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Live at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival Release Date 10/23/08 A live recording of Eartha's show at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival. Available on CD and also available as a DVD*. 1. I'm Still Here Here is What NETWORK has to say about the CD & DVD releases: “The most exciting woman in the world,” Orson Welles on Eartha Kitt, 1950. It is with great pleasure that Network announce the releases of EARTHA KITT – LIVE AT THE CHELTENHAM JAZZ FESTIVAL on DVD on 27 th October 2008, RRP £19.99 and CD, RRP £12.99. This is, unbelievably, Eartha Kitt’s first ever live concert DVD. These releases are recordings of her sell-out opening concert at the world renowned Cheltenham Jazz Festival in 2008. With a career that started in the late forties and which is still going strong 65 years later, it would not be an exaggeration to call Eartha Kitt a living legend. Her electrifying and unforgettable concerts are always complete sell-out affairs. She is versatile and multi-talented; she is at once a star of the movies, television, the stage and a wondrous singer/performer in both jazz and cabaret. Kitt got her start as a member of the Katherine Dunham Dance Troupe. On a friend’s dare, the shy, teenage Kitt auditioned for the prestigious company and won a spot as a featured dancer and vocalist. She made her film debut in Casbah (1948). Her work ranges from her part as Catwoman in the late 1960s Batman television series, doing the voice for YZMA, the villain in Disney’s animated feature The Emperor’s New Groove, to Orson Welles’s production of Dr. Faust. Her stage career is just as exciting and inspirational. She was booked at The Village Vanguard in New York. Her beauty, unforgettable voice and her electrifying presence very quickly attracted the attention of a Broadway producer, who put her in New Faces of 1952. It was here that she firmly asserted herself as a star of Broadway. Eartha Kitt sings in ten different languages; she has performed in over one hundred countries and was honoured with a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. These releases are from her performance earlier this year when she headlined the prestigious Cheltenham Jazz Festival. This thrilling performance can be enjoyed by Kitt fans, as well as anyone with a passion for Jazz. DVD Special Features:
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*A personal note on this CD/DVD release. Please note this is listed as a PAL Region 2 DVD everywhere online, however, the disc I received is actually region free so it should play on most computers and DVD players. There are 2 tracks that I am thrilled to see listed. The first is Speaking of Love which I have seen Eartha perfom live many times, but which has never been recorded by her, until now. It was written by Yip Harburg with - additional music & lyrics Daryl Waters. As Barbara Cook said, “No-one played around with words quite like Yip did!” With lines like “…you want my love today, what does your broker say, Speaking of Love…” The other track that is of note is Alone, which was written by Eartha and Daryl Waters and is our first glimpse of a long rumored stage show about the life of “The Most Exciting Woman in the World.” Also appearing is Eartha's version of September Song / It Was A Very Good Year / Here's To Life. It is a classic Eartha rendition not to be missed. It is interesting to hear the story told by a woman instead of a man, and the differences the change of gender can make in the song. I hope the DVD release has captured the twinkle in her eye when she sings "When I was 35, it was a very good year. A very good year for younger men, who looked good in jeans. We would drive around in Limousines, my chauffeur would drive..." Now if we could only get her to record Voice Full of Yes. Frank Biafore III
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