My partner lived that moment. On April 23, 1961 he was a handsome 23 year old living in Manhattan and by some accident of history he managed to have a ticket (he wasn’t a particular fan of Judy Garland at the time but his roommate insisted that he go with him). Even though my partner is bedridden today and living in a long term care facility he can still remember that night vividly. He tells me that it seemed as if every celebrity in America was present and even before the overture started there was such an incredible buzz of anticipation in the air that the atmosphere was nothing short of electric. Once Judy came out and began to sing the connection between her and each member of the audience was so instantaneous that it felt like a swift punch to the gut. From that moment on it was almost impossible not to be swept away by everything she did. Through song after song Judy and the audience fed off each other until finally the entire space seemed to be enveloped in a powerful and overwhelming feeling of love. My partner tells me that there was something more going on in that room that night than just a mere concert. It was a complete coming together of hearts and souls, a quality he says that the recording only hints at. As my partner puts it, “You just had to be there to understand what really happened. All of us-all 3000 people-we were all one.”

Nope, it doesn't matter what else I was doing! BKR Just dropped and the thumbnail has Judy on it!!

This is IT! ... Listen to this double record through at one go, and you'll never be the same again. Miss Garland was a natural genius.

I found a slightly used vinyl copy of this years ago for $7.50 and thought, "meh, what the hell? Not really my thing, but I heard it's a classic." Then, I played it...immediate fan for life. No live recording before or since has made me feel like I was actually there when it happened. The energy is contagious.

In regards to San Francisco, someone told Jeanette MacDonald about Judy’s quips in the show. Jeanette’s response was, “as long as it’s Judy!” Jeanette had a sense of humour.

As a singer, having 26 songs ready for performance is no easy task. Very impressive!!

Outside of Karen Carpenter, Maria Callas and Billie Holiday, Judy is one of the very few singers who can still reduce me to teary eyed goosebumps within less than thirty seconds, ever since I was exposed to her at about 10 years old. "Do It Again" from the Carnegie Hall album never fails to tear my insides apart for being so seductive and yet so heartbreakingly vulnerable in its subtle delivery... Goddamn... 😭

To this day, Judy remains an icon of immeasurable status. Few artists could hope to achieve what she has with this concert and the subsequent live album. Her voice, as often, was not perfect that night - she had shaky moments and sometimes her voice would crack. It's her story, her energy, her love for music & Judy herself that made this show the "perfect concert". Her voice was like no other and her delivery of any song was nothing short of impeccable. Making Judy the sole focus of this show was a brilliant decision. On top of that, she had a fighting spirit that you rarely find in artists (to this degree). It could've been the worst night of her life and she'd still try her hardest to put on a fabulous show.

There’s a reason they called her “leather lungs” - she’s a motherfucking rockstar and it’s on full display on this album (of course I own it). 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Judy’s private life breaks my heart, but her talent fills my heart with joy

Great job. I was there for both nights - in the audience and backstage with her in the dressing room. I was also in NYC for the funeral and was at Stonewall the night before the riot. Yes, Judy was an influence. It was only her music on the jukebox and we all wept and held each other. Did she cause the riot - no. She was the final straw after years of raids and abuse.

One of my new favorite hobbies is pausing BKR videos and reading all the other articles in the quoted newspapers.

My little gay brain is so happy this exists so thank you and a bigger thank you to Judy Garland for existing.

This live album is my favorite to clean to. I play it every time I have to move to a new place. Judy was a gem and deserved better.

In spite of all the books, articles, reminisces, TV shows and movies about Garland, we shall never know what made her tick. It's been over a century since she was born and we are still fascinated with Judy.

I forget that Judy has sounded like Judy her entire life!

I just can't believe that people spoke of the greatest entertainer of her time. The studios destroyed her with drugs along with her mother but she plowed through and did such a great job starting at a very young age. They said when she was learning her songs she never made a mistake. I just love this woman and her daughters. I don't like when people speak badly of her. Rip love.

