Gwyneth Jones really tries to be a girl of 15 years. She does very well, especially because you can feel, that she gives her whole soul to this unforunate japanese girl. But it is like always with Jones: You love her or you hate her. I'm definitely with the first ones.The tenor ist also good, what a pity that the "fiorito asil" is missing. Grundheber in his early years does very well as Sharpless. But of course he cannot show all his art in this tiny role. The rest of the cast is good.

Normally one does not think of Cio-Cio-San and Brünnhilde in the same breath ... unless you are the intrepid Dame Gwyneth Jones. She is, as one might expect, a towering tragic figure, yet also capable of refinement and delicacy, making the delicate tints of sound when Puccini calls for them. However, the real discovery of this performance is tenor Gordon Greer. His is a juicy lyric tenor, frequently reminiscent of Jussi Bjoerling. He's a sensitive partner to his formidable bride and an ideal Pinkerton. Franz Grundheber supplies a somewhat gruff Sharpless but greater things lay ahead for him. Miguel Gomez-Martinez's conducting is unobjectionable and he restores the rarely heard Act I pre-marriage ensemble. The sound is no better than mediocre, although Dame Gwyneth's power knows no sonic obstacle. The cuts are regrettable but not fatal. Recommended, although not to audiophiles.

One wouldn't normally associate Dame Gwyneth Jones with Madama Butterfly, yet she enjoyed the role and sang it whenever given the opportunity (which wasn't often). I know of at least four extant performances with her in the title role: this one from Hamburg 1977, and three from Munich - two from 1979 and one from 1990. It may not be her role in the sense that Brünnhilde or Elektra were her roles (or Tosca and Turandot for that matter), but she sings it with admirable delicacy and power. Vocally there is nothing that troubles her: from a shining high D-flat at her entrance to the final suicide she handles all with intelligence and musicality. The voice is in excellent shape here with very little of the shrillness and wobble that could affect her singing on a bad night.Whoever recorded this made sure we got all of Butterfly's role, but left out the Humming Chorus and the other roles' solo moments in Act Three, a pity since the other singers are all very good. Perhaps Andy's intent was to release Jones' earliest extant Butterfly. Hopefully, he'll release one of the other two 1979 performances with Giacomo Aragall, both of which are more complete than the performance here.The voices are clear, but a little recessed. Those accustomed to in-house tapes won't mind, but more casual listeners may be bothered.All Jones' fans should get this.