Listening for the “changes”: An Ella Fitzgerald albums guide

In celebration of Judith Tick’s fabulous 2024 biography Becoming Ella Fitzgerald I curated this listening guide to albums and compilations of the great singer’s recorded works for my readers. Enjoy! Vincent

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Ella Fitzgerald (1917-96) was the ultimate jazz crossover singer—an artist with the chops, skills and credibility to influence a whole generation of musicians and who possessed the vocal warmth, interpretive scope and likable persona to appeal to a wide range of listeners. Fitzgerald recorded as a big band singer and eventually the leader of the Chick Webb Orchestra during the mid-1930s-1940s before going solo. Her Decca Recordings with Webb were often novelty songs sung with a vocal agility and rhythmic zest that made them classics anyhow. During the mid-1940s she began absorbing the vocabulary of bebop and gradually transformed her style. Her two 10” albums of Gershwin tunes and pop standards (“Imagination,” “My Heart Belongs to Daddy”) recorded with pianist Ellis Larkins in 1950 and 1954, respectively (combined on Pure Ella) represented a turning point in her career revealing greater interpretive depths than her earlier material indicated. 

Fitzgerald reached her artistic zenith under the management of Norman Granz who realized Fitzgerald’s immense talent and aimed to make her a premier concert performer and recording artist of the album medium. From 1956-1964 Fitzgerald recorded songbook albums of the finest American composers including Rodgers & Hart, Porter, Ellington, Gershwin, Berlin, Arlen, Mercer and Kern at Verve. These sets demonstrated she was capable of handling everything from a swing tune with a small group to the finest of songs with a string orchestra. Besides the Songbooks she recorded loosely themed but musically accomplished sets at Verve in big band, orchestral and small jazz group formats. A key highlight of this period were her stellar concert albums where her improvisational genius and rapport with the best jazz musicians stunned audiences and generated signatures, most notably 1960’s live hit “Mack the Knife.”

From 1967-70 Fitzgerald recorded mostly uneven sets including a country flavored album at Capitol and two sets of contemporary tunes at Reprise that were mostly a poor fit. In the 1970s Fitzgerald maintained her triumphant touring schedule and had a recording rebirth thanks to Granz’s new label Pablo. There she recorded a series of concert albums, intimate small group sessions, voice and guitar albums with Joe Pass, swing dates with Count Basie, new Gershwin and Porter songbooks and a set of Jobim songs, among others. Though she experienced natural declines in vocal range and flexibility, and experienced health setbacks, her prime Pablo material remained impressive, especially for a singer with five decades of experience, and earned her five Grammy Awards.

Fitzgerald’s storied career has inspired multiple generations of musicians, including Patti Austin, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Regina Carter, and Ann Hampton Callaway who recorded acclaimed tributes to her, as well as multiple biographies and a documentary. Her catalog remains in print in the digital era, and reissues of unreleased material and rarities continue to surface indicting ongoing interest in her artistry.

RECOMMENDED ALBUMS:

Fitzgerald was a remarkably prolific recording artist whose recording career spanned from 1936-1989. Rather than organizing her albums chronologically I organize them by type including songbooks, ballad and big band sets, and live albums.

The Songbooks Fitzgerald recorded at Verve are essential to understanding American interpretive singing. Each showcases Fitzgerald’s carefully curated versions of the most canonical American popular songwriters of the 1910s-1950s.

Songbooks

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook (1956)

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook (1957)

Fitzgerald’s first two Songbook albums Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook (1956) and Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook (1957) are ambitious double albums that ushered her into the pop mainstream as a mature interpreter and popular album seller.  By definition these sets of standards, orchestrated by Buddy Bregman, are aimed more at a pop audience and best considered pop albums with swing elements that showcase the songs themselves, than all out-jazz recordings. Rather than emphasizing instrumental soloing or her improvisational prowess they depict Fitzgerald’s deft musical skills and her cool, disciplined approach to lyrics bathed in unobtrusive arrangements.

As an interpreter she sounds more interested in capturing the mood and rhythmic demands of Porter’s material than fully plumbing their urbanity and sensuality.  Still her ability to convey his essence is impressive. Even when Bregman’s orchestrations become predictable Fitzgerald and the songs are engaging. Fitzgerald and Bregman repeated their approach on the Rodgers & Hart set which maintains the laidback pop-jazz feel of the Porter set but is more heavily weighted toward balladry. Over time Fitzgerald varied her approach to the Songbook series and grew into a more arresting interpreter.

