Ordinary Time

Editorial Reviews
From the Artist
After reflecting upon the years I spent in the group St. Surreal, building my earthen vessel, I am reminded of the immortal words of the late Basil Hume who said, "If at first you don't succeed, try to hide your astonishment." Ironically, the more oppressive the task became, the more determined we (St. Surreal) became as well, and somewhere along our strange journey in search of freedom, I discovered that real freedom is achieved in the obedience that we give to the demands of our own conscience. Even if this means being criticized, misrepresented, misunderstood, and the one that hurts most, thought of as a complete disaster, there is still no better way to grow in spirit.

The break up of my group St. Surreal, although quite natural, came as a moment of great catastrophe in my life, and since then I have learned that moments of great catastrophe are often the eves of spiritual renaissance. Perhaps because it is in the exhaustion of defeat that we are not capable of defending the ramparts of our egos, and thus the soul becomes humbled and prepared to receive help from God, who speaks to us in that place where we stand alone.

About the Artist
Bert Hill, a native Californian, spent his early life devoted to music, martial arts and aviation. Bert credits his fantastical childhood experiences to his parents and the generosity of John Lennon. Bert's father was Lennon's chauffeur in Los Angeles (1970) and helped Hill to start his own limousine company. With the means from the limousine company, Bert was exposed to a breadth of education and experiences that he considers to be a unique part of his musical foundation. In 1977, Bert formed... read more

Album Description
Ordinary Time is about giving value and priority to the small tasks in life. A devotion to the idea that it is not how much you do in life that is important but how much love you put into doing it. As portrayed in good foreign films, truth and beauty often reside in the anonymous, the simple, and the ordinary.

The album is 43 minutes in length. The tempo is slow and tranquil. Among the instruments are an assortment of guitars, piano, organ, banjo, harmonica, accordion and some percussion. Ten ballads that can be seen as well as heard like an intimate collection of paintings beginning in the Italian school followed by a homage to the French impressionists and coming to a rest in the pioneer spirit forged by American soul.

Ordinary Time

Average customer rating:

Michel Legrand
Sunlight on his fingertips
all the stars you've got
Maestro Legrand , at last !
For Jazz piano purest... Only!

Michel Legrand by Michel Legrand

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Michel Plays Legrand
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Summer of 42

ASIN: B00005YW0W
Release Date: 2002-04-16

Tracks:

I Will Wait For You
The Windmills Of Your Mind
The Summer Knows
How Do You Keep The Music Playing?
Watch What Happens
What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life?
His Eyes, Her Eyes
The Hands Of Time
Ordinary Man
Summer Me, Winter Me
You Must Believe In Spring
Once Upon A Summertime
L'Amour Fantome
Yentl Medley: Papa Can You Hear Me/The Way He Makes Me Feel/A Piece Of Sky

Amazon.com

If the American pop culture profile of French composer-jazz pianist Michel Legrand doesn't seem what it once was, don't be misled: his European indie film scores continue six decades on, now numbering nearly 200. But Legrand's most beloved work remains the lovely, evocative themes he created in the '60s and '70s, including "I Will Wait for You" from The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, The Thomas Crown Affair's "Windmills of Your Mind," the theme from Summer of '42, and his work on Barbra Streisand's Yentl. This collection marks Legrand's first solo piano recordings, presenting those and other film score highlights in spontaneously improvised performances that offer a glimpse of Legrand's musical soul. If, as in "Windmills," his enthusiasm gets the best of him and he occasionally lapses into flights of melodramatic pianistic self-parody, there are more than enough sublime moments here to compensate, especially on lesser-known songs like Best Friends' "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?," "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?" from The Happy Ending, and Brian's Song's "Hands of Time." --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews:

Michel Legrand.......2007-03-12

This is a great CD! Sound is awesome. I highly recommend it.

Sunlight on his fingertips.......2005-08-10

Sunlight on his fingertips

The very bright talent of Michele Legrand you can feel especially when Maestro is playing piano himself.

I heard some orchestra performance of Legrand before, that was good, but I was still thinking about him just like about pop music composer.

Now I think different - he is Genius!

all the stars you've got.......2005-01-29

Bill Evans once said that technique in jazz "is the ability to translate your ideas into sound through your instrument." If that's the case, Legrand possesses technique in spades.

