Live at Carnegie Hall
Live album by
Liza Minnelli
ReleasedAugust 1981
RecordedSeptember 1979
VenueCarnegie Hall, New York City
GenreVocal pop
Length74:19
LabelAltel Sound Systems
Producer
  • Hank Cattaneo
  • Bill Lavorgna
Liza Minnelli chronology
Tropical Nights
(1977)		 Live at Carnegie Hall
(1981)		 The Rink
(1984)

Live at Carnegie Hall (reissued in 2022 as Live in New York 1979) is the fourth live album by American singer Liza Minnelli. Released by the Altel Sound Systems record company in 1981, it was her first and only release under that label.[1]

Carnegie Hall held great significance in Minnelli's family, as her mother, the also singer and actress Judy Garland, made her triumphant return there 18 years earlier in an event that some call "the greatest night in showbiz history".[2] In this context, Minnelli had a desire to return with a new season of shows after her successful performances in the musical The Act.[2] However, she didn't want to return with the same nightclub act she had been doing for years; she wanted innovations.

With the help of her dedicated team, including Fred Ebb (the writer, producer, and director of the show), Wayne Cilento and Ron Lewis (choreographer), Lawrence Miller (set designer), and Mark Gero as her production manager, Minnelli set out to surprise with her new tour. In an interview, she stated, "I wanted to turn my shows at Carnegie Hall into a presentation theater," adding, "I wanted each song to be a complete acting piece; a complete character. I wanted Carnegie Hall to be my baby".[2]

The album was produced by Hank Cattaneo and Bill LaVorgna, with recordings taking place in the Carnegie Hall concert hall, located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, in September 1979.[3] The show in question was one of the eleven sold-out performances in Minnelli's series at the venue.[3]

The cover was created from one of the images from Minnelli's collection, taken by the American pop art painter and filmmaker Andy Warhol[4][note 1]

At the time of the release, Minnelli was not affiliated with a major record label and had the vision to record these concerts and release them independently. Two years later, in 1981, she began selling the limited edition of the double album at her live performances.[6]

In 2021, the Real Gone Music record label renamed the album as "Live In New York 1979" and re-released it on limited pink vinyl and also limited red vinyl, with 1,400 copies each.[7] In 2022, the album was finally released in a 3-CD edition that includes the complete show for the first time and the abbreviated version previously released on vinyl.[8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Wall Street JournalFavorable[9]
BroadwayWorldFavorable[10]

The album received favorable reviews from music critics.

Will Friedwald of The Wall Street Journal[9] wrote that the show "was not Mrs. Minnelli's final act - or even the halfway point - but it was the climax of a moment in cultural history. The AIDS epidemic would soon end the festivities, but, as captured by Liza Minnelli at Carnegie in 1979, it was the greatest party in history."[9] Regarding Minnelli's performance, he stated: "Mrs. Minnelli's supreme power may well be her extreme sensuality - she's openly sexy in a way that almost no theatrical diva ever is" closer to Peggy Lee or Julie London. You can't help but notice this in two songs written by Ebb and John Kander for her starring role in "The Act": In "City Lights" - an even better vehicle for her than the more famous "Theme from 'New York, New York'" - she sings not only of her love for her adopted city, but a kind of lust for it."[9]

