No comments about England's Famed Clown Prince of Song.

2 comments about The Best of Andrew Lloyd Webber.

1. This is honestly the worst collection of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Music ever. If you've never heard his music before, stick to getting an official CD. The sound quality, arrangements, and voices on these make it feel like it was recorded in someone's basement. Just absolutely HORRID!!! I ended up just throwing it out. Take my word for it, DON'T BUY THIS COLLECTION, or any other ALW stuff you see that says "Orlando Pops Orchestra" Just look what people are selling it for used. That should say enough.



2. If you love my musicals,then you'll wanna get this!It contains bunches of my hits! It features showsongs from Joseph and the Amazin'Teconnicolour Dreamcoat(1968),stage version in 1973,Jesus Christ Superstar(1971),Evita(1978),Song and Dance(1980),Cats(1982),Starlight Express(1984),Requiem(1985),The Phantom of the Opera(1986),Sunset Bouuvilard(1987),and many of my other classics.If you're a fan of my books and musicals,then you'll want this!

3 comments about Box of Funny Wacky Favorites.

1. This set looks like a great bargain but beware...most of the songs are not the original versions that you know and love. If you just want the songs in any form, go ahead but if you must have the original recordings, look elsewhere.



2. Nice CD and sounds great. However, I just can't believe that the songs are original, at least it don't sound that way, or in other words. Sounds Very Much Like Imitation To Me!!!



3. I somehow assumed that these would all be the original recordings, since Amazon offers no information to the contrary. When I received the 3-disc set, I noticed fine print explaining that most of the 36 cuts were "new stereo recordings"--which, even if they got the original artists to perform them, are just not going to be the same. Only 13 of the songs are listed as the real thing: The Birds and the Bees, Mister Livingston, Mule Skinner Blues, Stiki De Boom Boom, Ya Ya, The Oogum Boogum Song, Mr. Custer, Georgie Porgie, Nee Nee Na Na Nu Nu, Yummy Yummy Yummy, Baby Talk, Dede Dinah, and Alley Oop. If that's worth $9.97 to you, then you'll have no complaints.

5 comments about Little Bitty Tear.

1. I am so happy with this set of five cds of Burl Ives. It was very expensive I thought at first, but worth every penny and more after hearing the songs etc. GET IT if you can afford it and if you enjoy his singing. The Very Best there is



2. As has been noted in other reviews, this is actually a review of the 5 CD box set released by Bear Family in Germany, not the MCA Specials single disc. This is a review of Little Bitty Tear(if you think you're on the wrong page, search Amazon for B0000282UX as the item number) and NOT A Little Bitty Tear. I am not sure why Amazon cannot distinguish between the 2, but please make sure you are looking at the box set and not the single CD release when considering this review.
   
   What Bear Family has done is a proper restoration and remastering job via licensing the audio from MCA whom owns the original Decca recordings. If you hear a bit of missing audio or other anomaly it is due to the condition of the source material and Bear Family being unable to do anything to repair this. It seems they've spared no expense on this set and it shows.
   
   For those audiophiles who squirm when you read "remastered," fear not. Bear Family showed the proper respect and properly remastered this. There is no dynamic range compression; I would say these recordings are as close to the original analog recordings as can be possible for CD. It helps that Burl's music is mainly vocals based; who buys Burl Ives music for the guitar work?
   
   There are a total of 144 tracks in this set. There is no Christmas music included (there are plenty of Christmas CDs available with Burl however).
   
   There is an instance of a duplicate track, Gater Hollow, however it's not really a duplicate as there seems to have been 2 unique versions of the track recorded by Burl and both are included here for completeness' sake.
   
   There is some of Burl's "gospel" music included, mainly on Disc 2.
   
   
   The book that comes with this set is really well written and is Vinyl LP sized. You have a capsule history of Burl (I'm sure there is a lot more to tell but space is limited) and includes a complete listing of all the original recordings the tracks on these CDs originated from, including the recording date and the studio in which they were recorded.
   
   The set may be relatively expensive (it is an Import), however you can't find a better collection of Burl Ives anywhere else. You have a 4 year collection here (Nashville Years 1961-1965) and it does an amazing job of capturing the essence of Burl. If you never buy anything else from Burl, you still have a large portion of every "style" he ever had if you decide to purchase this top quality set.
   
