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Judy Garland: Swan Songs, First Flights: Her First and Last Recordings [3 CD Box]. Brand New, sealed.
A LIMITED NUMBER of this great historical 3 CD set published in 2015 are available. Note: these sets are the original issue, factory sealed, not a reissue or reprinting, and they are available only in standard CD format (44/16). When these sets are gone, there will be no more. All restoration work by John H. Haley of Harmony Restorations LLC. Although restored for the best possible sound, much of the very rare content in this set was restored from sources that were far from ideal with respect to audio quality, and the historical sound quality heard on this set is not typical of HDTT’s usual superb standards.
This set was the first to make available a number of live performances from Judy Garland’s final year, demonstrating beyond any doubt that contrary to “urban legend,” Garland’s voice and her performances remained on a high level in her final year. The three major concerts included are (1) a complete live stadium concert in Philadelphia on July 20, 1968, which was her last appearance in the U.S. (taped from the audience); (2) the surviving recordings from Garland’s “Talk of the Town” appearances in London, December 30, 1968—February 1, 1969 (taped by John Meyer and Mickey Deans from the audience); and (3) the live concert at Falkoner Centret, Copenhagen on March 29, 1969, from original radio station broadcast tapes. [More of the Copenhagen concert was discovered after this 2015 set was released, and the new 2022 restoration heard on HDTT 13523 is not only the complete concert but it is restored to far better sound quality than heard in this 2015 set, based on our now having two independent tape sources available as well as greatly improved restoration techniques in the intervening years.] This set also contains a lot more rare content, including a series of recordings from Garland’s youth (the “First Flights”). Please see the detailed track list by clicking on the button below.
It will be recalled that the 2019 Hollywood movie Judy starring Renee Zelwegger was based loosely upon Garland’s run of appearances at the “Talk of the Town” nightclub in London, six months before her untimely death at age 47. In this set, you can hear how great Judy’s actual performances at Talk of the Town were, restored, and released on CD for the first time.
This CD set has been offered for more than 1,200 GBP on Amazon UK! It received rapturous critical acclaim after its release (see four complete reviews attached in the Blog section of this website). In summary:
• The quality of Garland’s performances here gives the lie to the belief that she was incapable of delivering at this stage in her life—and proof that there were still triumphs amidst the well-documented troubles of her final months. Of course, any live recording from Judy Garland will inevitably be compared to Judy at Carnegie Hall—not just her greatest live album, but perhaps the greatest live pop album of all time. Though these programs are of a different nature than that triumphant Capitol Records LP, they’re captivating additions to Garland’s cherished live discography and fully capture her unparalleled gifts at communicating both sheer, unbridled optimism and devastating heartbreak in song.
JOE MARCHESE, The Second Disc website, Feb. 10, 2015
• “Judy Garland: Swan Songs, First Flights” proves that at the end of her career the singer still could reach down to the bottom of her soul and come up with something to dazzle and amaze.
WILL FRIEDWALD, The Wall Street Journal, Feb. 17, 2015
• These newly re-mastered recordings are proof positive that … “Judy still had ‘it’ even at the very end.” … Through such conservators . . . preserving Garland’s legacy for future generations, the joy and genius of Judy Garland will continue to shine as bright as the stars in heaven.
PETER MAC, The Huffington Post, June 19, 2016
• The sound quality, if variable, is remarkably good for material emanating from live tapes almost a half-century old … The amazing thing, given all Garland’s physical problems by this point, is how frequently her performing instincts prevail and carry her through to triumphant renditions. … the set is a must for Garland fans and anyone curious about the trajectory of one of the most spectacular talents in entertainment history.
EVERETT EVANS, The Houston Chronicle, March 24, 2015
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TRACK LISTING
DISC ONE
+ First time on CD
* Gene Palumbo, piano
^ Jay Blackton, conductor
** Harold Arlen, piano
John F. Kennedy Stadium+
Philadelphia, July 20, 1968
Orchestra under the direction of Gene Palumbo
- Overture
- “There they are!”
- For Once in My Life
- “I feel marvelous.”
- Medley: Almost Like Being in Love/This Can’t Be Love
- Never Will I Marry
- “I may get shorted off here.”
- How Insensitive
- Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart
- What Now My Love?
- “Maybe we could calm down and sing a couple of rather pretty songs.”
- The Man I Love*Make Someone Happy*
- Do I Love You?
- “I came from New York to see you too.”
- By Myself
- “I’ve gotten myself so ensnared.”
- That’s Entertainment!
- The Man That Got Away
- Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody
- For Once in My Life (reprise)
- Orchestral – Over the Rainbow
- Over the Rainbow
- Orchestral – Over the Rainbow
BONUS TRACKS
With Count Basie and his Orchestra, Philadelphia, July 20, 1968
- Medley: I Hear Music/The Sweetest Sounds/Strike Up the Band
Rehearsal, October 1968; John Meyer, piano
- I Loved Him, But He Didn’t Love Me
- For Once in My Life
Tribute to Harold Arlen, Vincent Youmans, and Noel Coward, Lincoln Center, November 17, 1968, New York^
- The Man That Got Away+“
- I think it’s awfully good to be singing Mr. Arlen’s songs because, well, we have sort of a casual relationship.”