Before commenting on this rewarding disc, a few words about Legrand himself:

Is there a better songwriter or a more versatile all-around musican alive today? I think you have to go back to people like Gershwin and Billy Strayhorn to find a rough parallel to Legrand's multifaceted, genre-crossing genius. A pupil of Nadia Boulanger (who studied with Faure and taught many important American composers, including Aaron Copland and Philip Glass), Legrand is an heir of the great French tradition of music--but one who has chosen to express himself through popular songs, film scores, and jazz. He possesses that rare combination of an absolutely rigorous theoretical knowledge of music and an intuitive, spontaneous instinct for both melody and improvisation. He combines exquisite refinement with a popular touch, a need to communicate directly with all who love music. To me, his work represents the most perfect expression of such typically French traits as lightness, insouciance, wit, melodic charm, and direct emotional expression since Poulenc.

Here you'll find many of Legrand's signature songs--"I Will Wait for You," "The Windmills of Your Mind," "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?," "The Hands of Time," "You Must Believe in Spring," etc.--reharmonized and enriched in stunningly beautiful solo recreations. Those unfamiliar with Legrand's pianistic abilities will probably be surprised by what they hear, for he's no part-time piano tickler. He can easily hold his own in the company of the best modern jazz pianists. He has a wonderfully refined touch that is incapable of making a harsh sound and a profusive sense of fantasy that keeps you constantly guessing as to where the music will go next. Yet you always feel satisfied when you find out, because Legrand possesses a composer's comprehension of harmony and form. And his own style is in no way compromised by an occasional nod here and there toward Bill Evans, Erroll Garner, Rachmaninoff, and so on. (Please: disregard the Amazon reviewer's remark about "flights of melodramatic pianistic self-parody." It's called a stride chorus, and it's just one example of Legrand's surprising way of recasting these songs--and of his encyclopedic command of jazz styles.)

This disc represents the essence of Legrand. It really should have been recorded a long time ago, but the fact that it has captured his undiminished abilities as he enters his twilight years lends it an added poignance--a sense of "just in time!"--that makes it all the sweeter. If you're already a Legrand fan, it should be a self-recommending treasure, and if you're a fan of great piano playing or of sophisticated jazz treatments of great songs, odds are you'll find this a very rewarding disc indeed. For me, the highlight is this version of "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?" in which every note seems inevitable--not at all an easy thing to make happen in an improvisation.

Miles Davis once said of a Duke Ellington recording, "Give that one all the stars you've got." That's the way I feel about this disc, and I thought that phrase "all the stars you've got" was appropriate because it almost sounds like the title of a Legrand song.

Maestro Legrand , at last !.......2004-10-10

Legrand has recorded at last one of his more intimate renditions to himself with his most remarkable themes along his brilliant career .
From a summer of 42 , The windmills of your mind (The Thomas crown afair) , what are you doing the rest of your life or the romantic Umbrellas of Cherbourg ; all those unforgettable themes are played in this album for piano solo in the real intimacy between him and the listener .
Legrand is the golden master of soundtracks in France and one of the top in the world . He owns that inner vision to catch the spirit of every movie he accompains . He composes music as he was a real director movie . The psychological concerns , the romantic efluvies and the precise and lyrical atmosphere , with that touch of class, artistic elegance and sublime eloquency .
Think also in the important recordings with Miles Davis . That issue will give you the size of that artist and anothe point to remark . In 1954 , Legrand made a golden jewel : I lvoe Paris (See my review) that has become through the years in the most famous and the best album of instrumental music ever recorded .
What other background do you need to acquire this gem ?

For Jazz piano purest... Only!.......2002-09-07

I love the music of Michele Legrand! It is a rich mixture of
graceful tones and notes, that create memories of a certain
time and place in each of our own lives.
When accompaned with great orchestration Its wonderful. When done in a jazz piano style, its not as good. Not to take anyting away from the talents of Mr Legrand as a pianist. Its just that like hearing a lusher, grander version of his music. So if you like jazz piano music, and Michele Legrand.
Then this is the cd for you!

