"The most attractive reason to purchase this collection is to acquire the Danny Kaye pieces. These recordings were made in the late 1940's before the Operas feel into public domain and were greeted with horror by many diehard Savoyards. In light of what was to follow once the copyrights expired it's hard to fathom the outrage they once inspired. They are a great deal of fun and no more sacrilegious than Joseph Papp's synthesized score for "Pirates of Penzance" or any one of the souped-up versions of "The Mikado" one is likely to see these days. For Danny Kaye aficionados as well as the dedicated Savoyard they are indispensable. The technicians have done an amazing job of mastering and they certainly sound better than the 78's and scratchy 10" LP they were originally issued on!
It's also nice to have Martyn Green's 1950's Columbia collection of patter songs on CD. Most selections duplicate what he accomplished on the Decca series of D'Oyly Carte recordings that were made following the war; but the inclusion of The Judges Song from "Trial by Jury" and the two songs for King Gama from "Princess Ida" give us a glimpse into roles he never recorded. The only drawback is the very American sounding chorus that accompanies Mr. Green on many of the songs.
As for the star attraction of this set, the first complete recording of "The Sorcerer" by The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, it's nice to have it on CD as well. Many will prefer the sonics of the later D'Oyly Carte stereo recording, but Muriel Harding does make a fetching Aline and Peter Pratt is awfully good as John Wellington Wells. Point by point I've always felt the two D'Oyly Carte recordings were really neck-and-neck, but the addition of the Danny Kaye and Martyn Green supplements really push this into the CD to buy if you're only looking to collect a single recording of this work."