Andrew Sisters - The Best of the Andrews Sisters: 20th Century Masters (Millennium Collection)
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Free Music Notes for The Best of the Andrews Sisters: 20th Century Masters (Millennium Collection)
Free Music Review: Best of the Andrews Sisters
Hit: 5 Stars
This was great. It has the songs I wanted most. Sound is clear. Neat CD.
Glad I can get this stuff from Amazon.
Free Music Review: ANDREW SISTERS
Hit: 5 Stars
HAD THE THE RECORD BEFORE. I HAVE NO MORE RECORDS, I HAD TO GET THE CD. IT'S GREAT TO HEAR THEM SING AGAIN!Free Music Review: The Andrews Sisters
Hit: 5 Stars
I like the Andrews Sisters, this was just what I was looking for, all of there best in one disk!Free Music Review: Enjoyable as an Introduction to The Andrews Sisters
Hit: 4 Stars
It will probably shock fans of Michael Jackson, The Beatles, and Elvis Presley, but many recording industry experts consider it likely that The Andrews sisters outsold all of them in the pre-rock era, when sheet music sales were factored into sales counts in a way that tended to undercut recording sales figures. Whatever the case, along with The Glenn Miller Orchestra and Bing Crosby, The Andrews Sisters--Patty, Maxene, and LaVerne--were easily the best-selling vocal group of the WWII era. They were young, energetic, and pretty; they sang like nobody's business; and during World War II they became the face and sound of America, touring tirelessly for the boys, their recordings carried from end of the earth to the other.
Originally from Minnesota, like many others the sisters (born between 1911 and 1918) began their career in immitation of the Boswell Sisters, a 1930s vocal trio. Over time they developed their own distinctive sound, with youngest sister Patty usually on lead vocal with Maxene and LaVerne tightly weaving their voices around hers. It was a perfect combination for the emerging "swing" sound of big dance bands--and in 1937 the sisters had the good fortune to be coaxed into recording a swing version of the Yiddish "Bei Mir Bistu Shein." The record was a massive hit and became the first gold record awarded to a female singing group. The Andrews Sisters were suddenly famous, and when the United States entered World War II their unabashed patriotism made them even more so.
The act faced a number of troubles over the years, not the least of which was what some have described as a general personality clash between Patty and Maxene that intensified with the passage of time. In the early 1950s Patty, who the public generally regarded as the "star singer" of the three, angered both Maxene and LaVern when she sued their parents' estate and broke up the act by signing a series of solo record deals. Although Patty had a fair success as a solo artist, and although Maxene and LaVerne had significant success as a duo, it soon became very apparent that the public preferred them as a trio. They reunited in 1956 and continued to perform and record with considerable success until LaVerne's death in 1967. Thereafter Patty and Maxene became increasingly incompatible, and although they had a Broadway success with OVER HERE, Patty's lawsuit against producers brought the show to an early and grinding halt. They would meet on at least two other occasions, but by and large the estrangement was complete. Although both pursued solo careers, "star singer" Patty had only minor success and gradually faded from the musical scene; Maxene, however, was a highly regarded nightclub, cabaret, and theatre performer until her death in 1995. Although reportedly distraught, Patty did not attend the funeral.
During the course of their career as a trio, The Andrews Sisters set a host of records that have remained unsurpassed to this day. They are the single best-selling female vocal group in recording history, charted 113 times (more times than Presley or The Beatles), appeared in seventeen films (more than any other singing group), and broke attendance records at virtually every venue they played. Although firm figures are hard to come by, it seems likely that they hold the record for live radio performances, and the same may be true of live television performances. And yet, for reasons that have never been entirely clear, about half of their Decca recordings (now owned by MCA) have never been re-released and have not been available since their original release. This may be due to the fact that the Andrews Sisters frequently recorded with the major swing bands of the day and there may be legal issues of ownership. That aside, when the Andrews Sisters sang with a major-name big band, they tended to reduce the band to back-up, a fact such bandleaders as Glenn Miller and Artie Shaw most emphatically did not like. As such, you rarely find Andrews Sisters vocals included in compilations of the big band sound.
Whatever the case, the simple fact is that virtually every Andrews Sisters collection includes more or less the same songs over and over again: "Bei Mir Bist du Schon," "Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree," "The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," "Hold Tight," and the single best-selling recording of the World War II era, "Rum and Coca-Cola." Although double-disks offer a wider array, single disk 20th Century Masters Millennium Collection is pretty standard in content. In my experience the 20th Century Masters series is not notable for sound quality; even so, it seems to have done reasonably well by The Andrews Sisters. Granted, the recordings could use a remaster; there is a slight muddiness to several selections, a slightly sharp quality on others. All the same, the result is reasonable. A serious collector will no doubt find both collection and sound quality commonplace, but it is an extremely good place to begin. If you're mildly interested and looking for an inexpensive introduction, you're unlikely to do better--and you could do a whole lot worse.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Free Music Review: fine budget priced album
Hit: 4 Stars
20th Century Masters: The Best of the Andrews Sisters is an excellent, budget priced CD that gives people an excellent introduction (or a brief retrospective of) the marvelous sounds of The Andrews Sisters. The Andrews Sisters were extremely popular in their day and this CD demonstrates why. They remain one of my favorite groups even today!
The CD starts off with their smash hit "Bei Mir Bist Du Schöen." The three sisters harmonize perfectly although, unfortunately, there is some surface noise on the track. At any rate, I think you'll like "Bei Mir Bist Du Schöen" very much. "Hold Tight (Want Some Sea Food)" has the sisters singing once again; and they never sounded better. They possessed an incredible ability to harmonize swing tunes and make them sound positively electric. Incredible!
"I'll Be With You In Apple Blossom Time" again has surface noise; but this romantic ballad is at its best when these three sisters sing it. "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" switches gears very quickly; this next tune on the album swings brightly and the sisters keep up a great, fast rhythm that impresses me very much.
"Rum And Coca-Cola" is a great Latin themed ballad that was very popular at the time; and this swingin' tune sounds as soft and romantic as silk when The Andrews Sisters perform it. Moreover, listen for "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate The Positive" by Bing Crosby together with The Andrews Sisters. When Bing recorded with The Andrews Sisters there was always an excellent tune as the result of it; and "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate The Positive" is certainly no exception.
The album ends with "I Can Dream, Can't I?" This sweet number gets the royal treatment and the strings enhance this ballad very well. The background chorus sounds great, too.
The liner notes aren't much but you buy the CD for the music anyhow. I do wish, however, that they had added a song or two--at 35 minutes the CD is a tad short.
In short, The Andrews Sisters really shine on this CD even with a bit of surface noise on a couple of the twelve tracks. This inexpensively priced collection should be enough to whet the appetite of newcomers to The Andrews Sisters; and fans on a budget will enjoy this CD, too.