Joan Sutherland was in her early fifties when she made this 1976 recording of La traviata, so her voice has a maturity that isn't ideal for Violetta. Her technique and her distinctive brightness are still fully evident, though, and her performance is sometimes vocally dazzling. Luciano Pavarotti was close to his prime at the time of the recording, and he sings with his characteristic breadth, vigor, and intensity. Matteo Manuguerra is a sturdy Germont. Richard Bonynge leads the National Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Opera Chorus in a spirited, traditional take on the score, one of the relatively few recordings of the opera that is absolutely complete. The sound is superb and clear, clean, and present.© TiVo

Verdi's I Lombardi, here given its full title, I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata ("The Lombards in the First Crusade"), was a follow-up to Nabucco, with promoters wanting more of the ethnoreligious patriotism of the earlier opera. Verdi complied externally, with a colorful tale spanning locales from Lombardy to Antioch to Jerusalem. The romantic libretto, with the soprano lead, Giselda, taking off on a pilgrimage of her own, did not hang together so well, and more popular Verdi operas at the end of the 1840s swept the work out of the repertory. In many ways, though, I Lombardi is a more sophisticated work than Nabucco, with big choruses, recitatives, and arias flowing naturally into each other, and it is no accident that this work was chosen to be adapted for Verdi's first French grand opera, Jérusalem. The work stands or falls on its Giselda, on whom the spotlight falls squarely after the opening conflict between brothers is set up; this live Bavarian Radio concert production has a good one in Nino Machaidze, who has a high-flying international career but doesn't get quite the publicity she deserves. She is ideal in the role, inhabiting its tempestuous and helpless turns, and as her career has developed, her voice has developed some steel. At times, she lays the vibrato on pretty thick, but this is a matter of taste, and she is dramatically convincing. There are other strong singers in the highly international cast, notably the smoky-voice Réka Kristóf as Giselda's mother, Viclinda, and conductor Ivan Repušić, leading his Münchner Rundfunkorchester, understands the strides Verdi was making toward more variegated textures. There is very little noise from the well-drilled Munich audience, and the sung texts are clear. Verdi lovers are in for a treat here.© James Manheim /TiVo

It was time for Ludovic Tézier to finally provide his admirers with a recital. His performances as a Verdian baritone are impressive: Rigoletto, Simon Boccanegra, Falstaff, Giorgio Germont (La Traviata), Posa (Don Carlo), Le Conte De Luna (Il Trovatore), Renato (Un ballo in maschera), Iago (Otello). And almost all of these are reprised in this solo album. To this impressive list of stage roles, Tézier brings the welcome addition of arias from Ernani, Macbeth and Nabucco all accompanied by Frédéric Chaslin at the head of the orchestra of the Teatro Comunale in Bologna. It was in 1998 in Tel Aviv that the French baritone played his first Verdian role. He was thirty years old when he was Ford in a production of Falstaff. "There is an absolutely fascinating energy in Verdi, both for the audience and for the singers", he admits. "His roles are usually very challenging, but his music acts at the same time as a fountain of youth. Verdi is brimming with vitality, which is what allowed me to return to the stage just two days after my father's death". Now with a fully-matured voice, Ludovic Tézier is in demand all over the world for his Verdi roles. He is one of the best performers of Verdi's work, standing alongside the late Piero Cappuccilli who remains his great role model. This record offers timely confirmation of his stature. © François Hudry/Qobuz

