Alice Smith

I discovered Alice Smith's music only last week, on the recommendation of a friend and wow!! Smith is a thirty year old singer/songwriter and her classy debut "For lovers, dreamers & me" displays her various musical influences; Jazz, Soul, Blues, Country and Rock, perfectly showcasing her commanding 4 octave vocals which critics have compared to Tina Turner's or even Billie Holiday. I would add India.Arie and Nina Simone.

Opening is the horn peppered Beatles-esque "Dream" with dreamy harmonies. "Woodstock" has a trippy guitar feel and a bouncy refrain, while "Gary song" is a piano driven song with snarled soulful vocals, and tempo shifts from insistent (Motown-like) to calm.

The Rock/Blues "New religion" finds her singing "Give me some new religion / Something that I can feel / Give me a new tomorrow / Bring it on and make it real", while the calm bass-heavy reverb-filled "Do I" has a heavy Reggae feel, and a smouldering, drawn vocal performance lamenting the end of a relationship.

The gentle "Fake is the new real" features quietly snarling stabs of guitar with Smith declaring "Bona fide is the old deal / Fake is the new real" (while taking a look at pop culture), while the piano sprinkled "Desert song" is heavily steeped in the Blues. The classy ballad "Know that I..." has a timeless quality. "Secrets" is an airy, jazzy ballad, while closing cut "Lost endeavor" has a lilting faint Caribbean feel.

There is so much sonic variety, each time a new song started, my brother would ask again "Who is this?" The album received a Grammy nomination in the Best Urban/Alternative category, and I know we'll hear much more from this incredible talent in the near future.

the lyrics are amazing, but the voice is phenomenal. This girl can sing! I heard her for the first time watching a how-to-style hair video on YouTube. Amazing!

Sorry Mariah, Duffy and Alannis. The CD of the summer goes hands down to Alice Smith! Her vocals are nothing short of a natural phenomenon and if you aren't completely under her thrall by track 10, the dazzling "Love's Endeavor" then you've already expired and people are simply too polite to mention it.

Heard of Alice Smith by literally looking up to see WHO IS THAT? while waiting for an appointment where a television was tuned to the Ellen DeGeneres show...what a VOICE! and STYLE...got this CD soon after and have grown more and more fond of each and every track over the past couple of months...Smith's voice is astounding and beautiful in the way it delivers fluid changes and stylizations effortlessly...Alice can croon and belt with astonishing ease, which makes for a delicious musical experience for the listener...and the lyrics--that's another reason [along with the voice] that I use the word 'authenticity', because you hear them and you feel the REAL...and it is so refreshing! You may be tempted to compare Alice Smith to any number of influences you'll pick up while listening...Ultimately, it is Alice Smith that wins out, uniquely and rightly so. This CD is a true favorite for more reasons than I'm able to share, and I suspect you'll have plenty of your own once you give it a whirl. enJoy! :)

OK..so I went to see Alice Smith last night @ the 9:30 Club in DC and I must say I was only familiar with 3 songs prior to the show...Do I, Woodstock, and Dream, but when she took the stage it truly became an experience.....she rocked the house!! I cant wait to see her again.. i bought a copy of her cd last night and now i cant put it down...my fave is Do I and Gary's song...I also love the lyrics to Secrets.....Anyone who's sleepwalking on this one needs to WAKE UP....I will definitely support her in the future. Can't wait till she comes back! Her voice is sicK!!!!! like you've never heard nothing like this before...i mean she walked away form the mic and i still felt every ote she belted out...She made it look EASY!

This CD was great, just what I needed.
It seems no matter what music I need, I think it is probably impossible for Amazon to have it, they always do have what I need.

Thank you,

Markie V. Ramirez

Despite the fact that most of our presidents are not worth remembering in music; this is none the less an interesting CD. Altissimo! has done its usualy bit of culling through the Marine Band library to dig out enough appropriate pieces to put together on one CD. No original recordings here! We should be glad that its a full length selection of over 60 mins for a change, instead of the old 45 min. cheats in the past! Still, the different sound qualities of the various tracks is distracting at times.

Most labels when they combine different recordings together usually list the recording date and who conducted the band at that time. Altissimo! has not graduated to that level of professionalism in their products yet. Hence we just get The US Marine Band, not when it was recorded and who might be directing it!

Fortunately, the quality of the Marine Band is so good that it does not matter what Altissimo! does in putting together a CD. That said, the music provides an interesting chronology of ceremonial music played at the White House over the years. The linear notes are an improvment over the past, when little or nothing was provided. All and all, not bad from what we have come to expect from Altissimo!

