Music For Quiet Listening

Editorial Reviews
Album Description
Music For Quiet Listening is a compilation of mostly reflective, warm, lyrical pieces that are ideal for late night listening, falling to sleep to, or doing homework/office work by. This is the first recording of the delightful Tailleferre sonatines, the solo piano version of the adagio from Ravel's Piano Concerto in G, Kellogg's exhilirating Dance, and DeLucia's heart-on-sleeve rapture. Also included is the little known but luscious Godowsky Boro Budur by Moonlight, an excerpt from the superb Java Suite. If you enjoy, lyrical, easy to digest classical music, Music For Quiet Listening is just the solution!

Tracks:

Balm in Gilead
Chassidic Chant
Quiet Flows The Don: From Border To Border
Quiet Flows The Don: Oh, How Proud Our Quiet Don
Elijah, Op. 70: The Lord God Of Abraham
The Purest Kind Of Guy
Joe Hill
The Peat-Bog Soldiers
The Four Insurgent Generals
Native Land
Song Of The Plains
Cradle Song
Within Four Walls
By An' By
Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
John Henry
Water Boy
My Curly Headed Baby
Mah Lindy Lou
Wagon Wheels
The House I Live In
Showboat: I Still Suits Me
Sylvia
Showboat: Ol' Man River
Porgy And Bess: It Ain't Necessarily So

Amazon.com

There was nothing like the Robeson sound, ever. To describe his deep, rich, perfectly equalized instrument is futile. Go instead to "Balm in Gilead," the opening track, and see if you can listen to the last pianissimo phrase without falling to pieces. Robeson was at his best when the music was slow and the words contained spiritual or social messages. Faster, lighter fare like Kern's "I Still Suits Me" or Gershwin's "It Ain't Necessarily So" find the serious-minded singer out of his element, lacking irony and swing. "Old Man River," though, gets a simple, dignified treatment. It's Songs of Free Men, though, that will just keep Robeson's artistry rolling along, especially in Sony's astonishing transfers. --Jed Distler

Customer Reviews:

Robeson on wax.......2007-06-19

I found this album in a thrift store last week, for a couple of dollars. It's the original pressing on four 78 RPM records, in a gatefold format. It's in pristine condition. I really bought it for the incredible cover art, although I hope to be able to listen to it in this format at some point.

The voice, the sound quality and the interpretation.......2004-09-24

Put this on your stereo and if it is good enough the depth and richness of Robeson's voice will make your fillings rattle and your chest rumble. The power of his voice is awesome. This CD is superbly recorded with no audible noise at normal listening levels.

A Voice from the 40s, often dated, often moving.......2002-09-01

"Red diaper babies" have greeted this disc with nostalgic joy, and it captures a time and an aesthetic and a political belief with precision. Anyone interested in the emotional life of the pro-Soviet left of the 1940s should buy this disc. It's something like Henry Wallace set to music. There is much more to Robeson than that, however, and Sony has given us Robeson whole: there are songs by American masters of the musical, there are labor songs, religious songs, as well as the kind of faux-folk songs which the butcher supreme Josef Stalin encouraged and which were not taken seriously inside the USSR (except at gunpoint!!) but which were taken up by dupes around the world. This is Robeson at his least savory - willing propagandist for a vile mass murderer. Songs such as "Native Land" (fittingly, Robeson is referring to the Soviet Union) and the Red Army song are the equivalent of the "Horst Wessel Song", anthems of murder, and it is difficult to listen to the worst of them without retching. On the other hand, Robeson's commitment to American folk culture was real. "Balm in Gilead" is deeply beautiful; "John Henry" is heroic; "By an' By" is both resigned yet hopeful. "Joe Hill" captures an era in labor history. Anyone interested in American popular song should hear these. Turning to Broadway, his "Old Man River" is very fine, though Robeson changed the lyrics for political reasons and Leonard Warren has done the song better. I disagree with the editorial reviewer: "I Still Suits Me" is wonderfully playful and shows Robeson using his gorgeously rich voice to tease and poke fun. However, Marc Blitzstein's "Purest Kind of a Guy" is beyond saving - another example of Robeson recording an unworthy song by a political fellow-traveller. Ugh. But for every miss there are two hits. Robeson performs Mendelssohn's Elijah with nobility, and sings his favorite song, "Water Boy", with joyous pride: "There ain't no hammer that's on these mountains that rings like mine, boys, that rings like mine."
No one need have any fears about the mono sound quality. The orchestra in the second half of the program is at times a little dwarfed by Robeson's voice, but it generally sounds clean and colorful, and the great artist's voice rings like no other.

