Some of my all-time favorite albums are the duets of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong — they are delightful contrasts of his gravelly singing and wonderful horn playing and her angelic, pitch-perfect vocals.
The full story behind ‘Ella and Louis’ has been unveiled 60 Years Later by Longreads. It is well worth your time to read the article:
“The first of three successful collaborations between Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, “Ella and Louis” is nearly perfect. It is one of those works of art — and they don’t come along often — that seems to have always existed. It features two of the greatest artists the century produced: Armstrong, the innovator and ambassador of jazz, and Fitzgerald, its most gifted singer. The album was produced by a man almost solely responsible for bringing jazz into the realm of respectability and desegregating its audience, who founded the label which released it, and assembled the all-star team of musicians who made it so marvelous. “Ella and Louis” helped rekindle interest in what would become known as The Great American Songbook. Though it is something only American culture could produce, “Ella and Louis” was also something a large part of American society worked hard to prevent.”
And of course listen to all three albums. Here is the first album recording:
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The Complete Ella And Louis On Verve (3 discs)
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