The Legendary Count Basie Orchestra

THIS WAS MY FIRST TIME ATTENDING THE "WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL" AND THE VENUE WAS BETTER THAN I ANTICIPATED. PLUS, THE THEIR SOUND SYSTEM WAS FLAWLESS. IT WAS A SMALLER, MORE INTIMATE SETTING, WHICH I LOVED. YOU REALLY FELT A PART OF THE VENUE, NOT JUST A SEAT IN AN AUDITORIUM. I WILL BE GOING BACK AND RECOMMENDING THE DISNEY CONCERT HALL TO FRIENDS.

Really enjoyed the concert and the variety of singers there! It was beautiful and fun! The only thing that would have made it better would have been more well known songs... too many random songs we didn't know were played and some really famous ones were missing...

You think you are going to a concert to listen to Frank Sinatra's greatest hits, when actually you don't hear any of them at all. Seth Macfarlane was the absolute best part of the night, who knew he could sing?! The band was great, but they played music that nobody in the crowd wanted to hear. People were falling asleep everywhere and leaving before the show finished. We were really looking forward to this event, and everyone in our group left feeling disappointed.

For such a milestone for such an amazing singer, the 100th concert at the Bowl was a bit of a disappointment. Christian McBride did a pretty good job heading up the event. Kurt Elling, who flew in from Europe to do 3 songs, then to fly back right after, was stellar. Every note perfectly stylized, in tune, musical, and his professionalism, comfort level, humor, and even his suit were amazing. The concert could have used more from him. The Count Basie band was lacking. There were moments when I could recall the magic of the "real" Basie band, but I heard clams, the soloists were at times junior high school-ish, and something was generally missing. Ditto for many of the vocalists, particularly those from Brazil. There would have been some better choices to honor Sinatra.

Show was very unprofessional. Non of famous songs were performed. Very poor. I will give another star just for orchestra.

Of course, there's no one else like Sinatra. But this line up of performers did not do him justice, with the surprising exception of Seth McFarland. The performance was more Count Basie than a tribute to Ol Blue Eyes, with nothing from the Decca years or the Capitol years. The Bossa Nova singers, especially the woman were awful. But the weather was perfect.

Fun celebration. Lots of variety. Christian McBride was a perfect host and the Count Basie Band was superb. Kurt Elling was masterful as always. Jose James was a great new voice. It would have been better if Seth Macfarland didn't sing and Kurt Elling performed more songs.

Boring. It would have a better show with films of Frank Sinatra

Although this event was a loving tribute to The Miss Ella Fitzgerald, and EVERYONE made an absolutely wonderful performance, I still kept wanting to experience Ella's Voice and Demeanor...so unfortunately, for me, the show felt anti-climatic...but, there is truly "...a Story in every seat...!" My very own dad, Gerry Garrett performed as Bass vocalist for 17 years with, "The World Famous Original Platters".

Patti Austin was awesome: beautiful sound, wonderful jazz sensibility, strong but not shouty voice. DD Bridgewater was also impressive if a bit too intense sometimes for the sense of the song. She has the chops. Una didn't belong. She has no feel for jazz that I could hear. When she's soft and intimate, she's sweet to hear. But when she pushes it, her voice breaks into a strong tremulo which wouldn't sound good on any genre of song, but which really didn't fit the jazz repertoire she was working. Clayton-Hamilton was awesome; their drummer was fantastic. The Basie Band got off to a rocky start: sloppy, and out of tune. When the singers' backup players (pianist and drummer) came on, the band tightened up immediately and sounded great. When their regular pianist and drummer came back, they were better, the band sounded most like Basie with the guest rhythm section. They were tighter, crisper, and more driving. Really good evening. The sound system was in and out. Best with the vocalists, but high-energy orchestral peaks sounded distorted to me. That was disappointing. That's the reason for 4 vs. 5 stars. Lots of talent. Great Bowl performance, but sonically, I'd like to hear them in an acoustic space. Still, quibbles aside, a great show which we enjoyed.

