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Saturday, December 26, 2020

Five strings Hi-Fi - Sonny Osborne

 

Whitehouse Blues

5 String Hi-Fi
Sonny Osborne
Hollywood Records LPH 19

Sunny Mountain Chimes
Blue Waves
Gun Powder
Hand Me Down My Walking Cane
Jesse James
Suwannee
Silver Rainbow
Wildwood Flower
Auld Lange Syne
Banjo Boy Chimes
Raw Hide
Cumberland Gap
Train Forty Five
Whitehouse Blues

Greatest Hollywood Themes - Ed Sullivan

 

Exodus

Ed Sullivan's Stereo Library Of The World's Great Music
Greatest In Hollywood Themes
Greig McRitchie Orchestra
ESS 101

From the back cover: Foregoing the lush violin-laden treatment that is so often proper and persuasive for film music, McRitchie has created for his Exodus interpretation a more authentic instrumental group... one which gives a body unique musical life to the theme. Leaning heavily on percussive effects, McRitchie features a wide variety of Oriental instruments, including tambourines, cymbals and native drums. 

A graduate of the University of California and a student of Darius Milhaud, McRitchie's work has been featured by symphony orchestras, motion pictures, radio, and television. Now he brings to the record album field not only his vast experience but a vitally fresh creative approach. Listening to his unique renditions of these favorite selections isa memorable and exciting musical experience. – Ed Sullivan

Exodus
The Moon Is Blue
The Bells Of St. Mary's
I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now
Spellbound
Slaughter On Tenth Avenue
The Merry Widow Waltz
The Third Man Theme
The Quiet Man Theme
The Last Time I Saw Paris

10-4 Good Buddy

 

10-4 Good Buddy
Written Narrated and Produced by Barry Leder and Allan Stagg
Music by Paddlefoot
Engineer" Gerald Stagg
Eezee Learn Records, Inc.
RCA Victor Special Products DVM1-0220
1978

Introduction
The 10 Signals – Definitions & Examples
The Phonetic Alphabet
Chatter, Handles and Channels
CB Slang – What It Means and How To Use It
Buying A CB Radio – Some Suggestions
Basic FCC Requirements For CB Users

Friday, December 25, 2020

Far Out Near In - Johnny Eaton

 

Lover Man

Far Out
Near In
Johnny Eaton and His Princetonians
Columbia Records CL 996
1957

Personnel

I've Got Plenty O' Nuttin'
Summertime
Swat The G-Man

Johnny Eaton - Piano 
Richard Lincoln - Vibes
Edward White - Bass
Allen Bergman - Drums

The Lamp Is Low
Quite Early One Morning

All the above, plus John Solum, Flute and Mel Kaplan, Oboe

Georgia On My Mind
Love Man
Just Wedging

Johnny Eaton - Piano
Herbert Mann - Flute
Bob Price - Vibes
Simon DeMuth - Bass
Charles Spies, Jr. - Drums

From the back cover: Johnny Eaton is an intrepid musical theorist, and all of the Princetonians are classically-based musicians – which brings me to a characteristic I find common to most "chamber jazz" groups. When you se phrases like "Progressive Workshop" or "Modern Experimental" or other euphemisms which avoid the word "jazz," you can lay even money that the groups so described are occasionally going to get self-consciously studious or sententious. But this is another mistake the Princetonians don't make – they wear their learning lightly. They never sacrifice the indispensable swinging feeling of jazz in pushing their off-beat ideas to their logical conclusions. As he title "Far Out, Near In" indicates, Johnny and the boys often go pretty far out to find what they need – all the way to Satie, Milhaud and Schoenberg – but they always bring it back in near enough to jumping to call it jazz without having to get semantic.

The instrumental line-up of the Princetonians is a unusual as everything else about them. The way the oboe and flute trace their thin, supple line through the floating aura created by piano, vibes, bass and drum is something like the technique of Chinese painting. At least, it's like nothing you ever heard before. Herbie Mann, who is probably the best-known name here, is runner-up for flute in this year's All-Star Metronome Jazz Poll. The rest of the boys are so far out of this world that polls haven't reached there yet. – Anatole Broyard

From Billboard - June 12, 1957: Veering to the soft, well-mannered sound and techniques associated with MJQ, Chico Hamilton, etc., group has its fluid moments but, for the most part, tends to be overly concerned with the creation of effects for its own sake. Good soloing by flutist H. Mann and vibist Bob Prince lend an earthiness this act could have used in much larger quantities. For he desperately "far-out" crowd.

