Cab Calloway Music

This cd has highlights from Cab's 1030-39 period, when his band was playing "hot" dance music, and swinging really hard. Calloway on this "L'art Vocal" series, is represented here as a vocalist(they also have the series on Lena Horn & an exellent Fats Waller series), who fronted one of the best big bands of the period. His vocals are wonderful and slightly over the top. As far as his singing ballads goes, he was hep and cool, not at all like the rhythmless Jolson, as another less educated reviewer wrote. Calloways's vocals on ballads could be dramatic yet hep as always a good example of his sounding great on a ballad is his singing on "The Lady With The Fan"(an essential Calloway performance), and "Moonglow", while those may not be on this set, you can acquire those on his more complete Calssics Chrono series which has almost all of his reocrdings. In any case this is a fine sampler of his mid period recordings, however you will also want to explore the peiod before this with Cab calloway and the Missourians(his hottest band od all!). Then you will want his R&B sides from the 40's. but this is a start... and a good one at that, as it features many uptempo hot numbers and an occasional ballad, which features Cab as a crooner, who has more in common with Bing Crosby then Al Joson.

Having purchased the terrific 'Are You Hep to the Jive?' CD which covers the period 1939-47, I then faced the task of finding a decent anthology of Cab's work for 1930-9. Having tried other discs and been disappointed, I have included that this is the best for this earlier period. The trouble with Cab anthologies is that, while he recorded some great songs, he also recorded a lot of cheesy stuff, and usually both categories are mixed together. Cab was at his best when he was being outrageous, singing his 'Hi-de-Ho' wailers and so on. But when he tried to sing ballads, he'd sing in this corny Al Jolson-style, which may have been popular at the time, but rather embarassing now.

On the whole, this CD focuses on Cab's good stuff. The opening 'St Louis Blues' is a definitive example of Cab's early style where he almost seems to hold on to a note forever. We also get the rare opportunity of hearing the original 1931 version of 'Minnie the Moocher', perhaps not as good as the 1942 version but its nice to have both in your collection. In fact we're treated to no less than five songs featuring Minnie and Smokey Joe, namely 'Minnie the Moocher' itself, 'Lady with the Fan', 'Zaz Zuh Zaz', 'Kickin' the Gong Around' and 'The Ghost of Smokey Joe'. Only 'Minnie the Moocher's Wedding Day' and 'Mr Paganini, Swing for Minnie' are missing, so until a CD is issued to include the entire Moocher series, I guess this is the closest we'll get.

If there was one song I wouldn't have included on this disc, it would be 'Miss Otis Regrets', a fine song by other people but, for Cab, it's more in that cheesy category referred to previously. But, despite the odd questionable selection, we do get to hear some of Cab's finest including the scat standard 'Nagasaki' and 'Jumpin' Jive', Cab's big hit from the movie 'Stormy Weather'.

I recommend 'Are You Hep to the Jive?' to hear Cab's best work for 1939-47. For pre-1939 recordings, I would recommend this album, as well as Columbia/Legacy's two "Best of the Big Bands" discs.

The earlier videos were so dated but I enjoyed from Pleasure Principle on....The sound is a little low but maybe it is because the videos are old. Fun to see people who were in her videos...

WOW, I had forgotten how sexy some of these earlier videos were. Anytime, Anyplace is really hot. The dancing and music are fantastic. If you like Janet, you will love this collection of videos.

This is a fun DVD which captures Janet through 1986 where she broke out with her successful "Control" album through to 1996 with the successful song "Runaway". It's quite amusing to see the clips from the 80's with the strong focus on group dance movements. Also interesting to see Janet battle with weight issues through the years. In some clips her face is so chubby! The songs from "Control" are very dated now, sounding very synethised and lacking what I would call a nice melody ... but they are still fun to listen to now and again. Janet's solo career really started to mature with "Rythmn Nation" where great songs like "Love will never do without you" and "Alright" were released. After that album, we got even more mature sounds with "That's the way love goes" and "Runaway".

I can't think of any videos that are missing except for perhaps "The Best Things in Life are Free" but I assume no video was available for it.

