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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
A truly amazing album! The sound quality and stereo effect is brilliant by today's standards, but this recording was made in 1961! After listening to this album, one wonders why Stan didn't stick with the Mellophoniums (they were only there for three years). Despite the inherent intonation problems with the instruments themselves and the "political" problems they caused within the band, the sound that their players make on this album adds a new and unique colour to the fabulous arrangements of Bernstein's music. I am sure that with a bit more work, the Mellophonium could have been refined and become a permanent fixture in many a brass line-up. And let's not forget the rest of the band! Their playing is tight and accurate with brilliant solos from all sections, and the trumpets effortlessly sail up into the stratosphere, and stay there! how do they do that? This album has good sound, imaginative arrangement, fine source material and virtuosity, it should appeal to all lovers of good music.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Kenton orchestra sounding fabulous in highly individual, immensely enjoyable arrangements highly recommended!
22 Feb 2007
Format:Audio CD
West side story was undoubtedly Bernstein's absolute masterpiece appealing to all music lovers at one level or another. Further it encompassed the vibrancy of youth in a progressive period of American history in and around the most alive city in the world, New York!
This disc does everything I like about big bands, recognisable tunes played with a jazz lift! Actually of course it is tightly orchestrated by Johnny Richards for the large Kenton band which included Mellophoniums, i.e. a wall of brass quite like any other. At times the brass is very loud but generally speaking you admire the musicality of this disc, especially the restraint that is used and of course there is not a note out of place. Yet it's not clinical but warm and lovingly done, never over powering.
Some numbers are pure sixties sounds, like the prologue, others like "Maria" are very Kentonesque, a bit of piano, some saxes then the laid back plaintive brass with some bongo drums before a typical Kenton finish.
Anyone familiar with Bernstein's own symphonic dances culled from West Side story will probably like this set. That's what it reminds me of, but of course no strings! "America" particularly is very symphonic in conception here and very original in hardly allowing the familiar themes to fully emerge until the last quartile and then another text book finish.
Winner of a Grammy Award in 1961 and a top seller, 28 weeks in the Billboard charts peaking at no 16, quite something for a jazz album even then!
As the re-issue of the original LP with no extras it's a bit short by today's standards but probably just long enough nevertheless. Stereo and sound are like new, in fact probably better than, no dust and static clicks and my modest stereo has the bass response and other frequency ranges to handle what could sound too heavy otherwise (sadly we had nothing like this in the sixties)!!!
Summary: Kenton orchestra sounding fabulous in highly individual, immensely enjoyable arrangements highly recommended!
This disc does everything I like about big bands, recognisable tunes played with a jazz lift! Actually of course it is tightly orchestrated by Johnny Richards for the large Kenton band which included Mellophoniums, i.e. a wall of brass quite like any other. At times the brass is very loud but generally speaking you admire the musicality of this disc, especially the restraint that is used and of course there is not a note out of place. Yet it's not clinical but warm and lovingly done, never over powering.
Some numbers are pure sixties sounds, like the prologue, others like "Maria" are very Kentonesque, a bit of piano, some saxes then the laid back plaintive brass with some bongo drums before a typical Kenton finish.
Anyone familiar with Bernstein's own symphonic dances culled from West Side story will probably like this set. That's what it reminds me of, but of course no strings! "America" particularly is very symphonic in conception here and very original in hardly allowing the familiar themes to fully emerge until the last quartile and then another text book finish.
Winner of a Grammy Award in 1961 and a top seller, 28 weeks in the Billboard charts peaking at no 16, quite something for a jazz album even then!
As the re-issue of the original LP with no extras it's a bit short by today's standards but probably just long enough nevertheless. Stereo and sound are like new, in fact probably better than, no dust and static clicks and my modest stereo has the bass response and other frequency ranges to handle what could sound too heavy otherwise (sadly we had nothing like this in the sixties)!!!
Summary: Kenton orchestra sounding fabulous in highly individual, immensely enjoyable arrangements highly recommended!
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Bought this for my husband and he is delighted. He had had this on vinyl many years ago and was always wishing he could get it on CD so I did a little homework and found it on Amazon. He is absolutely thrilled and is enjoying it as much as he did originally.
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