In recognition of National Vinyl Record Day today I'm playing one of my most prized vinyl albums. JUDY AT CARNEGIE HALL RECORED LIVE SUNDAY, APRIL 23 AT 8:30 P.M. If I close my eyes and just listen it's almost like I'm there when the great and talented Judy Garland sang and danced for 3,000 people in a sold out performance. She was on stage for two hours with only one brief intermission singing song after song like nobody else can. By all accounts its was an incredible night. Like no other. Considered by many critics and fans to be the greatest concert of all time. At the time of its first album release it was on the Billboard chart for 73 weeks, including 13 weeks at No. 1. It won four Grammy awards: Album of the Year, Best Female Vocal Performance, Best Album Cover, Best Engineering Contribution. Since 1961 Judy At Carnegie Hall has never been out of print. In 2003 Judy at Carnegie Hall concert recording was selected by Library of Congress to be added to the registry. According to the registry the recording captures her iconic Carnegie Hall performance from April 23, 1961- a landmark event in her career.
Most of us have a favorite entertainer. One we like and admire more than any other. One whose music when listening to touches our spirit and makes us smile. And sometimes cry. In recent years the word GOAT has been tossed around a lot. Given to someone recognized as the greatest of all time in their field. For me, there's no doubt about it! Judy Garland is the GOAT ! The greatest, most talented entertainer of all time. And I'm not the only one to think that! The also extremely talented and gifted Bing Crosby when asked in different interviews who he thought the most talented performer was would always say Judy Garland. He would cite her singing, dancing, dramatic acting and comedic ability. The most talented woman I ever knew was Judy Garland, Crosby said.
Like so many, my first experience of Judy Garland was when I was a child and watched The Wizard of Oz for the first time. She was Dorothy. Her portrayal so real and genuine. So believable. Dorothy and Judy Garland are intertwined; melded into one. Bound together. For all eternity. It's impossible to think of any one other than Judy Garland as Dorothy. Or anyone other than Judy Garland singing Over the Rainbow in the magical, transcendent way she did. A song that was written by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg specifically for her.
Judy was 16 years old when she starred in Wizard of Oz, but even before she was going down that yellow brick road looking for home her amazing talent was evident in earlier movies like Pigskin Parade, Broadway Melody of 1938, Everybody Sing, Thoroughbreds Don't Cry, Love Finds Andy Hardy and Listen, Darling. In Listen, Darling Judy sang Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart for the first time. It would remain on her 'songs to sing' list throughout her career. A fan favorite.
Judy Garland starred in 34 feature films including Meet Me in St. Louis, The Clock, Easter Parade, The Harvey Girls, The Pirate. Several that teamed her with Mickey Rooney. Often referred to as 'Backyard Musicals' (Babe's On Broadway, Strike Up the Band, Girl Crazy). Each one a huge success for MGM Studios. And helped to make Judy and Mickey super stars of their day. I have watched all of the Judy Garland movies, many times in fact. My goal now is to watch each one in order they were first released. Starting with Pigskin Parade (1937) and ending with I Could Go On Singing (1963). A fun fact about I Could Go On Singing is in the scene where Judy (as Jenny) is on the ferry with her on screen son while her real son Joey Luft and daughter, Lorna are in the background, playing other passengers on the ferry. One gets the sense Judy liked being a Mom, and having her kids around. I'm thinking of the final scene in The Good Old Summertime where her oldest daughter, still a toddler, Liza Minnelli makes an appearance. And the many times her kids were on her television show. One image I recently came across and one I like very much is a photo of Judy Garland on stage at the conclusion of the Carnegie Hall performance and all three of her children are with her. Her arms around Lorna, with Joe and Liza next to her. Such a momentous, fabulous night for Judy Garland!, and who does she bring up on stage to share her triumph? Her kids. Very endearing.
Besides starring in 34 movies, Judy Garland made over 200 Radio appearances from 1935 to 1953 (referencing IMDb), did 26 episodes of the Judy Garland Show and 60 TV appearances. According to Wikipedia she appeared in concert over 1,100 times, always receiving a standing ovation. It has been 56 years since Judy Garland's passing, yet her fan base remains strong with popular (and recommended) sites The Judy Experience and The Judy Room introducing Judy to a younger generation. Both can be found on Youtube and Facebook. Along with many other sites and videos about Judy Garland, showcasing her many talents.
And so many talents she had. It has been reported from more than one source Lana Turner, after watching Judy Garland sing I'm Only Chasing Rainbows in Ziegfeld Girl, a movie they made together, said I'd give up all my beauty for half of Judy's talent. In Babe's On Broadway, Mickey Rooney asks Judy Garland to sing for him. She answers by asking, How do you know I can? Mickey again, You sing when you talk, when you walk. Your eyes are singing right now. That might have been a movie script. But it could also be said of Judy Garland, not just the character she played. One reason it's so fun to watch her perform is because she sings with her whole body. Not anyone telling her how to move or look. It's her innate, natural instinct. I believe a God given gift. In watching segments of her television show on Youtube I've observed something interesting, and lovely when she's with a guest. How she always reaches out to touch them or link her arm in theirs. Or take their hand. It always appears to be very spontaneous and natural. I think it's both her wanting the guest to feel welcome, and also to ease any anxiety she might be feeling. That reaching out to another is very much a part of Judy Garland's persona.
Not only her great singing, but her dancing. She could do it all ! In watching some of her numbers with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, and Mickey Rooney those dance steps are complicated, and fast moving. And in most of the routines, she's not only dancing but singing, too. Judy also danced beautifully with choreographer Charles Walters in Presenting Lily Mars. Just recently I came across a Judy Garland dance number on YouTube that has become a new favorite ! Judy dancing to Irving Berlin's song Mr. Monotony (click below). It was meant for Easter Parade, but in the end was cut from the movie. I can't imagine why? It is brilliant! Judy is fabulous! Perhaps the director thought it made the movie too long. Thankfully we now have Youtube and have access to seeing Judy in numbers that were previously locked away in some studio vault. Like Doin What Comes Naturally from Annie Get Your Gun. A movie, and role that should have been Judy Garland's. But that's a blog for another time.
In 1987 Peter Allen, the Australian singer, songwriter and musician (who along with his brother was for a time the opening act for Judy Garland, and also once married to her daughter, Liza) said, I had never seen a top rate American entertainer before Judy. So when I watched her pour her heart into every performance and literally capture the audience I thought that was normal in the U.S. It wasn't until I worked with other stars that I realized how tremendous she was. There was Judy Garland , and then all the rest.
I say Judy Garland was like a bright, dazzling one of a kind comet streaming across the sky making everybody look up and smile and say, Wow! Aren't we lucky we got to see that!
