The Rodgers and Hart Songbook by Ella Fitzgerald (Vinyl record album review)

Album name: The Rodgers and Hart Songbook / Ella’s superb interpretations of Rodgers and Hart’s greatest songs.

Artist name: Ella Fitzgerald

Year: 1977

Number of discs: two

Label: Verve Records

Collection: Selman

Buy it on Amazon: $9.94

My review

Level of familiarity before listening

I’ve never listened to this record, but I’ve previously reviewed three of Ella Fitzgerald’s:

Ella & Louis (1972): 4/5

Billie Ella Lena Sarah (1980): 2/5

“A Classy Pair”: Ella Fitzgerald Sings / Count Basie Plays / With the Count Basie Orchestra (1982): 4/5

I also am not familiar with Rodgers or Hart, let alone Rodgers and Hart.

What I expected

I assume this will be like Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie.

What it was actually like

This was good and, as always, Ella Fitzgerald was a wonderful singer, but the record was really, really long, and that detracted a lot from my enjoyment. I wish they had cut it in half to a single LP instead of double.

My favorite songs were the most upbeat ones, like Everything I’ve Got and The Lady Is A Tramp.

I also recognized a few, such as My Funny Valentine, which was used well in The Talented Mr. Ripley, and Blue Moon, which I mentioned when reviewing The Muppet Show, though I still think the Marcels did it best.

Then there were some pretty weird songs that also got included, like Johnny One Note, which had a strong musical theater sound and was just very incongruously out of place, and Give It Back To The Indians, which… would not get recorded in 2023.