Ray Charles Live Live in Concert Review by Joe Viglione [-] + Ray Charles Live DVD review / Olivia Newton John Warm and Tender CD

 https://www.allmusic.com/album/live-in-concert-mw0000841369

Live in Concert Review

 

by Joe Viglione

  [-]

 

You Don't Know Me (from this concert) 

https://youtu.be/dom3h3Hou34

This classic 1964 recording by Ray Charles includes 12 vintage tracks performed to perfection. His voice is in great shape, and the recording by Wally Heider is a marvel for its day; all the instruments are placed nicely with Charles' voice out front where it belongs. There's a slinky version of "Hallelujah I Love Her So," the musicians creating nice little changes behind Charles' soulful nuances. The singer tells us Miss Lillian Ford of the Raelets "helps out" on "Don't Set Me Free"; it's a duet and a nice change of pace. Rick Ward's tacky liner notes fail to say who is backing up the singer at The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, except for David "Fathead" Newman credited with the tenor solo on "Swing a Little Taste," the opening track. Not to be confused with the 1973 re-release Ray Charles Live, which is comprised of 1958 and 1959 concerts, this album is called Live in Concert, and is Charles in Los Angeles after a Japanese tour in 1964. "What I'd Say" and a nice version of "Margie" are here, along with a six-minute take on "I Gotta Woman." For the finale he has the Ray Charles Choir come out to help close the show with a marching-band version of "Pop Goes the Weasel." The 12 tracks are priceless Ray Charles, especially the reinvention of "You Don't Know Me," stirringly different from his timeless hit version but just as impressive. Excellent photos by Ray Hearne, especially the cover profile.

 From Steve Hoffman Music Forums

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/steve-ray-charles-question.7799/

Ray Charles' "Live In Concert" has never been reissued on CD. Recorded live in 64 by Wally Heider, the sound is INCREDIBLE. Plus, this classic LP IS NOT marred by the strings and orchestrations that characterized much of his 60's output!

This is a classic date, worthy of audiophile treatment. (Recorded by the same guy who recorded Wes Montgomery's "Full House.")

Any chance of this one seeing the light of day? To give you an idea of the quality of the performances and recording, a couple of tracks from this LP are on the 1988 Rhino "Anthology"--What'd I Say, I Got A Woman, and Hallelujah I Love Her So.

Below is the AMG review.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Artist Ray Charles
Album Title Live in Concert
Date of Release Jan 1965 (release)
AMG Rating
Genre Rock
Styles Soul, R&B
Type live
Library View Click here to see this album in MARC format
Product Purchase Click here to buy posters

AMG EXPERT REVIEW: This classic 1964 recording by Ray Charles includes 12 vintage tracks performed to perfection. His voice is in great shape, and the recording by Wally Heider is a marvel for its day; all the instruments are placed nicely with Charles' voice out front where it belongs. There's a slinky version of "Hallelujah I Love Her So," the musicians creating nice little changes behind Charles' soulful nuances. The singer tells us Miss Lillian Ford of the Raelets "helps out" on "Don't Set Me Free"; it's a duet and a nice change of pace. Rick Ward's tacky liner notes fail to say who is backing up the singer at The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, except for David "Fathead" Newman credited with the tenor solo on "Swing a Little Taste," the opening track. Not to be confused with the 1973 re-release Ray Charles Live, which is comprised of 1958 and 1959 concerts, this album is called Live in Concert, and is Charles in Los Angeles after a Japanese tour in 1964. "What I'd Say" and a nice version of "Margie" are here, along with a six-minute take on "I Gotta Woman." For the finale he has the Ray Charles Choir come out to help close the show with a marching-band version of "Pop Goes the Weasel." The 12 tracks are priceless Ray Charles, especially the reinvention of "You Don't Know Me," stirringly different from his timeless hit version but just as impressive. Excellent photos by Ray Hearne, especially the cover profile. — Joe Viglione