Romanian composer George Enescu's 1931 opera Oedipe is an epic work on several levels, including its dramatic scope -- from the protagonist's birth to his death -- and in the huge performing forces it requires. It stands for the most part outside the modernist or post-Romantic operatic conventions of its time and inhabits a sound world that uses a familiar harmonic language, but in idiosyncratic ways. The composer's Romanian roots and the influences of impressionism are in strong evidence, but the work isn't easily pigeonholed; it has moments of rough folkloric primitivism, meltingly lush romanticism, elegant delicacy, and surprising experimental techniques. Oedipe was Enescu's only opera, but he shows a sure hand in the vividness of his musical characterizations and in creating dramatic tension, which the story has in abundance. The opera's finale is absolutely stunning, with wave after wave of surging, astonishing grandeur that finally subsides into an ending of breathtaking serenity. This recording, with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Les Petits Chanteurs de Monaco, and the chorus Orféon Donostiarra, conducted by Lawrence Foster, features a star-studded cast that includes José van Dam, Gabriel Bacquier, Nicolai Gedda, Brigitte Fassbaender, and Barbara Hendricks. The performance and production values for the release are exceptionally high and make a compelling case for the opera. Foster could have paced the opera's conclusion more broadly and expressively, but otherwise his reading is fully engaging. Enescu writes beautifully for the voice, and the entire large cast sings with gorgeous tone and deep conviction. Van Dam is overwhelming in the title role; he is on-stage for virtually all of the second, third, and fourth acts, and he ages convincingly from an impetuous youth to an old man. His portrayal of the troubled protagonist is warmly compassionate, and his voice is rich and searingly powerful; he has all the charisma required to pull off a memorable depiction of one of history's most famous archetypes. Most of the other roles are relatively brief, but Barbara Hendricks and Marjana Lipovsek are standouts as a sympathetic Antigone and a maniacal Sphinx. EMI's sound is full, clean, and enveloping, with excellent balance. On the basis of this exemplary recording, Oedipe clearly has the musical and dramatic values to merit serious consideration for revival by adventurous companies, and exploration by fans of modern opera.© TiVo

«  ...The newly mixed complete recording under the baton of Erich Leindorf cannot deny its age in the dynamically restricted heights, but it is still convincing — with a cast that has already become legendary. » FonoForum 6/88

For huge fans of Yoncheva, this is a beautiful collection of some of the Verdian soprano's finest moments. Half of the tracks are great hits: Otello and his famous prayer, Don Carlo, Nabucco, Il Trovatore and La forza del destino, the other half being made up of lesser-known works such as Stiffelio, Luisa Miller or Attila. The Bulgarian soprano (note that she was born in 1981, and is already a star at the peak of her career) demonstrates at once the warmth of her voice, an instrument fallen from heaven, with her mezzo tones and the range of her great lyrical voice, but also her bel canto vocal technique which is deployed to great effect in this brilliant repertoire. More purist listeners might have issues with her way of making her attacks "from below" in the Italian style, but that is her stylistic and technical choice, and it is a choice shared by a good proportion of lyrical singers who work with the Italian repertoire. This studio recording was created in 2017. © SM/Qobuz

Farao Classic's recording of La Traviata is revelatory, largely because of the extraordinary quality of the principals who, until this release, were largely unknown to international audiences. Anja Harteros is a stunningly effective Violetta -- fresh and young sounding, with absolute vocal security and interpretive sensitivity. Her tone is natural and unforced, she sings with beautiful intonation, and the skill and psychological range and insight with which she shapes the vocal lines make this a performance of the highest order. Her of renunciation of Alfredo and her death scene are heartbreakingly poignant, great moments of theater. Her voice and her dramatic depth clearly mark Harteros as an artist to watch out for. The same could be said for Paolo Gavanelli; his burnished, vibrant tone in service to a nuanced, compassionate characterization makes his Germont genuinely compelling. Piotr Beczala makes an intense, passionate Alfredo, and he sings with an open-throated, clarion sound, but he sounds too consistently overwrought to be completely persuasive. Zubin Mehta is in top form, in complete control of the score's tragic dramatic arc; his reading is both shapely in its details and propulsive in its theatricality. The Bayerischen Staatsorchester and the Chorus of the Bayerischen Staatsoper are fully responsive to his direction and perform with finesse and urgency. The SACD's clarity, presence, and balance are unusually good for a live recording. This fine new version should be of strong interest to anyone who loves the opera. © TiVo

