Don't Waste Your Money - Terrible Quality
E. Dickmann | Orlando, FL USA | 01/17/2007
(1 out of 5 stars)
"While a previous reviewer noted the poor sound quality of this disc, they still enjoyed the songs. I could not get past the terrible quality. It's not just some hiss....you'd expect that in older recordings, the problem is almost all of these performances came from TV/radio show soundtracks. The sound on almost every track is muted, dull and lifeless. There are so many good recordings out there of Frank Sinatra that there simply is no excuss for putting out a disc like this. I have a number of Frank Sinatra discs that contain mono recordings and none come close the terrible sound quality of this disc. Maybe there's a reason there are no track previews here on Amazon! If this was billed as a historical recording of TV appearances or there was some note that these recordings might be a little flat, then maybe I could understand, but clearly the recording company does not want you to know just how bad these recordings are so you'll buy the disc. There isn't a single mention of the source of any recording. With so many choices of great Sinatra material out there, don't waste your money on this disc."
Frank's duets with these songbirds are full of joy !!!
Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 10/10/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This CD features Frank Sinatra singing duets with many of his female contemporaries from the 1940s and early 1950s. It is truly wonderful and very entertaining to listen to such a great CD full of beautiful musical arrangements and smooth love lyrics. S'wonderful!
The CD starts off strong with "You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me" sung by Frank and the incomparable Peggy Lee. The music has a big band/swing feel to it that begins the CD on an upbeat note. Other great songs include "Gotta Be This Or That" with the magnificent Judy Garland; "The Girl Next Door" with June Hutton; "Tea For Two" with Dinah Shore; and "Embraceable You" with Peggy Mann. Terrific! The album ends with quite a punch: there is a two track duet (without the sound stopping) performed by Sinatra and that amazing songbird, Pearl Bailey. Frank and Pearl are wonderful together and the song is humorous at times as well. It's a great duet and a fine choice for the ending of the track list.
Unfortunately, the remastering job was not well done. There is a great deal of surface noise on several tracks including "Embraceable You;" "Come Out, Wherever You Are" sung by Sinatra and Eileen Barton; and other tracks lifted directly from radio performances such as "This Can't Be Love;" and "The Girl Next Door." I have to take off a star for that; this CD was manufactured in 2003 when there was plenty of equipment to erase surface noise.
The liner notes are sparse. There is only a very brief essay; but you do get the song credits and that's nice.
Overall, this is a great CD for people who want to hear the duets Frank Sinatra recorded way before his duet albums from his later years. Each duet has freshness to it and a certain sense of electricity despite the surface noise that exists on some of the tracks. I highly recommend this CD for fans of Sinatra; fans of Sinatra's duets and fans of classic pop vocals. The price is sure right, too--enjoy!
"
Classic Frank with some of the best ladies of yesteryear!!
Brad52480 | Beijing, China | 08/10/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I purchased this CD here in Japan, and ever since I bought it, I have not been able to take it out of the player. The sound is not perfect. Merely taken off of what seems to be a record and put onto a CD, they could have put a little bit more effort into this one. Thats the only major complaint about this CD however. The ladies were in their prime and so was Frank which makes for a great CD if you love duets. The best tracks on the CD are in my opinion the Duets with Pearl Bailey "A Little Learning is a Dangerous Thing" Parts 1 and 2. Pearl is AMAZING with Frank. These tracks made me a new fan of Miss Bailey.
Notable also is the duet with a young Judy Garland "Gotta Be This or That" and the first track of the CD "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" with Peggy Lee. Good buy if you like Frank, you like the women, and you like that sound of classic recordings straight from a record. In my opinion, they should make more songs like that today. Bring a little vintage back into the modern world people! Enjoy!"
Track Listings (24) - Disc #1