Benny Goodman - Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert

In jazz, live recordings not only document an artist or group's sound in its purest form but, in rare cases, herald the arrival of a musical genre. That's the case with this invaluable, two-CD collection that captures clarinetist Benny Goodman's historic 1938 Carnegie Hall concert, which exemplified the so-called "swing era." Originally released in 1950, it contains rare commentary from Goodman and music from the entire event, which was a unique mix of formality and spontaneity. Goodman's perfect intonation and lyrical improvisation front the big band here, featuring the smooth solos of trumpeter Harry James, the percussive power of Gene Krupa--jumping the blues on "Don't Be That Way"--and the Fletcher Henderson- arranged "Sometimes I'm Happy" and "One O'Clock Jump." Another segment of the evening, called "Twenty Years of Jazz," takes Goodman to New Orleans with a lickety-split reading of "Sensation Rag" and "When My Baby Smiles at Me." A spirited jam session follows with Count Basie on the keys, alto, tenor, and baritone saxophonists Johnny Hodges, Lester Young, and Harry Carney, along with trumpeter Buck Clayton. Goodman hangs tough with the crew on a rollicking read of Fats Waller's "Honeysuckle Rose." The spotlight turns to Goodman's color-line breaking small combos. His trio with Krupa and the elegant, fleet-fingered Teddy Wilson on piano delivers a harmonically delicious version of "Body & Soul" that would give Coleman Hawkins's version a run for its money. When vibraphonist Lionel Hampton gets into the mix and makes it a quartet, the standards "Avalon," "The Man I Love," and "I Got Rhythm," as well as "Stompin' at the Savoy," are transformed into timeless vehicles of improvisation. The big band returns with growling grandeur on Irving Berlin's optimistic "Blue Skies" and the British Isle balladry of "Loch Lomond," with the majestic vocals of Martha Tilton. One listen to Goodman and company's rockhouse romp on "Sing, Sing, Sing" will testify to the success of this event, which still reverberates today. --Eugene Holley Jr. Amazon.com

Benny Goodman's legendary Carnegie Hall concert from 1938

This record is without any doubt groundbreaking musical material!
There are many people who cry about the quality of the recording, fact is that if it wouldn't have been recorded at all we would not have anything like that anywhere, since Goodman's versions of "Sing Sing Sing", "One o' Clock Jump" and "I've got Rhythm" as well as "Let's Dance" from the 1938 Carnegie Hall Concert, are the best versions of theses songs ever recorded.
Sound-wise it does have serious hissing, pops and cracks, since it was recorded on aluminum and acetate material (recorded without Goodman and the band even knowing) despite that it still swings and grooves beyond almost anything one might consider Swing-Music. For those who simply can not "tune out" the pops and cracks of an old recording should consider the "Complete Benny Goodman Carnegie Hall Concert 1938" re-released in September 18, 2006 with MUCH less popping and cracking on JASMINE records - the draw back here is of course some sound information is lost as well, as it ALWAYS will be when trying to filter out a certain frequency, yet I do believe those who absolutely can't handle the recording noise will be much more satisfied with the 2006 re-release (also offered here on Amazon).
For its historical value, musical power and virtuosity - absolutely 5 stars all the way! Goodman the king of swing rightfully earned tis title by paving the road with this record for many other bands who would come after him.
J.S. June 24, 2008

Couragous production and engineering

I couldn't have put it better than Phil Schaap did in the liner notes of this release:

"This is the deal. The glorious resonance of Carnegie Hall, the clarity of tone, the definition of instruments, the notes in the arrangement's inner voicings, the audible presence of the drummer's cymbals, snare and brushes and the rhythm guitarist at all - comes with the inclusion of inherent noise on the original sources. You lose these essential and divine elements in the recording if you remove the 'Snap, Crackle, Pop.' No digital or analog equipment can change that. The greatest noise reduction device is your brain. Trust it to work with your ears to hear music that would otherwise have been excised if a computer did the work. This is the truth."