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook

Fitzgerald was at her vocal peak during the late 1950s and early 1960s so the primary differences among the songbooks are the interpretive qualities the songs evoke from Fitzgerald and the arrangement choices. All of the Songbooks feature swing elements balanced with ballads however the most overtly jazz-oriented is Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook (1957). Recorded with the Ellington Orchestra she is in excellent form including classic scat vocals on “Cottontail” and “Rockin’ in Rhythm,” lovely interpretations of ballads like “Azure,” “Just-a-Sittin’-and-a-Rockin’” “Sophisticated Lady,” and hard swinging versions of Ellingtonia like “It Don’t Mean a Thing” and “Take the ‘A’ Train.” There are also several custom compositions including the “E and D Blues” and a concluding Ellington-Strayhorn suite.

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Irving Berlin Songbook

On the 1958 Irving Berlin set Paul Weston’s orchestrations mix plush balladry and light swing more memorably than her initial forays with Bregman. In terms of vocal performance Berlin’s songs require Fitzgerald to be more of an actress especially given the showbiz roots of songs like “Puttin’ on the Ritz” and “Alexander’s Ragtime Band.” She is freer to interpret on swing dance standards like “Cheek to Cheek” and “Let’s Face the Music and Dance.”

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Gershwin Songbook (my personal favorite)

The Nelson Riddle-helmed Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Gershwin Songbook (1959) is perhaps the definitive set of Gershwin interpretations including perennials like “I Got Rhythm” and “Someone to Watch Over Me,” lesser known songs such as “Clap Yo’ Hands” and “By Strauss” and a few never performed Gershwin tunes. Riddle’s supple arrangements and Fitzgerald’s mastery of mood and balanced approach to lyrics make this one of her most versatile sets, and a masterwork of American popular singing. 

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Songbook

1961’s Arlen set, orchestrated by swing band arranger Billy May, is impressively eclectic and well-paced based on the composer’s versatility. On the double album Fitzgerald is quite convincing as a swinger (“That Old Black Magic”), a torch balladeer (“The Man That Got Away”), and blues stylist (“Blues in the Night”). May manages to create a near perfect balance of moods, rhythms, and tones.

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Jerome Kern Songbook

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer Songbook

Her last two Verve songbooks are lean single albums that encapsulate Fitzgerald’s well-earned stature as the premier interpreter of American popular songs.  1963’s Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Jerome Kern Songbook was arranged by Riddle and features stellar performances of challenging ballads like “All the Things You Are” and light swingers like “Hard to Handle.” Elsewhere Riddle takes risks with tempo and arrangements of standard material that Fitzgerald tackles impressively.  The Marty Paich-orchestrated Johnny Mercer Songbook is a sublime recording.  The deep serenity she achieves on “Midnight Sun” and “I Remember You” features her at her most romantic. She also effortlessly soars on “Day in Day Out” and “Something’s Gotta Give.”

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Ballads and Bands Albums:

Fitzgerald’s vast improvisational skills can sometimes overshadow her professed love of classic American ballads. Several sets highlight her delicate touch with her favorite ballads.

Pure Ella

Ella Fitzgerald’s transition from a swinging “girl singer” to a more mature artist is showcased on Pure Ella which compiles a 1950 Gershwin collection and 1954 standards album. Both albums are ballad-oriented sets recorded with the masterfully spare pianist Ellis Larkins. These recordings demonstrate the sustained lyricism, serenity and polish she was capable of achieving with quality material during this early phase of her career.

Like Someone in Love

One of her most mellow ballad collections is the Frank DeVol arranged Like Someone in Love (1957) a lush set exclusively comprised of romantic ballads like “How Long Has This Been Going On?” and “More Than You Know” bathed in strings. Fitzgerald’s performance is typically smooth and graceful if a bit predictable. The lush arrangements often blend together, but this is a good representation of traditional romantic 1950s pop.

Intimate Ella

1960’s Intimate Ella, a piano-voice duet with Paul Smith is a torch masterpiece with subtle, affecting renditions of blue-tinged ballads like “Angel Eyes,” “Then You’ve Never Been Blue,” and “I Can’t Give You Anything but Love.” 