Overall, this is a DVD worth owning as it has some great clips. You'll probably laugh at the early videos from 1986 but trust me, back then those videos were considered pretty hot stuff.

Janet Jackson is universally regarded as an innovator. Her music and the videos that accompany them showed the world that she was a budding talent with a beautiful (although faint) voice and astonishing dancing skills that many would come to assimilate. A plethora of her younger contemporaries have said that she inspired them because her career as a whole has been nothing short of groundbreaking. A great illustration of her creative works as an artist are her videos. "Design of a Decade" includes some of her dexterous videos to date.

In 1986, Janet released her "Control" LP. Each single released from the album had a video. "What Have You Done for Me Lately" was the first. Janet is known for her coy, reserved disposition, but in this video, Janet exhibits another side: a Janet with attitude. This video includes choreography by Paula Abdul, and dances that would later become popular, like the Snake. Janet's big hair and colorful clothes make this video memorable. "Nasty", arguably Janet's signature song, is also featured on this DVD. "Nasty" is shot in and around a movie theatre, and again features Janet providing lots of attitude. Janet is a bit robust in "Nasty" (and most of the videos from this era), but she still dances with such vigor and energy. In this video, Janet proclaims her distaste for nasty men by rolling her eyes and sashaying past them. "Control" is Janet's first live performance, and she stunned. She was a triple threat in this video: a dancer, singer and a superb performer! Definitely worth mentioning is the incredible "The Pleasure Principle." Janet lost a substantial amount of weight, flattened her hair, and grew a bit more mature when this video was filmed. She danced almost the entire video, alone. Although this video is pretty simple, it had just as much impact as some of her more costly, gaudy videos.

By 1989, we are introduced to a socially conscious Janet with "Rhythm Nation 1814." Most of the videos from this era are in black and white. The reason for this? Because it helped Janet to convey the point that there should be no "color lines." The videos for "Rhythm Nation" and "Miss You Much" both had incredible dance sequences. "Escapade" and "Alright" illustrated a very happy, playful, whimsical Janet (and also included dance sequences.) "Come Back to Me" has very sad lyrics, and Janet's facial expressions throughout the video are ones of a disheartened person. This video was shot in Paris and features her then boyfriend, Rene Elizondo. "Love Will Never Do (Without You) is the first video where Janet bared much skin and displayed a more provocative side. In the video, she is intimately close to men and is just much more sexy than before. She continued her "sexy phase" with the "That's the Way Love Goes" video (from her 1993 "janet." LP. In this video, Janet comes off as playful and light-hearted. "Whoops Now" (from "janet") and "Runaway" (from "Design of a Decade" are also light-hearted, colorful videos.

My criticisms for this compilation are: A lot of these videos are longer than what they give us on this DVD. For some unknown reason, some of these videos are truncated. Also, the only two videos from the "janet." album are "That's the Way Love Goes" and Whoops Now". This DVD is omitted some of Janet's most important videos like "If" and "Again". Aside from that, this is a must-have for those who love the art of music video and, more importantly, the innovation that Janet Jackson has given the music video industry.

Design of a decade is really what the title describes. It shows the rise of a true music Icon, someone who has helped pave the way for pop/R&B/Dance music. If it werent for Janet and these hits beyonce, ciara, mya, rihanna, and any other up and coming pop diva out there wouldnt exsist. If you are a music fan of funky and fun hits this is a must have DVD. It showcases janet at some of her most edgy and classic musical experiments. Definatly worth the 5 stars i rated it.

I have watched this album in the format of LD for a long time ago,
once I search in amazon recently, I found this album in DVD format,
I bought it & found this video is the same & with much more better
image & sound quality, I,m really enjoyed!

Peter

It was a nice tnrow back to watch Janet Jackson in old form. The dancing in such videos as "Rhythm Nation", and "Alright" are a reminder of one of the great trademarks of the Jackson Family. It was a great time period, then before a lot of the Jackson's troubles set in. I could watch this entire DVD again and again.

Movie Description
One of the true divas of pop and rhythm 'n' blues, one of the youngest and cutest members of the Jackson family, Janet, topped charts and took names with her album RHYTHM NATION 1814. This eponymous video is a so-called "Telemusical" which consists of 4 songs off of the album--"Black Cat," "Miss You Much," "The Knowledge," and "Rhythm Nation--as well as plenty of dancing and exclusive behind-the-scenes footage.

