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Let Me Off Uptown: The Best of Anita O'Day with Gene Krupa
Anita O'Day, Gene Krupa
Let Me Off Uptown: The Best of Anita O'Day with Gene Krupa
Genres: Jazz, Pop, Broadway & Vocalists
 
  •  Track Listings (18) - Disc #1

Gene Krupa came to epitomize Swing Era drumming during his tenure with Benny Goodman, and he brought the same kinetic energy to his own big band. The band really developed steam, though, when Anita O'Day joined it as vocal...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Anita O'Day, Gene Krupa
Title: Let Me Off Uptown: The Best of Anita O'Day with Gene Krupa
Members Wishing: 2
Total Copies: 0
Label: Sony
Original Release Date: 1/1/1940
Re-Release Date: 6/15/1999
Album Type: Original recording remastered
Genres: Jazz, Pop, Broadway & Vocalists
Styles: Swing Jazz, Traditional Jazz & Ragtime, Vocal Jazz, Oldies, Vocal Pop, Traditional Vocal Pop
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPCs: 074646562529, 5099706562528

Synopsis

Amazon.com
Gene Krupa came to epitomize Swing Era drumming during his tenure with Benny Goodman, and he brought the same kinetic energy to his own big band. The band really developed steam, though, when Anita O'Day joined it as vocalist in 1941. She was the perfect singer for the drummer's approach, with a hipster personality, high-flying energy, and fluent, jazz-rooted phrasing that easily distanced her from the other white band singers of the day. It resulted in a string of hits, many of them included here, usually delivered with a manic vitality that would embarrass current pretenders to the form. While the uptempo swing, boogie, and novelty tunes were the band's forte, O'Day's wistful voice and the tight horn sections also distinguish the renditions of Hoagy Carmichael's "Skylark" and "Georgia on My Mind." The great trumpeter Roy Eldridge was a jewel among a good collection of soloists, and his brash trumpet and bantering duet with O'Day on the title track contribute to a period masterpiece. --Stuart Broomer

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CD Reviews

Time capsule perfectly captures its era...
William E. Adams | Midland, Texas USA | 05/01/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is big band jazz/swing with vocals, and most of the selections were recorded in 1941, half-a-year before Pearl Harbor changed the destinies of all the players, all the audiences. These are O'Day's first recordings, and her star power is evident from her first verses. She started 61 years ago, and still sings occasionally in Los Angeles. Amazing. Gene Krupa was a good bandleader in addition to being a wild drummer. His orchestra has some great players, especially Roy Eldrige on trumpet. If you could only afford one CD in your collection to represent the pre-war big band sound, this would not be a bad choice. I only knew of four of the 18 songs in advance, but frankly, all of them are good listening. I am not a dancer, but this CD makes me want to dance; I am not a singer, but it makes me wish I could; I don't play an instrument, but this CD reminds me to regret it. Whether you approach big band music as a serious fan, or with a campy attitude, you cannot help but have fun when you give Anita, Gene, Roy and their cohorts 53 minutes to serenade you."
Swing era classics
William E. Adams | 07/11/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)

"Anita O'Day's voice is rythmic and lilting as it floats above the driving Krupa beat. To me, however, the best reason to purchase this CD is Roy Eldridge's outstanding solos. Listening to him propel to the heavens on Let Me Off Uptown is worth the price of the CD alone. Remastering is superb--outstanding sound complete with CEDAR noise reduction. One can only hope that Columbia gets around to treating the rest of its trove of swing era classics with the same care."
Anita's the best there is in the femme jazz vocal department
Aaron | Aaron | 03/18/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Anita is simply the best there is in the female jazz vocal department, always using her voice as an instrument, she is the best of all bop singers, and was the best singer of the swing era too. These are her early sessions with Gene Krupa & Roy Eldridge, they are all wonderful, especially O'Day. Although her Verve sessions from the 50's & 60's are deliciously more enjoyable, these sessions should satisfy swing vocalist fans, as well as O'Day fans. Also get her autobiagraphy to read while you listen to these amazing and stunning sides, and last go see her, she still puts on a darn good show, and creates a lot of excitement by costantly improvising. As an Anita O'Day fan I try to see her once a month at The Atlas in Los Angeles, though she plays more intimate clubs too."