TURN-ONS AND TURN-OFFS IN CURRENT HOME ENTERTAINMENT RELEASES : Excellent Good Fair Poor : VIDEOCASSETTES

“Bobby Short and Friends.” MGM/UA. $29.95. Taped live at the Carlyle in New York in 1982, his 14th year there, Short brings a heady taste of New York East Side elegance into the home with this hourlong recital. Singing Porter, Kern, Sondheim and the like, with the usual bass and drums backing, he salutes celebrities in the crowd, turns over the piano to Jack Lemmon for an impressive Gershwin medley, hands the mike to Lucie Arnaz for a less successful vocal guest shot. Despite an occasional croakiness, Short is generally in admirable and amiable form. 1/2