"The First Lady of Song" and "The Great American Songbook" are a perfect match. The legendary series of songbook recordings that Ella Fitzgerald made throughout the 1950s were her ticket to stardom and thus vocal immortality. The five original albums from this series presented on this 10-CD box set are filled with the greatest compositions by Cole Porter, George and Ira Gershwin, Rodgers and Hart, and Irving Berlin. As a bonus, so to speak, this collection features the recording of the Gershwin's famous opera Porgy and Bess by Ella and Louis Armstrong. Ella was at the peak of her vocal game, and the material is made up of some of the most exquisite and durable popular songs ever written, from "Night and Day", via "Someone to Watch Over Me" and "Summertime", on to "The Lady is a Tramp", "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" and 161 more. The musical accompaniment is incredible, too, featuring orchestras of first call instrumentalists like Bud Shank, Pete Candoli, Maynard Ferguson, "Sweets" Edison, Herb Geller, Barney Kessel, Benny Carter, Herb Ellis, Buddy Collette, and Mel Lewis.