Givin' It Up

Through a lovely beatnik jazz gal who eventually became my wife I had been introduced to Al Jarreau before his jazz pop masterpiece Breaking Away. I was a novice to vocalese jazz when she played ALL FLY HOME for me and suddenly I was hostage to a new art. On the other hand, this dedicated Beatle Maniac was a full blown fan of George Benson ever since his release of THE OTHER SIDE OF ABBEY ROAD in 1970, having collected all of his works under the CTI label and following him to Warner Brothers. So these two pioneers of crossover jazz, who made pop music audiences become pseudo-jazz aficionados, after all these years (to 2006), finally unite and produced a very fine album. Never mind the ubiquitous nay-sayers like the Amazon reviewer Lloyd Sachs who give it maudlin praise or backhanded compliments; GIVIN' IT UP is a treasure trove for fans of both these artists or smooth jazz fans anywhere. Yes, this is not ALL FLY HOME, nor GLOW, not even Roof Garden or Blue Rondo; it is not WHITE RABBIT, BAD BENSON, or BREEZIN. What it IS is:Two signature classics by both men (Breezin' and Mornin', see what they did there? Each taking a dive on the other masters work) and then, with the help of notable luminaries from both of their worlds, they dish out a heapin helpin of goodies for the salivating jazz and pop-jazz fans. And get ready to die happy when you hear what they did with THE Miles Davis' classic swing masterpiece Four!If you've read this review you have no doubt read enough other reviews to know the who's who list of guests starring on this full course meal, so no need to repeat all the ground that's been covered already, however, note that this is a list of Legends and the most recent songwriter credited on the courses is none other than another Legend. This album is smart, cool, groovy, a cavalcade of hep cats breaking down the walls of Jericho. Real entertainment for a terrific price!

Love Al Jarreau & George Benson, what a great pair! Light, breezy, jazzy, absolutely wonderful... a pure delight! Relaxed, the great mix of tunes make perfect ambiance for a relaxing romantic evening, or a dinner party. One of my all-time favorite songs is Summer Breeze, they bring a great new version to delight my ears! If you enjoy light, ambient jazz you'll love this cd. The guest vocalists (Jill Scott, Patti Austin, Paul McCartney)... are like the cherry on top! You can't help but feel GREAT listening to this disc. Wish I could be more technical in my review, but I listen to music because of how it makes me feel, and this disc delivers! enJOY!P.S. I bought this as a gift for a friend who loves jazzy black men *wink*, but I had to go back and buy another for myself. Fantastic!

Man! I wish this had been a two CD set of these two powerhouses together. Leaves you waiting for the next compilation. R.I.P. Al Jarreau. Miss you something fierce!

Worth the purchase

One of his best CDs

This is a Classic! This is Benson’s and Jarreau’s best collaborations of all time. They are brilliant. They really have outstanding chemistry and artistry. You can’t buy a better jazz cd. It travels well and will fit every mood. I love this cd!

This was a real nice CD featuring both Artists! Each one did his version of the other one's Big Hit, so that made it real nice, especially when you like both Artists. A Great CD!

I love both these guys so I won't say much for fear of having my Benson, Jarreau jazz card revoked. These songs were too relaxed and many too pop oriented. Neither Jarreau, with his vocals nor George, with his guitar had a chance to fly and do what we've come to love from them. At least one blazing duet would have done many of us die hard fans fine. But it was not to be found anywhere. In my opinion the best song from the entire project is the accompaniment with Jill Scott and even that is fair. I anticipated this project for years but deeply disappointed at the outcome.

BellissimoOttima incisione

Wer beide Künstler liebt, dem sollte diese CD nicht fehlen. Neue Interpretationen bekannter und geliebter Titel überraschen und erfreuen. So auch die Gäste und Bandmitglieder begeistern - mich - total.

Well what can I say other than one of the world's best guitarist, George Benson and top singer/songwriter Al Jarreau got together and made this.... Well fantastic album! What with Al's stunning laid back & soulful voice it's great to have on in the background and chill out and relax to. There are new versions of 'Mornin'', 'Summer Breeze,' and 'Breezin'' which features George's guitar skills. This CD also features the track 'Bring it all home to me' which features Paul McCartney. If you like soul or lite jazz, not heavily influenced, you'll definitely will enjoy this CD.

excellent cd

Excelente trabajo de dos genios de la música. Todas y cada una de las canciones son de una excelente calidad, para escuchar una y otra vez. Además, precio imbatible con la oferta de Amazon (reacondicionado pero como nuevo, de hecho es nuevo sin abrir con un pequeño defecto en la caja)