My father bought me this album when I was in high school I was a huge and still am a huge Judy Garland fan. He said he was here and grown men were sobbing in the audience. That’s how great this was.

i knew someone that saw this and he said many in the audience just sat for the longest time once the show was over. it was like they needed to reacclimate, rest and able themselves to deal with JUDY being done and off the stage.

Judy Garland At Carnegie Hall is an incredible album. The best, and only way, to listen to it is relaxed and all at once. It demands this level of respect. Even though she is performing at Carnegie Hall, it feels so personal. You can, easily, imagine yourself there in the audience with Judy. It's an experience.

My parents were immigrants from the French Caribbean, so I grew up in the late 70s listening to both Black Caribbean, Latin, and European orchestral/vocal arrangements from the '40s to the '70s. Judy Garland was next to Edith Piaf, Nana Mouskouri, and Ceclia Cruz in my mother's Saturday evening playlist.

Just paused Cowboy Carter to watch this one. BKR + Judy = gold for sure.

When I noticed the "Judy at Carnegie Hall" graphic on the title card of this video I skipped over it because I remembered listening to the original 2-album set on my dad's stereo in the mid to late 1960s and thought I knew all about it. But, now I just watched this 1+ hour video and realized after only a minute or two that I didn't know it at all. Now I do. Now I can put it in context and appreciate it as a key piece of American cultural history (including the Al Jolson digression). Thanks to BKR for threading the needle of copyrights and cliches to launch a major refresh in 2024. It pays homage to a period in time that has almost disappeared. Michael Jackson and Judy Garland had remarkably similar life trajectories.

when I was 13, my mother took me to Record Town and bought me this album. this was in 1983. I played the sh%t out of it. it's one of the best albums in the world. thank you so much for sharing this.

I’ve listened to the live album on and off over the years and I do feel it’s the best live album of all time and only Judy Garland could achieve such status

Her singing of Stormy Weather always rips my heart out and blows me away. Began listening to the Carnegie Album at 11 years old. Now, I'm 64, it just gets better and better. She was 4'11" physically but she was a collosus of heart and voice. Love, love, love.

I read a book by Mel Tormé about working on The Judy Garland show and he told a story about her singing Over the Rainbow and how affecting it was, she said don't come tomorrow because you'll be disappointed, mainly because the tear during the song happened at exactly the same time, which demonstrated that Judy was an actress first who happened to be a great singer.

I was raised on Judy Garland movies that my Grandma dearly loved. When I was old enough to learn about her life it totally broke my heart the way she was used, abused, and ultimately destroyed by almost everyone in her atmosphere. Thank you for the great deep dive into this amazing concert.

Comedian Jack Carter said old timers said Al Jolson was the greatest entertainer. After seeing Judy at CH he said "Jolson would have opened for Judy Garland!" Still a powerhouse of a record.

It's hard for me to measure the impact Judy has had on my life. I discovered her at a very complicated time in my teens and just latched onto her as a lifeboat. It was the voice. Before I saw any of her films I was already very well acquainted with her sound, and this record in particular, because something about it resonated with the turmoil I was feeling. It was as if she could vocalize all the things I could not. Every crack, every wobble. And yet, she kept on singing through it all. Always at the risk of falling apart, of her instrument failing her. And I loved her for it. Nobody has been more vulnerable onstage, or more generous with her audience. And it's hair-raising the way you can hear them loving her back. Clapping, yelling, begging for more. Just the way I did so many years after them. She made it through, which made me think I could do it too. And now hearing BKR break down the tracks I've loved for so long is a very special experience. Thank you.

An hour of Judy Garland. . . YESSSS! ❤❤❤

The Man that Got Away is one of the most beautiful songs ever written.

More than a hour of Judy? Count. Me. IN!!!!

Judy was at the apex of her stellar career with her incomparable Carnegie Hall concert, the recording of which forever cemented her rarefied status among the 20TH century's great entertainers! Forever Judy!