   
   Burl Ives - R.I.P



3. Burl Ives! . . . even the sound of his name is like a melodie . . . evoking memories of folk songs and ballads and stories in song as told by the honeyed-tinged voice of this balladeer.
   
   The "Nashville" years to my mind became his "best years" . . . not only was Burl in the best delivery, but the songwriters of then "Nashville" were also the best ever . . . no one since has topped the excellence of the "country ballad and song" since.
   
   This collection is truly a treasure and one to be relished picking through again and again. Each track will bring you joy to experience each time you play it and listen to it . . and you will often and for years to come.
   
   Today's singers and songwriters of Nashville would do well to listen also . . and to learn from thre Master and the Masters who's art brought about these musica; tracks and gems. These songs will be around long after most of today's "flash in the pan" musical celebs are gone and forgotten. A talent like that of Burl Ives is and will remain an American treasure.
   
   Thank you Burl Ives for all of the music and smiles (and the "little bitty tears") that you have brought to our lives with your talent. You are missed these days . . . but yet you remain present in these recordings . . . and for this we can be eternally grateful! :)



4. I became familiar with a BurlIves song back in the '70's and although I am not a perticular fan of the man as a singer I am still rather partial to the song "A Little Bitty Tear Let Me Down". When I first heard it, I had just gone through a rocky ending of a bad relatinship, and the words just seemed to say a lot of the things I was too inarticulate to put into words. Maybe, if I could have said what he said in that in that song, I could have salvaged a relationship that still haunts me as a dismal failure. Burls' songs are obviously mant to appeal to a wide audience and I am sure that if you give all of them a fair chance you will be somewhat surprised (and maybe even delighted) aat the things you hear. Above all, please try to remember that Burl Ives was an actor, not a singer. But he was still able to put forth a lot of entertainment as a singer also. (AT LEAST TO SOME OF US)



5. The reviews posted for this album are a bit confusing, so I'll begin with this brief disclaimer: Little Bitty Tear is a single disc, with 10 tracks, on the MCA label. It is an AAD recording, totally dependent on original analog recordings as its source material. Perhaps some of the negative comments on sound quality are due to that.

   So far as the songs, Little Bitty Tear offers Burl Ives at his maudlin best. The top cuts are the title tune and Funny Way of Laughing, both soft country tear jerkers that stay oddly touching, despite their somewhat dated sound. The album also includes interesting renditions of Blue Tail Fly, Polly Wolly Doodle and Waltzing Matilda.

   Burl Ives' singular voice and peculiar delivery appeal to a very select group of fans. If you are one of those, you will find this album very satisfying. However, if you are only familiar with the featured hits, the rest of the album will likely not have much impact.

   Either way, this is a respectable little collection at a very good price. Well worth the investment.

No comments about Broadway Opening Nights.

5 comments about A Little Bitty Tear: The Nashville Years 1961-1965.

1. I am so happy with this set of five cds of Burl Ives. It was very expensive I thought at first, but worth every penny and more after hearing the songs etc. GET IT if you can afford it and if you enjoy his singing. The Very Best there is



2. As has been noted in other reviews, this is actually a review of the 5 CD box set released by Bear Family in Germany, not the MCA Specials single disc. This is a review of Little Bitty Tear(if you think you're on the wrong page, search Amazon for B0000282UX as the item number) and NOT A Little Bitty Tear. I am not sure why Amazon cannot distinguish between the 2, but please make sure you are looking at the box set and not the single CD release when considering this review.
   
   What Bear Family has done is a proper restoration and remastering job via licensing the audio from MCA whom owns the original Decca recordings. If you hear a bit of missing audio or other anomaly it is due to the condition of the source material and Bear Family being unable to do anything to repair this. It seems they've spared no expense on this set and it shows.
   
   For those audiophiles who squirm when you read "remastered," fear not. Bear Family showed the proper respect and properly remastered this. There is no dynamic range compression; I would say these recordings are as close to the original analog recordings as can be possible for CD. It helps that Burl's music is mainly vocals based; who buys Burl Ives music for the guitar work?
   
