30 by Ella Fitzgerald

A 1971 live recording, from when Ella Fitzgerald was still at the peak of her vocal powers, Ella à Nice isn't one of the vocalist's all-time greatest live recordings, but it's a very nice set placing her in the company in which she felt most comfortable, a simple piano/bass/drums trio led by her longtime musical partner, Tommy Flanagan. Most of the set list's time is taken up by themed medleys such as "Aspects of Duke," "The Bossa Scene," and "The Many Faces of Cole Porter" that are perfectly nice but, as medleys tend to be, a little disappointing. One would rather hear Ella work her magic on the entirety of "The Girl From Ipanema" or "Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me" than be teased with a verse and chorus. On the other hand, the opening "Night and Day" is simply outstanding. Opening slowly with an extended vamp by Flanagan and bassist Frank DeLaRosa…

Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb & His Orchestra: feat. Taft Jordan, Mario Bauza, sandy Williams, Claude Jones, Edgar Sampson, Louis Jordan, Hilton Jefferson, Ted McRae and others… 1936/39.

In January 1966 Duke Ellington, in tournee in Europe, had some concerts in Italy with his orchestra, including some of the most famous "ellingtonians". These very rare recordings were taken during the afternoon concert at Teatro Lirico in Milan January 30, 1966. The performance of the orchestra was followed by a set of Ella Fitzgerald and her trio and was closed by a meeting of Ella and the orchestra in Cotton Tail with a very exciting duet between the "scat" of Ella and the sax of Paul Gonsalves.

Ella Fitzgerald didn't lack for live recording opportunities in the late '50s, which on the surface, would make this first issue of a 1958 Chicago live club date an easy one to pass on. Verve label head Norman Granz recorded her often in the '50s with an eye to releasing live albums, which he did with her shows at Newport in 1957 and Los Angeles' Opera House in 1958 (not to mention another 1958 concert in Rome that was released 30 years later to wide acclaim). Those shows, however, differed widely from this one, which found her in front of a very small audience at Chicago's jazz Mecca Mister Kelly's (Sarah Vaughan's landmark At Mister Kelly's was recorded there four months earlier). Fitzgerald's artistry is basically a given in this situation, but much of the material recorded here was rare and obscure; "Your Red Wagon" had only been released as a single, her delightfully melodic "Across the Alley from the Alamo" never appeared elsewhere, and for a pair of Sinatra evergreens – "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" and "Witchcraft" – the former had never appeared, and the latter only appeared later, on a 1961 return to the site of her Berlin live landmark.

For this Pablo set (reissued on CD), Ella Fitzgerald is heard on half of the program in duets with pianist Oscar Peterson and for the remainder in trios with Peterson and bassist Ray Brown. In general the performances are memorable (particularly "How Long Has This Been Going On," "More than You Know," "Midnight Sun" and "April in Paris" ) with the emphasis on ballads. Although her voice had slipped a little by this time, the results are still rewarding and swinging. ~ AllMusic

The cartoon drawing of Ella Fitzgerald on the cover of Gold may lead some to equate this with the parade of pitiful compilations foisted on the market by budget labels, but this two-disc set arrives from Verve, the home of Ella's finest recordings. Listeners wanting a brief overview of the most swinging female in history couldn't do much better than this - assuming, of course, that they don't need informed liner notes or full discographical information on these performances. Overwhelmingly from the '50s and early '60s, Gold compiles 39 excellent performances and wisely focuses on her songbook recordings of the era, heavy on Cole Porter, George & Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin, and Rodgers & Hart. Not every song here comes from a songbook, though. Also included is Ella's stunning, legend-making 1960 performance of "Mack the Knife" at a Berlin concert.

Ella Swings Lightly was recorded in 1958 and features the Marty Paich Dektette. The songs whilst including a number of very well known standards eg " Little White Lies"; "As Long as I Live"; "Blues in the Night" etc also has less main stream standards and many of these bring to the listener Ella's ability to "scat", vocal improvisation which gives singers the ability to sing improvised melodies and rhythms, to create the equivalent of an instrumental solo using their voice…

This attractive three-CD set gives listeners an overview of Ella Fitzgerald's Verve recordings, although the inclusion of seven previously unissued cuts (in addition to 44 that are mostly available in more complete form elsewhere) will frustrate some completists. However the careful selection of representative performances along with the informative and lengthy text make this highly enjoyable reissue (which captures her in prime form) recommended even to collectors who have most of the singer's albums.

Another typically wonderful LP of Ella Fitzgerald in her prime, Fitzgerald is joined by pianist Lou Levy, guitarist Herb Ellis, bassist Joe Mondragon, and drummer Stan Levey. Fitzgerald is in fine form on such numbers as "A Night in Tunisia," an emotional "You're My Thrill," "Jersey Bounce," and "Clap Hands! Here Comes Charlie." Although not reaching the heights of her live performances, this is an excellent (and somewhat underrated) set.