100 Hits

Mario Lanza (born Alfred Arnold Cocozza; January 31, 1921 - October 7, 1959) was an American tenor, actor, and Hollywood movie star of the late 1940s and the 1950s. His stage name apparently was a modification of his mother's maiden name, Maria Lanza.His opera debut came at the Berkshire Music Festival in Tanglewood on August 7, 1942, after a period of study with conductors Boris Goldovsky and Leonard Bernstein. His movie debut was in That Midnight Kiss (1949) with Kathryn Grayson and Ethel Barrymore. In May 1949, he made his first commercial recordings with RCA Victor.Hollywood columnist Hedda Hopper writes that "his smile, which was as big as his voice, was matched with the habits of a tiger cub, impossible to housebreak". She adds that he was the "last of the great romantic performers". He made eight films before dying of an apparent pulmonary embolism at the age of 38. At the time of his death in 1959 he was still considered by many people to be to"the most famous tenor in the world".This set consists of five 20 track CDs in a double CD case. The fifth CD is on a swingout double tray. All of these tracks are monophonic. Three of the five CDs are from popular or "easy listening" American music. The other two CDs include a set of opera performances and a set of popular Italian songs. All except for track 20 on the first CD have excellant audio quality.Track 20 on the first CD has the bass pushed far beyond acceptable limits. It makes Mario sound like a bass singing at the bottom of a well during a continuous thunderstorm. I ran that track through Audacity to reduce the bass between 100 and 200 Hz by 6 db and also reduced the level of the lower vocal range by about 3 db. That got rid of most of the extraneous bass and made the vocal sound more like Mario Lanza. The echo is still there but it doesn't sound quite as bad as it with the pushed bass frequencies.The last track on the first two CDs had problems. I was able to get a good copy of the track on CD1, but track 20 on CD2 has a small dropped out section that I was unable to read on either of two players. The section sounds like one sector of the CD was not recorded. I'm reducing my ranking of this set by one star due to the problems I encountered when playing these CDs.This lack of quality production of CDs seems to be an increasing problem. I'm getting more and more CDs with unreadable tracks.This is one of the great voices of the recent past. I highly recommend this set to anyone who enjoys listening to great music performed by an outstanding vocalist. However, if you dislike opera excerpts or music sung in other languages, this set may not be right for you. Even then, you should consider this set. In the Amazon marketplace, it can be had for less than twelve dollars, delivered. If you only listen to the three English CDs, thats still a bargain at about four dollars per CD.

Famous conductor Arturo Toscanini made that statement. Arturo heard Caruso and all the rest of the best tenors and said Mario Lanza was the greatest of all. I know that comment will always be debateable. However, after listening to this whole box set I'm inclined to believe Lanza was the best. I think this guy came into life with such a huge heart and luckily the voice gorgeous enough to project it. Some of the songs on this extraordinary collection are so powerful it caused my arm hair to stand at attention. If you can listen to Mario sing The Lord's Prayer and not be moved, you may have one foot in the grave. This 100 hits item must be the best deal for anyone interested. I'm absolutely astonished at how good the sound is. Whoever did the remastering might have put extra effort into this release because it's so remarkably clear & natural. The only thing that might disqualify this box for some, is the fact that 2 CDs are entirely operatic which is to say non-English. With a voice this passionately beautiful it doesn't bother me in the least. I know however for others that's a real show-stopper. So be forewarned this isn't strictly English verbiage. If you're looking for a brilliant warm golden voice that could sing the phone book and make it mesmerizing, this could be your man! Mario Lanza's obvious female counterpart would likely be Rosa Ponselle. Both had the automatic undeniable gift. If I've tempted you, jump on this; it's too good to miss. Besides somebody might get dumb and withdraw this set & discontinue it. Happy listening........

Mario Lanza was one of the best tenors there ever was, but his life was too short. I've always loved his singing since it was introduced to me by my father. This album has most everything he ever did -- from movies to opera. The recording is very good quality except for the last song on the last CD, which is entitled I'll Walk with God, one of my favorites from the operetta Student Prince. It gets cut off like a recording tape that ran out of space.

A Kid From Philadelphia,: Mario Lanza: The Voice of the Poets Few tenors could do what Lanza did: cross over magnificently from opera to popular music, be a world famous movie star, concert performer and top recording artist, all at the same time.This collection is worth the investment. The price/quality is excellent and contains a splendid selection of his work for fans and those who love the best. I recommend it highly.Emilio Iodice, author of A Kid from Philadelphia, Mario Lanza, the Voice of the Poets.

I remember my dad had a recording of Student Prince in his collection many years ago and one of my favourite songs was Serenade which captured the brilliance and passion of Mario Lanza's incredible voice. So to hear his voice again with 100 classics was wonderful. The first thing that really came to my attention was his diction, even on his high notes you could still hear the words clearly. Thank you for a wonderful collection.

All his good songs in one package

I grew up listening to Mario Lanza as well as other great opera singers even before his time a true teacher of discipline and extreme focus He will always be remembered as a great artist and a great role model of operatic music A+ He was truly ahead of his time all of his albumns are awesome !

1000 stars for Mario Lanza. 5 stars for Amazon ( the parcel was lost at the post office and the amazon was quick on refunding, so I repurchased the CDs.) 4 stars for the recording ( it sound old compare with these days recordings but I don't think it can be improved). 1 star for the CD cassette - it came apart as soon as I opened it. Would I buy it again ? Definitely

Ordered on a Friday and received on Sunday,wonderful suprise. I thought as it was so cheap,a fiver for five discs all in their own case,it was going to be sub standard recordings, I was wrong,the sound is wonderful, crystal clear. I bought it for disc 3 and 4 which areworth quadruple the money on their own, disc 4 is 20 arias of Puccini,Verdi,Giordano,Bizet etc which you dont often see, espescially for thisdaft price. Toscanini is recorded as saying his was 'the voice of the 20th century and I couldnt agree more,he took the wrong path whensigning for MGM and going the commercial route and I think regretted it, he would have been so suited to all the great operatic roleswith his handsome looks and voice that; if God were to be heard singing in the shower would sound like Mario Lanza, the greatest tenorof them all.

As a youngster in the 50s I listened to the Light Programme on BBC Radio - now Radio 1. I first heard Mario Lanza on this programme and was mesmerised by his voice, the power, the strength, the clarity - and have loved his music since then. This 100 Hits Legends was absolutely wonderful - value for money and all his songs - I already had quite a few of his. So it was not difficult to pay and download. Most are already on my ipod classic playlist under Opera - along with Pav, Dom, Carreras, Lesley Garrett and many others. Just put the headphones on, select play and listen. Just wonderful. Buy this today. You know it makes sense.

Oh Wow such a quick delivery. Amazing double CD of this wonderful voice. I Love Mario Lanza I can use one in the car and the other in my home. I can't tell you how happy I am to have these recording of my Idol. His voice is heavenly. I get very emotional with some of his recordings because of the beauty of his voice and how expressive he is. I just melt! There is only one Mario Lanza - not another voice like his. Can recommend all three CD's I bought.

This is an excellent boxed set. The CD of opera arias alone (CD 4 of 5) is worth the money and demonstrates just how good he was in this medium. It is no surprise therefore that he is cited as one of the most influential operatic tenors, even though he appeared in full professional opera on only a few occasions. His 'Una furtiva lagrima' is just beautiful. However, the soprano who performs with him on some of these tracks is not of the first order.

Made me sing terribly!