Georgia On My Mind
Lover Man
Just Wedging
The Lamp Is Low
I've Got Plenty O' Nuttin'
Summertime
Swat The G-Man
Quite Early One Morning

Midnight Dance Party - Al Caiola

 

When I Grow Too Old To Dream

Midnight Dance Party
Al Caiola And His Magnificent Seven
Produced by Nick Perito
Arrangements by Al Caiola
Liner Notes by Norman Wesier
United Artists UAL 3228
1962

From Billboard - July 28, 1962: The dancing beat provided by Al Caiola's group is well-nigh irresistible. Such standards as "Four Leaf Clover," "Irish Eyes Are Smiling," "San Antonio Rose" and "Oh Marie" are treated in a semi-Dixieland style to which Caiola's electric guitar lends a striking touch. Top recommendation for dancing parties.

Four Leaf Clover
Oh, Marie
The Music Goes Round And Round
Simple Melody
Maybe
When I Grow Too Old To Dream
Children's Marching Song
Everywhere You Go
Heart Of My Heart
San Antonio Rose
Irish Eyes Are Smiling
Farewell Blues


Thursday, December 24, 2020

Carnival Of The Animals & Divertissement - Felix Slatkin

 

Carnival Of The Animals

Saint-Saens
Carnival Of The Animals
IBert
Divertissement
Felix Slatkin conducting The Concert Arts Orchestra
Capitol Records P8270
1954

From the back cover: Felix Slatkin displays superb musicianship in two roles: as a performer, he is first violinist of the famed Hollywood String Quartet and concertmaster of the Twentieth Century-Fox Orchestra; as a conductor, he directs fine performances by the Concert Arts Orchestra, featuring such excellent soloists as those heard on this record – Elanor Aller, cello; Arthur Gleghorn, flute; and Victor Aller and Harry Sukman, piano.

Carnival Of The Animals
Introduction and Royal March Of The Lions
Hens And Cocks
Wild Jackasses
Tortoises
The Elephant
Kangaroos
Aquarium
Persons With Long Ears
The Cuckoo In The Forrest
Aviary
Pianists
Fossils
The Swan
Finale

Divertissement 
Introduction 
Cortege
Nocturne
Valse
Parade
Finale

Go... Go... Go!!! - The Astronauts

 

Go Go Go

Go... Go... Go!!!
The Astronauts
Produced by Al Schmitt
Recorded in RCA Victor's Music Center of the World, Hollywood, California
Recording Engineer: Dick Bogert and Dave Hassinger
Cover Photo by Don Carlson
RCA Victor LPM-3307
1965

From the back cover: Two years ago I flew to Boulder, Colorado, to look at a group of young performers who had been highly recommended by Ward Terry, the RCA distributor in that area.

As a Artist & Repertoire producer, I spent a good deal of my time flying to one place or another on similar "scouting" trips and I usually come home empty-handed, having seen "just another act." With all due respect to Ward Terry, I had no premonition that this trip would be different.

Then, when I stepped off the plane and saw my "hosts," I was immediately impressed... in fact, "stunned" would be closer to the truth. Five young men and Alaskan Huskie pup (the size of a pony) literally swept me off my feet into a waiting car. The boys – Bob Demmon, Rich Fifield, Jim Gallagher, Stormy Patterson and Dennis Lindsey – were fresh, funny and totally uninhibited. The pup was a tail-wagging charmer, obviously staved for affection, who proceeded to kiss me every time I tried to get a word in the conversation.

