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The Classic Della

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The Classic Della
Studio album by
Della Reese
ReleasedJanuary 1962 (1962-01)
StudioRCA Studio A (New York)
Genre
LabelRCA Victor
ProducerHugo and Luigi
Della Reese chronology
Special Delivery
(1961) 		The Classic Della
(1962) 		Della Reese at Basin Street East
(1962)
Singles from The Classic Della
  1. "Don't You Know?"
    Released: August 1959
  2. "Gone"
    Released: November 1961

The Classic Della is a studio album by American singer Della Reese. It was released by RCA Victor in January 1962 and was her ninth studio album. The LP consisted of 12 tracks, all of which were vocal adaptations of classical pieces first created by composers like Tchaikovsky and Schubert. The album received mostly positive reviews from magazines, newspapers and music websites following its release. The Classic Della made the US Billboard 200 chart and included Reese's most commercially-successful single release: "Don't You Know?".

Background

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Later known for an acting career that included starring in the TV series, Touched by an Angel, Della Reese first forged a career as a singer of blues, jazz and pop. Her first major music success was with the 1957 million-selling single, "And That Reminds Me". It led to a contract with RCA Victor, where Reese had her greatest success as a singer with 1959's "Don't You Know?". The song was adapted from "Musetta's Waltz", which derived from the opera, La Bohème.[1] "Don't You Know" served as the inspiration for The Classic Della with the idea of having Reese record classical instrumentals into vocal pieces.[3]

Recording and content

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The Classic Della was cut in recording sessions held at RCA Studio A, located in New York City. It was produced by the recording team Hugo & Luigi and featured classical arrangements by Glenn Osser.[3] The Hugo & Luigi pair produced Reese's previous four studio albums for RCA Victor.[1] The Classic Della was a collection of 12 tracks, all of which were adapted from classical music pieces.[2] Included were pieces by Tchaikovsky ("Symphony No. 6," "Melodie Op. 42"), Debussy ("Reverie"), Schubert ("Serenade"), Chopin ("Etude in E, Op. 10 No. 3," "Polonaise No. 6 Op. 53").[2] The liner notes gave credit to all of the original composers and included the titles of the pieces they originated from.[3]

Release and critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]

The Classic Della was released by the RCA Victor label in January 1962[4] and was Reese's ninth studio album (her fourth for RCA). The album was offered as a vinyl LP (distributed in mono and stereo formats) with six tracks on each side of the disc.[3] The album received mostly positive responses from critics. Cash Box magazine wrote, "Della Reese demonstrates her stature as a major artist in this Victor offering which showcases her talents singing modem adaptations of the works of Tchaikovsky, Chopin, Debussy and others."[5] Charles Schreiber of The Montreal Gazette newspaper praised Reese's performances and called the Glenn Osser arrangements "outstanding".[6] Walt Friedwald, author of the book A Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singers, called it "a fairly dispensable album" when describing her RCA discography.[1] John Bush of AllMusic gave it a four out of five star rating, writing, "Fortunately, Della Reese's voice -- as strong, controlled, and pitch-perfect as it had proven in the past -- is up to the challenge of such heavy material."[2]

Chart performance and singles

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The Classic Della rose to the number 94 position on the US Billboard 200 albums chart in early 1962. It was Reese's third album to make the chart (only one more LP would reach the Billboard 20 in 1966). It was Reese's second highest-charting LP on the Billboard 200, preceded by Della, which rose into the top 40.[7] The album was preceded by the single, "Don't You Know", which RCA Victor first issued in August 1959.[8] The single rose to number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Billboard R&B songs chart that year.[9][10] The Classic Della later spawned "Gone" as a single in November 1961.[11]

