Wonderful World Of Joey
"What Sweet Child O' Mine Is This?"
(Asphodel 701)
Wonderful World of Joey's impresario is one Joey Sehee (formerly Joey Cheezhee) whose take on "lounge culture" focuses on it's silly, maniacal, flexible sides. This single, released just in time for the most depressing of holidays, finds Joey plunged deep into a drunkard's nightmare: he croons a Christmas conglomeration--matching the words of the classic "Greensleeves (What Child is This?)" to a way swung-out version of Guns 'n' Roses' own 'classic' "Sweet Child of Mine." This over-the-top take hits with it's own velvet-suited, spilled-drink type of glamour (or is that pathos?). The "b-side" (no, don't flip it over) is their own version of the now standard Mancini-Mercer tune "Days of Wine and Roses," vamped up from the experience of performing it live, and often, throughout bars, clubs, and havens throughout the Los Angeles area.
April March
"Paris In April"
(Sympathy For The Record Industry 456)
She's back...and as adorable as ever. Miss April March returns with another slice of ye ye chart toppers. "Paris In April" includes five tracks from the soon-to-be out of print "Chick Habit" plus nine new glorious franco-pop faves. "Paris In April" provides the perfect soundtrack for cruising in your Citroen, smoking Gitanes, swilling beaujolais and stuffing your mouth with runny brie.
Tracks: Chick Habit - Poor Lola - Time Of Love - Brainwash Part Two - Moto Shagg - The Land Of Go - La Chanson De Prevert - Laisse Tomber les Filles - Tu Mens - Pauvre Lola - Chez Les Ye Ye - Les Tempes Des Yoyo's - Le Temps De L'Amour - La Fille a La Mou
Stereo Cocktail
(EFA 61051 CD or Double LP)
Strange one here, hipsters. One night after a rather raucous party for the German consulate, Max the bartender found this in his tip glass. A lovely gloss cover with a very attractive cocktail dame contained a CD and an essay by one Dr. Projecteur (SP). Curiosity got the better of him, so as Max cleaned the bar and counted out the receipts, he popped it in the lounge's sound system. What came through the speakers were incredible versions of pop faves such as "Summertime", "These Boots Were Made For Walking", "Music To Watch Girls By", "La Bamba" and so much more. Sweet swinging '60s EZ transferred lovingly to disc from the original vinyl (Max could still hear some crackles). Vik soon was drawn to the bar playing the familiar "Who's doing THIS version" game. When Max checked the CD he discovered, to his dismay, NO ARTIST LISTINGS! Like a cruel collection tape your friend makes you to torture you, Stereo Cocktail credits none of the artists involved. Vik told Max he felt this might be a "limited edition", but Max found it swinging whatever the case. And, reluctantly, Vik has to agree. Vik has attempted to find an artist list for this swank collection, but feels perhaps only the mysterious Dr. Projecteur knows the origin of these tunes...and he was last seen being consumed by an eerie fog.
Summertime -- These Boots Are Made For Walking -- Die glorreichen Halunken -- La Bamba -- Pinguin Cha Cha -- Mexico Party -- Petit Gonzales -- Honululu Baby -- Der dritte Mann -- Chica's Time For Love -- Tea For Two -- Perfidia -- America Patrol -- Shake -- Samba -- Soprano Bajon -- Trip -- L'anneau D'or -- Choo Choo Samba -- Music To Watch Girls By -- Romeo And Julia -- The Kick -- Cava Quinho -- Bin Visto -- Stadt
Sultry Sounds From The Voice Of Bossa Nova
Astrud Gilberto"Jazz 'Round Midnight"
(Verve 531 934)
The bossa nova has long meant three things: hot days, sultry nights, and the voice of Astrud. Perhaps the best known vocalist of the bossa movement, her smooth laid back vocals on the Getz and Gilberto albums caused an explosion when the American public first heard it. Now, Verve collects 16 of her best pop and bossa nova standards on one specially priced CD .These original recordings were produced by the legendary Creed Taylor. Whip up a large bucket of caipirinha, kick off those shoes and dance barefoot the voice of bossa. Due to slip into your local music boutique on August 20th.