I was driven to Bob's home, where a steak cookout had been planned in my honor. (I later found out it was the kind of affair where everyone brings his own steak and they all chipped in to buy mine.) By the time the food was served, the boys not only had me eating their steak, but eating out of their hands as well. To say that they had "won me over" is an understatement, for I had never met five more likable, personable, extremely amusing young men. "Just watch them turn out to be a bomb on stage," I said to myself as we drove to the Tulagi club where they were appearing. I was given a ringside seat, the boys went backstage, the house lights were turned out... and in total darkness the SOUND began. I can honestly report that the mishmash of flat notes, off-key guitar playing and screeching bedlam that filled my ears was the most awful noise I ever heard in my life. I actually put my head down in my hands for fear I'd have to look them in the eyes when the lights came up. Then suddenly the lights did come on, the boys took one look at the expression on my face and they broke up. To them it was hilarious to "put on" a big company A&R man and have him fall for it. To me it was astonishing that an unknown group who obviously wanted a recording contract would have that kind of nerve!

But then, as the boys settled into the groove and began to play, sing and perform for real, I could understand where they got their nerve. They were GREAT and they knew it, in the way that only confident, seasoned performers usually know it.

Needless to say, RCA Victor signed them to a recording contract. Their first album, Surfin' With The Astronauts, became a national best seller, as did their second, third and fourth. And, as reflected in the traveling-fast-and-far name of the group, the Astronaut's popularity is not limited to the West or to the United States. They had the number-one selling single and the number-one selling album in Japan for ten weeks. Wherever they've appeared here or abroad – at the major universities, on tour with the Dave Clark Five, in the Orient – they have been a sensational hit.

From that first meeting in the airport to this, their fifth album, I've found working with the Astronauts has been nothing but pure pleasure. This time we've really let the boys show off their versatility, as the majority of the songs in Go... Go... Go! were written by member of the group. I think this is the Astronaut's finest album to date, and I sincerely hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed producing it. – Al Schmitt, A&R Producer

Hey Sugarfoot
My Sin Is My Pride
I'm A Fool
Little Lover
Quiet Village
You Gotta Let Me Go
Almost Grown
Love Goes On
Can't You See I Do
Go Go Go
Touch
Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind

Star Trek - The Crier In Emptiness

 

The Crier In Emptiness

Star Trek
Three Exciting New - Complete Stories
Power Records 8158 (2 cover variations)
1975

Passage To Moauv
The Crier In Emptiness
In Vino Veritas

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Eva Styl

 

ΣΤΑ ΣΑΛΩΝΑ

Eva Styl
Photos: G. Petropoulos
Liberty LP-111

From the back cover: Stop any man – or, for that matter, any woman – who is on familiar terms with America's Greek artists, and ask him of her, to kindly name the one outstanding singing talent currently on the scene – and quickly, without hesitation the answer will be "Eva".

Eva? Yes, Eva: of the compelling face. Big-eyed, sensual lipped, intense Eva Styl, whose voice, soaring in an exultant hymn to Hellas, has been fascinatingly the recently arrived newcomers to the United States from Greece, as well as the young Americans who only view of Greece is that which is achieved through the eyes of nostalgic parents.

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

So Good - Don And The Goodtimes

 

My Color Song

So Good
Don And The Goodtimes
Produced by Jack Nitzsche
*Produced by Jack Nitzsche and Stu Phillips
**Produced by Jerry Fuller
Arranged by Jack Nitzsche and Stu Phillips
Cover Design: Michael Mendel
Epic Records LN 24311
1967

From the back cover: Li'l Don Galliucci, 19, was a child prodigy on piano and organ and is considered by The Goodtimes to be the best musician in the bunch (any bunch). In carving the album, his fingers also had opportunity to caress harpsichords, clavichords and other intriguing instruments.

Born October 31 in Portland, Oregon, Don has brown hair and eyes, a love-me kind of smile, and the firm belief that he is 9' 7" ("but I photograph shorter," says he). He is the group's musical arranger, spark plug, spearhead, and presently leads in the fan letter sweepstakes.

He's an avid reader (including cereal cartoon at the breakfast table), lifts weights to keep muscles on his slender frame, assembles model cars, loves to study people and many set an Olympic Dating Record this year.