Romanian composer George Enescu's 1931 opera Oedipe is an epic work on several levels, including its dramatic scope -- from the protagonist's birth to his death -- and in the huge performing forces it requires. It stands for the most part outside the modernist or post-Romantic operatic conventions of its time and inhabits a sound world that uses a familiar harmonic language, but in idiosyncratic ways. The composer's Romanian roots and the influences of impressionism are in strong evidence, but the work isn't easily pigeonholed; it has moments of rough folkloric primitivism, meltingly lush romanticism, elegant delicacy, and surprising experimental techniques. Oedipe was Enescu's only opera, but he shows a sure hand in the vividness of his musical characterizations and in creating dramatic tension, which the story has in abundance. The opera's finale is absolutely stunning, with wave after wave of surging, astonishing grandeur that finally subsides into an ending of breathtaking serenity. This recording, with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Les Petits Chanteurs de Monaco, and the chorus Orféon Donostiarra, conducted by Lawrence Foster, features a star-studded cast that includes José van Dam, Gabriel Bacquier, Nicolai Gedda, Brigitte Fassbaender, and Barbara Hendricks. The performance and production values for the release are exceptionally high and make a compelling case for the opera. Foster could have paced the opera's conclusion more broadly and expressively, but otherwise his reading is fully engaging. Enescu writes beautifully for the voice, and the entire large cast sings with gorgeous tone and deep conviction. Van Dam is overwhelming in the title role; he is on-stage for virtually all of the second, third, and fourth acts, and he ages convincingly from an impetuous youth to an old man. His portrayal of the troubled protagonist is warmly compassionate, and his voice is rich and searingly powerful; he has all the charisma required to pull off a memorable depiction of one of history's most famous archetypes. Most of the other roles are relatively brief, but Barbara Hendricks and Marjana Lipovsek are standouts as a sympathetic Antigone and a maniacal Sphinx. EMI's sound is full, clean, and enveloping, with excellent balance. On the basis of this exemplary recording, Oedipe clearly has the musical and dramatic values to merit serious consideration for revival by adventurous companies, and exploration by fans of modern opera.© TiVo

Using the textured sonics of The Unforgettable Fire as a basis, U2 expanded those innovations by scaling back the songs to a personal setting and adding a grittier attack for its follow-up, The Joshua Tree. It's a move that returns them to the sweeping, anthemic rock of War, but if War was an exploding political bomb, The Joshua Tree is a journey through its aftermath, trying to find sense and hope in the desperation. That means that even the anthems -- the epic opener "Where the Streets Have No Name," the yearning "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" -- have seeds of doubt within their soaring choruses, and those fears take root throughout the album, whether it's in the mournful sliding acoustic guitars of "Running to Stand Still," the surging "One Tree Hill," or the hypnotic elegy "Mothers of the Disappeared." So it might seem a little ironic that U2 became superstars on the back of such a dark record, but their focus has never been clearer, nor has their music been catchier, than on The Joshua Tree. Unexpectedly, U2 have also tempered their textural post-punk with American influences. Not only are Bono's lyrics obsessed with America, but country and blues influences are heard throughout the record, and instead of using these as roots, they're used as ways to add texture to the music. With the uniformly excellent songs -- only the clumsy, heavy rock and portentous lyrics of "Bullet the Blue Sky" fall flat -- the result is a powerful, uncompromising record that became a hit due to its vision and its melody. Never before have U2's big messages sounded so direct and personal.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