Stephen Mosher of BroadwayWorld gave a favorable review in which he considered Minnelli's performances of "Cabaret," "New York, New York," "City Lights," and "But The World Goes Round" electrifying.[10] He stated that the singer is in great vocal shape throughout the entire concert, and "as, song by song, monologue by monologue, Liza Minnelli takes the listener on a series of intriguing paths, her ability to tell the stories she brought to the stage shines brightly, resonating with individuality and originality."[10] He concluded by saying that "from start to finish, [the album] is not only one of the best albums by Liza Minnelli to be released on CD, not only one of the best concert albums to be recorded, produced, remastered, and re-released after an uncomfortable four-decade wait, it's simply one of the best albums, period."[10]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."How Long Has This Been Going On? / It's a Miracle"George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin / Barry Manilow, Marty Panzer 
2."My Ship / The Man I Love"Kurt Weill, Ira Gershwin / George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin 
3."Some People"Jule Styne, Stephen Sondheim 
4."Come in from the Rain"Melissa Manchester, Carole Bayer Sager 
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."London Town"Fred Ebb, Paul Klein, Lee Goldsmith 
2."New York Medley: I Guess The Lord Must Be In New York City / Take Me Back To Manhattan / Manhattan/ New York City Rhythm / 42nd Street / Lullaby Of Broadway / On Broadway / New York, New York / Every Streets A Boulevard / Theme from New York, New York"Harry Nilsson / Cole Porter / Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart / Barry Manilow, Marty Panzer / Harry Warren, Al Dubin / Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller / Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden, Adolph Green / Jule Styne, B. Hillyard / John Kander, Fred Ebb 
Side three
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Someone to Watch Over Me"George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin 
2."Twelve Fellas"Fred Ebb, Larry Grossman 
3."You & I / Honeymoon Is Over / Happy Anniversary"Leslie Bricusse / Harvey Schmidt, Tom Jones / Charles Aznavour, Fred Ebb 
4."City Lights"John Kander, Fred Ebb 
Side four
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Cabaret"John Kander, Fred Ebb 
2."Shine On Harvest Moon"Nora Bayes, Jack Norworth 
3."But The World Goes Round"John Kander, Fred Ebb 
4."Bows (Liza/Liza)"George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin 

Personnel

  • Arranged by Bill Byers, Michael Abene, Ralph Burns
  • Conducted by Bill Lavorgna
  • Recorded by David Hewitt on the Record Plant NY Black Truck
  • Produced by Hank Cattaneo & Bill Lavorgna
Musicians
  • Victor Paz - trumpet
  • Ross Konikoff - trumpet
  • Harry DeVito - trombone
  • Arnie Lawrence - alto saxophone
  • Lawrence Feldman - tenor saxophone
  • Kenny Berger - baritone saxophone
  • Bill LaVorgna - drummer, conductor
  • Jay Leonhart - bass
  • Rick Leowes - guitar
  • Dave Cox - percussion
  • Steve Tubin - keyboards
  • Pat Rebillot - piano

Notes

  1. ↑ In 2018, Liza Minnelli sold the portrait used in Live at Carnegie Hall, which she received from Andy Warhol, for over $26 million.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Wimmer, Martin (September 12, 2021). Clockwork Liza: Star and Artist: The Career Achievement of Liza Minnelli. BoD – Books on Demand. p. 204. ISBN 978-3-7543-4624-2. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 "Liza in Concert (1979)". Kander & Ebb. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Liza Minnelli (2022). Live In New York 1979. Real Gone Music. RGM-1379.
  4. ↑ Gans, Andrew (June 14, 2016). "Liza Minnelli's Record-Breaking 1979 Carnegie Hall Concerts Will Be Released on LP and CD in July". Playbill. Archived from the original on June 3, 2022. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  5. ↑ Antunes, Anderson (June 18, 2018). "Liza Minnelli vende um dos retratos que ganhou de Andy Warhol por mais de R$ 26 milhões". Glamurama. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  6. ↑ A.A. Cristi (May 27, 2022). "Liza Minnelli LIVE IN NEW YORK 1979 to Be Released In Ultimate 3-CD Edition and 2-LP Set". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  7. ↑ Liza Minnelli (2021). Live In New York 1979. Real Gone Music. RGM-1313.
  8. ↑ "Liza Minnelli's Landmark "Live in New York 1979" Comes to Ultimate 3-CD Edition, 2-LP Set from Second Disc Records and Real Gone Music - The Second Disc". The Second Disc. May 25, 2022. Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Friedwald, Will (July 6, 2022). "'Liza Minnelli Live in New York' Review: Party Like It's 1979". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Mosher, Stephen (July 1, 2022). "Album Review: Liza Minnelli Live in New York 1979 Was Well Worth Waiting For". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on July 12, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
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