[10] The album was issued on May 2, 1959, rush released to coincide with James' debut concert at Carnegie Hall, also titled "100 Strings and Joni", which took place on May 3, 1959.

[15] MGM, who considered James their "album queen" commercially, strongly promoted 100 Strings, with window displays in over two-hundred New York record stores.

[10] Upon release, Cash Box assessed the album positively, singling out James' "tenderly" vocals and "the lush velvet backdrops by the orchestra".

[17] In a retrospective review, Lindsay Planer of AllMusic commented "the blend of warm and vibrant acoustics at Abbey Road as well as the fresh scores of timeless material give James an inviting sonic canvas that she and the assembled musicians impeccably utilize".

Planer noted "James delicately balances an authoritative intonation with tasteful restraint and the purity of innocence" and praised "Imagination", "But Beautiful" and "Hi Lili, Hi Lo" as "a few of the more exquisite and accomplished performances", but added "it is admittedly difficult to find fault with any of them".

[21] Her two-week residency at Los Angeles's Cocoanut Grove in June and July 1960 was described as "one of the biggest orchestral complements ever to appear in a single night club offering".