Taj Mahal has released many kinds of albums in a six-decade career: folk, jump, country, blues of all stripes, sounds from Africa, the Caribbean, R&B, soul, collaborations with musicians from across the globe, and even children's records. Savoy moves in another direction still. Recorded in collaboration with producer, pianist, and longtime friend John Simon, this set offers blues-kissed reads of 14 tunes from the Great American Songbook. The album is titled as an homage to the iconic Harlem ballroom at 596 Lenox Ave. Mahal's parents met there in 1938 seeing Ella Fitzgerald front the Chick Webb Orchestra. Simon and Mahal discussed the project for decades, but August 2022 was when the planets aligned. They cut the set live with a core band and guests. Mahal's band includes guitarist Danny Caron, bassist Ruth Davies, Simon on piano, drummer Leon Joyce, Jr., and a vocal chorus with Carla Holbrook, Leesa Humphrey, and Charlotte McKinnon. Interestingly, Caron and Davies served in Charles Brown's band, and Joyce drummed with Ramsey Lewis for many years. "Stompin' at the Savoy" starts with spoken word; Mahal delivers a reenactment of his parents' meeting. As he commences singing and scatting the lyrics, backing singers underscore with oohs, aahs, and call-and-response. "I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So" is one of three Duke Ellington numbers here. The languid horn section plays a blues progression with added warmth and grace from Kristen Strom's swinging flute. The arrangement of George Gershwin's "Summertime" is delivered allegretto, with blue, finger-popping swing from lush horns. "Mood Indigo" benefits from co-producer Manny Moreira's accumulated years of big band and Broadway experience. His layered brass colorations add dimension. "Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me" offers languid, late-night horns (except in the bridge when they deliberately evoke gospel), and Simon's tasteful comping adds drama. The fluid blues guitar break from Caron benefits with elegance and bite. "Sweet Georgia Brown" is meaty and sprightly as Mahal's grainy singing and scatting contrasts beautifully with Evan Price's "Parisian hot jazz" violin. Maria Muldaur -- one of the great interpreters of vintage blues, jazz, R&B, and country -- joins Mahal on the fun, sultry "Baby It's Cold Outside," with excellent violin, trombone, and piano solos. "Caldonia," Louis Jordan's striding jump boogie, offers pumping piano, swinging guitar, and smoking sax and trombone solos behind Mahal's good-time vocal. His harmonica joins Strom's tenor sax to elevate in Benny Golson's dynamic "Killer Joe," before "One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)" closes the set. Mahal references several classic versions and arrangements in shifting tempos, but he ultimately only sounds like himself. Savoy embodies the abundant joy of its predecessor, Get On Board: The Songs of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, but the album offers added nuance, color, dynamics, and musical sophistication. It seemingly accomplishes the impossible by taking these (overly) familiar standards and breathing new life into them while simultaneously honoring their legacies as well as that of the historic Harlem ballroom. © Thom Jurek /TiVo

Yaeji's fans have been eagerly awaiting the release of her debut full-length album since a pair of 2017 EPs, the second of which featured club essential "Raingurl." With a Hammer showcases the Korean American singer, producer, DJ, visual artist and writer's talents across thirteen tracks as she takes listeners on a journey into the depths of her mind, addressing both societal and self-imposed repression accumulated over her lifetime. Despite the upbeat and club-ready sound of the second track, "For Granted," it's essential to note that With a Hammer is a deeply introspective vessel for Yaeji's inner thoughts. In a letter to fans accompanying the announcement of the album, Yaeji explained that she began tackling her inner demons by writing a story of herself and a hammer, which she crafted from her own anger. This narrative would guide Yaeji in her studio recording sessions. While tracks like "Passed Me By," which could easily be interpreted by a rock band as a head-banging anthem, or "Ready or Not" and "Happy"—which have elements of R&B supported by surprising drum beats—show glimpse of other genres, there's always a sprinkle of Yaeji's fun, glitchy aesthetic, which ties everything together into a beautiful sound collage. "I want to begin this album with intent. I want to take all that I've suppressed and let it breathe and live through this process of creation. I want my music to be free," Yaeji has stated. With a Hammer is an instant Qobuzissime; there is a weightlessness and lost-in-time feeling as you experience the intimate and delightful insight into her eclectic world. It is safe to say that her goal has been achieved. © Jessica Porter-Langson/Qobuz

Blondie turned to British pop producer Mike Chapman for their third album, on which they abandoned any pretensions to new wave legitimacy (just in time, given the decline of the new wave) and emerged as a pure pop band. But it wasn't just Chapman that made Parallel Lines Blondie's best album; it was the band's own songwriting, including Deborah Harry, Chris Stein, and James Destri's "Picture This," and Harry and Stein's "Heart of Glass," and Harry and new bass player Nigel Harrison's "One Way or Another," plus two contributions from nonbandmember Jack Lee, "Will Anything Happen?" and "Hanging on the Telephone." That was enough to give Blondie a number one on both sides of the Atlantic with "Heart of Glass" and three more U.K. hits, but what impresses is the album's depth and consistency -- album tracks like "Fade Away and Radiate" and "Just Go Away" are as impressive as the songs pulled for singles. The result is state-of-the-art pop/rock circa 1978, with Harry's tough-girl glamour setting the pattern that would be exploited over the next decade by a host of successors led by Madonna.© William Ruhlmann /TiVo