Credits
Cast: Janet Jackson

Film Notes
Tracks:

Black Cat
Miss You Much
The Knowledge
Rhythm Nation

The picture for this film is not clear. So if you are looking for quality, it is not going to be found in this film.

Although recent outings have proven highly subpar in recent years, I still never can get enough of the high quality of the 1989 through 1990 videos of the videos from her magnum opus Rhythm Nation 1814. Entitled "The Rhythm Nation Compilation", this is a brilliant and groundshattering collection of seven of the most popular videos of all time on one DVD!

It's about time this came out too. The video version I had had worn out from so much watching but the DVD not only is superior in sound qualit, it's also benifited from a visual clean-up job and the images are much better and sharper too to give it a much more modern feel.

Call me strange by saying this but I found Janet to be worlds sexier in the "Miss You Much" and "Black Cat" videos than in recent ones like "All For You" and even "If". MYM is without a doubt probably my all time favorite video by any woman artist to this very day and includes the legendary chair-routine that has been copied numerous times in the 16 years since it was filmed.

Older fans will dig this DVD and younger fans need to get this to see a much different (and sadly once a much more mature Janet than now) Janet than they are familiar with.

The earlier videos were so dated but I enjoyed from Pleasure Principle on....The sound is a little low but maybe it is because the videos are old. Fun to see people who were in her videos...

WOW, I had forgotten how sexy some of these earlier videos were. Anytime, Anyplace is really hot. The dancing and music are fantastic. If you like Janet, you will love this collection of videos.

This is a fun DVD which captures Janet through 1986 where she broke out with her successful "Control" album through to 1996 with the successful song "Runaway". It's quite amusing to see the clips from the 80's with the strong focus on group dance movements. Also interesting to see Janet battle with weight issues through the years. In some clips her face is so chubby! The songs from "Control" are very dated now, sounding very synethised and lacking what I would call a nice melody ... but they are still fun to listen to now and again. Janet's solo career really started to mature with "Rythmn Nation" where great songs like "Love will never do without you" and "Alright" were released. After that album, we got even more mature sounds with "That's the way love goes" and "Runaway".

I can't think of any videos that are missing except for perhaps "The Best Things in Life are Free" but I assume no video was available for it.

Overall, this is a DVD worth owning as it has some great clips. You'll probably laugh at the early videos from 1986 but trust me, back then those videos were considered pretty hot stuff.

Janet Jackson is universally regarded as an innovator. Her music and the videos that accompany them showed the world that she was a budding talent with a beautiful (although faint) voice and astonishing dancing skills that many would come to assimilate. A plethora of her younger contemporaries have said that she inspired them because her career as a whole has been nothing short of groundbreaking. A great illustration of her creative works as an artist are her videos. "Design of a Decade" includes some of her dexterous videos to date.

In 1986, Janet released her "Control" LP. Each single released from the album had a video. "What Have You Done for Me Lately" was the first. Janet is known for her coy, reserved disposition, but in this video, Janet exhibits another side: a Janet with attitude. This video includes choreography by Paula Abdul, and dances that would later become popular, like the Snake. Janet's big hair and colorful clothes make this video memorable. "Nasty", arguably Janet's signature song, is also featured on this DVD. "Nasty" is shot in and around a movie theatre, and again features Janet providing lots of attitude. Janet is a bit robust in "Nasty" (and most of the videos from this era), but she still dances with such vigor and energy. In this video, Janet proclaims her distaste for nasty men by rolling her eyes and sashaying past them. "Control" is Janet's first live performance, and she stunned. She was a triple threat in this video: a dancer, singer and a superb performer! Definitely worth mentioning is the incredible "The Pleasure Principle." Janet lost a substantial amount of weight, flattened her hair, and grew a bit more mature when this video was filmed. She danced almost the entire video, alone. Although this video is pretty simple, it had just as much impact as some of her more costly, gaudy videos.

