Ella Abraca Jobim Songbook

by

Ella Fitzgerald

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I hear the criticisms of this very courageous set and accept that they are, to a certain extent, valid.

True, this album is not quite classic Ella nor is it the Jobim we are conditioned to hear.

But surely that is the nature of the genre.

Jazz constantly re-interprets and re-invents itself.

It is about improvisation and its art is to breathe a new life and give new meaning into an existing musical work.

And that?s exactly what happens on "Ella Abraca Jobim".

The problem is, and the critics have hit the nail right on the head, is that what we foresee is not what we get.

Those soft samba undercurrents that ripple through the entire set are not the Bossa Nova rhythms of old.

However, they are every bit as complex, subtle and romantic as any of their great Latin predecessors.

And Ella, whilst not at the peak of her art, still articulates the ideas contained within the songs like few others can.

She brings class, dignity, meaning and great romance to the project.

As for Toots, - he's never sounded better.

Ultimately this is a wonderful collection of very beautiful songs presented in a brilliant, if somewhat unexpected, manner.

FIVE STARS to all involved in this courageous project that dares to take beauty to a new level.

Ella Fitzgerald was such a gigantic talent with such a wide influence, that it's sometimes hard to believe that she was human like the rest of us. This recording proves that she is not perfect--she makes mistakes. Recorded with long-time producer Norman Granz, this CD features eighteen Brazilian songs by Antonio Carlos Jobim and an all-star cast of supporting players--including Zoot Sims on tenor sax, Joe Pass on solo electric guitar, and legendary Toots Thielemans on harmonica. While they perform flawlessly and seem totally comfortable with their material, Ella, unfortunately, does not.

She sounds tentative and uncomfortable at the beginning of most of her songs, and does not seem to relate to her material until late into several songs when she is able to use her upper register and wail in the familiar Fitzgerald manner, even breaking into scat on several tracks. "The Girl from Ipanema" is terrific with her scatting at the end, and "Triste," which also features a great Joe Pass solo, lets her be the jazz star that she is. Because the first two songs, "Somewhere in the Hills (Favela)" and "Girl from Ipanema" are well done and interesting, I thought I would enjoy this CD, but a few missed notes and the dirge-like beginnings to later songs made this CD an uncomfortable listening experience for me. (If you have the opportunity to test-play this CD, listen to "A Felicidade" before buying it, and then decide.)

The fault is not all hers. Many of the songs begin in a key that is too low for Ella, and, with her lower register nearly gone, at this point in her career, she does not always hit her notes. This is glaringly obvious in "Wave," which even "perfect-pitch Mel" (Torme) found nearly impossible to sing, to the point that he turned it into a running joke with the audience whenever he sang the refrain "The fundamental loneliness goes whenever two can dream a dream--together," deliberately straining at the bottom note for effect. Ella misses the bottom note at the beginning and then does not try to hit it on later repeats. I love and admire Ella Fitzgerald, but this CD reminds me that she was human. n Mary Whipple