- It’s a New World+
- “I really can’t sit down for ‘Get Happy’.”
- Get Happy
- Orchestral – I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues
- “Now, what would you like to do?”
- Over the Rainbow (E.Y. Harburg-Harold Arlen)+**
DISC TWO
+ First time on CD
++ Composite performance
+++ First time on an established label
* Based on Mickey Deans’ tapes recorded by John Meyer and Mickey Deans
** First complete release
*** Opening verse first time on CD
^ Pianist unknown, possibly Bobby Cole
^^ Recorded January 28, 1969
^^^ Orchestra under the direction of Burt Rhodes
Talk of the Town+++*
London, December 30, 1968 – February 1, 1969
Orchestra under the direction of Burt Rhodes
- Overture
- I Belong to London+ **
- Get Happy
- The Man That Got Away
- “I haven’t been taught a new song since Clive Brook was a girl. Was he?”
- I’d Like to Hate Myself in the Morning
- “There’s no business like show business. Thank God.”
- Just in Time
- “We’ll do anything, you know.”
- Just in Time (reprise)
- “I don’t want to break my image.”
- Medley: You Made Me Love You/For Me and My Gal/The Trolley Song++
- For Once In My Life
- “Don’t fool around with Elizabeth Taylor’s ring.”
- San Francisco***
- “Nobody’s eighteen anymore.”
- Over the Rainbow
- Chicago+
BONUS TRACKS
Talk of the Town, London^^^
- I Belong to London (reprise)+
- “What are you smoking? Oh, well, get ready for the judgment day.”
- The Man That Got Away+
- “It was written by a man who is in the audience, a marvelous gentleman composer, John Meyer.”
- I’d Like to Hate Myself in the Morning+^^
- Medley: You Made Me Love You/For Me and My Gal/The Trolley Song+
Sunday Night at the Palladium, ITV, January 19, 1969, London^^^
- For Once in My Life+
- Get Happy+
- I Belong to London+
Home Recording at Bel Air, California home, May 1967
- My Man’s Gone Now+
- How Do You Feel?+^
DISC THREE
^Based on a 2-reel ¼” 15-IPS copy of the master tape provided by Danmarks Radio
+First time on CD
° New mastering based on original transfer from acetates
*Mickey Deans, piano
Falkoner Centret^
Copenhagen, March 25, 1969
Orchestra under the direction of Tony Osborne
- Overture
- Get Happy
- “Oh, dear, that’s exhausting.”
- Just in Time
- “What in the world do we do next?”
- The Man That Got Away4
- “I haven’t learned a new song since the original Vikings.”
- I’d Like to Hate Myself in the Morning
- “I have trouble with my English.”
- For Once in My Life
- Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody
- Orchestral “Over the Rainbow”
- “That’s a nice tempo.”
- Chicago
- San Francisco
- “Shall we hit the song?”
- Over the Rainbow
BONUS TRACKS
Interview by Hans Vangkilde for Danmarks Radio, March 26, 1969, King Frederick Hotel+
Rehearsal at Half Note Club, New York, June 15, 1969
- I Love a Piano+
- When Sunny Gets Blue+*
FIRST FLIGHTS
That’s the Good Old Sunny South [The Gumm Sisters]
From The Big Revue, filmed June 11-13, 1929, Tec-Art Studios, Hollywood
Where the Butterflies Kiss the Buttercups Goodnight [The Gumm Sisters]
From A Holiday in Storyland, First National-Vitaphone, filmed November 1929, Burbank
Blue Butterfly [Frances Gumm]
From A Holiday in Storyland, First National-Vitaphone, filmed November 1929, Burbank
Hang On to a Rainbow [Frances Gumm]
From The Wedding of Jack and Jill, First National-Vitaphone , filmed circa December 1929, Burbank
The Land of Let’s Pretend [The Gumm Sisters]
From Bubbles, filmed January 1930
Bill°
Instantaneous test acetates for Decca Records, recorded March 29, 1935, Hollywood; Ethel Gumm, piano
Medley: On the Good Ship Lollipop/The Object of My Affection/Dinah°
Instantaneous test acetates for Decca Records, recorded March 29, 1935, Hollywood; Ethel Gumm, piano
La Cucaracha [The Garland Sisters]+
From La Fiesta de Santa Barbara, filmed August 12, 1935, Culver City
I’m Feelin’ Like a Million
Rehearsal on 78-rpm acetate, circa late summer/early fall 1937, Culver City; Roger Edens, piano
Silent Night+
From Silent Night, filmed November 6-8, 1937, Culver City
If I Forget You+
From If I Forget You, filmed early 1940, Culver City
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