The George and Ira Gershwin Song Book, CD Review

Ella Fitzgerald, Nelson Riddle (arr., cond.), 1959.

"In the days before rock'n'roll..." (Van Morrison).
...there was Ella.
There was Nelson Riddle (and if you have heard one of his string arrangements, you will recognise all others).

And way, way before that, and for many years thereafter, there was and is and will be Gershwin - George the composer, using his brother Ira's lyrics for most of his best songs.

This is a monumental 4 cd set of everything from the Fitzgerald/Riddle session, and probably too daunting for most of us to contemplate (I usually listen to one disc in a session - disc one has Gershwin orchestral miniatures on it, which are worth kicking back to)...
There is a release called the best of the Gershwin song book. Ella also did the complete-ish songbooks of other American songwriters, and her Cole Porter set is one of the most delicious pre-rock'n'roll pop recordings you could hope to come across.
Then there is the best of the songbooks, an even more intense but accessible reduction of the songbook projects.

What I love about Ella's performances are her warmth of tone, her pinpoint accuracy, her sense of drama within the song, and her empathy with her fellow performers.
The occupational hazard of listening to Ella sing one of these songs is that it makes it hard to imagine a more complete performance.

The strings sparkle away in the background, or gently cushion the lightest/tenderest of emotions - although backing, there's no denying that Riddle's arranging skills are star quality.

10/10, but take in small doses!