Search - Tom Wopat :: Tom Wopat Sings Harold Arlen: Dissertation on the State of Bliss

If six stars was an option, this CD would get all six!

Thomas W. Altizer | Arlington, VA, United States | 02/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Tom Wopat is no Brent Barret or Michael Crawford. His is not a big, showy voice, but he uses his vocal instrument effectively. On this album he creates a cohesive offering that will surprise you with its sophistication and just plain fine musicianship. Sure, you've heard most of these songs countless times before, but Wopat delivers them in ways strikingly his own. If ever a song has been overdone, it's "Over the Rainbow", but here the singer makes it his own. "One For My Baby" will make you forget Sinatra's previously definitive version (at least momentarily). The title track is new to me and is as wonderful as the more familiar tunes. The jazz setting throughout is perfect, voice and instrumentation ideally matched, neither overshadowing the other. I feel confident that this will be music I will go back to repeatedly. Fantastic!"

Fantabulous!

Lisa Ronk | 02/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's easy to turn your nose up at Tom Wopat as a legitimate jazz artist, but Dissertation on the State of Bliss really shows Wopat's versatility. His tribute album to Harold Arlen is one of those "turn the lights down, run yourself a warm bubble bath, and have a glass of wine" albums with a voice that is both smooth and sexy.



Tom Wopat has definitely proven that he's an artist to be taken seriously."

Strong performance against the current

Samuel Chell | Kenosha,, WI United States | 01/01/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Thanks to Diana Krall, present-day female singers of the American Songbook at least have a fighting chance in the marketplace of public taste. But any male singer who records these standards, favoring a jazz-oriented approach and moreover emphasizing ballads, has got an uphill struggle. Six years ago Jack Jones issued a sublime recording ("Paints a Tribute to Tony Bennett") that has largely gone unnoticed or unappreciated. Tom Wopat's new album is equally deserving. He's a first-rate musician, has a trained yet "natural" and engaging vocal quality (arguably fuller and richer than Jack's at this stage), and extracts all of the complex, often bittersweet, drama from the lyrics of these songs.



I'm withholding a star because I find that the program fails to hold my attention at a single sitting. The rhythm section and arrangements are top-notch, so it's hard to put a finger on what produces the sense of sameness. For one thing, this is an especially "generous" (i.e. long) program. Also, when going with the music of a single composer--especially when so many of these songs were written for screen or Broadway musicals and when the performer's background (apart from his starring role in "The Dukes of Hazzard") is musical theater--it would make sense to vary the textures with some fuller orchestrations, if only the addition of several horn players.



Nonetheless, you can't go wrong with musicians and repertory of this caliber. Recommended."