Io Jack e Dio

The baritone Tito Gobbi is considered one of the greatest singers of the 20th century. He was particularly celebrated for his live performances of 19th century Italian opera repertoire, and especially the music of Giuseppe Verdi. The recordings in this ten-CD collection were made between 1942 and 1960. The worldwide fame of Tito Gobbi (1913-1984) was founded on the seemingly endless diversity of his vocal style and acting ability, with which he turned the characters of his stage personas into dramatic experiences for his audience.

This attractive and lively production of Puccini's Wild West opera makes the best imaginable case for it, especially the exuberant Barbara Daniels in the title role; while Domingo is at his peak, in 1992, as the nice bandit Dick Johnson. (BBC Music Magazine)

Piero Faggioni’s highly acclaimed Royal Opera production of The Girl of the Golden West, filmed in 1983, stars the incomparable Placido Domingo and American soprano Carol Neblett. It is considered by many the definitive production of this work. Faggioni’s amazing production brings the opera vividly to life. The realistic timbered sets are by Oscar-winning designer Ken Adam, whose film work includes Dr Strangelove and a number of James Bond films. Domingo’s heroic portrayal of Don Johnson is one of his most popular and one of his favourite roles. The Bible-bashing, gun-toting Minnie is a very taxing role not tackled by many sopranos. Carol Neblett made it her own with her gloriously rich voice and brilliant performance.