   There are a total of 144 tracks in this set. There is no Christmas music included (there are plenty of Christmas CDs available with Burl however).
   
   There is an instance of a duplicate track, Gater Hollow, however it's not really a duplicate as there seems to have been 2 unique versions of the track recorded by Burl and both are included here for completeness' sake.
   
   There is some of Burl's "gospel" music included, mainly on Disc 2.
   
   
   The book that comes with this set is really well written and is Vinyl LP sized. You have a capsule history of Burl (I'm sure there is a lot more to tell but space is limited) and includes a complete listing of all the original recordings the tracks on these CDs originated from, including the recording date and the studio in which they were recorded.
   
   The set may be relatively expensive (it is an Import), however you can't find a better collection of Burl Ives anywhere else. You have a 4 year collection here (Nashville Years 1961-1965) and it does an amazing job of capturing the essence of Burl. If you never buy anything else from Burl, you still have a large portion of every "style" he ever had if you decide to purchase this top quality set.
   
   
   Burl Ives - R.I.P



3. Burl Ives! . . . even the sound of his name is like a melodie . . . evoking memories of folk songs and ballads and stories in song as told by the honeyed-tinged voice of this balladeer.
   
   The "Nashville" years to my mind became his "best years" . . . not only was Burl in the best delivery, but the songwriters of then "Nashville" were also the best ever . . . no one since has topped the excellence of the "country ballad and song" since.
   
   This collection is truly a treasure and one to be relished picking through again and again. Each track will bring you joy to experience each time you play it and listen to it . . and you will often and for years to come.
   
   Today's singers and songwriters of Nashville would do well to listen also . . and to learn from thre Master and the Masters who's art brought about these musica; tracks and gems. These songs will be around long after most of today's "flash in the pan" musical celebs are gone and forgotten. A talent like that of Burl Ives is and will remain an American treasure.
   
   Thank you Burl Ives for all of the music and smiles (and the "little bitty tears") that you have brought to our lives with your talent. You are missed these days . . . but yet you remain present in these recordings . . . and for this we can be eternally grateful! :)



4. I became familiar with a BurlIves song back in the '70's and although I am not a perticular fan of the man as a singer I am still rather partial to the song "A Little Bitty Tear Let Me Down". When I first heard it, I had just gone through a rocky ending of a bad relatinship, and the words just seemed to say a lot of the things I was too inarticulate to put into words. Maybe, if I could have said what he said in that in that song, I could have salvaged a relationship that still haunts me as a dismal failure. Burls' songs are obviously mant to appeal to a wide audience and I am sure that if you give all of them a fair chance you will be somewhat surprised (and maybe even delighted) aat the things you hear. Above all, please try to remember that Burl Ives was an actor, not a singer. But he was still able to put forth a lot of entertainment as a singer also. (AT LEAST TO SOME OF US)



5. The reviews posted for this album are a bit confusing, so I'll begin with this brief disclaimer: Little Bitty Tear is a single disc, with 10 tracks, on the MCA label. It is an AAD recording, totally dependent on original analog recordings as its source material. Perhaps some of the negative comments on sound quality are due to that.

   So far as the songs, Little Bitty Tear offers Burl Ives at his maudlin best. The top cuts are the title tune and Funny Way of Laughing, both soft country tear jerkers that stay oddly touching, despite their somewhat dated sound. The album also includes interesting renditions of Blue Tail Fly, Polly Wolly Doodle and Waltzing Matilda.

   Burl Ives' singular voice and peculiar delivery appeal to a very select group of fans. If you are one of those, you will find this album very satisfying. However, if you are only familiar with the featured hits, the rest of the album will likely not have much impact.

   Either way, this is a respectable little collection at a very good price. Well worth the investment.

3 comments about A Celebration of Sellers.

1. This 4 disc CD set has EVERYTHING Peter Sellers did on record.....well mostly. My only complaint is the omission of his version of "She Loves You" done in the style of 'Dr. Strangelove'. WHY would they leave that off when EVERYTHING ELSE is there??? Then again, we DO get 3 'other' versions of 'She Loves You', so it sort of makes up for it.
   GREAT photos [one of the best is with Sophia, Peter and producer George Martin!] and original EMI/Parlophone sleeve art.
   Peter Sellers, like it or not, was most-likely the funniest, versatile & hippest comedian ever! Like he said of himself as Harold Fine [in the film 'I LOVE YOU, ALICE B. TOKLAS'-1968]; "Listen -- I'm probably the HIPPEST guy around here!!"
   In 1980 we lost two great entertainers; Peter Sellers & John Lennon.



