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Title: Arguably the most famous live performance in jazz.
Review: This is arguably the most famous live performance in jazz, and with good reason. This is Ella at her peak. Arriving in Berlin, performing at the Deutschlandhallen, this album runs the full dynamic gamut. On the one hand, it contains a subtle "Summertime" where her melodic embellishments are absolutely inspired. But then Ella, now in the home of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill, decides to fill the set with "Mac the Knife," recently made a hit by both Bobby Darrin and Louis Armstrong. When the words come unraveled before her, her improvisation is awe-inspiring. This is directly followed with the definitive live "How High the Moon," complete with an 8 minute scat that is unequalled. This reissue is somewhat marred by the presence of two tracks mistakenly thought to have been part of the performance, but which are of a noticeably different character. Nonetheless, amazing.
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