Destined to remain the single most comprehensive record of Judy Garland's
latter-day career, “The Judy Garland Show” is an astonishing treasure of
great lasting value. Garland's rarely seen CBS-TV variety show from 1963-64
offers a wealth of performances. For anyone with only a cursory awareness of
Garland's skill as an interpreter of great songs, this shows will be a
dynamic revelation.
Here, after all, is a mature performer at the peak of her song-styling craft,
and “The Judy Garland Show” gathers many of her finest
performances, her amazing range and her penchant for melancholy, introspective
tunes of loneliness and sorrow, brilliantly combined with trademark
showstoppers. Judy shares the stage with such luminaries as Mel Tormé,
Tony Bennett, Count Basie, Lena Horne, Mickey Rooney, and
many others, including her 17-year-old daughter Liza Minnelli, who was
then on the cusp of her own stardom.
This was not the most stable time in Judy Garland's life, and she
makes mistakes here and there--a show-biz great who'd falter occasionally, only
to recover in grand style. But what's most evident is the sheer power of Judy
Garland's talent, showcased by the finest musical and backstage talent that
TV had to offer.