2. The third CD of the Peter Sellers collection has songs sung in collaboration with the sultry siren herself, Sophia Loren. Some of the songs listed do not even have Peter singing (To keep my love alive). These songs are all comedies, and sometimes Sophia breaks out laughing, sounding playful, self conscious and flirtatious all at the same time.

   My parents had a vinyl album with those songs on it, and I listened and liked them from about age 12 on. I have not heard most of the songs on the other CDs, but if the quality is similar, these songs would be good to have if you are interested in comedic songs or celebrity singing. Peter Sellers has a good voice, but not a great one.




3. The third CD of the Peter Sellers collection has songs sung in collaboration with the sultry siren herself, Sophia Loren. Some of the songs listed do not even have Peter singing (To keep my love alive). These songs are all comedies, and sometimes Sophia breaks out laughing, sounding playful, self conscious and flirtatious all at the same time.

   My parents had a vinyl album with those songs on it, and I listened and liked them from about age 12 on. I have not heard most of the songs on the other CDs, but if the quality is similar, these songs would be good to have if you are interested in comedic songs or celebrity singing. Peter Sellers has a good voice, but not a great one.

1 comments about The Great Broadway Collection.

1. This CD set was a HUGE dissapointment. I should have known that the CD set was not what I hoped when I listened to "Music of the Night" and it sounded like a disco remix. The accompaniments all sound more like they are sequenced- not live and are cheap sounding. The singers are ok- a few are quite good. If you love Broadway music, don't buy this CD.

5 comments about The Best of Andrew Lloyd Webber.

1. This collection of Webber numbers is an absolute disgrace to each and every song presented here. All of the songs sound like they were recorded using an electric keyboard, and most singing numbers have been reduced to purely 'orchestral' affairs. The song that sealed my hatred of this product was their rendition of "Music of the Night" from Phantom of the Opera. This was one of the few numbers that retained the choral parts, but the man they chose for it made my ears bleed, and the song- the formerly lovely duet between the phantom and a soft piano- has been changed into a synthesized, pop-like monstrosity. Skip this collection and buy the original recordings of your favorite Webber musicals; it's well worth the extra money, especially the original cast recording of Phantom of the Opera.



2. This is a good CD, with excellent music tuned for the mass.
   If you like pop music and opera, you'll see this is a combination of the two.



3. This is one of the worst renditions of Webbers' music that I have ever opened my ears to. While no music deserves one star, this collection nears that mark at a lowly three, narrowly missing two, only because the melodies are still in tact. However the resemblance to a Casio's song bank is uncanny, thus making these works hardly worth listening to mush less purchasable.



4. This CD is absolutely the worst recording of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber's music ever put together. The vocals (when there are any) are absolutely terrible, especially on "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina" (the girl can't sing, and her voice has absolutely no emotion "The Music of the Night" (that guy is supposed to be the Phantom?) and "Love Changes Everything" (he sounds like a cheap Elvis impersonator). The arrangements are strange, making "Music of the Night" into some sort of pop-rock ballad and distorting many other songs terribly. Of course, when it's so obvious your "orchestra" is made mostly of synthesizers, with only a very few exceptions, I guess you have to work with what you've got! Also, the whole thing is basically in "mono", making listening to it with headphones or a good stereo system a real drag. I am a huge Andrew Lloyd Webber fan, and this is the most disgraceful rendering of his music I have ever listened to.



5. ....and therefore should be avoided at all costs.

2 comments about The Best of Broadway, Vol.1: Cabaret/West Side Story/Company.

1. I 1st saw this tucked away on the crouded shelves at Barns and Noble and knew I had to have it. I ran out of the store got my mom and begged her to get it for me! I got it yesterday for my birthday and it is by far the best persent I have ever been given!



2. All four of these sets are great deals and truly some of the best cast albums ever made. Too bad I seem to already have one or two CDs out of each set, though.