If you're a fan of Grandaddy, you know not to hold your breath. In 2000, The Sophtware Slump—a prescient, lo-fi forecast of humanity's problems with technology—earned Jason Lytle's Modesto, California, band a well-deserved spotlight. But they split up in 2006, months before the release of Just Like the Fambly Cat, over financial frustrations. Grandaddy reunited in 2017 for Last Place, a lyrical account of Lytle's divorce, then stopped touring and recording after the death of longtime bassist Kevin Garcia. Now Grandaddy is back, but only time will tell if it's a fleeting return. Blu Wav's title is a mash-up of bluegrass and new wave, though that doesn't really capture the album's vibe. Inspired by listening to Patti Page's "Tennessee Waltz" while driving across the Nevada desert, Lytle determined to borrow the sweet sway of bluegrass waltz and cocoon it in synth and fuzzy electronics. Waltz time is prominent on the record, as is pedal steel—to poignant effect on "Long As I'm Not the One," which reaches for moments of pomp majesty, and "You're Going to Be Fine and I'm Going to Hell," an alt-country meditation that opens up to a lush ELO-esque dreamscape. Loss and loneliness, constant companions in Lytle's music, are all over the place. "Ducky, Boris and Dart" is a plush farewell. "On a Train or a Bus" is a dreamy, sad-bastard ballad about love gone away. "Jukebox App," an easy-amble waltz, finds Lytle deliriously wallowing in misery and threatening to play "all our songs" after spotting an ex with a new guy. "Silhouette of the flame that died/ Your hair lit up by that neon light/ You and some dude knocking back the shots/ While I'm out here in the parking lot," he sighs/sings, fuzzed-out synth plucking the heartstrings. Paired with steel guitar, "Watercooler" proves Lytle can craft a heart-wrenched melody with all the pop aspirations and gimlet-eyed lyrics of Fountains of Wayne. "And you cry in the bathroom stall," he sets the scene, "Cuz I won't call although I know you hurt." ("Most of my relationships have involved girls who worked in office settings," Lytle has said. "This song is about the end of one, or perhaps a few, of those relationships.) When it all gets to be too much, he returns to the honey-sweet promise of "Cabin In My Mind": "There's a safe and loving glow/ Beyond the curve where you once were." There are several lovely sketches of songs—fleeting thoughts—including spacey "Let's Put This Pinto on the Moon" and satisfying outro "Blu Wav Buh Bye," that leave you wanting more. But as Lytle sings on the beautiful, forward-looking "Nothin' To Lose," "Cut and run toward the sun/ Our work here's done." © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz

Beyond the neglect of French Baroque music in general, it is a bit hard to understand why composer Pancrace Royer was almost completely unknown until Christophe Rousset came along to champion him, first in harpsichord music and now, with these suites of music drawn from operas, in orchestral music. In the 18th century, Royer was quite well known and admired among others by Rameau, whose music he helped along considerably. Royer certainly inhabited Rameau's stylistic world, but from the evidence here, his music is distinctive and merits the adjective "surprising" that Rousset has attached to it. It is colorful, given to unexpected turns of harmony, and vivid in its evocation of the exotic scenes of French opera. Sample the "Air pour les turcs" ("Air for the Turks") from Zaïde, reine de Grenade, with its crackling percussion. Royer challenged his orchestra with virtuoso ensemble writing in the likes of the "Premier et second tambourins" from Almasis, and Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques step up with precise, vigorous readings that one imagines would have made the composer overjoyed. The inclusion of two alternate versions for movements from Zaïde is also unusual and gives insight into the compositional thinking of the day. Essential for specialists and enthusiasts interested in the French Baroque, this album is a lot of fun for anyone, with only overdone church sound detracting from the overall effect. © James Manheim /TiVo

Backed by the Sun King despite a lukewarm audience reception at first, Lully's Atys (1676) went on to become one of the composer's most successful operas, with revivals at French court theaters as late as 1753. In modern times, however, it is a considerably rarer item due to the massive forces and time required. Christophe Rousset was in the pit as harpsichordist when conductor William Christie gave the first modern revival of the work in the late '80s. That experience marks this 2024 release, which made classical best-seller lists at the beginning of that year. That is not common for a hefty five-act Baroque opera, but even a bit of sampling will confirm why it happened: Rousset, from the keyboard, brings tremendous energy to the opera. He pushes the tempo in the numerous dances and entrance numbers, and the musicians of Les Talens Lyriques and the singers of the Choeur du Chambre de Namur, all of whom have worked closely with Rousset in the past, keep right up. The singers in the solo roles are all fine; haut-contre Reinoud Van Mechelen in the title role and Ambroisine Bré as the goddess Cybèle, who sets the tragic plot in motion, are standouts. The sound from the increasingly engineering-expert Château de Versailles label is exceptionally clear in complex textures, and the sensuous cover art (representing, it is true, not the Roman mythological figure of Atys but Hippomène and Atalante) is a bonus. In the end, this is Rousset's Atys, and that is a very good thing.© James Manheim /TiVo