It's always exciting when BKR talks about Judy Garland again

It's no over statement that this recording is the greatest live album in history. Judy is stellar. She puts her very heart and soul into every word. Even the fluffs are purely heaven! Thanks for this and always championing Judy and her legacy. I will love her forever.

Am I watching this on my lunch break instead of eating? YES!

When I was in high school (2009/2013) was around the time records were coming back into style, modern artists were releasing things on vinyl and I wanted a record player so bad! I got one for Christmas one year along with a bunch of my parents'/family's old vinyls. My dad (an avid thrift store shopper) had even bought me some more he had found at a local thrift shop to us, one being Judy at Carnegie Hall. At that point in my life, I primarily knew Judy from two movies I loved: Wizard of Oz and Meet Me in St Louis. The record blew my mind lol. To this day, Judy at Carnegie Hall is one of my most listened-to vinyls and I will listen to it in any other format as well if I'm away from my record player. I have it on CD, Spotify, and as an actual purchased download on my ancient iTunes account lol. It is what made me fall in love with Judy and her voice and to read and consume any info I could on her life. I related so much to her, her struggles and her insecurities and her addiction issues. I'm getting a tattoo of her lol. I don't think it's for everyone, her voice is so unique and that era of music can seem dated to a lot of people. But to me, it genuinely is one of the greatest nights in entertainment history. I hope, if there is an afterlife, Judy knows so many people loved her for HER. For her talent and charisma and hard work. And wished the best for her even outside of all of that. I hope she is resting. Also, she was always gorgeous. Until her final days, a gorgeous talented true performer and she deserves to be recognized for that instead of constantly torn down like she was. I genuinely hate how the media, still, feels the need to be negative about women. Let's look at even the most like universally loved and gorgeous women of history since Judy: Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, Princess Diana, Anna Nicole Smith, Britney Spears...all faced so much abuse by the public and by the media. I hope with all of the stories that are now being made public about their time in the spotlight we as a culture can finally stop the cycle. Treat stars and the women in our own lives like the human beings they are.

This the best critical piece on her Carnegie Hall concert/ album period. Finally the focus is on Judy’s skills and talents and her vision of herself as an artist 🎉👍👏 thank you for giving Judy her due

I was a teenager when I first heard this record, growing up in the seventies into the eighties. Rock, disco and, later, new wave and technopop ruled. ¿But who was to put a voice to all the anguish, all the despair, all the loneliness of growing up a gay teenager in a hard and condemning latin family? Then came Judy. I had heard and seen her before, in the MGM movies, the very pretty and likable girl next door with very polished songs and a voice that always lingered on the girlish. I was feeling so sad, so angry, so desperate for so many things I needed to say but couldn¨t. I heard this record: not all the songs had the same impact but one in particular, Stormy Weather: all the desperation, all the almost frightening loneliness and anger, even the menacing thoughts of self destruction stemming from not being permitted to be myself and love another seemed.to be there . This was not a girl, this was not an actress, this was a woman, a very sad, angry and lonely woman, opening her soul for me to find my own reflection on it. Contrary to what some people say, I didn¨t feel she was only singing for me, I felt she WAS SINGING ME; this was Judy. And this was Judy at Carnegie Hall. Thank you for this GREAT VIDEO, thank you for all your videos, I love your channel and always feel like it´s a great celebration when you post one.

As a massive, massive Judy fan, I truly appreciated this fantastic video. She is my #1 favorite singer.

This event changed my life. My 7th grade Musi teacher asked me to do a report on Judy’s concert at Carnegie Hall. I have the record and cd. When I listen to it,I feel I was there.😊

The legend, the star, Miss Judy Garland!!!! ❤❤❤

I saw her live at the Boston Common in 1967 when I was 17. Went early and sat right up front. Quite a show from what I remember. A lot of it now is just a blur. Hey, I'm almost 75 now!

I play this all the time. I rank it as the top live concert EVER! The stories she tells are pure genius. I can only imagine how exiting it was.

At last, something on KZfaq that is considered, intelligent, thoughtful and not full of gush or rant. It's an involving assessment of a star, a great singer and her place in the culture of the last century. Thank you.