Average customer rating:

The songs stand on their own
Sounds Very Good
Nice remix but nothing outstanding
MY FAIR LADY SOUNDTRACK FINALLY GIVEN ITS DUE ON SACD

My Fair Lady

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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My Fair Lady (1956 Original Broadway Cast)
South Pacific (1958 Film Soundtrack)

ASIN: B00005J9XS
Release Date: 2001-05-22

Tracks:

Overture
Why Can't the English? - Alan Jay Lerner,
Wouldn't It Be Loverly?
I'm an Ordinary Man
With a Little Bit of Luck
Just You Wait
Rain in Spain
I Could Have Danced All Night
Ascot Gavotte
On the Street Where You Live - Orchestra African Fiesta
You Did It - Rex Harrison, , Wilfried Hyde-White,
Get Me to the Church on Time
Hymn to Him - Isobel Elsom, Marni Nixon
Without You
I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face - Stanley Holloway
Embassy Waltz [*] - Marni Nixon
You Did It - Rex Harrison, Marni Nixon
Just You Wait (Reprise) - Rex Harrison
On the Street Where You Live (Reprise)
Show Me
Flower Market
Get Me to the Church on Time
Hymn to Him
Without You
I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face
End Titles
Exit Music

Customer Reviews:

The songs stand on their own.......2006-05-27

Many people can associate this sound track with the movie, "My Fair Lady" that was that is a film version of Bernard Shaw's play "Pygmalion". This is a classic musical with many well known songs by Lerner and Loewe.

However unlike many musicals the songs have a life of their own. Even though they matched the story perfectly, they are they type of songs that one could instantly blurt out in the thrill of the moment. I my self found that "On the Street Where you live" matched perfectly when I was in love in my youth.

Sounds Very Good.......2006-05-16

This album and CD format sound very good. I was quite pleased. THE RAIN IN SPAIN and ON THE STREET WHERE YOU LIVE are favorites of mine. I am glad this soundtrack got a top notch presentation. Well worth the wait.

Nice remix but nothing outstanding.......2004-03-06

After reading one review that gave this recording five stars I purchased it. Although it probably is a better recording than past CDs - don't expect the sound of a modern recording. A couple of the songs are very much clearer, but over-all I did not find this recording to be a revelation.

MY FAIR LADY SOUNDTRACK FINALLY GIVEN ITS DUE ON SACD.......2001-08-02

Warner Bros' 1964 film version of My Fair Lady, Lerner and Loewe's brilliant musical adaptation of Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, is a genuine motion picture classic, fully worthy of all the awards and praise it has garnered since it's release nearly forty years ago.

My Fair Lady boasted a discrete 6 track stereophonic sound mix, which was state of the art for it's time and still probably sounds better than the majority of today's pictures.

This new SACD format CD offers the best sonic presentation of this soundtrack ever made available to the music buying public. With this release Sony has corrected a horrible injustice done to My Fair Lady in its previous CD. Gone is the sloppy editing of bits and pieces of meaningless dialogue excerpts and intrusive Foley effects, which served only to show the total lack of respect the producers had for these performances. While this SACD is not completely free of such tampering, this time the small amount of dialogue is beautifully edited and serves properly as lead in to the songs. Unlike the original LP release the extended versions of all the songs are presented here, along with The Embassy Waltz and the Entr'acte music.

I won't get into the debate over Audrey Hepburn's casting except to say that at this point in time Julie Andrews, although obviously a better singer than Hepburn and probably wonderful on the stage, could not have even come close to the level of brilliance displayed by Audrey Hepburn in this role on the screen.

Unfortunately precious little of Hepburn's superb performance is to be heard on this SACD, which leaves us with a debate over how Marni Nixon, Hepburn's vocal double, compares to Julie Andrews. Other than the fact that her Cockney accent is not so great, Nixon acquits herself quite admirably in the role, although I believe that Hepburn should have been allowed to do more of the singing with Nixon stepping in vocally when the going got rough, such as she did for Deborah Kerr in The King and I. But even so, Marni Nixon is arguably every bit as good a singer as Julie Andrews and performs the songs beautifully.

Add to that the fact that this soundtrack offers Rex Harrison's most polished performance of Professor Henry Higgins and since his songs were recorded live at the time of filming, there is a spontinenity in them lacking in the Broadway and particularly in the London Cast Recordings.

Stanley Holloway performs his songs with much more zest in this recording as well. But the greatest improvements over the original are the outstanding orchestral arrangements and conducting by Andre Previn assisted by Robert Tucker's excellent choral work. The brassy, puny orchestras and shrill choruses on all other recordings pale by comparison.

Still, the Original 1956 Broadway Cast Recording should be a part of any serious music lover's collection, if only to savor Julie Andrews' sterling vocal performance as the original Eliza Doolittle. The 1964 soundtrack reviewed here should be equally enjoyed on its own merits, as mentioned above, and for allowing one to hear in brilliant stereo sound a more complete and better orchestrated version of Lerner and Loewe's musical masterpiece.