Tracks: The Girl From Impanema - Flt Me To The Moon - Non Stop To Brazil - Only Trust Your Heart (with Stan Getz) - It Might As Well Be Spring - My Foolish Heart - Misty Roses - Tu Me Delirio - Corcovado (Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars) - Manha de Carnival - If You Went Away - Here's That Rainy Day - I Will Wait For You - Who Can I Turn To? - Once Upon A Summertime - The Shadow Of Your Smile
Bachelor In Paradise: Cocktail Classics From M-G-M Films
(Rhino Movie Music 72464)
In the 50's and 60's, M-G-M set the high water mark for sophistication in motion pictures . The 18 tracks on this CD include soundtrack recordings from M-G-M films as well as cocktail interpretations of songs made famous in the studio classic musicals. The accompanying liner notes are penned by none other than Joseph Lanza. Not cheap at $15.98 list, but less the a movie night for two in the Big Apple.
Bachelor In Paradise - Main Title (conducted by Henry Mancini)
Glass Bottom Boat - Bossa Nova Bessie (conducted by Frank DeVol)
Over The Rainbow (Neal Hefti)
Sunday In New York - Main Title (Mel Torme)
Ol' Man River (Cal Lampley)
Bachelor In Paradise - How About You (conducted by Henry Mancini)
Honeymoon Hotel - Love Is Oh So Easy (M-G-M Studio Orchestra)
Where The Boys Meet The Girls - Aruba Liberace (Liberace)
The Mating Game - I've Got You Under My Skin (M-G-M Studio Orchestra)
I Got Rhythm (Ferrante & Teicher)
Temptation (Roger Williams)
Get Yourself A College Girl - The Girl From Impanema (Astrud Gilberto & the Stan Getz Quartet)
North By Northwest - Fashion Show (M-G-M Studio Orchestra)
Viva Las Vegas - Appreciation (Ann-Margaret)
Butterfield 8 - Green Dolphin St. (M-G-M Studio Orchestra)
Dancing In The Dark (Esquivel)
The Subterraneans - Coffee Time (Carmen McRae)
Theme From The Brothers Grimm (Les Baxter)
Bachelor In Paradise - End Title (M-G-M Studio Orchestra)
Exotic Moods
(Time Life Music S21-18996 R986-19)
So you say you have all the Time Life Home Repair and Improvement books. And you passed on their War In The Air series. Well, now comes a new series you simply must not miss. Mr. Elevator Music himself, Joseph Lanza, has been putting together fine collections of '50s pop for the Time Life gang for a little while now. Mostly targeted to the mood music crowd, these are nonetheless well crafted collections of material often overlooked in this genre. Exotic Moods demonstrates Mr. Lanza's talent for well thought out collections by taking the "exotica/islands" concept and collecting not only the usual Denny/Baxter/Lyman sound but also demonstrating the logic of the the Beach Boys (!), Kostelanetz (!!), and Lawrence Welk (!!!) in this genre. Many previously overlooked artists grace a collection that could easily show the folks at the major labels a thing or two about creating interesting collections. With a brief essay by Mr. Lanza, several album cover reproductions, a discography of where each track originally appeared, great production and a delightfully wacky cover photo. Part of Time Life's "Instrumental Favorites" catalog and costs $16.99 + $3.66 shipping/handling...you can get information about this and other Time Life releases by calling (800) 488-4669 or writing Time-Life Music, 1450 E. Parham Road, Richmond, VA 23280-2300.