Ron (Buzz) Overman, 21, is the first up every morning, regardless of how late the bedtime. He's the Goodtime visionary, who approaches every group project with dedication, devotion and a sense of destiny. "The Buzzard," through his songwriting, is a prime creative force. On stage, smiling, stepping and strumming the bass guitar, singing lead vocal or la-la-la-ing in the background, his mere presence commands an audience to enjoy.

Buzz is 5' 10", weighs 158, has blue eyes and dark brown hair. He's a movie buff and would score high on any film trivia quiz, has a long-standing hope to one day date Carol Lynley, loves corn on the cob and watermelon, and wouldn't dream of missing "Star Trek." His birthday is January 7.

Bobby Holden, 20, organized Don and The Goodtimes with Li'l Don, after both had spent time with other Portland bands, and it is he who injects much of the mirth into the gourds live-action proceedings. Bobby is both the Goodtimes' drummer and built-in sense of humor.

He can find something funny about anything and, as an alternative, will invent funny. He can announce a miss-mash of noise as his latest composition, give a complex definition for a word of his own invention, and have the audience believing.

Bobby, whose birthday is April 16, is 5' 10", has blonde hair and blue eyes, and an appetite that is at constant odds with his current diet. He's a fresh fruit fanatic, particularly oranges and apples, enjoys hunting, fishing and mechanical drawing, and hopes to one day own his own cattle ranch.

Jeff Hawks, 20, sings shakes a tambourine and creates new dance steps and astonishing combinations of gyrations. And he sprinkles his performances with jokes, imitations (Marlon Brando and Wolfman Jack being his current favorites), and the "Goodtimes Hi-Sign," which he invented. It requires one to put hand under chin, palm downward, and wiggle the fingers like five berserk worms.

The darkly handsome Jeff, whose large, loving, brooding brown eyes can be hypnotic, has proven a fan favorite since stepping onstage to replace a Goodtime retired by illness. His warmth, appreciation and eagerness to please are three reasons why that's so.

Jeff, raised in Alameda, California, is 6', has black hair and tips the scales at 150 pounds. He devours steaks, digs football, writes short stories and songs, and can spend hours on end in a photo darkroom. His birthday is August 31.

Joey Newman, 19, is beginning to tire of being mistaken for Peter No-one, although his resemblance to Herman is in the uncanny category. It goes with having blonde hair, blue eyes, and one of the biggest, brightest, toothiest smiles ever unlipped off the planet Krypton.

There is no mistaking, however, that his way with lead guitar give the Goodtimes' music its get-up-and-go quality. And his vocalizing is important to the distinctive Goodtimes blend.

Joey, 5' 11", was born August 29 in Seattle, Washington, and was playing with another Pacific Northwest band when invited to enlist with The Goodtimes. He's a sharp with a pool cue as with the guitar and used to win trophies in a go-cart racing league; enjoys movies and baseball games; hopes to meet Paul Newman (who is no relation, just a favorite); wants to see the world. – Bob Levinson

From Billboard - July 22, 1967: Don and the Goodtimes have a top sales attraction in their first album for Epic including their hit single, "I Could Be So Good To  You," this 11-selection pressing offers upbeat numbers like "Gimme Some Lovin'," "With A Girl Like You," and "And It's So Good." "My Color Book" is a good slower number with today's sound.

I Could Be So Good To You
The Music Box
*I Could Never Be
*Gimme Some Lovin'
**If You Love Her, Cherish Her And Such
With A Girl Like You
*My Color Song
And It's So Good
Sweet, Sweet Mama
* Good Day Sunshine

Barbie And Her Friends

 

Barbie And Her Friends


Barbie And Her Friends
Produced by John Braden
Kid Stuff Records
Phono Picture Disk
Limited Edition KPD 6003
1981

Barbie And Her Friends
It All Comes Back
To You
You've Got A Friend
Handle With Care
How Can I Thank You
Barbie And Her Friends

Erroll Garner Gems

 

I Cover The Waterfront

Erroll Garner Gems
Columbia Records CL 583
1954

From the back cover: There is no point in commenting on the individual numbers of this collection. Most of these numbers have been picked by Garner's ever-growing host of fans. As a matter of fact, it was a difficult thing to select only twelve numbers which typify his work. His style is so varied and provocative, so deft and invigorating that it is almost impossible to select a series of tunes which would adequately display his style. Nevertheless we feel that in this collection we have made a fair choice of numbers. The titles are almost synonymous with the name Erroll Garner. Garner, incidentally, is a prolific composer and has many tunes to his credit, including Play, Piano, Play, his version of which was voted the outstanding jazz record in France in 1950.