Now if only Sony would go back and correct another major injustice by redoing the horribly mutilated expanded CD soundtrack of West Side Story as well.

My Fair Lady (1959 Original London Cast)
Average customer rating:

Precise, pointed and peerless !!!

the "Fair Lady" in London...

My Fair Lady again?

Broadway vs London vs Movie

It's good but,..

My Fair Lady (1959 Original London Cast)
Alan Jay Lerner
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000007OHU
Release Date: 1998-06-02

Tracks:

Act I: Overture
Act I: Why Can't The English?
Act I: Wouldn't It Be Loverly
Act I: With A Little Bit Of Luck
Act I: I'm An Ordinary Man
Act I: Just You Wait
Act I: The Rain In Spain
Act I: I Could Have Danced All Night
Act I: Ascot Gavotte
Act I: On The Street Where You Live
Act II: You Did It
Act II: Show Me
Act II: Get Me To The Church On Time
Act II: A Hymn To Him
Act II: Without You
Act II: I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face
The Embassy Waltz

Amazon.com

My Fair Lady is without question one of the greatest shows ever created for the musical theater. It's a charming, hilarious, and touching adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, pitting flower girl Eliza Doolittle against Prof. Henry Higgins, the self-absorbed and ill-tempered linguist who bets that he can turn her into a lady by improving her diction. Lerner and Loewe's score includes some of the best-loved songs in the canon: "Why Can't the English," "Wouldn't It Be Loverly," "The Rain in Spain," "I Could Have Danced All Night," "On the Street Where You Live," "Get Me to the Church on Time," and "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face," among others. The 1959 London-cast stereo recording is generally held in lower regard than its Broadway counterpart, recorded three years earlier in mono. But why quibble? The principals are all the same--Rex Harrison as Higgins, Julie Andrews as Eliza, Stanley Holloway as her dad, and Robert Coote as Col. Pickering (Leonard Weir replaced Michael King as Freddy Einsford-Hill)--and it's still a classic recording in its own right that you'll treasure for years. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

Precise, pointed and peerless !!!.......2007-01-03

One listen to the London original cast recording of My Fair Lady and you know why this CD still sells. Despite the decades, the recording sounds fresh, clear and crisp. There is no background noise on this CD! Moreover, the songs by Lerner and Loewe are brilliantly composed and the lyrics are clever, witty and poignant. This CD proves it.

The CD opens with the overture to the musical stage play and then goes right into the first song entitled "Why Can't The English?" More spoken than sung by Rex Harrison, "Why Can't The English" fleshes out his character's lament that too many British people don't speak English well. The melody is catchy and the lyrics are funny at times even if some of the humor is dated.

The lesser educated British have their say in the next number, "Wouldn't It Be Loverly." In this song, sung by Julie Andrews as Eliza Doolittle with male backup singers and a chorus of whistlers, demonstrates how these persons really do want to lead a much more sophisticated life with more luxuries.

Other great songs on this CD include the rousing "Get Me To The Church On Time" sung by the memorable Stanley Holloway; the beautiful love ballad "On The Street Where You Live" performed by Leonard Weir; "I Could Have Danced All Night" which is performed flawlessly by Julie Andrews who belts out those incredibly high notes; and "The Rain In Spain" delivered by Julie Andrews, Rex Harrison and Robert Coote. Excellent!

One especially amusing song is entitled "A Hymn To Him" performed mostly by Rex Harrison with some assistance from Robert Coote. The violins at the beginning of this number are beautiful in the musical arrangement.

The CD concludes with a extra bonus monophonic track of the waltz music for the scene in which Henry Higgins takes Eliza Doolittle to the Embassy ball. "The Embassy Waltz," conducted by Percy Faith, offers a beautiful musical arrangement that leaves you wanting more--so don't be surprised if you get the urge to play the CD all over again from the very beginning and enjoy it once more.

The musical arrangements are carefully planned and executed throughout; only Lerner and Loewe were capable of producing such a fine score to go with this stage play. The tempo of the score is faster overall than it was for the original Broadway production; this is especially evident in the opening notes of the overture. Nevertheless, it all works brilliantly.

The liner notes boast terrific black and white photos of the actors in the stage play along with a special color photo of Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison. Didier C. Deutsch contributes a lengthy essay about the history and production of My Fair Lady as well.