Track listing

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Side one[3]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Story of a Starry Night" (adapted from Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 74 [1st movement])
  • Hoffman
  • Curtis
  • Livingston
2:45
2."These Are the Things I Love" (adapted from Tchaikovsky: Mélodie, Op 42, No. 3)
  • Barlow
  • Harris
3:30
3."If You Are But a Dream" (adapted from Rubinstein: "Romance")
  • Bonx
  • Fulton
  • Jaffe
3:01
4."My Reverie" (adapted from Debussy: "Rêverie")Larry Clinton3:32
5."Take My Heart" (adapted from Ketèlbey: "In a Persian Market")
  • Ketelbey
  • Creatore
  • Peretti
  • Wess
2:37
6."Stranger in Paradise" (adapted from Borodin: "Polovetzian Dances")
  • Forrest
  • Wright
2:58
Side two[3]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Gone" (adapted from Drigo: "Serenade")
  • Peretti
  • Creatore
  • Weiss
2:33
2."Serenade" (adapted from Schubert: "Serenade")
  • Peretti
  • Creatore
  • Weiss
3:19
3."Moon Love" (adapted from Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 in E Minor, Op. 64 [2nd movement])
  • David
  • Davis
  • Kostelanetz
2:50
4."Softly My Love" (adapted from Chopin: Etude in E, Op. 10, No. 3)
  • Bennett
  • Tepper
2:38
5."Till the End of Time" (adapted from Chopin: Polonaise No. 6 in A-Flat, Op. 53)
  • Kaye
  • Mossman
3:14
6."Don't You Know?" (adapted from Puccini: La bohème: "Musetta's Waltz")Bobby Worth2:28

Personnel

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All credits are adapted from the liner notes of The Classic Della.[3]

  • Ernest Oelrich – Recording engineer
  • Hugo & Luigi – Producer
  • Mike Ludlow – Illustration
  • Glenn Osser – Arranger and conductor

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Chart (1962) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[12] 94

Release history

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Release history and formats for The Classic Della
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various January 1962
  • Vinyl LP (mono)
  • vinyl LP (stereo)
 RCA Victor [3][13]
1969 Vinyl LP (stereo) [14]
Australia 1973 RCA Camden [15]
United Kingdom 1980
  • Vinyl LP
  • cassette
 RCA International [16]
Australia Vinyl LP RCA Camden [17]
1984 Compact disc RCA Victor [18]
Germany 1993 [19]
Japan April 1999
[20]
July 2004 [21]
Various circa 2020
  • Music download
  • streaming
 RCA Records [22]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Will Friedwald (2010). A Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singers. Knopf Doubleday. p. 385-388. ISBN 9780307379894.
  2. ^ a b c d e Bush, John. "The Classic Della: Della Reese: Songs, reviews, credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Reese, Della (1962). "Classic Della (Disc Information)". RCA Victor. LPM-2419 (LP mono); LSP-2419 (LP stereo).
  4. ^ "RCA Victor Has 13 LP's for Jan" (PDF). Cash Box. January 13, 1962. p. 27. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
  5. ^ "Album Reviews: Popular Picks of the Week" (PDF). Cash Box. January 27, 1962. p. 22. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
  6. ^ Schreiber, Charles (February 3, 1962). "Weekly Album Review". The Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
  7. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2006). The Billboard Albums Includes Every Album that Made the Billboard 200 Chart: 50 Year History of the Rock Era. Record Research, Inc. ISBN 978-0898201666.
  8. ^ Reese, Della (August 1959). ""Don't You Know?"/"Soldier, Won't You Marry Me?" (7" vinyl single)". RCA Victor. 61-7591.
  9. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2003). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002. Record Research Inc. ISBN 978-0898201550.
  10. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2010). Joel Whitburn presents top R & B/Hip-Hop singles, 1942-2004. Record Research Inc. ISBN 978-0898201604.
  11. ^ Reese, Della (November 1961). ""Gone"/"What Do You Think, Joe?" (7" vinyl single)". RCA Victor. 47-7961.
  12. ^ "Della Reese Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
  13. ^ Reese, Della (January 1962). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (South Africa)". RCA Victor. RCAH-2002.
  14. ^ Reese, Della (1969). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (reissued in various countries)". RCA Victor. 38-137 (LP stereo).
  15. ^ Reese, Della (1973). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (Australia)". RCA Camden. CAS-7200 (LP stereo).
  16. ^ Reese, Della (1980). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (UK)". RCA International. INTS-5046/NL-43320 (LP stereo); INTS-5046 (cassette).
  17. ^ Reese, Della (1980). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (Australia)". RCA Camden. MMT-1015 (LP stereo).
  18. ^ Reese, Della (1984). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (Australia)". RCA Victor. BPCD-5113 (CD).
  19. ^ Reese, Della (1993). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (Germany)". RCA Victor. 74321-15348-2 (CD).
  20. ^ Reese, Della (April 1999). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (Japan)". BMG/RCA Records. BVCJ-35028/LSP-2419 (CD).
  21. ^ Reese, Della (July 2004). "Classic Della (Liner Notes) (Japan limited edition)". BMG. BVCJ-37392 (CD).
  22. ^ "The Classic Della - Album by Della Reese". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
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