While the recordings of highlights and hits from Rodgers & Hammerstein's still-popular Oklahoma! have been issued over the years, the complete, as originally orchestrated score (by Richard Rodney Bennett) had yet to be recorded. However, following a live-staged performance at the 2017 BBC Proms, conductor John Wilson took it upon himself to deliver this premiere. He sticks with the original orchestra dimensions as well, which is a good thing since the handpicked members of his Sinfonia of London are powerful enough in this smaller group. Wilson also took advantage of the quality theaters around London, bringing in soloists and a cast ensemble of veterans from stages across England. He does well in selecting a cast here; while all are more than capable singers, they are also able to deliver the vocal acting that is necessary to pull this off. Leading the cast are Nathaniel Hackmann, reprising his role as Curly from the Proms performance, and Sierra Boggess as Laurey. The vocalists and orchestra take full advantage of the space and recording setup, which allows the orchestra to play full out while not overstraining the singers. The beauty of Rodgers' music paired with Hammerstein's book is evident, even if you are unfamiliar with anything but the titular state (if even that!); the imagery of ranches and open cattle land easily comes to mind. This recording should be welcomed with open arms by those who are familiar with the musical, be it either from a stage (generally edited and with cuts) or in its film version with its edits. Oh, what a beautiful mornin', indeed.© Keith Finke /TiVo

The problem with compiling an essential best-of compilation covering the phenomenon that was (and is) Elvis Presley is the very man himself, who has passed from this mortal coil into the iconic pop culture stratosphere where even his own death is questioned and Elvis sightings are as frequent as fleas. Then there are the thousands of performers who daily dress up as Presley himself and sally forth into the world like perfectly gyrating replicas of either the early or later Elvis (body physics dictate that you can't be both). Elvis may have left the building, but not really. His image is everywhere, and his fans are legion and devout. So how does one pick his essential sides when "Do the Clam" is a classic in the Kingdom of Presley simply because Elvis did it? He recorded Tony Joe White's "Polk Salad Annie" in 1970. It was hardly the best version ever of "Polk Salad Annie" but it was Elvis' version of "Polk Salad Annie," which puts it in rarefied class of its own, and making it, like "Do the Clam," absolutely essential in some quarters. When you're larger than life, words like essential have to expand or be left wanting. The Essential Elvis Presley boils this imposing legacy down to two discs of 20 tracks each, and approaches the problem of what is truly essential by choosing to compile all of Elvis' significant charting hits, beginning with his 1954 cover of Arthur Crudup's "That's All Right" from Sam Phillips' Sun Records and continuing chronologically through Presley's long association with RCA Records through the year 1976. That means, while there's no version of "Do the Clam" ("Polk Salad Annie" is here, though), there are classic sides like 1956's "Heartbreak Hotel," "Don't Be Cruel," "Hound Dog," and "Love Me Tender," 1957's "Jailhouse Rock," 1961's "Little Sister," and 1969's "In the Ghetto," "Suspicious Minds," and "Kentucky Rain." There are 17 number one hits and a whole lot more. Elvis fanatics are going to complain about what isn't here, of course. Elvis is the King, after all, and therefore by definition everything he recorded ought to be essential. And everything he recorded is indeed essential on some level. But these are the sides that broke through to the deepest level of the world pop culture that Elvis helped create. These are the songs that broke him and then sustained him on radio and television and at the movie theaters. Die-hard Elvis fans will undoubtedly already have everything collected here. This is a set instead for folks who want to have at least one Elvis anthology in their collections, and want the hits they remember and don't much care if those hits are from the early Elvis or the later Elvis or the dear departed Elvis. Just the hits, bartender, shaken not stirred. That means no version of "Do the Clam," singular as it is.© Steve Leggett /TiVo