Robeson at his best.......2000-05-12

It's hard to believe that most of these recordings pre-date the advent of magnetic tape: the CD transfer is superlative. The songs and performance are beyond reproach. Notable is the imaginative packaging in miniature 'record album' format, complete with the original cover art, and a replica of the original Columbia record label applied to the CD.

In response to a previous question: Robeson's performance of Danny Boy (Londonderry Air) can be found on the Vanguard LP entitled "Robeson" (VRS-9037).

some of the greatest songs of the last century.......2000-05-05

In the 1940s, before rabid McCarthyism and racism had taken its toll on him, Robeson made these wonderful recordings of spirituals, classics and pop tunes. Accompanied by the solo piano of the incomparable Lawrence Brown, or by an orchestra, the songs ring out with pride, dignity, skill and unmatched integrity. The shameful treatment that Robeson was subject to from American authorities certainly seem grotesquely absurd to a modern listener. The wonderful version of "The House I Live In" included on this cd should forever kill off any suspicion that Robeson did not love his country deeply. This album ought to be heard by millions of people, world wide. Robeson's voice is nothing less than a glorious high point in 20th century music, and it's hard to think of any recording capturing it to greater advantage.

Average customer rating:

Esteban Ramirez a delight! Reminiscent of David Lanz

Welcome Home
Esteban Ramirez
Manufacturer: Descanso Music
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Latin Music | Styles | Music

General | New Age | Styles | Music

Meditation | New Age | Styles | Music

Solo Instrumental | New Age | Styles | Music

General | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music

General | New Age | Indie Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Serenade to the Moon
Fly With Me
Best of Esteban
Songs From My Heart
Enter The Heart

ASIN: B000050XUH
Release Date: 2000-10-01

Tracks:

Echoes in Time
Sandbox
Love and Innocence
Welcome Home
Dinner for Two
Garden Waltz
New England
Carnival in Paris
Window at Batignolles
Solitude
Wings of an Angel
Over the Rainbow

Album Description

Building on his first release “Serenade to the Moon,” Esteban Ramirez continues his romantic journey with “Welcome Home”, a dramatically evolved piano-solo album elegantly flavored with cello on four tracks. The recording and production value are excellent, and pieces with cello strike a harmonious balance. Strong romantic melodies make for creating a romantic or meditative mood. Esteban's pianistic musings come to a low heat and maintain their intensity throughout. Many find Esteban's moving rendition of “Over the Rainbow” a particular favorite on which to end the ablum.

Customer Reviews:

Esteban Ramirez a delight! Reminiscent of David Lanz.......2000-12-20

Since receiving the "Welcome Home" CD today, I have listened two it three times through! His excellently rendered, peaceful style in both his original songs and his cover of "Over the Rainbow" are worth more than one listen!

Tracks:

It's A Typical Day
The Way To A Man's Heart
Love In A Home
Medley: Jubilation T. Cornpone / (What's Good For) General Bullmoose (Is Good For The U.S.A.)
Unnecessary Town
The Country's In The Very Best Of Hands
There's Room Enough For Us
Progress Is The Root Of All Evil
If I Had My Druthers
Oh Happy Day
Matrimonial Stomp
Namely You
Hello, Dolly!
Once Upon A Time
Somewhere
Sunrise, Sunset
Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)
A Quiet Thing
Make Someone Happy
What Kind Of Fool Am I?
Long Ago
The Sweetest Sounds
As Long As He Needs Me
Theme From "Golden Boy"

Album Description

The jaunty Gene DePaul score for the musical play "Lil' Abner" based on the comic strip by Al Capp is heard instrumentally - and it's quite a show! "Broadway Bouquet" from 1965 is an important part of the famed Faith "string" album series - perhaps the pinnacle of his rich string sound that spanned gorgeous melodies and counterlines across sections of the large orchestra. (Bill Halvorsen)

Album Description

Pianist Percy Faith, a pioneer of the Easy Listening genre, had a successful and lengthy career as the in-house conductor and arranger for Columbia Records. Faith was renowned for his musical interpretations of Broadway and motion picture music. These two reissues from Collectables on 1 CD were originally released in 1965. 24 tracks. 2003.

