Connie Francis - Connie Francis At The Copa (Live At The Copacabana/1961) (2021)

Connie Francis at the Copa is a decent document of the immortal pop singer performing live in New York City with an orchestra conducted by Joe Mele. The ten selections include a five-song Al Jolson medley and a coupling of "When the Saints Come Marching In" with "Bill Bailey Won't You Please Come Home" putting the emphasis on standards more than her hits. Two Top Ten gold singles from 1960 are here, though: Connie's remake of the 1940s Italian composition "Mama" and a song more representative of her pop hits, "Many Tears Ago."

The sound quality for a major release on MGM is shockingly low, on the level of a good bootleg. Mickey Deans' cassette recordings of his wife, and Judy Garland's last performance, which became the Judy. London. 1969. LP, are similar to this allegedly "High Fidelity Recording" though that album emerged out of necessity and this was produced by a major film/record company. But the singer is great at the top of her game, recorded a year after she debuted her album of Italian songs in 1960 on The Perry Como Show. The liner notes contain nine reviews from critics, Frank Farrell of the World-Telegram and Sun calling this a "...sensational supper club bow as a major star." Connie Francis at the Copa casts the singer in a different light. Somewhat removed from her popular radio material, she proves she has the talent to take virtually any material and hit it out of the park.