A native of Nagykanizsa, Hungary, Sigmund Romberg was born in 1887, emigrated to the United States of America in 1909, and began composing scores for Broadway shows in 1914, the year he became a U.S. citizen. While some of his melodies eventually became jazz standards ("When I Grow Too Old to Dream," "Lover, Come Back to Me," and "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise"), Romberg's musical legacy has more to do with old-fashioned operetta-styled theatrics. This means that Deep in My Heart, Living Era's sugary sampler of vintage ...
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A native of Nagykanizsa, Hungary, Sigmund Romberg was born in 1887, emigrated to the United States of America in 1909, and began composing scores for Broadway shows in 1914, the year he became a U.S. citizen. While some of his melodies eventually became jazz standards ("When I Grow Too Old to Dream," "Lover, Come Back to Me," and "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise"), Romberg's musical legacy has more to do with old-fashioned operetta-styled theatrics. This means that Deep in My Heart, Living Era's sugary sampler of vintage Romberg songs, comes across like a massive tray of Viennese pastries, loaded with whipped cream, caramel, and chocolate sauce. Lilting romantic chortling erupts throughout most of these recordings, which were made between 1930 and 1954 and feature vocalists Nelson Eddy, Jeanette MacDonald, Mario Lanza, Elizabeth Doubleday, Tony Martin, Kathryn Grayson, Gordon MacRae, Lucille Norman, Richard Crooks, Shirlee Emmons, Evelyn Laye, Jo Cameron, Larry Douglas, Jean Carlton, Howard Keel, and Tony Bennett. With all respect to Lanza, Nelson Eddy seems to have been born to perform this sort of material. His duets with Jeanette MacDonald are timeless, and his handling of "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" is exquisite. Eddy's knockout performance of "Stout-Hearted Men" is staggeringly over the top. Backed by a male chorus and an orchestra conducted by Nat W. Finston, the singer creates and inflames a martial atmosphere of gradually escalating intensity. When he fills his lungs with air and holds one long note, it's almost as effective as Ethel Merman's sustained "Oh!" during her 1947 recording of "I Got Rhythm." The key word there is "almost," for nobody tops Ethel Merman. Note that this exact recording was reissued as a V-Disc during the Second World War to boost and bolster morale among armed forces personnel. Romberg himself conducts the orchestra on some of these historical recordings. Other bandleaders featured are Nat Shilkret, Constantine Callinicos, Arthur Fiedler, Giuseppe Bamboscheck, Paul Weston, and Adolph Deutsch. Smoky-voiced Tony Bennett provides the perfect closer in the form of a 1953 recording of "My Heart Won't Say Goodbye" from the 1954 stage show The Girl in Pink Tights. ~ arwulf arwulf, Rovi
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Seller's Description:
NM / NM. 4 RECORD BOX SET, beautiful condition includes original custom MGM inner sleeves, jane powell, gene and fred kelly, vic damone, tony martin, howard keel, etc… based on the life and the melodies of sigmund romberg.