Customer Reviews:

It's not stereo.......2005-01-10

I bought this solely for "Once Upon a Time", and was dismayed that the CD is mono, not stereo. The quality of the recordings leaves much to be desired, as many of them lack the pristine quality I'm used to on a CD.

classic arrangements by the classic gentlemen ~ Percy Faith.......2004-02-16

Two albums from the Columbia Records people blending different decades "Li'l Abner" (originally released CL 955 in 1956) and "Broadway Bouquet" (originally released LS 9156 in 1965), sharing the unmistakable style of the "Percy Faith Touch" ~ you know in an instant you're in for the best of the best ~ Duke Ellington was so taken with Faith's arrangements, that he would give anything to be able to arrange in that fashion.

Let's begin with "IT'S A TYPICAL DAY" along with "LOVE IN A HOME", both from "Li'l Abner", wonderful opening counterparts and the stirring arrangements by Maestro Percy Faith ~ "JUBILATON T. CORNPONE", uplifting cue that will keep bouncing in your head for hours, maybe even days ~ "IF I HAD MY DRUTHERS", one of the forgettable tunes from the show ~ "NAMELY YOU", has to be the best and favorite song of the Johnny Mercer and Gene De Paul score ~ by the way, these two composers penned the lively screen musical "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers", both scores were sure winners from two talented songwriters, Percy Faith steps up to the podium and takes it to another level.

Now with "Broadway Bouquet", we have perfection within the realm of lush arranging, so flawless "HELLO, DOLLY!" (Jerry Herman), "ONCE UPON A TIME" (Adams/Strouse), "SOMEWHERE" (Sondheim/Bernstein), "SUNRISE, SUNSET/FIDDLER ON THE ROOF" (Harnick/Bock) (one of my all-time favorites, can't get enough of this score), "WHO CAN I TURN TO (WHEN NOBODY NEEDS ME)" (Bricusse/Newley), "A QUIET THING" (Ebb/Kander), "MAKE SOMEONE HAPPY" (Comden/Green/Styne), "WHAT KIND OF FOOL AM I?" (Bricusse/Newley) (two of the best songwriters in the business), "LONG AGO" (David Heneker), "THE SWEETEST SOUNDS" (Richard Rodgers) (his credit of compositions goes through the ceiling, will never be another like 'em), "AS LONG AS HE NEEDS ME" (Lionel Bart) (a wonderful classic that is still popular by today's standards), "THEME FROM "GOLDEN BOY" (Adams Strouse) (another team of composers that have made an impact on the Broadway scene) ~ an example of the "Percy Faith Touch", so effortless, you feel like you're floating on a cloud ~ falls into Percy's many albums of fabulous string arrangements, they grabbed the attention of the listener and wouldn't let go. Can't think of any other arranger/composer who left such a great legacy as this man!

Highly recommend to ALL fans of Percy Faith ~ thanks to Collectables for releasing this collection from the vaults of Columbia Records ~ so listeners sit back, relax and enjoy a small part of Maestro Percy Faith's fabulous career!

Tracks:

Birds Of Paradise, Op. 34
The Last Spring - Grieg
The Enchanted Lake
Kikimora
Deux Rapsodies: L'Etang (The Pool)
Deux Rapsodies: La Cornemuse (The Bagpipe)
Fantasy Variations On A Theme Of Youth - Hanson

Customer Reviews:

quite a mixture.......2005-09-29

I bought this CD because I wanted a recording of Liadov's "Enchanted Lake." The performance of this piece is very nice, although the sound is a bit old-fashioned. The performance of Grieg's "Last Spring" is very beautiful, indeed. However, I had hoped for more music on this CD, as there is only 66 minutes. The other pieces on this CD are rarely-heard pieces that are quite pleasant, except for the atonal "Birds of Paradise," which is a typical 1960's atonal piece. It can hardly be categorized as "quiet listening"! I erased this piece when copying the CD to my computer. In general, this is a strange mixture of music, but nice performances all around.

Looking for Vol. 1. Hanson and great selection. Excellent.......1999-10-17

This is a beautiful CD with works by John La Montaine, Grieg, Anatol Liadov, Charles Martin-Loeffler, and Hanson. The selections are diverse, some very new or unknown but all blend together superbly. So, I seek Vol. 1. The music has a living presence. Hanson conducts his own orchestra with aplomb and finesse. Fine for studying, working at the PC, or sitting back to enjoy the scores and sounds. Where is Vol. 1? Why no Volume 3? I had hesitated to get this CD thinking it was another typical complilation that gets redundant and trite. Not Vol. 2. Can Vol. 1 be so good or has it been withdrawn. This is a Phillips Classical Masterpiece.