Hail to the Chief is the latest of about twenty-seven CDs offered by "Altissimo!", which offer recordings of the USA's fine military service musical organizations. Until Altissimo!, these recording were very rare and just about impossible to find. Thanks to Altissimo! every one can appreciate and enjoy the fine music of these top-notch musical organizations.
The program in Hail to the Chief is a tribute to our presidents. It is a varied program that shows the depth of the music played by one of America's oldest, established in 1798, and finest musical organizations, the United States Marine Band. This CD contains twenty-one marches and other classical numbers from Sousa to Strauss to Tchaikovsky. Some of the music in the CD is rare and for this reason alone of interest to music history buffs. One of these selections is a recording of the "Star-Spangled Banner" using the earliest published arrangement (1814) of the anthem. Another is the "Solemn March" played at Lincoln's funeral. Also included a rarely recorded Sousa piece, "Easter Monday on the White House Lawn." There is also an historic 1906 recording of Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag."
The recording also contains excerpts from speeches made by five of our presidents four of which were from inaugural addresses. The program notes explain the musical selections and how each was of interest to the various presidents.
The only negative, and it is not with the CD itself, is that the program notes do not include recording dates, where recorded and who the conductor of the band was. I highly recommend this CD to all interested in the America's patriotic music as well as the serious collector of military music and those interested in the musical roots of our country.
George Barkman

Listening to the latest CD from Altissimo! brought pleasure to my ears. Whether you like listening to ballads, waltzes, Hungarian Dances, or marches you will find something on this CD that you will love to listen to. This wonderful compilation presents the listener with music favored by 23 of our United States Presidents, and includes bonus tracks of excerpts from four inaugural speeches.

Hail to the Chief is unique, educational and without question, absolutely wonderful!

I was initially puzzled by the selections but as I began to listen and read the short narrative that is offered I started to realize I was being taken on a very different trip through American history. Consequently, the impact of the program had a totally unexpected and fascinating effect.

I was not just mesmerized by the sounds I heard, the arrangements which were presented or the memorable utterances of some of our Chief Executives. I was completely entranced by the realization that these men and others who had held the office of President of the United States, had listened and reacted to the same music the CD offers. It gave me an insight into their humanity that text books cannot provide.

As an example, I hadn't known the original sheet music for the "Star Spangled Banner" was arranged differently from the way we listen to it today --- who know how many Americans heard it played that way?

I had never actually thought about the fact that Washington might have actually heard "Hail Columbia" played, just as I was hearing it.

I was a bit startled that Chester Arthur commanded Sousa to compose what became the "Presidential Polonaise" and tried to imagine how much pressure he, (Sousa), must have felt in doing the President's bidding. (By the way, after listening to that unquestionably superb composition of the "March King", I must admit despite its delightful sound, I'm very pleased that we no longer use that as the official march of the President and we have returned to "Hail to the Chief".)

I vividly recall watching the casket of President Kennedy being carried over the steps of the Capitol and listening to "The Navy Hymn" and the music recaptured that moment as if it was yesterday.

It wasn't solely the music I savored but it was also the historical images they engendered. Indeed, music affects all "ages"!

The CD is a professional product that will hopefully be enjoyed by thousands for many years to come.

I discovered Alice Smith's music only last week, on the recommendation of a friend and wow!! Smith is a thirty year old singer/songwriter and her classy debut "For lovers, dreamers & me" displays her various musical influences; Jazz, Soul, Blues, Country and Rock, perfectly showcasing her commanding 4 octave vocals which critics have compared to Tina Turner's or even Billie Holiday. I would add India.Arie and Nina Simone.

Opening is the horn peppered Beatles-esque "Dream" with dreamy harmonies. "Woodstock" has a trippy guitar feel and a bouncy refrain, while "Gary song" is a piano driven song with snarled soulful vocals, and tempo shifts from insistent (Motown-like) to calm.

The Rock/Blues "New religion" finds her singing "Give me some new religion / Something that I can feel / Give me a new tomorrow / Bring it on and make it real", while the calm bass-heavy reverb-filled "Do I" has a heavy Reggae feel, and a smouldering, drawn vocal performance lamenting the end of a relationship.

The gentle "Fake is the new real" features quietly snarling stabs of guitar with Smith declaring "Bona fide is the old deal / Fake is the new real" (while taking a look at pop culture), while the piano sprinkled "Desert song" is heavily steeped in the Blues. The classy ballad "Know that I..." has a timeless quality. "Secrets" is an airy, jazzy ballad, while closing cut "Lost endeavor" has a lilting faint Caribbean feel.

