Heute Nacht Oder Nie: Live in New York

When Max Raabe decided to gather together a Weimar Republic-style jazz band, he and they tapped into a need/desire for good quality entertainment, and they've been providing just that for decades since. The CD, Heute Nacht order Nie (Tonight or Never),is a wonderful sampling of their music. The recording quality is superb, the band's performance is outstanding, the song selections are nicely varied, and I would recommend this CD to anyone who appreciates quality music, not just old-school jazz. One caveate: It helps, but is not necessary, if the listener speaks German. (I do, but also know that not everyone does.) Many of the musical numbers are in German as are some of the spoken introductions to them.

It's hard to describe this double CD. A live performance of a great singer and a fine orchestra in a style of music that is of the 1920's and 30's. Music you'd see and hear live in Weinmar Republic portion of history that is particular to Germany of those times between two world wars. If it strikes a chord with you, you will find it compelling and thrilling to listen to as a remarkable piece of modern history. If you came from a home of European immigrants where foreign language music was heard, there is a good chance this will hit some buttons for you too. If you enjoyed seeing the film Cabaret this CD will be a good one to have.It's a special orchestra and a special singer making this special music and it takes a special listener to enjoy it. If you are special in the ways listed above then this will probably be CD that deserves to be in your collection and you'll really enjoy it. Music is a funny thing, it hard to predict what someone will like, but this CD is great in its scope and delivery and is the finest example of the style described above. It's not for everyone, clearly but if you like old music of the 20's and 30's you'll probably dig this.

We discovered Max Raabe & Palast Orchester through a radio interview he did with Jill Pasternack of WRTI. Being fans of the German Comedian Harmonists as well as the King's Singers who revived their music some 30 years ago, we immediately ordered the DVD of "Heute Nacht oder Nie". We were thoroughly enchanted with this amusing and talented singer ("flapsig und dreist", as described on his website) and have become fans. We subsequently ordered a 2nd DVD of an older concert at the Waldbühne in Berlin. We have watched both over and over and I am happily memorizing the clever lyrics. Fluency in German is required for a full appreciation, but even those with a smattering of the language can catch a lot of the cleverness. It's wonderful that these 80 year old songs have been so lovingly revived by a bunch of extraordinarily talented musicians who seem to be having a wonderful time presenting it.

We saw Max Raabe on PBS and were very impressed. The Palast Orchestra are wonderful musicians. There is quite a bit of sutle humor with the guys in the band. Max Raabe is just very very talented. His singing is so different from anyone else. We immediately looked on Amazon to see what else in the way of recordings were available. We definitely were not disappointed. We bought this DVD and the DVD he had that is all in German and then two of his CD's. We like the music from that era and we especially like the way Max Raabe and The Palast Orchestra perform. He is so funny. I would rate him 10 stars if it were an option.

For those of us (the majority!) born too late to experience the elegance and sophistication (and decadence?) of 1930s night life, these musicians take us right there. The reedy voice of Max Raabe, somewhat reminiscent of Fred Astaire's, is perfect in these songs, some of which are familiar American classics and others presumably German pop tunes of the period. The arrangements are true to the period while at the same time feeling fresh and original, and the band plays with terrific musicianship and flair. A very enjoyable auditory experience!

First, this is a nice collection of his songs and many that I had not heard before even though I have seen him three times, live in concert. I rated it four-stars because the recording is not as high-quality as his others.

Excellent cd in perfect condition and on time. I am a fan of Max Raabe and enjoyed the quality and sound and artistic excellence recorded on this cd.

We absolutely love Max Raabe & the Palast Orchester. Max is so entertaining and funny, he has great style, love his voice in any language. We're glad Max Raabe and the Orchester are cultivating this genre for all of us to enjoy. For years we looked for a good CD on this type of music and then we discovered Max Raabe.

Recently found this excellent Leader and his Orchestra on You Tube and the British Dance Bands have always been a part on my musical interests and Max Raabe is a first class entertainer and provides wonderful arrangements of the music of the Dance Band Days. Most of his vocals are of course, in German,but this does not detract in any way from my enjoyment.

