Bobby Darin - Ultra Lounge: Wild, Cool & Swingin' - Artist Series Vol 2

Bobby swings brightly on this awesome CD !!!

This second volume of the Ultra Lounge: Wild, Cool & Swingin' Artist CD Series has a terrific assortment of hits and ballads by the immortal Bobby Darin. This warmed my heart as I am a huge fan of Bobby's. The sound is excellent--and how's about that artwork?

"As Long As I'm Singing" has a big band arrangement to accompany Bobby's vocals; he never misses a beat and he never sounded better either! Bobby's excellent diction bolsters his performance. "There's A Rainbow `Round My Shoulder" places Bobby's vocals squarely in the spotlight; Bobby croons this like so few ever could; and the arrangement for the brass is elegant. Bobby delivers this tune with great sensitivity and I really like "There's A Rainbow `Round My Shoulder." Moreover, Bobby makes "Hello, Dolly!" a major celebration--Louis Armstrong must have been proud if he ever heard this rendition of "Hello, Dolly!"

"I Left My Heart In San Francisco" gives us Bobby doing a sublime cover of a signature Tony Bennett song; Bobby delivers this with passion and the musical orchestration lacks nothing--it's THAT good. "The Good Life" sounds fresher than I've ever heard it when Bobby sings this tune; Bobby could take a romantic tune and enhance it so well with his touch that you'd swear it was the newest, freshest ballad you ever heard. Listen also for "I'm Sitting On Top Of The World;" Bobby swings lightly and this masculine happy hit gets the royal treatment from Bobby Darin.

"I Got Rhythm" fits into this track set like a glove; and the musical interlude is wonderful with its use of the brass. "This Nearly Was Mine" from South Pacific gets a brilliant interpretation from Bobby as he sings this slow number as a swinging, sparkling hit that is unabashedly upbeat. "I Wanna Be Around" slow down the pace so Bobby can perform this flawlessly--what a crooner Bobby was! The CD ends with "Gyp The Cat." People note that "Gyp The Cat" sounds a lot like "Mack The Knife" but Bobby holds his own and it all works very well. Great!

The musical arrangements by Billy May and Richard Wess are sublime. Too bad the personnel of the bands aren't listed in the credits.

Overall, this is one awesome Bobby Darin CD that a true fan simply must have in their CD collection. People who like classic pop vocals with big band style arrangements are bound to love this CD, too.
February 22, 2008

Best Darin Ever

This is awesome Darin- Richard Wess arranged many of these songs, and his collaborations with Bobby were by far the best. There are other "swing" collections - this one is the best. February 22, 2005

Great album, I've been listening to it constantly

Even disregarding the rock he began with and the folk he did later in his career, Darin sang a broad range of music. This album features show tunes, standards, at least one of his own songs ("Gyp the Cat", too much a "Mack the Knife" knockoff to be taken too seriously), and current pop. I find his treatment of the last most compelling. The Sixties were a period when the old songwriting lions were beginning to pass from the scene, and when too many pop ballads, their writers striving too hard for relevance or romance, delivered overripe songs not up to the standards of the previous few decades. (All that "I Gotta Be Me" stuff. Yecch. Or songs full of strings no longer leavened by Cole Porter-style wit.) Darin here performs, with few or no strings, songs like "A Taste of Honey" and "More" - saccharine in most singers' hands - with enough punch to make them not only worth listening to but genuinely good. This album features cleaner arrangements than some of his others like "Swingin' the Standards", and these songs are genuine as a result. Every song here, depending on the listener's taste, is good. My favorite cuts include "As Long As I'm Singin' "; "Sunday in New York"; "The Good Life"; "Call Me Irresponsible"; "I Got Rhythm"; and "More." On "Hello, Dolly" - not generally one of my favorite songs - check out his final high note. But really, I like them all. Bobby loves to find new ways to do songs; his swinging version of "This Nearly Was Mine" from "South Pacific" is meritorious. Damn, he's good. February 18, 2005

Highly Overlooked Performer

This is a great CD. What a performer Bobby Darin was. He had a very distinctive voice and style that really captured the heart of each song. I really like "Sunday In New York" quite a bit. It really swings. I also like his rendition of "A Taste of Honey" very much. The perfect Bobby Darin CD! December 5, 2004

You Like Dino? You'll Love Bobby!

This collection is a fine showcase of Bobby's talent. Bobby Darin had unparalelled panache to go along with his musical brilliance. The old finger-snapper had more charisma in his two syncopated fingers than today's top ten "artists" have in their collective, overly-exposed bodies. He was cool. He was hip. He was the natural successor to Frank and Dean in the hipster Italian-American pop singing tradition. Indeed, he probably had more natural talent than either of his predecessors (and I am a huge fan of Sinatra and Martin). The only thing Darin lacked was a healthy heart. Otherwise, he might well have been the greatest of them all. July 11, 2004

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