From Billboard - April 28, 1954: Here's a delightful jazz package which should appeal equally to those seeking "cocktail music." Garner plays 12 tunes which have been standouts in his repertoire for several years. Backing is either by John Simmons (bass) and Shadow Williams (drums) or Bull Ruther (bass) and "Fats" Heard (drums). On each selection the Garner piano is well evident – and on each the man displays his ability to sell in any tempo or mood. Most of the performances are really "gems".

Laura
Indiana
I'm In The Mood For Love
The Way You Look Tonight
Penthouse Serenade
Frenesi
Play, Piano, Play
Body And Soul
I Cover The Waterfront
Oh, Lady Be Good
Mean To Me
Easy To Love

Frank Proffit Sings Folk Songs

 

Down In The Valley

Frank Profitt Sings Folk Songs
Recorded by Sandy Paton
Edited by Frank Warner
Cover Design by Ronald Clyne
Photo by J. C. Brown
Folkways Records FA 2360
1962

From the cover of the lyric insert: Frank Proffitt has been our friend since 1938 when we met him at the home of his father-in-law, Nathan Hicks, on our first visit to "the Beech" – Beech Mountain in the Blue Ridge section of the Appalachian chain in the northwest corner of North Carolina. We began our serious collecting experience with Frank, who taught us two songs on that first visit. One of them – Dan Doo – he sings on this recording. Over the years, he gave us many more – maybe a couple of hundred – more than any other person we have sung with. Frank Warner has sung Frank's songs, and talked about Frank, from one end of America to the other (and on a number of recordings), and we are proud and happy that now Frank's own voice can be heard singing the songs he learned from his father, his mother, his aunts and uncles, and from other folks in  his music-rich area. Frank has a tremendous storehouse of these songs, and he sings and plays them in the heart-stirring mountain style that creates a feeling deep in one's bones – as if long-forgotten pioneer memories were there to be awakened.

Beaver Dam Road
Cindy
Bo Lamkin
Julie Jankins
George Collins
Ninety And Nine
Down In The Valley
Baby-O
Old Abe
Poor Ellen Smith
Dan Doo
John Hardy
Groundhog
Johnson Boys

Monday, December 21, 2020

The Consolers Greatest Hits

 

To Late

The Consolers 
Greatest Hits
Produced by Shannon Williams
Album Layout and Design: Dan Quests Art Studio
Cover Photography: Dan Quest
Nashboro Records 27200
1978

From the back cover: Sullivan and Iola Pugh met and married in their native Florida. They remained proud residents of Miami, and their singing contains all the folkloric elements of blues, gospel and country -and-western found in that part of the country. Both had launched successful careers as soloists and group singers, but their greatest boost occurred when they decided to launch a gospel duo.

They commenced traveling in Florida, Alabama, and North and South Carolina. Originally their repertoire was based on traditional spirituals and songs of the Holiness Church. But as time went on, Sullivan Pugh became noted for his composing abilities. It was Sullivan's gift, as well as his plaintive guitar-playing and the Consolers' appealing vocal blend, that led Ernie Young, the founder of Nashboro Records, to sign them in 1954.

For over twenty years, The Consolers have been among Nashboro's biggest sellers. Their first Disc, "Give Me My Flowers" was a hit and still sells. It's message, that kindness is better appreciated this side of the grave, was understood and applauded by audiences all over the country. During the late fifties, Mr. and Mrs. Pugh became popular touring artists.

In 1963, the Consolers recorded their greatest hit, "Waiting For My Child To Come Home." All over America, families were being wracked by separation and juvenile delinquency. Sullivan Pugh put the fears and hopes of countless mothers into his song, and they responded by buying over a half-a-million copies of the single and over one hundred thousand albums.

