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From the folks who brought us the recent stellar release of Judy Garland’s final concert (Judy Garland The Final Concert In Copenhagen) in HD, we are treated to the first-ever high-definition release of “Judy at Carnegie Hall.”
The press release:
High Definition Tape Transfers Releases
Judy Garland: The Greatest Night in Show Business History,
Carnegie Hall, April 23, 1961, in High-Definition Audio
RICHMOND HILL, ONTARIO, CANADA – The Canadian label High Definition Tape Transfers, Inc. (HDTT), which specializes in high-definition releases of classical, jazz, and pop classics and whose extensive catalogue ranges from Duke Ellington to Gustav Mahler, is proud to announce the high-definition release of Judy Garland: The Greatest Night in Show Business History, Carnegie Hall, April 23, 1961.
The concert at Carnegie Hall on April 23, 1961, was by all accounts a pinnacle in the career of Judy Garland as a concert artist. The great recording of that event, which won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Female Vocal Performance, and remained on the Billboard charts for 73 weeks, including 13 at number 1, has likewise become a touchstone for quality among Garland’s many outstanding commercial recordings. It has been remastered in various ways over the last six decades to present different “slants” on it, but this new restoration and remastering, released to celebrate Garland’s centennial, sets a new standard.
This new release is the first-ever high-definition release of this iconic recording, offered on HDTT’s website (highdeftapetransfers.ca) in a variety of high-definition download formats as well as in regular CD format. The initial transfer was made by engineer Robert Witrak at the highest sampling rate available, DSD256, using HDTT’s proprietary methods and superior equipment. It was then meticulously restored and remastered in DXD PCM 352.8 kHz, 24/32 bit, which is the best format for post-processing DSD-originated digital recordings, by John H. Haley of Harmony Restorations LLC.
The goal has been to present as realistic a sonic image as possible of Garland appearing live on the stage of Carnegie Hall, performing in front of her brilliant accompanying orchestra led by Mort Lindsey. This endeavor includes precisely correct pitching (the original release and many subsequent ones were slightly sharp), as well as respect for the unique acoustic of Carnegie Hall, universally recognized as a crown jewel of the world’s concert venues. Abetted by the far greater level of detail permitted by the high-definition format, this new release strives to put listeners in a prime seat in Carnegie Hall, at what has been recognized as “the greatest night in show business history.”
New liner notes for the release have been written by award-winning Garland historian, Lawrence Schulman, and the cover has been designed by the legendary Raphael Geroni, of Raphael Geroni Design.
The tracklist is as follows:
CD 1:
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- Overture: The Trolley Song/Over the Rainbow/The Man That Got Away (R. Blane-H. Martin/E.Y. Harburg-H. Arlen/I. Gershwin-H. Arlen)
- When You’re Smiling (The Whole World Smiles with You) (M. Fisher-J. Goodwin-L. Shay)
- Medley: Almost Like Being in Love/This Can’t Be Love (Medley) (A.J. Lerner-F. Loewe/L. Hart-R. Rodgers)
- Do It Again (B. De Sylva-G. Gershwin)
- You Go to My Head (H. Gillespie-J.F. Coots)
- Alone Together (H. Dietz-A. Schwartz)
- Who Cares? (As Long as You Care for Me) (I. Gershwin-G. Gershwin)
- Puttin’ on the Ritz (I. Berlin)
- How Long Has This Been Going On? (I. Gershwin-G. Gershwin)
- Just You, Just Me (R. Klages-J. Greer)
- The Man That Got Away (I. Gershwin-H. Arlen)
- San Francisco (G. Kahn-B. Kaper-W. Jurmann)
- I Can’t Give You Anything but Love (D. Fields-J. McHugh)
- That’s Entertainment (H. Dietz-A. Schwartz)
CD 2:
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- Come Rain or Come Shine (J. Mercer-H. Arlen)
- You’re Nearer (L. Hart-R. Rodgers)
- A Foggy Day (in London Town) (I. Gershwin-G. Gershwin)
- If Love Were All (N. Coward)
- Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart (J.F. Hanley)
- Stormy Weather (T. Koehler-H. Arlen)
- Medley: You Made Me Love You/For Me and My Gal/The Trolley Song (J. McCarthy-J.V. Monaco/E. Leslie-E.R. Goetz-G.W. Meyer/ R. Blane-H. Martin)
- Rock-A-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody (S. Lewis-J. Young-J. Schwartz)
- Over the Rainbow (E.Y. Harburg-H. Arlen)
- Swanee (I. Caesar-G. Gershwin)
- After You’ve Gone (H. Creamer-T. Layton)
- Chicago (F. Fisher)
This is exciting news. I was just getting used to the excellent Avid remastering of Judy at Carnegie Hall. And now this new high definition release. Can hardly wait to hear it. Is it available now or in August?
It’s available now, and is definitely better than the AVID release. 🙂
I am ordering my copy right away. I will also be ordering the high definition Japanese reissues of many of Judy’s albums. Have you heard any of those? I think it is so great that Judy is getting so much meticulous care and remastering of her beautiful treasure chest of music 🎶 and movies. The fans, new generations of listeners of timeless music, and Judy deserve it.
I bought the Japanese reissues. I haven’t made a side-by-side comparison of the CDs with the older releases, but these new ones sound great. They’re in an HD format so they are sure to be better to any listener than the older CDs that have been around for a while.
You’ll enjoy them!
I hesitated in commenting, as I just bought the AVID release four months ago, and I’ve invested quite a bundle in Garland product in the first half of this year alone, so I was gonna pass. However, still being one of the fogies-with-a-CD-player-in-his-car, I’m gonna go for it…mainly because the AVID CD tends to malfunction in my car – but not in my home player. Rather than risk another AVID copy, I’ll go with this new hi-def release.
Thanks, Scott!
Does anyone know if this new HD release includes the additional dialog that was included in the two previous CD releases by Capital?
Bob, it is the content that was originally released on the 1961 double LP set, that was on the Billboard charts for 73 weeks,13 at number 1, and won five Grammys. All of the music heard that evening was in the LP set but not all of Judy’s dialog. Four decades later, there were two CD reissues that purported to include all of her dialog. Both of them are slightly off pitch (as was the original LP version). The HDTT version is meticulously pitched correctly. The extra dialog parts, BTW, are not in Public Domain, as the original album content is around the world (outside the US).
Best,
John Haley
I ordered the high definition Judy at Carnegie Hall. Is this a actual CD in high definition I will be getting or just a stream download? I don’t stream music, so hopefully this is a actual HD CD. Please tell me it is. I am waiting for my copy.
Sheldon, the hi-def versions are all downloads. The CD version is in regular CD format that will play in CD players. If you ordered a high def version but wanted a CD version, please contact info@highdeftapetransfers.com and tell them you wanted a CD version. You can say you “spoke” to me–it won’t be a problem. Best, John H. Haley
Thank You!