By 1989, we are introduced to a socially conscious Janet with "Rhythm Nation 1814." Most of the videos from this era are in black and white. The reason for this? Because it helped Janet to convey the point that there should be no "color lines." The videos for "Rhythm Nation" and "Miss You Much" both had incredible dance sequences. "Escapade" and "Alright" illustrated a very happy, playful, whimsical Janet (and also included dance sequences.) "Come Back to Me" has very sad lyrics, and Janet's facial expressions throughout the video are ones of a disheartened person. This video was shot in Paris and features her then boyfriend, Rene Elizondo. "Love Will Never Do (Without You) is the first video where Janet bared much skin and displayed a more provocative side. In the video, she is intimately close to men and is just much more sexy than before. She continued her "sexy phase" with the "That's the Way Love Goes" video (from her 1993 "janet." LP. In this video, Janet comes off as playful and light-hearted. "Whoops Now" (from "janet") and "Runaway" (from "Design of a Decade" are also light-hearted, colorful videos.

My criticisms for this compilation are: A lot of these videos are longer than what they give us on this DVD. For some unknown reason, some of these videos are truncated. Also, the only two videos from the "janet." album are "That's the Way Love Goes" and Whoops Now". This DVD is omitted some of Janet's most important videos like "If" and "Again". Aside from that, this is a must-have for those who love the art of music video and, more importantly, the innovation that Janet Jackson has given the music video industry.

Design of a decade is really what the title describes. It shows the rise of a true music Icon, someone who has helped pave the way for pop/R&B/Dance music. If it werent for Janet and these hits beyonce, ciara, mya, rihanna, and any other up and coming pop diva out there wouldnt exsist. If you are a music fan of funky and fun hits this is a must have DVD. It showcases janet at some of her most edgy and classic musical experiments. Definatly worth the 5 stars i rated it.

The "Soundies" offered in JAZZ 10 MOVIE PACK were looped films stored within a rather ingenious pay-per-view video jukebox. These devices were quite popular in the early 40s, and the artists featured (Fats Waller, Louis Jordan and Cab Calloway, among others) made some really fine music for the Soundies folks.

CHECK AND DOUBLE CHECK, with Amos & Andy, nominally qualifies as a jazz movie, because the Duke Ellington orchestra performs a couple of songs midway through. The other 7 titles in this collection are legitimate examples of early jazz and swing movies.

Four vintage "race movies" may be found on the SPENCER WILLIAMS COLLECTION.

.
Parenthetical numbers preceding titles are 1 to 10 viewer poll ratings found at a film resource website.

(5.5) Check And Double Check (1930) - Freeman Gosden/Charles Correll/Duke Ellington orch.
(5.3) The Duke Is Tops (1938) - Lena Horne/Ralph Cooper/Laurence Criney
(5.8) Hi-De-Ho (1947) - Cab Calloway/Ida James/Jeni Le Gon
(6.2) Killer Diller (1948) - Dusty Fletcher/Butterfly McQueen/King Cole Trio
(5.2) Paradise In Harlem (1939) - Mamie Smith/Frank L. Wilson/Norman Astwood
(7.0) Reet, Petite And Gone (1947) - Louis Jordan/June Richmond/Milton Wood
(5.1) Rhythm And Blues Revue (1955) - Nat King Cole/Sarah Vaughn/Count Basie
(5.1) Rock N' Roll Revue (1955) - Duke Ellington/Nat King Cole/Lionel Hampton
(???) Soundies Cavalcade - Lena Horne/Teddy Wilson/Dusty Fletcher
(???) Soundies Festival - Ethel Waters/Eddy Green/Dusty Fletcher

This set contains the following:

1. Check and Double Check
2. Hi-De-Ho
3. Killer Diller
4. Paradise in Harlem
5. Petite and Gone
6. Rhythm and Blues Revue and Reet
7. Rock 'N Roll Revue
8. The Duke Is Tops
9. Soundies Festival
10. Soundies Cavalcade

PRODUCTION AND TECHNICAL NOTES:

Aspect Ratio: Pre-1954 Standard (1.33.1)
Presentation: B&W
Sound: Dolby Digital Stereo
Language: English
Time: 10 Hours 39 Minutes