Give Me Flowers
Won't It Be Grand
On God's Word
His Child Is Aboard
Too Late
Somewhere Around God's Throne
The Train Moves On
By The Grace Of God I'm Saved
Every Christian Mother
Someone Must Answer At The Judgement

Lord Bring Me Down
May The Work I've Done Speak For Me
Thank God Things Are As Well As They Are
Since The Lord Laid His Hands On Me
Over Yonder (Where Jesus Is)
Waiting For My Child
The Lighthouse
These Old Hands Of Mine
Don't Let Nothing Shake Your Faith
Together We Shall Stand
Stretch Out Your Hand To The Lord

Upendo Ni Pamoja - Ramsey Lewis

 

Collage


Upendo Ni Pamoja
The Ramsey Lewis Trio
Produced by Ramsey Lewis
Production Coordinator: Teo Macero
Engineering: Stan Tonkel, Fred Plaut, Russ Payne
Columbia Records KC 31096
1972

Ramsey Lewis - Steinway Concert Grand Piano and Fender Rhodes Electric Piano
Cleveland Eaton - Acoustical Bass and Electric Bass
Morris Jennings - Drums and Percussion

From Billboard - June 17, 1972: With that old interpretive spirit, the Ramsey Lewis Trio digs into "Upendo Ni Pamoja (Love Is Together)" and gives the song special impact for an evening of soft listening pleasure. "Put Your Hand In The Hand" is also intriguing. Ramsey Lewis produced the LP.

Slipping Into Darkness
People Make The World Go Round
Please Send Me Someone To Love
Got To Be There
Concierto De Aranjuez
Upendo Mi Pamoja (Love Is Together)
Trilogy
Morning
the Nite Before
Eternal Peace
Put You Hand In The Hand
Collage



Sunday, December 20, 2020

The Number One Ballads - Jimmie Rodgers

 

Tammy

The Number One Ballads
Jimmie Rodgers
With the Hugo Peretti Orchestra
Cover Photo: Jay Seymour
Roulette Records R-25033
1958

From the back cover: Jimmie Rodgers was born in Camus, Washington. He sang from about the time he was five years old; taught himself to play piano and guitar any up until the time he enlisted in the Air Force during the Korean conflict, lived a normal teenager's life. It was during his four-year tenure in the service that he began to blossom as a singer with a song to sell. He was encouraged by his sergeant to enter camp shows and slowly began building a repertoire of folks songs.

By the time Jimmie was ready to leave the service, he knew that what he wanted most of all was to sing for people. The road to doing what he wanted most, however, was paved with a series of disappointments and Jimmie road the Pacific northwest working in logging camps and on farms. All this time, he continued to add to his growing knowledge of folk songs by listening to his fellow workers sing as they labored. He eventually worked his way back to singing for a living, but the pickings were mighty slim.

One day, a friend in the music business heard Jimmie in a club in Nashville, and urged him to go to New York and seek a recording contract. Jimmie had, by now, become accustomed to the well-known brush-off. So, when he auditioned for Roulette and was asked to call again in a few days, he took it as another brush and disappeared. Roulette, however, had been very serious about recording Jimmie and when after a few days had past and he didn't call they set out to find him.

Jimmie had done a good job of getting himself lost. Hundreds of phone calls, concentrated searching, and some six months later they finally tracked him down back in his own hometown. Jimmie was brought back to New York and a recording session was immediately set up. Oddly enough, he recorded the same two songs he had sung at his first audition – "Honeycomb" and "Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring." "Honeycomb" was released in July 1957 and the rest of the tale is, of course, music-world history.

In this, Jimmie's second album, he sings the number one ballads. All of these songs have, at one time, led the Tin Pan Alley hit parade as the number one song in the country. Here, Jimmie is heard for the first time minus his guitar and backed with a full sound and scope of a string ensemble accompanying him. These are not folk songs, but still the warm earthiness and folk-like quality in his voice is evident. It is, of course, very apparent on such numbers as "Unchained Melody," "Tammy," and "I Believe."