1. Opening (Charles) - 0:35
2. I Gotta Woman (Charles) - 6:10
3. Margie (Conrad/Robinson) - 2:39
4. You Don't Know Me (Arnold/Walker) - 3:14
5. Hide nor Hair (Mayfield) - 2:57
6. Baby Don't You Cry (Johnson) - 2:35
7. Makin' Whoopee (Donaldson/Kahn) - 6:17
8. Hallelujah I Love Her So (Charles) - 2:55
9. Don't Set Me Free (James/Jones) - 3:58
10. What I'd Say (Charles) - 4:30
11. Finale - 1:55

 

Walmart Publishes Joe Viglione, to quote  Bette Midler in Ruthless People, I've been marked down.

 https://www.walmart.com/ip/In-Concert-With-the-Edmonton-Symphony-DVD/3223538

 

 

In Concert With The Edmonton Symphony Review

 

by Joe Viglione

  [-]

This January 27, 1981, Canadian concert from a 50-years-young Ray Charles was recorded with the Edmonton Symphony, also billed as the ITV Concert Orchestra when they were performing on the ITV television channel. The full band from Alberta became famous to pop fans a decade earlier when in 1971 they accompanied Procol Harum and had a big hit with a remake of Gary Brooker and company's "Conquistador" from that group's monster 1972 live release. With the ITV tag disguising them, the Edmonton Symphony got less acclaim for this marvelous effort than they did on the Procol Harum Top Five album. Originally issued in the VHS and laser disc formats by MCA in 1992, this material recorded at the Jubilee Auditorium was conducted by Sid Feller and makes the transition well to DVD. Though short -- only 11 titles long with an extended intro/overture -- the 47-plus minutes have such fine audio that you can take your eyes off the screen and hear a pretty tremendous on-stage recording by Ray. Only "What'd I Say" is reprised from his 1965 Live in Concert album, though many of his other classics are here, from "Take These Chains from My Heart" to "I Can't Stop Loving You." With seven camera people on the job, director John Blanchard skillfully fades the motion of the string players into the face of Charles, with multiple images of the singer performing "Georgia on My Mind" in this classy setting. Five Raelettes add their charm and backing vocals -- wonderfully choreographed for the cover of Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now." No DVD bonus material, but a fine presentation nonetheless.   https://www.allmusic.com/album/in-concert-with-the-edmonton-symphony-mw0001001790

 

Warm and Tender

Warm and Tender is a major achievement for Olivia Newton-John, a majestic combination of lullabies and standards. Where Eva Cassidy found fame with her posthumous folk-jazz version of "Over the Rainbow," Newton-John takes the Harold Arlen/E.Y. Harburg classic from The Wizard of Oz and gives it a mature and classy reading. Judy Garland still sounded like young Dorothy, even on her final recording, July-London-1969, but this especially beautiful rendition stands on its own with the popular artist taking the beloved classic to a new place. The title track is a co-write by John Farrar and Newton-John for her daughter, Chloe, who was the inspiration for these recordings. Newton-John writes extensive liner notes -- thoughts on the recording of the disc as well as environmental issues. As a United Nations Honorary Ambassador for the Environment, the singer put her fame to good use, though without a hit single, the message hardly reached the millions of fans who purchased Newton-John's more commercial sounds. Carol Hall's composition "Jenny Rebecca" and the songs that follow on Warm and Tender play more like Linda Ronstadt with Nelson Riddle than the lullabies that some of the songs really are. The beautiful strings of Melbourne's Victoria Philharmonic Orchestra put the singer's voice in a very different setting than what her fans are used to. Newton-John performing Rodgers & Hammerstein must have been a totally fulfilling experience for her, and she does a great job on "You'll Never Walk Alone," "The Twelfth of Never," "When You Wish Upon a Star," and "Brahms Lullaby." The revelation here, however, is taking the Burt Bacharach and Hal David classic "Reach out for Me" and breathing a different life into it. Where Dionne Warwick was the perfect '60s artist to bring the song home, Olivia Newton-John puts her voice atop John Farrar and Brian Mann's instrumentation and Sean Callery's synclavier. The result is as astonishing as the work with the Victorian Philharmonic on some of the other tracks. If Olivia Newton-John made Warm and Tender to prove to the world that she is an artist with depth and courage, she achieved her goal. It's a marvelous recording. ~ Joe Viglione, All Music Guide