Along with Billie Holiday and other contemporaries like Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald was one of the great singers to emerge from the golden age of jazz singing as a premier exponent of an art form which often crossed over into the popular music world, although this crossover very rarely compromised the artistic integrity with which we associate them. This collection traces the first decade of Ella’s recording career, starting with Chick Webb and His Orchestra, and including tracks she recorded with the Teddy Wilson and Benny Goodman bands, plus the tracks she recorded during that time with her own Savoy Eight. It follows through with the recordings when she took over with Ella Fitzgerald’s Famous Orchestra after Chick Webb died, and also has some slightly later work with artists the Inkspots and Delta Rhythm Boys. It shows her development from talented but inexperienced band singer to versatile star adept at delivering a range of material with maturity and subtlety. It is a fascinating and always entertaining musical journey. Comprising 100 tracks on a 4-CD collection, this is a comprehensive and coherent overview of the formative era in the career of one of the great jazz vocalists. This collection comprises all the tracks previously available on the five Acrobat CDs “The Legendary Ella Fitzgerald” Volumes 1-5 (ACRCD106-110).