Tracks:Quiet Village (Martin Denny) - Taboo (Ferrante & Teicher) - Sophisticated Savage (Les Baxter) - Let's Go Away For A While (Beach Boys) - The Enchanted Sea (The Islanders) - Pearly Shells (Billy Vaughn) - Evening On Tokyo's Sumida (Norrie Paramor) - Old Devil Moon (Robert Maxwell) - Beyond The Reef (Jo Ann Castle) - Trade Winds (Earl Grant) - Pagan Love Song (Hugo Winterhalter) - Jungle Drums (David Carroll) - Yellow Bird (Arthur Lyman) - My Tane (Martin Denny) - Maracaibo (Les Baxter) - Shish Kebab (Ralph Marterie) - Spell Of Deatra (Richard Hayman) - Lotus Land (Andre Kostelanetz) - African Echoes (Ferrante & Teicher) - Tangi Tahiti (Nelson Riddle) - Land Of Dreams (Lawrence Welk) - Song Of The Islands (Los Indios Tabajaras) - I Wished On The Moon (Jackie Gleason) - Sunrise Over Sumatra (Enoch Light)
Shots In The Dark
(Del-Fi 2113)
In tribute to Henry Mancini, the Hi-Fi King, more than 20 of today's swankest bands headed into the studio and cut unique versions of some of the maestro's best, mainly instrumental, tunes from movies and TV.
Man Or Astroman? - Touch Of Evil Theme
Davie Allan and the Arrows - Experiment In Terror
The Tiki Tones - The Monkey Farm
Friends of Dean Martinez - Lonesome
The Blue Hawaiians - Charade (instrumental)
The Boardwalkers - Banzai Pipeline
The Insect Surfers - Mr. Yonioshi
The Huntington Cads - Arabesque
Brother Cleve and His Lush Orchestra - Dreamsville
The Wonderful World of Joey Seehee - Days of Wine and Roses
Ornj Mancinis - Pink Panther Theme
Whiskey Biscuit - A Shot In The Dark
The Wondermints - The Party
Del Noah and The Mt. Ararat Finks - Push The Button, Max!
Farina - Charade (vocal)
The Jigsaw Seen - Baby Elephant Walk
Four Piece Suit - Something For Cat
The Tiki Gods (featuring Elliot Easton) - Mr. Lucky
Les Baxter
Baxter's Best
(Capitol 37028)
When Les Baxter left this world for exotica in the sky, he had been working with Capitol on his greatest hits and an exotica anthology. Capitol will release the fruits of this labor starting June 25th with a new and improved version of Baxter's Best. Originally released as Capitol SM-1388, this re-issue features tracks not on the original and a new sequencing for a more comprehensive listening experience. The original artwork has also been re-vamped. This new package contains #1 hits, top ten singles, signature tunes and landmark movie themes. If you only know Baxter's exotica, here comes your chance to experience his pop side. In July, Capitol will follow this best of with a 2 CD set of exotica entitled The Exotic Moods of Les Baxter.
Tracks: The Poor People Of Paris - The Medic Theme - I Concentrate On You - Ruby - Unchained Melody - Calcutta - Because Of You - April In Portugal - All The Things You Are - Blue Tango - Wake The Town And Tell The People - The Shrike - Never On A Sunday - I Love Paris - Quite Village
Lars Vegas
"Nervada"
(Akers 4177)
A shot of gin in a dirty glass...the ashtray overflowing...god I hate that waitresses bee-hive. Lost my job...want to forget this lousy day...drink myself stupid (or perhaps more stupid). On stage, five cats play a dark gritty kind of sleaze jazz with this hipster poet talking about bunnyman and mannequins and mosquito hunters and I think perhaps the booze finally kicked my brain dead but I like it and the table gets closer and the waitress brings another gin and I think tomorrow...tomorrow...I'll get up and move my ass out west...maybe move to Lars Vegas, Nervada...(sound of head hitting table)
90 MPH - Mannequin - Love Of Jones - Big Black Bird - Mosquito Hunter - The Pain - Bunnyman - Like A Flower - Pig Farmer - Junkie Rock Star - Elevator - The Falling Duck - Naughty
