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Absolute
Lokahi
275 Posts |
 Posted - 07/28/2007 : 07:44:39 AM
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Since Guaraldi died in 1976, his music has been released again and again by countless artists. My favorites include the 50th anniversary CD from GRP and G. Winston's related album. With all this attention, there is still no substitute for vintage Guaraldi. I purchased his Greatest Hits album, and it is near the top of my list of favorites. I hesitated to buy "The Eclectic Vince Guaraldi", given its association with his death as his last album. If my memory of an old interview serves, it was made during his illness (and released by "Wounded Bird Records"). Unfortunately, of the nine works on the album, only four are original Guaraldi. The remaining five are covers of early seventies (or older) favorites. I was concerned that Guaraldi might have exercised poor judgement in his last album by electing not only to sing, but to play the guitar. I was surprised by the quality of his voice, and of the overall recording. Although his Greatest Hits album will remain my favorite, this one will be a welcome addition to anyone's collection who is a fan of his "cool jazz" style, if you don't mind the fact that his use of popular sixties and seventies music written by others may give this album a somewhat dated sound. All in all, this is good stuff. (Imagine the cartoon character, "Schroeder", at a toy keyboard in the early 70's when you listen to the recording of "The Beat Goes On".) The only drawback for Guaraldi's fans in this album is the close association of this, his last album, with the loss of a great talent who seems to have been highly unappreciated in his lifetime, given the many releases of his works after his death, and his own notorious difficulty getting shelf space during the years when jazz sales were slumping. With that said, the works on this album are a nice extension to Guaraldi's better known pieces, associated with the animated specials.
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Thank you. |
Edited by - Absolute on 07/29/2007 10:34:06 AM |
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Retro
Ahonui
USA
2368 Posts |
Posted - 07/28/2007 : 07:52:33 AM
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| Thanks for those notes, I may check it out (I was a Guaraldi fan years before his passing.) |
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Pua Kai
Ha`aha`a
USA
1007 Posts |
Posted - 07/29/2007 : 08:01:37 AM
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I have a number of old albums that I don't play. Have they been released as CDs? I only look in the Hawaiian section these days, and have bought too many already.... but not enough, of course.
mahalo!
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Retro
Ahonui
USA
2368 Posts |
Posted - 07/29/2007 : 7:40:13 PM
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| Many of Guaraldi's albums have been reissued on CD at one point or another, including "Oh, Good Grief!," "At Grace Cathedral," "Alma-Ville" and "Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus," among others. Just realized that I HAVE heard "Eclectic" - had a copy at work a while back. |
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