What a courageous thing to do: give us, the listening audience, the most depth, even if it costs the inclusion of the surface noise. No loudness wars or bogus "remastering" here, just strictly the best hoped transfer from the best sources available. I have both the CD based on the original 1950 transfer, and this version. This version is by far my favorite. I'll take the cracks and pops over the comparably underwater feel of the earlier release any day. May 2, 2008

Just weighing in...

With 79 reviewers before me on both sides of the fence, I just wanted to register my brief opinion of this somewhat controversial issue of the famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Concert. Yes, the music is AMAZING. I don't think anyone is denying that. But a lot of people seem to be disappointed with the "hands-off" approach used when remastering this set. I say THANK GOODNESS for Phil Schaap and the people at Sony/Columbia who had the good sense to issue the *complete* concert in such beautiful, unclouded transfers. Yes, there is surface noise that ranges from very light to moderate, and to the ears of many who grew up in the CD age, that will be unacceptable. It's a matter of preference, I guess. I'm a purist at heart, I suppose, and while I wouldn't say I exactly relish the sound of crackle and pops, I prefer that a recording sound as clear and "natural" as possible. Despite the light crackle (which really isn't as bad as some here would have you believe), there's a presence and brilliance to these transfers that is missing in every other issue I've heard of this concert (and I've heard a few!). Listening to these CDs, it's as if you have the original source lacquer discs recorded that night in 1938 and are listening to them with top equipment--this is a truly archival quality release.

I think that a lot of people unfamiliar with the ins-and-outs of digital remastering of old records still don't understand what goes into removing the clicks, pops, and crackle. I've worked with CEDAR and Audiocube (two industry standards) for a number of years preparing restorations of recordings of the 1910s-1930s for reissue. The algorithms used by these sophisticated tools essentially look for very sharp, brief spikes in the waveform of a recording which they interpret as clicks. Different programs have different ways of dealing with the clicks they identify, but most try to remove them by replacing them with an "average" of the digital information immediately before and after the click. The problem is that drum strokes and claps produce a very similar spike in the wave form to that of clicks and pops, and even the best digital restoration tools often misinterpret them as clicks and try to remove them--or at least alter them enough to affect the sound of the recording. On the extreme, this can introduce irritating digital "artifacts," but more often it tends to dull the sound as the crisp attack is either removed or cloaked. Gene Krupa's drumming is such an integral part of this concert, and if nothing else, his drums have never sounded so fresh and "alive" as on this CD set. I had several different LP issues of this concert, but as soon as I heard this set at a friend's house, I had to order my own copy. The clarity of the sound just blew me away. The two discs have been beautifully packaged with a generous booklet and no other issue I've ever heard even holds a candle to this one in terms of sound quality. If you're a casual listener wanting a copy of this concert to play in the background at parties, or you simply can't stand a little record crackle, this may not be the right issue for you. Check out the Avid set or look for the earlier Columbia CD issue. However, if you *really* want to hear what happened in Carnegie Hall that night 70 years ago, THIS is the set to get. THIS is what a historical reissue should be: the best original source material lovingly transferred and free of the tarnish of over-processing. Bravo, Schaap! January 18, 2008

Listen to samples before buying

I do not own this CD, but after reading a few reviews about the noise and crackling, I decided to check out the samples on iTunes. The noise is very noticeable at first, but after listening long enough, it's not that bad. I recently purchased the cheaper Past Perfect label, The Famous Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert 1938, before I knew this one existed. Both recordings are good, but the Sony recording is more authentic. The Past Perfect CD does not have any noise at all, but the sound seems muffled (again, you get used to it after listening long enough). The Sony recording is more crisp despite the noise and crackling. I probably would have purchased this CD if I had not already bought the other one.

Some people don't mind the noise but others do. Before purchasing this CD, listen to samples on iTunes or elsewhere first. January 3, 2008

Benny Goodman 1938 Carnegie Hall Concert, recent edition

I have listened to thisrecording since its first release on LP in the 50's. This edition is superb and recommended for those who enjoy the mood of a live concert. It is the best of the versions on CD, in my opinion. November 29, 2007

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