Average customer rating:

Quiet Moods [CD & DVD]

Manufacturer: Madacy Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Sextets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Latin Pop | Latin Music | Styles | Music

General | New Age | Styles | Music

Meditation | New Age | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Easy Listening | Compilations | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0007LPSYA
Release Date: 2005-02-01

Average customer rating:

Quiet Nights

Manufacturer: Allegro
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: B000E75ED2

Product Description

10 beautiful Dulcimer recordings. The Road to Lisdoon Varna Old Grey Cat She Boeg She Mor Desert Sunset Bonnie Woods and Braes and more.

Average customer rating:

Music For Quiet Listening
David DeLucia
Manufacturer: private release
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Classical | Indie Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 Classical | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 Pop | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music

More Music For Quiet Listening

ASIN: B00015NF8I
Release Date: 2003-06-21

Tracks:

Rachmaninoff: Prelude in G major, Opus 32, #5
Rachmaninoff: Prelude in E flat major, opus 23, #6
Rachmaninoff: Lilacs, opus 21, #5
Rachmaninoff: Daisies, opus 38, #3
Godowsky: Boro Budur in Moonlight from Java Suite
Kellogg: Dance for a New House
DeLucia: Carol Ross' Rapture
Tailleferre: Sonatine# 1
Tailleferre: Sonatine# 2
Tailleferre: Sonatine#3
Ravel: Adagio from Piano Concerto in G (solo piano version)
Liszt/Schumann: Widmung
Liszt: Benediction de Dieu dans la Solitude from Harmonies Poetiques et religieuses
Liszt: Benediction de Dieu dans la Solitude from Harmonies Poetiques et religieuses
Liszt: Benediction de Dieu dans la Solitude from Harmonies Poetiques et religieuses
Liszt: Benediction de Dieu dans la Solitude from Harmonies Poetiques et religieuses

Album Description

Music For Quiet Listening is a compilation of mostly reflective, warm, lyrical pieces that are ideal for late night listening, falling to sleep to, or doing homework/office work by. This is the first recording of the delightful Tailleferre sonatines, the solo piano version of the adagio from Ravel's Piano Concerto in G, Kellogg's exhilirating Dance, and DeLucia's heart-on-sleeve rapture. Also included is the little known but luscious Godowsky Boro Budur by Moonlight, an excerpt from the superb Java Suite. If you enjoy, lyrical, easy to digest classical music, Music For Quiet Listening is just the solution!

Average customer rating:

Lovebirds

Manufacturer: Married Flutes Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000BGQSSQ
Release Date: 2005-08-15

Tracks:

Dos Arbolitos by Steven van Wye
Theme for a Quiet Day by Caesar Giovannini
Sicilienne by Gabriel Faure arr. Wye
Allegro Moderato - Lovebirds by Gary Schocker
Con Fuoco - Lovebirds by Gary Schocker
Vivo - Lovebirds by Gary Schocker
Morning Song - Trio Serenade by Peter Schickele
Dance - Trio Serenade by Peter Schickele
Night Song - Trio Serenade by Peter Schickele
Trance - Trio Serenade by Peter Schickele
Finale - Trio Serenade by Peter Schickele
Cantique de Jean Racine by Gabriel Faure arr. Wye
Easy Going - Three Dances by Gary Schocker
Moody - Three Dances by Gary Schocker
Coffee Nerves - Three Dances by Gary Schocker

Product Description

Easy listening classical music for two Flutes and Piano featuring delightful works by Gabriel Faur, Peter Schickele & Gary Schocker. This charming recording is filled with a balanced diet of playful rhythms, Haunting romantic melodies and colorful harmonies.

Beautiful Dreamer: Favorite Lullabies for All Ages

Average customer rating:

My daughter can't sleep without this CD
Beautiful Dreamer

Beautiful Dreamer: Favorite Lullabies for All Ages

Manufacturer: Hickory Cove Music
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | New Age | Styles | Music

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music

General | New Age | Indie Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Favorite Hymns

ASIN: B00007KQ6J
Release Date: 2003-01-01

Tracks:

Brahms' Lullaby
Rock-a-Bye, Baby
All the Pretty Little Horses
Golden Slumbers
Sleep, Baby, Sleep
Toora, Loora, Loora
All Through the Night
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
Time to Say Goodnight/Taylor's Lullaby
Hush, Little Baby
Beautiful Dreamer
Flow Gently, Sweet Afton
Suo Gan
Brahms'Lullaby (second version)

Album Description

For centuries, families have loved simple lullabies--wonderful tunes that have been sung, hummed, or played to countless millions of babies to lull them to sleep.