Ella Swings Brightly with Nelson

Ella Swings Gently with Nelson

Fitzgerald’s best ballad performances are featured frequently in lush orchestral and big band settings mixed with a few mid-tempo songs for balance. Her two strongest sets in this vein are her Nelson Riddle collaborations 1961’s Ella Swings Brightly with Nelson and 1962’s Ella Swings Gently with Nelson. On both sets she delivers standards like “Love Me or Leave Me,” “Mean to Me” (Brightly) “Sweet and Slow,” and “Body and Soul” (Gently) with an almost disarming ease and seamlessness. Her approach is sometimes so steady and even toned she barely hints at the ache of some of the darker material but these are mostly model performances in plush, tight arrangements.

Ella & Oscar (my personal favorite)

During her tenure at Pablo Records she and pianist Oscar Peterson returned to the voice-piano format for the electrifying Ella & Oscar (1975), with occasional assists from bassist Ray Brown. Though her voice had lost a touch of lightness her ballad performances are consistently emotive and compelling, with several scat solos, and the trio cooks on a stellar 8:39 minute version of “April in Paris.”

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Concert Albums:

Alongside her lengthy discography of studio sessions Fitzgerald has recorded numerous concert albums. These concert sets consistently showcase Fitzgerald’s warm rapport, easygoing charm and skillful, commanding performances. Some of her most well-known performances include 1957’s “Oh, Lady Be Good” from Ella Fitzgerald at the Opera House, and “Mack the Knife” and “How High the Moon” from 1961’s Mack the Knife: The Complete Ella in Berlin.

Ella in Rome: The Birthday Concert (my personal favorite)

Arguably her best single concert album is 1958’s Ella in Rome: The Birthday Concert a recording discovered and released in 1988.  Singing a wide range of material at age 40 with over 20 years of recording experience she gives some of the most seamless, inspired and technically proficient performances of her career—a considerable feat. Every performance is exemplary however some of the standouts include a swinging six minute “St. Louis Blues,” with a superb extended solo, a touching full-bodied “I Loves You Porgy,” and definitive interpretations of “Just Squeeze Me,” “Sophisticated Lady,” and “These Foolish Things.”

Mack the Knife: The Complete Ella in Berlin

The Berlin set is a superb synthesis of her diverse skills. It features refined versions of standard ballads and swingers from her albums including songs long featured in Fitzgerald’s repertoire (“The Man I Love,” “Our Love is Here to Stay,” “That Old Black Magic”). She also gives confident, freewheeling performances of “Mack” and “How High the Moon” with improvised lyrics. Her humorous audience rapport and deep chemistry with her band are the work of a singer at her most comfortable.

Live at Mr. Kelly’s

In 2008 Norman Granz finally brought two live gems to light including Live at Mr. Kelly’s and the single disc Ella in Hamburg. Mr. Kelly’s is a double-disc of two separate nights and a succinct summation of Fitzgerald at her best. Its selections include superb ballad performances including her take on Sinatra standards “In the Wee Small Hours” and “Witchcraft,” and a tender version of “Summertime.” Quirky numbers like a “Joe Williams’ Blues” medley and a reprise of the Mills Brothers’ “Across the Alley from the Alamo” also demonstrate her prowess and humor.

Ella in Japan

2011 saw the release of the legendarily unreleased Ella in Japan, a double-disc set of Fitzgerald’s two 1964 live performances in Japan. Recorded during her peak years she is in perfect voice and her improvisations are as limber as ever. Though there are signatures like “Undecided” and “Misty” this is a refreshing set with live renditions of standards like “I’ve Got You Under my Skin” and “Cheek to Cheek,” as well as more recent fare she recorded on her 1960s albums like “Hallelujah I Love Him So,” and “Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man.” There is also an unusual number of blues tunes including a humorous “Bill Bailey” (featuring imitations of Sophie Tucker, Della Reese, and Pearl Bailey) and “Joe Williams’s Blues.” Most impressive are a series of scat numbers and a nearly 11-minute jam session.    

RECOMMENDED ANTHOLOGIES:

Fitzgerald is one of popular music’s most frequently anthologized artists. Capturing her essence can be done efficiently through judicious attention to quality. There is a flood of Fitzgerald anthologies so sticking to ones issued by her labels Decca and Verve is the safest bet.

DECCA RECORDS COMPILATIONS

Since the 1990s her Decca recordings have been remastered and compiled very intelligently in boxed sets, double disc compilations, and single disc sets. Because she as primarily a singles artist at Decca compilations are a good way to understand her output during its period.

