Theodore Bikel had already recorded several albums for Elektra when he made Songs of a Russian Gypsy, but were those records anywhere as successful as this one? "Nyet!" In fact, not only did "Songs" far outsell any previous Elektra release by any artist, but it was also such a hit that the label rushed to record a sequel, Songs of Russia Old & New, that we"ve combined with its predecessor to form a great, Russian-themed twofer! Bikel himself in the notes says that to this day he gets mail about these two albums, so we"re expecting a big response to this "Collectors" Choice Music" exclusive. 2006.