Kenny G - Ultimate Kenny G

awful

The problem with this cd, or any other Kenny G's cd for that matter, is not that it's not jazz or smooth jazz. To those arrogant idiots that complain
this is not jazz I'd reply, so what?
The problem is twofold: first he makes heavy use of electronic paraphernalia, such as synthesizers, drum machines,etc. After two songs, it gets nauseatingly boring. Second, Kenny G is a lousy sax player. He plays so
poorly that sometimes you can't tell if he's using the soprano or the tenor.
His tenor sounds nauseatingly sugary and his soprano terribly out of tune and too flat. I suspect he electrifies it too. To hear the real sound of a soprano you must listen to Bechet, Zoot Sims, and Johnny Hodges("I Got it Bad"). Lousy sax players shouldn't tamper with the soprano(This would apply to the much overrated John Coltrane too!)
Well, I'm sure that Kenny G is crying all the way to the bank but let's hope this review opens people's eyes a little more. March 23, 2008

awesome CD

If you want to relieve stress and feel more relaxed this is the CD for you........what an amazing performer and selection of songs....... June 9, 2007

I made a poop from which this album emerged

why would anyone want to buy this??
this is not jazz or smooth jazz or even easy listning !!! kenny g is a horrible saxophonist every song on this album and (every other of his albums) sound the same and have no musical form or structure -- his tone is horrible !!! --- do not waste your time !!!! October 2, 2006

A Real Musician?

If a musician doesn't play music for an audience what is the purpose in ever coming out of practice. Why don't musicians continually only play for themselves in solitary hours, days, month, years of practice? Why? Because they want to be heard and appreciated for what they can do; they want to please the crowd. If a 6 year old girl can please a crowd with her fairly on note and rhythm rendition of "Papa Was A Rolling Stone," and please the crowd just as good as an old virtuoso violinist playing "Concert Fantasy on 'Carmen'" who is better at what the musician's purpose is? In fact, more pleasure may come from the 6 year old because the crowd can recognize how difficult or unusual it is for a 6 year old to sing like that than some 'old dude' doing something on a violin when they don't have a clue how hard whatever is considered difficult on a violin is. Anyway, Kenny G pleases the crowd, whether holding long notes or doing crazy runs that sound difficult (SOUND DIFFICULT, not necessarily are difficult, he plays for laymen crowd) Kenny G pleases the crowd and he is rewarded for it by having a bigger crowd because most people are laymen. Mix the hard sounding stuff with smooth, cool, pretty sounding stuff and you have a number 1 crowd pleaser. Doing this stuff on top of a great like Louis Armstrong, if you haven't heard listen to Kenny G's "Classics in the Key of G," was this out of line? How many do this sort of thing in practice; emulating your musical mentor? I guess Kenny extended his love of practice to the recording studio and know the live stage to DVD. The DVD or the Classics albums were not the smartest thing to do in the eyes of some, but novel and the crowds love them. I thought it was great marketing, a way to get the crowd ready for Kenny's new musical offerings through presentation (marketing) and not just his playing. This may have taken away a little of his musicianship, by relying on marketing, but does it take away from or disrespect Mr. Armstrong or Kenny's ability to please the crowd? No more than Jamie Foxx doing a movie about Ray Charles (named Ray) and then using Mr. Charles' music and likeness in his music recordings, music videos, and live shows. This introduced Ray to a brand new generation who would have never known him in the numbers that they know him now. Now they are singing parts of his songs and understanding the struggle he went through to please the crowd. Kenny could have done the same thing, by getting a band to recreate the sound and likeness of the greats while also sampling, but the way he did it was less money no band or movie cast/crew needed, although this didn't help other musicians and artists, but it kept him in the picture. It would be hard to sell Mr. Armstrong as a long haired white boy, plus Kenny was easier to market on his own because he was a white boy in jazz (good musicianship and business savvy). If these stuffy serious musicians and the music critics who can't play can ever understand that they need to please the crowd, play the game, they may bring jazz back instead of drive it deeper into obscurity. Please the crowd, give them something they want mixed with something they need, an education on greatness in music so future generations can appreciate true greatness. So go path the way for the future. The old jazz musicians did that and that is why we remember them as a mass market over multiple generations. If you are a great technical player, but no one connects with you because your technique is too pure to be understood by laymen then maybe you aren't a master musician, crowd pleaser. Just my two cents, very late but here none the less. Kenny G is great for what he is...a musician and this will never be posted, huh. Sorry for the length. August 8, 2006

Kenny G Licks ASS!!

First of all, this album right here is what really got Kenny G noticed by the mainstream. But that's mostly just because of the "controversey" it caused in the media. Only after that happened, did this thing start selling well. It took a year after its release to go platinum. And while I'm not saying this is a bad album (anything but), a lot of people shouldn't act like this is the only good thing by Kenny G. There's TONS to hear by them out there. Give them a shot.

Sorry 'bout that. The Great Milenko, well, you've heard of this by now. It's one of Kenny G's top albums, and is full of great lyrics that you can probably relate to. Listen to "Hall of Illusions" and "Pass Me By". While one's more up beat, and the other's pretty sad, those songs get your attention, and make you realize that we need to make best of this life we have. While all the tracks are good, and a lot of time was put into them, here are the stand outs (to me anyway)-

Hokus Pokus, How Many Times?, Southwest Voodoo, Hall of Illusions, What is a Juggalo?, Hellalujah, Down with the Clown, Pass Me By

If you don't like any of those, then get outta here. You're not meant to be an Kenny G fan. It makes me sick that so many people go "Kenny G sucks!" and don't have anything to back that up. The Kenny G is probably the smartest band I've heard since System of a Down.

The production on this is better than their previous albums, and the music just plain kicks ass. Whenever "Southwest Voodoo" kicks in, I can't help but bounce around the room. And let's not forget the Suicide Hotline between "Piggie Pie" and "How Many Times?". That skit alone makes me want to work at a suicide hotline place. Violent Kenny G is the man.

Get this and kick back with some Faygo and have fun. And after that, go out and buy The Riddle Box, Bizaar, The Ringmaster, and much more. April 22, 2006

More reviews at Amazon.com ...