There is so much sonic variety, each time a new song started, my brother would ask again "Who is this?" The album received a Grammy nomination in the Best Urban/Alternative category, and I know we'll hear much more from this incredible talent in the near future.

the lyrics are amazing, but the voice is phenomenal. This girl can sing! I heard her for the first time watching a how-to-style hair video on YouTube. Amazing!

Sorry Mariah, Duffy and Alannis. The CD of the summer goes hands down to Alice Smith! Her vocals are nothing short of a natural phenomenon and if you aren't completely under her thrall by track 10, the dazzling "Love's Endeavor" then you've already expired and people are simply too polite to mention it.

Heard of Alice Smith by literally looking up to see WHO IS THAT? while waiting for an appointment where a television was tuned to the Ellen DeGeneres show...what a VOICE! and STYLE...got this CD soon after and have grown more and more fond of each and every track over the past couple of months...Smith's voice is astounding and beautiful in the way it delivers fluid changes and stylizations effortlessly...Alice can croon and belt with astonishing ease, which makes for a delicious musical experience for the listener...and the lyrics--that's another reason [along with the voice] that I use the word 'authenticity', because you hear them and you feel the REAL...and it is so refreshing! You may be tempted to compare Alice Smith to any number of influences you'll pick up while listening...Ultimately, it is Alice Smith that wins out, uniquely and rightly so. This CD is a true favorite for more reasons than I'm able to share, and I suspect you'll have plenty of your own once you give it a whirl. enJoy! :)

OK..so I went to see Alice Smith last night @ the 9:30 Club in DC and I must say I was only familiar with 3 songs prior to the show...Do I, Woodstock, and Dream, but when she took the stage it truly became an experience.....she rocked the house!! I cant wait to see her again.. i bought a copy of her cd last night and now i cant put it down...my fave is Do I and Gary's song...I also love the lyrics to Secrets.....Anyone who's sleepwalking on this one needs to WAKE UP....I will definitely support her in the future. Can't wait till she comes back! Her voice is sicK!!!!! like you've never heard nothing like this before...i mean she walked away form the mic and i still felt every ote she belted out...She made it look EASY!

I agree with a previous reviewer that Matteuzzi may be less than a desirable tenor on a recording. He often sounds as if he has not cleared his throat before singing (or would like to during his singing). However, the opera itself, the recording, and the combination of Miricioiu, Jones and Ford make up for Matteuzzi's shortcomings. (As an aside, I wonder what Matteuzzi has going for him, as I find him hired to work on a lot of bel canto operas). Do not let his singing stop you from enjoying forgotten works but remember that one should be cautious if you see "bel canto" and "Matteuzzi" in the same sentence. Matteuzzi notwithstanding, Ricciardo e Zoraide contains some beautiful music and singing which you will defintiely enjoy!

William Mateuzzi is a fine lyric tenor. He sings with exquisite taste, and if you follow along with the libretto, you will appreciate his good diction. He reminds me of the great Tito Schipa. Nelly Mirciou will remind you of Maria Callas. Her voice is similar, except Nelly does not have the technical problems that Callas had. I didn't realize what a good opera this is until I played it a few times. Although I have a fairly big collection of operas, this has become one of my favorites.

William Matteuzi has now developed into the worst leading tenor on records. He is excrable. But don't let that put you off from this set. Rossini usually provided a number of lead tenor parts. In this case we have Bruce Ford as the other lead tenor. Ford is merely sensational. No Rossinian will want to be without this recording. His entrance aria is just fab.

If you have one of those new programable players maybe you can program Matteutzi right out of the opera.

From the era when England was believed to have produced no composers, and when women in particular were understood as incapable of composing in the larger genres, Alice Mary Smith (1839-1884) wrote three brilliant symphonies as well as other works including cantatas and string quartets. This is one of my favorite CDs, and I am always wondering WHY DIDN'T WE KNOW ABOUT THIS COMPOSER BEFORE?

- especially the Walzt-Gavottte is playfull and summes of live and fun - a bit Childrens Corner here. But some of the pieces are very etniclike and can be foreign to listen to. Though - it sounds interesting.

I purchased this set originally for New Faces of 1952. Being a fan of most musicals of that era I was not disappointed. I found the original cast recordings to be excellent and a perfect introduction to Broadway Shows.

Such a disappointment! The sound quality is beyond poor on CD 1 and is followed closely by CD 4; the other CDs are okay. If you're into old Broadway songs, buy "Greatest Broadway Hits: Golden Greats" instead. The latter is listenable.