The music and lyrics to the original London cast recording of My Fair Lady are timeless. Even today, more than four decades later, the soundtrack still sells well. The musical is one with which many people can identify as it illustrates through words and music the blossoming love affair between Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle. Indeed, the story and the music add to the enchantment as we realize that even Higgins and Doolittle themselves are unaware of the full power of their mutual attraction until the very end of the stage play. My Fair Lady will remain a classic musical; and the score to the stage play on this album is priceless. May you enjoy this soundtrack as much as I did!

the "Fair Lady" in London..........2006-09-23

In 1956, Lerner and Loewe's MY FAIR LADY swept into Broadway and quickly captured the hearts of critics and audiences alike, the perfect transformation of George Bernard Shaw's play "Pygmalion" into the world of the musical theatre. Both Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews played the show for two years on Broadway before yielding to replacements (Edward Mulhare and Sally Ann Howes), and in 1959 traveled across the pond to headline the London company. The show opened at the Drury Lane Theatre in April 1959, and ran for 2,281 performances.

While both Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison had laid down their definitive performances as Eliza Doolittle and Prof. Henry Higgins for the 1956 original Broadway cast album of MY FAIR LADY, the subsequent 1959 London production allowed them to record another album, in the brand-new stereophonic format.

Despite this 1959 recording having a sweeter sound than the earlier 1956 mono album, this sadly remains the lesser of the two, because a lot of the energy and flash had disappeared from Julie Andrews' voice in the years she had performed the role. On the Broadway album, Andrews gives a rich performance that runs the gamut from cockney guttersnipe to regal high society, but comparing the two albums directly, she does not sound at her optimal best on the London set. Andrews has acknowledged that she found the role of Eliza both physically and vocally exhausting, even more so because of the lack of body-mikes, and the projection must have been gruelling at times. No wonder that so much of the bloom in Andrews' voice had vanished by the time she reprised her role in London. Despite Andrews, the album does have a few merits including breezy orchestrations under the direction of Cyril Ornadel (the Overture is given a much faster tempo than is heard on the Broadway set).

The supporting cast includes Stanley Holloway (also reprising his Broadway role) as Eliza's dustman father Alfie. The role of Freddy is played by Leonard Weir (his "On the Street Where You Live" is very charming), and Robert Coote also repeats his Broadway role as Colonel Pickering.

The 1959 London cast of MY FAIR LADY, just like the 1956 Broadway album, has never been out of the catalogue, though the confusion between the two albums still exists, despite the fact that the London album sports a gold-brown cover and the Broadway album is white. Sony Broadway Masterworks' edition features a bonus track of the "Embassy Waltz", a mono recording from 1956.

My Fair Lady again?.......2005-06-04

I have heard the Columbia Masterworks recording of this show as it was produced in Isreal. Same orchestrations, different lyrics! In Hebrew of course. I wish it were still available.

Broadway vs London vs Movie.......2003-10-02

Let's begin by comparing both the Broadway and London scores to the 1964 movie soundtrack-- actually there is no comparison! Both Broadway and London surpass the movie recording by far, only demonstrating the HUGE mistake Hollywood made by not casting Julie Andrews as Eliza Doolittle. Andrews' purely delightful soprano voice and perfect diction cannot even be compared to Marni Nixon's voice dubbing in the film. In addition, Andrews is British, which is critical to this play, unlike Nixon's purely American accent heard in the film.

As far as Broadway vs London MFL recordings, I would have to agree with the others who are in favor of the "white" Broadway album. While both are very good, the Broadway album does appear to be less "forced" than the London album due, most likely, to the fact that it was recorded before the cast had exhausted themselves singing the score after a few years on the stage. Both Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews appear to be more "natural" in the Broadway album, and Andrews does definitely lose a bit of the innocence in her voice in this recording.

All in all, I would recommend that any MFL collector invest in both the Broadway and London cast recordings to make your own opinions. Yet, for someone looking to buy only one album, I would stick with the Broadway version. In all situations, save yourself some money and skip buying the film soundtrack.

It's good but,.........2003-07-26

If I had never heard the 1956 recording I would have thought this one was great....but to me, compared to its mono counterpart, this performance sounds more like a Wednesday matinee in the middle of a long run. The performers are all still wonderful, but it's very relaxed and and lacks the vivid characterizations found in the original. Any fan of "My Fair Lady," however, will want to have them both and decide for themselves!