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Ella and Louis is a studio album by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, accompanied by the Oscar Peterson Quartet, released in October 1956. This was the first of three albums Fitzgerald and Armstrong recorded together for Verve Records, followed by Ella and Louis Again (1957) and Porgy and Bess (1959). Having previously collaborated in the late 1940s for Decca, the duo reunited under Verve founder Norman Granz, who selected eleven ballads mainly played in slow or moderate tempo.
Recording began on August 16, 1956, at the new Capitol Studios in Hollywood. Though Granz produced the album, Armstrong was given final say over songs and keys. The album's success was replicated by its two follow-ups, and all three were later released as The Complete Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong on Verve.
Critics praised the album, with AllMusic calling Fitzgerald and Armstrong "a charming team" and noting the "tasteful renditions of ballads." The Penguin Guide to Jazz awarded it three and a half stars, stating the results are "hard to resist" despite the singers' differing approaches. Björk selected it as a favorite in 1993, remarking "I love the way Ella and Louis work together... They were opposites in how they sung, but were still completely functional together."
A1 Can't We Be Friends
A2 Isn't This A Lovely Day?
A3 Moonlight In Vermont
A4 They Can't Take That Away From Me
A5 Under A Blanket Of Blue
A6 Tenderly
B1 A Foggy Day
B2 Stars Fell On Alabama
B3 Cheek To Cheek
B4 The Nearness Of You
B5 April In Paris
