It's great that the fantastic Ella is still in vogue. God knows she deserves it. Quite a few still consider the US jazz singer to be an unrivaled icon of jazz singing. And certainly, rightly so. So now Verve, her preferred label, is commemorating Ella Fitzgerald with The Lost Berlin Tapes. Is this just a publicity stunt? Berlin tapes exist as the Grammy-winning Mack The Knife: Ella in Berlin from a performance in the divided city on Valentine's Day in 1960, followed a year later by another Ella live album under the title Ella Returns To Berlin. Both albums enjoy numerous reissues on LP, tape cassette, CD and as downloads. However, these are not the Lost Tapes from the singer's Berlin performance at the Berlin Sportpalast on March 25, 1962, which had remained unreleased until the release of the new album of the same name.

The tapes for the album The Lost Berlin Tapes, which have now been released after the live event of 1962, i.e. after no less than 61 years, come from the private collection of Ella's manager Norman Granz and document a true flight of fancy for the singer Ella Fitzgerald, who was already performing at the very highest level in the sixties.

She is supported during her triumphant performance by her then regular trio with Paul Smith, piano, Wilfred Middlebrooks, bass and Stan Levey on drums. Where she forgot the lyrics to "Mack The Knife" in 1960, this time she knows them, but forgets the name of the town in which she is acting now. The audience laughs at the singer's frank and freely offered confession and raves after each song. And rightly so. It is also impressive that, apart from "Mack The Knife" and "Summertime", Ella did not repeat a single song from her 1960 concert in 1962, but even presented songs that had not been part of her repertoire until then.

To be marveled at on The Lost Berlin Tapes is also Ella Fitzgerald's unique art of improvising and scatting over almost any lyric. Last but not least, she once again proves herself a master of swing. In " Cheek to Cheek" she shines with the falsetto, a vocal register she normally avoids, but which swept the audience off their feet in the Berlin Sportpalast. Also admirable is the smooth vocal delivery during this live performance, which is not part of the singer's house brand and keeps the audience spellbound.

"Cry Me a River" begins with the jangly scatting typical of Ella Fitzgerald, bursting out of her like a mighty river. At this point, at the latest, it becomes clear that we are dealing with a supremely talented blues singer who uniquely embeds the blues in swing. Her infectious stage presence makes its way acoustically when she begins "Good Morning Heartache", laughing heartily at the delight of the audience, who immediately recognize the song and acknowledging this with "All right, all right".

To give a very thick recommendation for the Lost Berlin Tapes is superfluous.

Ella Fitzgerald, vocals
Paul Smith, piano
Wilfred Middlebrooks, bass
Stan Levey, drums