Rhythm Is My Business – ELLA FITZGERALD****

Rough Ridin’/Broadway/You Can Depend On Me/Runnin’ Wild/Show Me The Way To Go Out Of This World/I’ll Always Be In Love With You/Hallelujah I Love Him So/I Can’t Face The Music/No Moon At All/Laughin’ At The Outside/After You’ve Gone

On Rhythm Is My Business Ella Fitzgerald returns to a big band backing with the emphasis on swing. Vocally she was considered to be still on top form at this time.

“The First Lady of Song, gives us another incredible album to enjoy. Ella's vocal gymnastics proved that she was the consummate singer, and quite a vocal athlete at that. This LP amply proves it; and the big band style musical arrangements by Bill Doggett enhance Ella's performance on every track.”

“Ella never ceases to amaze me with her immense talent. Every time I think I have the best album she ever made, I get another one and fall for her all over again. On this disc, she covers a wide range of diverse material for one album. From the sorrowful mourning of I Can't Face The Music to the outrageous tempo and swing of Runnin' Wild, Ella proves once again she will always be the versatile First Lady of Song.”

“By the early 60s she was at that awkward point where her pioneering days were coming to a close yet she wasn't exactly ready to retire yet. And the quality of the output she would make would depend on her arranger and the musicians she sang with. On this album she decided to make a full on return to the sound of the big band swing that made her. At the same time, she had already adapted a lot of new vocal ideas into her framework to do it the same way again.”

“The early '60s were a good time for Fitzgerald. The monumental achievement of the songbooks was behind her and she could relax and enjoy her success. Not that she is coasting here. On the contrary, her vocal powers were at a peak in 1962 and she commands the big band with ease and authority. No singer before or since has swung so effortlessly and with such verve.”

“Here Ella is singing over big, brassy, swinging arrangements complemented by Doggett's organ work. The rhythm is equally driving and, of course Ella brings a combination of her wonderfully sustained crooning, and her rangy scat singing, right into the spirited accompaniment.”