The overall event was a special evening celebrating the work of one of the greatest female vocalists of all time - Ella Fitzgerald. The Clayton/Hamilton Jazz Orchestra was an interesting choice to be the first portion of the event. As with most modern jazz groups, the arrangements are very syncopated and very "busy". I prefer the Basie sound of thirty years ago when Eric Dixon, Sonny Cohn, and Johnny Williams were still working. I prefer the "block" sound of ensemble work. I personally hadn't seen John Clayton or Carmen Bradford in about thirty years and both were a delight to see work. John was always known for his "musicality" and there is a point where he and the bands upright bass player have a solo exchange between two upright basses...! Unusual to say the least...!!! Scotty Barnhart - The Basie Band leader is an exceptional trumpet musician and his individual efforts this night were fantastic. The Basie band overall was okay - but as with most groups, the sax section was a bit mushy - attacks and releases were an issue... Scotty pointed out in his introductions that there were a couple of new members to the group... also balance between horns had some issues (although I mostly blame this on the soundboard operator.) The addition of Clayton Cameron as the drummer for this group continues the tradition of SUPERIOR timekeeping with a long line of fantastic drummers, Jo Jones, Butch Miles, Duffy Jackson, Gregg Field, Dennis Mackrel and now Clayton Cameron...!!! Couldn't have made a better choice... nice addition, CEO Aaron Woodward...!!! On the vocals side - Dee Dee Bridgewater is a MASTER showman and did offered a tremendous performance throughout. Her interaction with the band and the audience was pure entertainment...!!! I was surprised at who did the best job of actually SOUNDING like Ms. Fitzgerald in her performance - that honor is reserved for Patti Austin, her phrasing and musicality was exceptional and for me was the best of all the ladies performing this night... Blew me away... I just ordered a pile of her music to become more familiar with her work. I think of her as an R&B artist... Now the portions of the event I liked the least - Tavis Smiley as the "narrator" of this program... he clearly was simply reading from prepared script and didn't sound as though he has much background in Ella Fitzgerald's life or music... Would have preferred someone in that role that had more of a jazz music background. Maybe someone who was a former Basie-ite who could add some personal remembrances...? There was a female singer from Malaysia - Yuna - She is young and beautiful and very Norah Jones like... thin on chops and kinda "airy" in her presentation... Bottom line - on stage with the heavies like Bradford, Austin and Bridgewater... she was WAY over her head and out of her element... she's a combo act at some jazz bistro - not the Hollywood Bowl venue with the Count Basie Orchestra...!!! I get the idea of having some youngster in the mix - but this one was not the right one...! She was simply outclassed...! Gregg Field as a producer on this program - have worked personally with him many years ago... His body of work on the production side of this program was strong and capable... as is his playing when he trots Shelly Mann out to take some charts on piano... Shelly is just sheer joy to watch work... Gregg put together an excellent one-nighter that I thought was worth every dime I paid to see it... Some others who reviewed this program felt it was a "missed opportunity" to dive into the music of the First Lady of Jazz, but I argue that unless you have five days to rehearse and a six-hour program with twenty singers and four orchestras taking turns walking the listener through the fifty-plus years of Ms. Fitzgerald's body of work - how does ANYONE really do justice to the greatest female vocalist in American music history...? This program went about 2:45 minutes... Sure there were individual pieces that could have been moved around to perhaps improve this event - but overall, this was a SOLID effort by some very talented individuals...!!!

We thoroughly enjoyed our evening at the Bowl for "To Ella with Love". The crowd was great- energetic, but courteous and not too chatty( during the concert). The orchestra was superb and the singers top-notch , especially love the young singer from Malaysia. Great night.

The Count Bassie Orchestra was excellent! Professional and entertaining. The first female singer was terrible. I don't know her name, she's bald and full of fluff and empty on content. I am a HUGE Ella fan this woman gave the worst performance I have ever seen. Ella was a consummate professional. I actually left the theater before the last set just because i couldn't stand the woman's voice. Patty Austin was good as always, Una was OK although her voice was not at the caliber of Patty's. The male singer was OK nothing amazing. and the song choice was average. Ella did so many wonderful songs I find it hard to believe that better choices couldn't have been made. Perhaps one song from each period of Ella's life would have been wise. Better luck next year.

In general, the concert was good, but I think that the singers beat the band and the choir. In this feeling I am not including the sax and trumpet players who were excellent. Honestly I did not see the choir well.

I hardly felt the spirit or the dynamics of the legend.

Lively, moving, and great voices. The band was amazing

An unforgettable night of Ray's music. The only thing keeping it from a five would have been less babble from the host and more film clips of Ray himself...

I wasn't sure if I would like this concert but purchased the tickets and hoped for the best. I am so glad I attended this concert. I had a good time. The quality of the music and artist was tops.

It's the best show I've ever seen in the bowl for the past 20 years. It's so blessed to have all the legands gathered in one event. The songs and the artists brought us back to what music is all about without any dance or gimmicks. A true joy and privilege for such a fantastic evening!

The line-up of musicians was great. You can tell they went all out to get the best musicians. I was a little disappointed in the singers they chose. I would think that a tribute to Ray Charles would have brought out singers who are more in the limelight today, outside of McBride. Where has baby face been for the past few years? The other singers were okay, just not that great. Also, Charles had a lot of great songs that he's known for. It seems as though not that many were sung at the tribute; not that many of his BIG hits. The song choices to me were a little weak. BeBe was good, so was Dee Dee, but again, the song choices were a little weak to me.

The production featured many talented performers, most not previously announced. Dave Koz & the evenings "Raylettes", Dede Bridgewater & Bebe Winans, George Duke - all outstanding. Band also impressive.Not so much - Martina McBride (seemed out of her element), as was Baby Face Edmonds who didn't seem to have the right type of voice for alot of what he performed. In his defense, this was a big stretch for him so I give him credit for stepping out of his comfort zone. Tavis Smiley as MC was commanding & the script was interesting if not a bit fractured, dividing Charles' music into 3 categories. The audience was 'too tame'. Smiley had to ask it to show its appreciation more than once. .

My friend and I thoroughly enjoyed the program. I thought the narrative could have had a bit more swing and energy and loved the line-up of artists.

My husband and I enjoyed the event. It was a nice surprise to have Tavis Smiley as the MC for the night. We plan to attend more events

Amazing show and a perfect evening! Our seats were a great location, especially considering the ticket price. The park and ride is well worth it and made the experience all the more relaxing and enjoyable.

I am really glad that the Ray Charles: Genius + Soul = Jazz concert was planned. It provided me with an opportunity to see several of my favorite artists like: Babyface, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Patty Austin, Dave Koz and George Duke. Sending my thanks and regards to the planners who ensured that this event materalized!

Had a great time. Count Basie Orchestra was so great. George Duke, Terence Blanchard, Miguel Sandoval, Dave Koz, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Bebe Winans, Marina McBride, Patty Austin all spectacular...top of their game.

So much fun! We really enjoyed the set. We didn't know though that there was an intermission and Babyface's mic seemed to not be turned up at certain points.