As a kid in the early 70’s my grandmother played that album like crazy.

I have listened to this album a thousand times since I was a teenager. This tribute is so beautifully appreciative. Thank you. ❤🎉😊

I saw Judy in concert twice in 1961 doing the same show she did at Carnegie Hall with Mort Lindsay. Of course we stood on our chairs and shouted Brava. I saw Barbra in 1962 at the Blue Angel in an audience of 18. So lucky.

BKR is simply the best review of movies and concerts I've ever seen. The analysis is so detailed and indepth that leads to meaningful dialog, proof of what is really true or false, and is entertaining as well. Terrific work. We need authentic critiques and information like this that truly educates and entertains.

"A Foggy Day" is very interesting as Judy performed it. A number of singers performed it, (Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Hazel Scott, et al), and in all the song picks up tempo with and comes off as light and bouncy. Judy keeps the slow tempo and sings soulfully with only the piano. In her performance it is a song of longing and loneliness until she sings, "for suddenly I saw you there..." and we know everything is alright. There is no better interpretation.

You're really spoiling us with these +1 hour long videos

I've been praying for times like these😭 This album experience is the closest I'll ever get to time traveling. For the past 9 years it has become a regular ritual of mine to dress up and sit down to listen to it without interruption. I wish it had been recorded on film, but the audio alone paints a vivid picture of what that night might've been like. Also, apparently Julie Andrews was in the crowd, too😮 Thank you so much❤

I just read the Clarke biography. I’m more obsessed with Judy than I’ve ever been. When I saw that BKR was doing a video on this night, I shrieked. I’m teaching a class on 1940s actresses and this will likely be assigned. I say this after watching the first four minutes. I have that much faith in BKR!!

BRAVO! James Mason, Garland's co-star in a "A STAR IS BORN" remarked that he worked with a lot of actors and actresses, but only one genius: JUDY GARLAND. This is THE BEST video you have ever done done because you are FINALLY dealing with an artist who interprets the complexities of the human condition rather than an "entertainer." You place Garland's Carnegie Hall triumph in context, but the focus is properly on Garland as an artist in full control instead of the usual "before and after" trashing of her as a drugged-up, out of control mess of a train-wreck. Whereas Barbra Streisand seeks "perfection" to the point of being off-puttingly egocentric, Garland embraced imperfection as part of humanity and reality in performance. Her imperfections made Judy human; and Judy's humanity made her "accessible" and relatable in a way nobody in show-business has EVER been: before or since. Judy didn't operate from an obvious, cold or calculated "bag of tricks", as most "entertainers" do. You could never catch Judy in a lie, because she had dynamic talents and a jumble of emotions and feelings, and that's what she worked with, and that's what she still captivates us with today. Judy couldn't give us anything but love, baby... and her talents, and her emotions, and her FEELINGS... and we will love her eternally for all that.

It’s really nice to hear some positive and happy stories about Judy Garland’s life. Everyone always wants to focus on the negative stuff. This video was so elegantly made.

I sat on the living room floor of my family home when in junior high school and cried with joy. You still have the original vinyl album set.

I’m so glad you insightfully delineated that the strains and rawness of her voice was part of the power of this album. When I first heard it, THAT was what drew me in and made me want to listen again. Those breaks and imperfections were so filled with life and experience that it made the songs infinitely more compelling than merely a lovely sounding tone.

I will never forget the first time I heard this double album at a friends dinner party.

Thank you for covering my favorite album for over half a century and one of the legendary moments in show biz herstory, Judy Live At Carnegie Hall! It is a lasting testament to her amazing talent and never ceases to thrill and amaze.

Judy was the queen of a comeback!

A truly wonderful tribute to a legendary artist. Thank you for teaching us more about Judy.😊

I remember first I was disappointed on the song listing when I first got the cd many years ago. When I listened to it from being to the end it all made sense and it became my all time favourite live albums EVER! Her voice is in top form, her monologues between some of the songs are so entertaining and hearing everything on the record even her steps, every breath it makes you feel like it’s happening at this moment! Still sounds fresh after all these decades!

