Opera singer
Leontyne Price
lends her warm soprano to 12 patriotic songs on
God Bless America
.
Charles Gerhardt
conducts the
National Philharmonic Orchestra
, supporting
Miss Price
with bold and full orchestration. While her vibrato is perfectly suited for
"America, the Beautiful"
and
"The Battle Hymn of the Republic"
with goose-pimpling effects, the folky
"Blowin' in the Wind"
sounds a little too grandiose and loses some of
Dylan
's original impact. Overall, this is a fine collection of American songs sung by one of the country's true treasures. ~ Zac Johnson