novelties as well as recognizable early jazz masterpieces. This delightful 20-song compilation finds them ranging through works both slight and substantial but always charming; the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra is featured on the majority of the tracks, which includes works by Ellington, Hoagy Carmichael, Johnny Mercer, Harry Warren, and Harold Arlen, as well as their discerning opener, "Rock & Roll," a saucy jazz-era dance manifesto. --Sam Sutherland« less
With their jaunty, close harmonies, vocal riffing, and deceptively casual fusion of black and white vocal models, New Orleans's Boswell Sisters set a prescient standard for vocal jazz during the late '20s and '30s that would reverberate through pop as well in the decades that followed, essentially cloned but somewhat degrooved by the better-known Andrews Sisters. The Boswells' hometown lode of seminal jazz shaped their romping, good-humored workouts. In addition, Martha (piano), Helvetia (violin, banjo, guitar), and leader Connie (cello, sax, guitar) were spirited accompanists as well as polished, ebullient singers who favored rhythmic dance songs and Tin Pan Alley novelties as well as recognizable early jazz masterpieces. This delightful 20-song compilation finds them ranging through works both slight and substantial but always charming; the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra is featured on the majority of the tracks, which includes works by Ellington, Hoagy Carmichael, Johnny Mercer, Harry Warren, and Harold Arlen, as well as their discerning opener, "Rock & Roll," a saucy jazz-era dance manifesto. --Sam Sutherland
"It's amazing that a domestic label like Columbia released such a comprehensive collection of the legendary Boswell Sisters(not even the European import labels have gotten around to releasing a coplete and chronological CD). Though this CD is just a compilation, it is an excellent overview of The Boswell Sisters. This excellent CD includes such classics as "Louisiana Heyride," "Shuffle Off To Buffalo," "Sophistocated Lady"(with an early Benny Goodman clarinet solo), "Minnie The Moocher's Wedding Day"(you will swear that you were listening to three black girls), "St. Louis Blues" and "The Object Of My Effection." Every track is a classic, with connee Boswell's lead vocals and her new Orleans accent, the sisters' hot harmonizing, and their mind boggling scat solos. On just about every track you will hear Benny Goodman, Tommy & Jimmy Dorsey, Red Nichols, Alex Hill, Martha Boswell(on piano), Joe Venuti, Eddie Lang, and many others take extensive solos, since Connee Boswell did the arrangemets she always wrote in extra space so the musicians could have some solo space. This CD is a must have."
Superb, but when, oh when will a 4-disc set appear?
Ronald Levao | Princeton, NJ United States | 11/24/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The Bozzies (as the bandleader calls them on the last track) are simply wonderful, and if some stylings and dialect sound a tad dated, the pleasure of their singing endures. There is a strange instinct to match them against the Andrews Sisters, both here and on the Andrews page. I suppose that's normal--like comparing Dempsey and Louis or Mantle and Mays--but for me, the Boswells are more jazzy and snazzy, the Andrews more brassy and sassy. You choose what you like. What I lament is the the fact that the Andrews have a spiffy, budget-priced, 4-CD set available, as do other early giants (Anita O'Day, Louis Jordan has a 5-CD set) but the Boswells' fans must either piece together individual discs, or hope for the pricely and hard-to-find collector's series. So, JSP, or Proper Box--please do the same for the wonderful Boswells! Later edition: Joy! The hard-to-find 5 CD set of their complete works (which has some overlap between discs, but only of titles, they are different takes) was rereleased by a Danish company, and I picked it up used at deep discount. Is that tinnitis acting up or angels singing?"
Voices, talent, brains!
Jmark2001 | Florida | 01/10/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Some individuals mistakenly compare the Boswell sisters to the Andrews sisters. There are major differences between the two groups. The Boswells grew up in New Orleans, surrounded by jazz. Each of the Boswell sisters could play several musical instruments. Each had a beautiful voice and could handle solos perfectly. The Boswell sisters did their own brilliant arrangements. Connie Boswell deserves to be recognized for her musical brilliance - she did amazingly playful arrangements that toyed with the key, tempo, rhythm, vocalizing, and instrumentalizing of the songs. The result is that Connie would take a song and turn it inside out and reveal new angles to familar songs. The group's vocals were wonderful - peppy, jazzy, synchronized masterfully by the ever talented sisters. When the girls married, only Connie wanted to remain in show business. With her musical intelligence, it is difficult to imagine her giving up music altogether. This is a great group and their music deserves to be revived. And Connie Boswell deserves major rediscovery for her musical talents."
Long Live the Boswell Sisters!
Scott T. Rivers | Los Angeles, CA USA | 06/14/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Great vocalists like the Boswell Sisters never go out of fashion. "That's How Rhythm Was Born" remains the perfect introduction to the scat stylings and rhythmic harmonies of Connie, Martha and Helvetia. Legacy/Columbia has compiled 20 indispensable tracks from the 1930s, ranging from "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" to their biggest hit, "The Object of My Affection." Though little known today, the music of the Boswell Sisters is worth rediscovering."
Don't mistake apples for oranges
Erd Stappa | 12/26/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Comparing the Boswell Sisters with the other sister act is not useful. The Boswell Sisters are, as another reviewer points out, jazz artists. The Andrews sisters were a pop act, good as far as it went but they weren't particularly original or creative.
The Boswell Sisters are probably not as well known for the same reason that Glenn Miller is better known than many greater artists, he produced easily digested music which became emblematic of the second world war. There's nothing wrong with it but in purely musical terms it isn't the same thing as Chick Webb or Artie Shaw.
Anyone who listens to the Boswell Sisters and fails to appreciate how much variety and contrast they could fit into a three minute song just doesn't know what they're missing. They definitely deserve to be mentioned in the line of musicians starting with Louis Armstrong. No less an artist than Ella Fitzgerald named them as a crucial influence on her. With that kind of recommendation it can't be doubted that they deserve a thorough try."