After seeing Max Raabe and the Palast Orchestra live in Lisbon a few months ago -- one of the best shows I've seen in years, -- I looked for a record with a performance as similar as possible. This "Heute Nacht Oder Die", live at Carnegie Hall, New York, fulfills that aim. The jokes that glue the songs which Max tells along the show are more or less the same, as well as the songs alignment. This is certainly a carefully trained performance, but it is not dull, on the contrary, its very dynamic, and this feeling transposes to the record. The costumes, the hair style, the body poses of Max remind us of old eras, as well as the sound of the orchestra. I'm certainly not a guy which loves this style (I prefer modern alternative rock and some pop), but I was truly amazed by these guys. Even the fine detail of Max, during the show, going back to a "dark area" when is not singing, thus allowing the orchestra or some of the musicians "to shine" impressed me.

Als großer Max-Raabe fan hatte ich schon eine Weile ein Auge auf diese Platte geworfen, nur hatte ich leider seinerzeit verpasst, das ganze auch auf Vinylschallplatte zu ordern. Aber Glücklicherweise gab es im November 2011 nochmal ein paar nachgepresste Exemplare, so dass ich nun auch eines bestellen konnte.Nun was soll ich sagen, kommen wir erstmal zum Inhalt. Ein wirklich fantastisches Konzert, die Tonqualität ist hervorragend, ein absolutes Hörerlebnis. Kurz und Bündig - 5 Sterne.Nun aber zur Verarbeitungsqualität, hier scheint es in der Qualitätskontrolle der Plattenfirma doch erhebliche Mängel zu geben - etwas, das mich gerade bei Auflagen in Vinyl, die ja nun doch sehr geringe Stückzahlen haben und für Liebhaber gedacht sind - wirklich enttäuscht.Die erste Version, die ich erhielt, war soweit in Ordnung, bis ich dann sah, dass auf der D-Seite große, weiße Felcken waren, die sich auch mit Schallplattenreiniger nicht entfernen ließen (vermutlich Produktionrückstände). Diese machten ein anhören der letzten Plattenseite nahezu unmöglich - also bei Amazon reklamiert und umgehend eine Ersatzlieferung bekommen (Top Kundenservice - und das Freitags um 18 Uhr!)Nun kam heute die zweie Version an... gleich beim entfernen der Klarsichtfolie fiel mir auf, dass die Innenhüllen, die an der Seite des Gatefold-Covers zu sehen waren, zerfleddert und aufgerissen waren. Da die Schrumpffolie aber intakt war muss dies ebenfalls bei der Produktion passiert sein! Eine weitergehende Inspektion der Tonträger ergab aber, dass diese Intakt waren (bis auf leichten Feinstaub von zerfleddertem Papier), daher werde ich sie jetzt behalten.Aber soetwas habe ich bis jetzt wirklich noch nicht erlebt!Das verdirbt einem doch den ganzen Spaß am Musikhören!

Vorab: gegenüber LIVE-Aufnahmen bin ich sehr skeptisch, aber bei Max Raabe in der Carnegie Hall waren meine Bedenken, das Publikum würde mitklatschen oder -singen, gering. Im Gegenteil: ich wär' gern dabei gewesen!Meine hohen Erwartungen haben Max Raabe & das Palast Orchester nicht nur erfüllt, sondern übertroffen. Angenehm überrascht haben mich die wenigen Ansagen zwischen den Musikstücken: charmant & pointiert in gepflegtem Englisch mit Deutschem Akzent - sehr fein. Und das i-Tüpfelchen: prachtvolle Schwarz-weiß-Fotos, veredelt mit stilvollem Layout zu einem Booklet, bei dem ich als Fotograf beinahe die weißen Baumwoll-Handschuhe (um Fingerabdrücke am Papier zu vermeiden) anziehen möchte. Ich überlege, auch die Vinyl-Schallplatte - hoffentlich MIT diesem Booklet im Format 30 x 30 cm - zu kaufen ... für eine "knisternde Zeitreise".Fazit: fünf rundum zufriedene Sterne und eine herzliche Kauf-, Hör- & Seh-Empfehlung!

Grabado en directo, estupendo sonido y muy bonita edición. No defraudará a los amantes de la música años treinta y del sonido de las orquestas que hicieron furor en aquella época, y por supuesto a los fans de Max Árabe y la Palast Orchester