Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong – Ella & Louis (Coloured vinyl)

The very fact that America's biggest jazz label named one of its albums simply "Ella And Louis" suggests that we are talking about something very special here. And certainly enough has been said - 'Satchmo' and the Grande Dame of Jazz certainly need no further introduction. In the fifties, the mere mention of their first names was enough to make any jazz fan's face light up.

A glance at the list of tracks reveals that calm reigns here: wildly pounding rhythms and improvised rushes are neither in demand nor missed. For the jazz ballad, one feeling is paramount, that of 'letting yourself drift' into the inspiration that flows from the minds of brilliant American songwriters. This is not a competition - the artists are all pursuing a common goal with the utmost sensitivity. The background combo of first-rate musicians, led by Oscar Peterson, plays with great concentration and with almost obtrusive unobtrusiveness. Verve's particularly successful producer Norman Granz deliberately chose to record in the studio rather than during a live concert. And the success proves his judgment right, because vocal jazz like this only knows soft tones - but the result is all the more intense because of that.