Celebrating the 100th birthday of the First Lady of Song, Verve Records as put together vintage sessions from the Decca and Verve days and blended them with newly orchestrated support from the London Symphony Orchestra. The rich textures arranged by Jorge Calandrelli give wondrous support to classic reads of “Misty” and “With a Song In My Heart,” while the usually sassy “Let’s Do It” gets more uptown styled.
A pair of duets from the summit meetings with Louis Armstrong still sound timeless, as they coo back and forth on “They Can’t Take That Away From Me” and “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off.” Gregory Porter does some time travelling and teams up gloriously with Ella on a glowing “People Will Say We’re In Love” as well. It’s simply amazing how modern Fitzgerald sounds, and isn’t that the real test of art?