Many refer to Ella Fitzgerald as the Queen of Jazz or The First Lady of Song, but whatever you call her, she is unquestionably a treasure of American music history. Working her way through the 1930s (gaining experience working with Chick Webb’s Orchestra as well as with Benny Goodman Orchestra) and the 1940s (working with Decca Records and recording with the likes of Bill Kenny & the Ink Spots, Louis Jordan, and the Delta Rhythm Boys), Fitzgerald’s brilliance was not truly realized until the 1950s.
A period of time after the Swing and Big Band era, Fitzgerald adapted her style, which included a form of Scat Singing she showed off sometime in the late 1940s. Destined to shine, she lifted herself up into the Jazz vocalists’ upper echelon. Possessing an ability to sing with a wide range, clarified tone, and mimic the feeling of instruments like a horns section (Scat Singing), Fitzgerald would go on record with legendary composers such as Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, and Irving Berlin, while also collaborating with others such as Louis Armstrong and Count Basie. Also, winning two Grammy Awards in 1958 (becoming the first African American to win one)… this was only the beginning because Fitzgerald would earn a total of thirteen Grammys in her career.
It is truly inspiring, considering the struggles Fitzgerald faced as a working musician and in her personal life; her legacy includes over two hundred albums and somewhere around two thousand song recordings. Also, the subject of an insightful 2019 Hulu documentary, Ella Fitzgerald: Just One of Those Things, which explored her historical impact on music as well as her passion as a Civil Rights Activist, jumped to 2025, and a new live album came to light.
One of many post-humous live albums released since Fitzgerald’s passing in 1996 at seventy-nine years of age, it is fantastic that new material is being discovered after all the time to keep her legacy alive. With that in mind, in the last eight years alone, three live recordings have been released, including 2017’s Ella At Zardi’s, 2020’s Ella: The Lost Berlin Tapes, and 2023’s Live in East Berlin 1967. This leads us to the latest, The Moment of Truth: Ella At The Coliseum, which arrived on February 28, 2025, through Verve Records on CD, vinyl (either in black or opaque tangerine), or digitally.
Yet another piece of history offered by Verve Records, this latest live album consists of a new and never-before-released live concert captured at the Oakland Coliseum (which opened its doors in 1966 and is currently known as the Oakland Arena). In a concert that took place and was recorded on June 30, 1967, in front of thousands of attentive ears, Fitzgerald performed a sensational nine-song set. Backed by Jimmy Jones on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Sam Woodward on drums, members of Duke Ellington’s Orchestra also participated in the concert, making for a rich, delightful sound.
Captured amidst Fitzgerald’s three-year tour run, this evening in Northern California is full of beautiful texture, including “The Moment of Truth,” “Let’s Do It (Let’s Fall In Love),” but also “Mack The Knife,” a song that earned her a Grammy in 1961. Beyond this, Fitzgerald’s gentle personality shines through in between the songs, beaming with a sense of humor and tons of wit. Making for a fun listen, perhaps the most glaring aspect that sticks out is the singer’s ability to sing with such ease and in such a way that is distinctively her own.
Overall, this newly released The Moment of Truth: Ella At The Coliseum is a great homage to Ella Fitzgerald. Thanks to mixing and mastering from the original analog multitrack tapes, the clarified sound makes for a piece of history Jazz singer enthusiasts will enjoy. That is why Cryptic Rock gives The Moment of Truth: Ella At The Coliseum 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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