Ella: The Legendary Decca Recordings

Best of Ella Fitzgerald

The War Years

Listeners seeking to capture the range of her Decca output are well-served by the four-disc boxed set Ella: The Legendary Decca Recordings. The essence of her Decca years is well summarized on GRP/Decca’s Best of Ella Fitzgerald an excellent one-disc introduction to her signature hits like “A-Tisket, A-Tasket,” “Mr Paganini” and the scat classics “Flying Home” and “Airmail Special.”  Fitzgerald’s lovely voice and fluid improvisational style stand out, even on slight material.  The 43-song double-disc The War Years features some overlap with the Best but also provides a more detailed arc of her movement away from pop toward hushed balladry and bop-influenced swing.

VERVE RECORDS COMPILATIONS

Her Verve discography is so vast and diverse in scope understanding it requires a few choice collections organized thematically.  I recommend purchasing collections themed around the songbooks, her duets with Louis Armstrong, and commercial singles.

Ella Fitzgerald: First Lady of Song

This 1993 three-disc set provides an excellent overview of Fitzgerald’s eclectic and innovative recordings at the label. It is highly likely to inspire listeners to check out some of her best individual sets recorded at Verve; some of my favorites are her swing era tribute Ella Swings Lightly (1958); the small group set Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie! (1961), and her Count Basie collaboration Ella & Basie (1963).

The Very Best of the Songbooks

Listeners curious about Fitzgerald’s ambitious Verve songbooks will enjoy 2006’s 22 song double-disc sampler of her eight songbook albums. Her renditions are so consistently excellent you eventually will want to purchase them individually based on your interest in the respective composers.

Jukebox Ella

Verve’s 2003 two-disc collection Jukebox Ella is a completist’s delight which features rare Verve singles from 1956-67 never released on CD and often never released in the U.S.  Though hardly essential it features some very charming performances including “Beale Street Blues,” “Too Young for the Blues,” warm and funny live versions of “Ol’ Man Mose” and “Bill Bailey Won’t You Please Come Home” and her renditions of 1960s fare like “Desifinado” and “The Shadow of Your Smile.” The set is weighed down by novelty songs (“Hotta Chocolatta”), some ephemeral ‘60s era songs with dated arrangements and random (though fun!) Christmas songs. Fitzgerald fans will delight in the rarities but the best performances would make for a fine single disc.  

Cheek to Cheek: The Complete Duet Recordings—Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong

Fitzgerald loved to collaborate and various duets are featured on compilations including those with Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five and the Ink Spots on Decca’s Best of.  Her most famous and complementary duet partner, however, was Louis Armstrong whom she recorded 1956’s Ella and Louis, 1957’s Ella and Louis Again, and 1959’s Porgy & Bess at Verve. Armstrong’s raspy character voice and Fitzgerald’s silken tone made them one of the most beloved and influential vocal pairs in popular music. The essential Cheek to Cheek collects these three classic duet albums as well as duets they recorded at Decca and some live versions of their duets.

Something to Live For

1999’s double-disc compilation Something to Live For (a companion to a PBS documentary) offers a sample of Fitzgerald’s Decca and Verve years

PABLO RECORDS COMPILATIONS

Fitzgerald recorded for Pablo Records from 1973-83 capping a recording career begun in the mid-1930s. Her best recordings from this era are best experienced in their original individual form rather than the perfunctory compilation the label issued in 1988. Highlights include intimate jam sessions like 1975’s excellent Ella & Oscar and 1979’s Fine and Mellow; the highly enjoyable songbooks 1978’s Dream Dancing (a Cole Porter songbook) and 1980’s Ella Abraça Jobim: Ella Sings the Antonio Carlos Jobim Songbook; and several fine live albums, notably 1974’s Ella in London and Ella Fitzgerald at the Montreux Jazz Festival recorded in 1975 with Tommy Flanagan, Ketter Betts, and Bobby Durham.

The Concert Years

For a comprehensive overview of Fitzgerald’s electrifying concert style over the decades, the four-disc The Concert Years is a superb collection (released on Pablo) covering a wide range of settings (Tokyo, Stockholm, New York, Nice, London) arrangements (trios, quartets, quintets, big bands), songs and eras spanning 1953-83. Fitzgerald is featured with some of jazz’s premier musicians including the Duke Ellington and Count Basie Orchestras, pianists Tommy Flanagan, Oscar Peterson, and Paul Smith, bassist Ray Brown, and guitarists Herb Ellis and Joe Pass. She also tackles an impressive range of songs including ballads, swingers, blues, bossa novas and post-1960s pop, and is an entertaining presence throughout in some of vocal jazz’s finest live recordings.

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Please enjoy this Spotify playlist sampling Fitzgerald’s career from 1935-89:

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