From Billboard - June 9, 1958: This one's a sure-fire package for the guitar-playing singer's growing legion of fans. Backed by Hugo Peretti's lush, multi-stringed sound, Rodgers glides faultlessly thru a dozen well-selected hit ballads of recent seasons, such as "Tammy," "Unchained Melody," "Hey, There," "Three Coins In The Fountain" and others. Ideal for DJ's who like to mix in standards with current hits. Cover shot of the young singer shows him at his boyish best.

My Prayer
Tammy 
Unchained Melody
Hey There
Love Letters In The Sand
True Love
I Believe
The Song From Moulin Rouge
Too Young
Secret Love
Three Coins In The Fountain 
Que Sera Sera

Jan August Styles Great International Hits

 

Brazil

Jan August Styles Great International Hits
Mercury Records SR 60667
1962

Mexican Hat Dance
Song Of India
Medley: Italiano, Tarantella, O Sole Mio, Capriccio Italien, Sorrento, A Francesca
Brazil
Aloha
Scandinavia
Volga Boatman
Granda
Hora Staccato
A Foggy Day
Blues (Theme from "An American In Paris")
Canadian Capers

Away We Go-Go - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles

 

I'm The One You Need

Away We Go-Go
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
Photography: Frank Dandrigde
Design: H. Webber/E. Edwards
Tamla 271
1966

Whole Lot Of Shakin' In My Heart (Since I Met You)
You Don't Have To Say You Love Me
(Come 'Round Here) I'm The One You Need
Save Me
Oh By My Love
Can You Love A Poor Boy
Beauty Is Only Skin Deep
I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself
Baby Baby
Walk On By
Swept For You Baby
More, More, More Of Your Love

Switched On Bach II - Walter Carlos

 

Sheep May Safely Graze

Trans-Electronic Music Productions, Inc. Presents
Switched On Bach II
Watler Carlos
Produced by Rachel Elkind
Cover Design: John Berg
Cover Photo: Horn/Grimer
Columbia Records KM 32659
1973

From the back cover: Walter Carlos and I met formally in 1965, three years before the release of Switched-On Bach. At that time Walter was a recording engineer and tape editor at a large New York studio. He had completed graduate studies in classical electronic music studio technique with Vladimir Ussachevsky at the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center in New York City. Here, he learned the basic techniques of electronic sound generation and processing, and musical manipulation and assembly of sounds on a magnetic tape. His graduate work included original tape composition, some of which had been played in public concerts and were well known among the (then) small circle of electronic music devotees, and have subsequently been released on records.

Carlos heard of that modular electronic music, instruments that we had developed a short time before and initiated correspondence that led to our first formal meeting. We talked about many aspects of electronic music hardware and composition techniques, and I remember being amazed at how thoroughly Walter understood the musical application of instruments that, for him, then existed only on paper. His initial purchase included some instruments that we designed and built to his specifications.

From then on, we met or talked frequently. Over the months and years that followed, Carlos explored the technical and musical subtleties of his instruments. He often suggested features and modifications that would increase the instrument's capabilities and improve their operation. He demanded the highest level of sound quality and musical accuracy. We frequently discussed new types of instruments and then collaborated on the details of their design. My associates and I translated these ideas into hardware, and Walter put them to the test. The Moog 1967 catalog list many modules with features that he first suggested. This same catalog also listed several "synthesizers" – integrated systems of voltage-controlled modular instruments for electronic music composition and performance.

Soon after Carlos began working with his new instruments, he started to assemble his own studio. With the help of his friend Bob Schwarz, he designed and built a simple, yet elegant, mixing board. He built his 8-track recorder from a refurbished tape deck and a hefty pile of surplus parts. The completed studio, fitted neatly into one corner of Carlos' living room, consisted of his synthesizer, mixing board, 8-track recorder and a few "store bought" pieces of professional studio equipment. It is significant that this studio, which could easily have developed into a cranky, haywire assemblage, emerged instead as an efficient, professional, musically-oriented facility. Using this studio, Carlos, with the assistance of Rachel Elkind and Benjamin Folkman, produced the master tape for Switched-On Bach.

