Get Happy! Judy Garland 1944-54

In this cabaret-style concert, Joan Ellison shines a spotlight on the musical and personal life of Judy Garland from her star turns in Meet Me in St. Louis and Easter Parade, to the termination of her contract at MGM, to her dramatic comeback as a concert artist and triumphant return to the big screen in A Star Is Born.  Between "The Boy Next Door" in 1944 and "The Man That Got Away" in 1954, the hit tunes performed in authentic arrangements based on the originals include "I Love a Piano," "Johnny One-Note," "Get Happy," "The Palace Medley" "The Trolley Song,"  "If You Feel Like Singing, Sing," "Look for the Silver Lining," "On the Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe," "You Made Me Love You," "I Got the Sun in the Morning," "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby," and the unrecorded song written for Judy in The Barkleys of Broadway, "There Is No Music." 

Reviews

[Joan] doesn't just blow off the dust — she gets inside the raw material and inhabits it.  Piers Ford, Cry Me a Torch Song

For a singer who’s been obsessed with Judy Garland since childhood, who is Judy-esque in appearance, and who’s a near voice double for her idol, the path is clear: Don’t fight it. Thus, Joan Ellison’s cabaret homage to Garland proved to be a captivating evening of song…The voice is big and clear with plenty of range. Ellison can belt with the best of them, [and] is very personable and utterly likeable...New York deserves to see and hear more of Joan Ellison.  Marilyn Lester, Cabaret Scenes

...Rare combination of artist, archivist, and arranger…Michael Feinstein

Ellison is all freshness, vulnerability, and charm, singing up a storm (and, yes, a rainbow)…The singer brings a keen blend of vocal splendor and verbal crispness to every musical moment. She inhabits the texts as if living them anew.  Donald Rosenberg, The Plain Dealer

Joan Ellison, on the other hand, is a ringer for Garland… — the voice, the mannerisms, the look. But this is more than an imitation.  She conveys the authority of a superstar. "The Boy from Oz" was worth seeing just for her breathtaking performance.  Bill O’Neill, Collier Citizen

The quality of Ellison's voice was perfect.  Danielle Miceli, New York Cabaret Today

Joan Ellison has done a very impressive rendition of Judy Garland's singing style in her stage show performances.  Roger Hall, Film Music Review