Incredible, absolutely incredible. She was dead two decades before I was even born but she is just such a modern marvel as well as a throwback to a time I never knew. Your work Be Kind is so well done and it is so well appreciated!

I picked up a copy in 1982 somewhere in Greenwich Village. I knew it was special and enjoyed listening to it often. In 2006 I discovered two ticket stubs for the second evening and a note about the evening. I own property but the album and its contents on my prize possession.

Judy was treated badly by the media. I really became obsessed with her way before the movie "Judy" came out, and when I watched it, I did like it but didn't love it. Her story is larger than life. Her talent was mesmerizing. I have listened to this album several times, and it makes me happy that her legacy still endures through the young audience (i'm 28). May Judy Garland never be forgotten

The Greatest Entertainer in Show Business History in The Greatest Night in Entertainment History meets The Greatest Entry in Be Kind Rewind History, period. Thank you.

It’s BKR. It’s Judy. It’s perfection.

This was the best "Be Kind Rewind" yet. Thank you.

Listened to this album today and I'm 8 songs in and so far it really is an incredible performance. As good as it gets really. Hats off.

Imagine my excitement as a huge Judy fan when I saw the thumbnail!! 🤩Judy at Carnegie Hall is my favorite live album!

I owned this album….. listened to it and loved it

We have been BLESSED by BKR!! Quick, get the popcorn, comfy blankets, drink of choice and put the phone on Do Not Disturb! BKR HAS A JUDY VIDEO!!! This is NOT A DRILL!

As a child I listened to this album many times. She was amazing.

25:04 As a musical artist sometimes you can get a mental block which triggers at the same part of a composition, especially if you're highly strung and trying for perfection every time. You make a mistake the one time, and then after that something in your head convinces you that you will fail at that point and then when you reach it and your cogs are going on auto-pilot, your mind wants to go blank and have a hiccup, something in you starts believing it's going to keep happening at that point and it's like a self-fulfilling prophecy. It can rectify itself on its own after a few times. I feel this may be what Judy was experiencing.

As a Judy stan, I thought I wouldn't learn anything new (this album is in my regular road trip fixture). But even for this Judy fan, this still had nuggets of new interesting info. Greatly researched and thoroughly enjoyable

Bought the original double-LP on eBay as a college graduation gift for myself... Best live concert I've ever listened to. Garland was one of my first crushes, and I still have a soft spot for her.

Quick note: the delays with filming A Star is Born had much more to do with the difficulty shooting in color using a still relatively new technique - a high resolution Todd-AO film format by Elizabeth Taylor's husband, Mike Todd's, company - than it did Judy Garland's issues. But the studio found it easier to blame her - though she had been much better on this film than most since her husband, Sid Luft, was also Producer - than their struggle with Todd-AO and the constant reshoots (and rebuilding of sets months later to reshoot in) they kept having to do.

wake up babe BKR just posted a one hour video about Judy Garland

If i had a time machine this would be a first stop

The point you made at the end really slapped me in the face because I hadn't realized that in a world of streams and playlists and algorithms, i actually DID sit and listen to Beyoncé's latest album Cowboy Carter all the way through - and how much of a success it is to drop a body of work in todays music industry that can accomplish that. So kudos to her. Anyway, i have to commend you for this video essay. Thanks for posting this. I rarely see a commentary about Judy Garland that is overwhelmingly positive. (And the sound of her heels clicking on stage would have got me in my feels too, it really reminds you that these things actually happened).

Wonderful video, thank you. It was very personal for me, because my father, Bob Arnold, was the Grammy-winning engineer on that recording. Two points: (1) it wasn't his fault that the tape ran out, and (2) although he was gay, he never wore fluffy pullovers!

I played her vinyl non stop today. Love her voice I can feel her pain, joy and love

This was an hour of chills for me. Wow. What a masterful analysis of Judy, her style, and this particular concert. Thank you, BKR. You have outdone yourself. More, please.