To appreciate the historical significance of Switched-On Bach, one must remember that in 1968 most people thought that electronic music was an avant grade endeavor that had little connection with traditional musical values. Commercial musicians generally felt that electronic medium in general, and synthesizers in particular, had no place in the production of high quality music of wide appeal. Walter knew better. He understood that the alleged limitations of the electronic music medium could be overcome by the application of technique and discretion. His control over the equipment increased rapidly as he developed a repertoire of techniques and procedures for converting technical function into musical material. As Switched-On Bach neared completion, excitement ran high among Walter's friends and professional associates. We were literally witnessing a breakthrough! Guided by his own insight and integrity, Walter had achieved the seemingly impossible. He had produced high quality music in his studio, with only electronic instruments.

I remember the first public playing of Switched-On Bach, about a month before the formal release of the album. It was at the Electronic Music session of the Audio Engineering Society Convention, October 1968. I had presented a paper on "Recent Trends in Electronic Music Studio Design." After describing Walter's studio, I illustrated the points I had made by playing the Third Movement of the Brandenburg Concerto No. 3. The audience of several hundred audio engineers, music producers,  and technicians gave Carlos enthusiastic, emotional ovation, an uncommon response from those critical professionals.

The universal success of Switched-On Bach is now well known. It is the largest-selling classical album of recent times. Throughout the world, far more people know of electronic music and the synthesizer through Switched-On Bach than through any other musical endeavor. But Carlos did more than popularize a medium and an instrument. He set definitive artistic and technical standards, which in the long run have been of paramount importance in promoting electronic music and the synthesizer.

Each of Walter's works after Switched-On Bach is another milestone. He has invented tone colors, mastered new pieces of equipment, refined his control over balance and ambience. The delicacy of The Well-Tempered Synthesizer, the drama of the Clockwork Orange score, the scintillating complexity of Sonic Seasonings, have all redefined the boundaries of the electronic music medium. As a listener and as a musical instrument designer, I eagerly look forward to every new album by Walter Carlos. – Robert A. Moog.

Selections From Suite No. 2 In B Minor
Badinerie
Minuet
Bourree

Two-Part Invention In A Minor
Two-Part Invention In A Major

Sheep May Safely Graze from "Cantata No. 208"

Suite from Anna Magdalena Notebook

Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 In D Major
Affegro
Affettusos
Allegro

More Than A Little - Peggy Little

 

I Wish I Didn't Have To Miss You

More Than A Little
Peggy Little
Produced by Henry Hurt
String Arrangement by Buddy Spicher
Structural Arrangement by David Briggs
Cover Photo: Dan Quest
Liner Photo: Ner Beck
Art Directions: Ruby Mazur
Dot Records DOSS 25982

I Knew You'd Be Leaving
Statue Of A Fool
Walk A Mile In My Shoes
Love's Biggest Fool
A Woman's Hand
I Wish I Didn't Have To Miss You
Mama, I Won't Be Wearing A Ring
Born To Lose
Gentle Man
He Goes Walking Though My Mind
Put Your Lovin' Where Your Mouth Is

Stay There 'Til I Get There - Lynn Anderson

 

Words

Stay There 'Til I Get There
Lynn Anderson
Engineering: Charlie Bragg
Cover Photo: Don Hunstein / Columbia Records Photo Studio
Columbia Records CS 1025
1970

From the back cover:

Lynn Anderson: Born in North Dakota, raised in Sacramento, California. Age, 23. Height, 5' 4". Hair, Blonde. Eyes, Blue. Disposition, Delightful. Marital Statue, Very much so (to songwriter/producer Glenn Sutton).

Made her singing debut at the age of six at the San Jose Civic Auditorium. "I held onto a stuffed dog," Lynn recalls, "like I was gonna kill it and sang 'Hot Diggity Dog'... a true classic."

Lynn made her professional debut at the 1966 DJ Convention in Nashville and shortly thereafter chalked up enough hit records and awards to satisfy at least ten performers. They include, in chronological order: Most Promising Female Vocalist – from virtually every record/music publication, three consecutive Grammy Nomination, and the Top-5 Vocalist in the Country Music Association for the past three years.

Stay There 'Til I Get There
Words
Country Girl
When You Hurt Me More Than I Love You
Don't Leave The Leaving Up To Me
Good
True Love's A Blessing
I'd Run A Mile To You