In this album, which is nearly an hour long, you'll find quiet, simple, melodic versions of some of the world's most popular lullabies.

Jim Gibson's uniqueness with his Hickory Cove Music CDs is that he seamlessly weaves many pianistic styles together to make a most enjoyable, relaxing blend. Sometimes a song will "sound classical," while a few minutes later you'll hear a hint of jazz.

And, with "Beautiful Dreamer" the intent was to be as relaxing as possible, so these songs have an almost new-age feel--but with the content of long-loved melodies.

People love Jim's ten previous recordings because they are gentle, melodic, relaxing.

But . . . this one goes even further. And for parents of babies and young children, it will be a very popular CD.

A few months ago, we got a call in our Atlanta office from a young mother in Minnesota. She was frantic to have us send her one of Jim's CDs by overnight mail--because her two-year-old wouldn't go to sleep without "The Art of Tea" playing.

So, we decided to take advantage of Jim's melodic gift, and make a recording that, we hope, will put you to sleep.

This is it.

Customer Reviews:

My daughter can't sleep without this CD.......2006-04-03

My best friend bought this CD for me and it arrived 2 days after my daughter was born. We played it for her the night it arrived and she has been falling asleep to it every nap and every night since...she is 2 1/2 years old. This CD is beautiful...and since my husband and I can hear it over the baby monitor every night, it was important that it be pleasing to us as well...and it is. Anyone who has learned how to get a baby to sleep through the night knows that steadfast routine is the key. We made this CD part of our daughter's sleep routine and now, when we travel, we bring the CD with us and play it on a portable CD player. She'll go to sleep anywhere as long as this is playing. My best friend is now pregnant and I am returning the favor by buying her a copy of the CD. If you are looking for a beautiful CD to lull your little one AND yourself...look no further. I will be purchasing an extra copy to keep in my daughter's memory box, so that when she becomes a mother, she'll have a copy to play for her little one.

Beautiful Dreamer .......2006-01-24

Of all the beautiful melodies I have heard played by Jim Gibson, I believe this album of lullabies is my favorite. It is so very soft and soothing, not only for babies and moms, but for unborn babies as well. It quiets their stress of coming into a new world. This is the album that I have given so many times as gifts that played over and over without tiring of listening to it. There are various melodies; each one helps to make the atmosphere calm and restful. It is a peaceful album to soothe our stressful times.

Average customer rating:

When It's Quiet Late At Night

Manufacturer: Neo Polaris Music
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | Pop | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Jazz | Indie Music | Stores | Music

General | Pop | Indie Music | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00008NRMM
Release Date: 2003-02-02

Tracks:

Quiet Night of Quiet Stars
You Go To My Head
My One And Only Love
Midnight Sun
When in Rome
Why Did I Choose You ?
Prelude To A Kiss
Jurame
Don't Go To Strangers
April In Paris
This Nearly Was Mine

Album Description

Smooth, romantic, jazz-based vocals of ballads and swing tunes from 'Great American Songbook' composers such as Cole Porter, Johnny Mercer, Rodgers & Hart, Lionel Hampton, Cy Coleman, et al.

This CD offers voluptuous-but-tasteful arrangements and performances by the best musicians to be found on the West Coast Jazz/Easy Listening scene. At the same time, it has an international flavor and appeal with lyrics occasionally moving from English into Italian, French, Spanish and Portuguese.

Perfect music for late-night relaxing, creating a romantic atmosphere, long-distance driving/flying, or just enjoying a glass of wine alone, with a friend, a lover or a mate.

Highly recommended for lovers of this genre of music as sung by a velevty, rich baritone with the sound and vocal tradition of singers like Billy Eckstine, Johhny Hartman, and Sinatra.

Track Listings:

Track Listings

track listings

Track Listings

Buffalo Springfield

Graham Waterhouse: Portrait

Gone To Texas

Boss of the Blues

Pete Wells/Angry Anderson & the Damn Fine Band [Import]

Keepin' It Rheel

Jazz Singer/I Cry By Night

Harold in Italy Opus 16

Hinge

Jazz Time for Texas

Ixnay on the Hombre

Juez y Parte [Import]

La Mujer y el Radio

Two Fine Looking Women

Morton's Foot