This helps me understand my parents' generation.

A great, talented artist: Judy Garland FOREVER!

Seeing Streisand and Garland perform together really put things in to perspective for me. I never thought of Streisand and Garland as contemporaries, them being about 20 years apart in age. But if we still have Barbra now at 80...we could have had Judy all the way up to 2002, maybe even later. I always knew her death was tragic, but I never thought of her as dying young until i realized how much more time she could have had, and for how much longer we could have had her. she could have been alive in my lifetime even.

I can't speak about the concert, but I do believe that she did give the best musical performance ever preserved on film in A Star Is Born.

I remember those days. We did not appreciate her nearly as much as we should have. It seemed like she would be always be there. Like she was immortal. But she wasn't. I am glad she did this concert. It's at least one if not the best concert of all time.

Outstanding production! The best I have seen since A&E’s Biography in 1996. Kudos!

I adore you for giving your take on a true Icon and Legend. I had to listen is chapters because it’s painful to listen to all of Ms Garland’s unending difficulties. Her talent has entranced me since I was a tiny child and now I’m in my sixties.

What impresses me, because I am only 60” tall and weigh 137 pounds, and entering my 7th decade… I must be as attractive and poised, in public, on my budget! Thank you! When I was about 7-8 years old, my family introduced me to Liza! Liza was 17 years old with hair to the middle of her back! Thank you roe this love inspiration

I was in the middle of work but I guess I’m taking a long lunch now. ❤

Though an ardent gay male fan of Judy from childhood, i didn't hear this album until my mid-20s. I remember being struck by the roaring men in the crowd and coming to the inevitable conclusion that the majority of them must be gay. Projection? Maybe. But i would have been screaming with them. My favorite line from the concert is "I'll sing 'em all and we'll stay all nigh!"

I stumbled onto this album by accident and have been obsessed with the entire thing ever since. every song you bought up made me literally start cheering - amazing analysis so glad more people get to here her like this♥️

A week after this video came out my Mom and I went to our local community libraries book sale and while looking through the CDs to find albums my Mom would enjoy, you wouldn't believe how happy and excited I was to come across the CD for this concert. My Mom is a huge lover of Judy, so she was also happy I found it, but she was surprised by my reaction.

This was such a treat for me. Thank you so much for doing this. Im so glad she got to do this. What an amazing person in such a tiny package !

Such an incredible video, I’ve never listened to a Judy Garland record before but I downloaded this album immediately after finishing the video and it truly is just a spectacular experience.

I first heard this album in 1975 (yeah, I'm old - LOL!) and it blew me away. I still listen to it via a CD which I got some years back. To this day, Judy's live version of "I Can't Give You Anything but Love" floods my eyes with tears. The greatest and most heartfelt/heartbreaking love song anybody ever sang, in my view. I am commenting before I watch the video, but it's worth noting that Carnegie Hall was part of a multi-city tour - Garland was in great voice throughout, and her audience reaction just as enthusiastic in Buffalo, NY (at the famed Kleinhans Music Hall) as it was in Manhattan's great Carnegie Hall.

I love the way this is done . The narrater is excellent . I have always been a great Judy Garland fan . I was introduced to Judy with her wonderful MGM musicals as a kid . So I knew the 'movie star Judy Garland , not the concert Judy . And then when she started doing those concerts of course I saw 5 of her concerts in Chicago where I live . And I saw the exact concert here in Chicago before it hit Carnegie Hall and it was the thrill of a lifetime . She was magnificent . And the Capitol Recording taken from the concert has never been out of print . It still sells . After all of these years Judy Garland has been a topic by many , fans and professonals . Judy Garland was one in a million . It is a 'damn' shame that she had a rather sad life . She deserved better . A great director who did some of her TV Shows said she was the most mismanaged people in show business . And this is so true . I wish that Judy had more of a 'backbone' like a barbra Streisand . Oh well Judy's gone now , but we still have Judy's movies , recordings and TV Shows . Whan an entertainer .