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Saturday, August 7, 2021

Renato Carosone!

 

Boogie Woogie Italiano

Renato Carosone!
Capitol Records T10163
Recorded In Italy
1959

From the back cover: In this, his third album for Capitol, Italy's incredible Renato Carosone presents twelve of his all-time biggest selling records.

All were recorded in Milian.

Torero! (Bullfighter)
Boogie Woogie Italiano
La Sveglietta (The Little Alarm Clock)
'A Luciana
Io, Mammeta E Tu (I, Mother And You)
Giuvanne Cu 'A Chitarra (Young Man With A Guitar)
'O Susprio (The Sigh)
Piccerella (Little One)
Tu Vuo' Fa' L'Americano (You Want To Be An American)
Storta Va'... Deritta Vene (Things Are Bound To Straighten Out)
'A Casciaforte (The Safe)
L'Hai Voluto Te! (You Wanted It!)

Showcase Of Hits - Guy Mitchell

 

Singing The Blues

Guy Mitchell
Showcase Of Hits
Philips BBL 7265
1958

From the back cover: At the outset of his brilliant career as Guy Mitchell (having just adopted that name, instead of the Al Cernick under which he used to record country-and-western songs), he was inseparably associated with his enterprising recording manager, Mitch Miller. Guy's recording all bore the unmistakable stamp of Miller arrangements and orchestrations, and it was this partnership which, more than any other factor, lifted him to the heights of stardom.

The big break for which every artist waits, and which many fail to achieve, came when Frank Sinatra turned down an offer to record a Percy Faith composition, entitled 'My Heart Cries For You'. Instead, it was offered to Guy, and it proved to be his first million-selling record. The other side of the disc was the nautical-flavored 'The Roving Kind', equally popular with the fans, and to this day it is virtually impossible to decide which was the more successful of the two.

An unusual accompaniment effect in 'The Roving Kind' was built around the prominent use of a quartet of Frenchs horns, and when it was realized how infectious and captivating this idea could be, songsmith Bob Merrill produced a lengthy string of similarly jaunty numbers - all with the tang of a sea-shanty about them, and tailor-made to the effervescent, light-hearted Mitchell style.

Sure enough, they were duly presented to Guy as potential recording material. And the songs, plus the now-inevitable French horns and the masterly baton of Mitch Miller, lent just the right degree of distinction to Guy's vocal tones, to ensure that turntables on both sides of the Atlantic were kept busily spinning thourghout 1951 and 1952... with such titles as "Christopher Columbus', "Sparrow In The Treetop', "My Truly Truly Fair' and 'Belle, My Liberty Bell'.

The output continued unabated and, although 'She Wears Red Feathers' and 'Pretty Little Black-Eyes Susie' were not Bob Merrill compositions, they retained the same idiom and character, both being evocative of a life on the ocean wave.

There's Always Room At Our House
We Won't Live In A Castle
Belle, Belle, My Liberty Belle
Look At That Girl
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
My Truly, Truly Fair
She Wears Red Feathers
The Roving Kind
Rock-A-Billy
My Heart Cries For You
Pretty Little Black-Eyes Susie
Cloud Lucky Seven
Sparrow In The Treetop
Singing The Blues

Be My Love - Andre Kostelanetz

 

Fools Rush In

Be My Love
Andre Kostelanetz
Cover Photo: Roberta Booth Studio
Harmony STEREO H 30014
A Product of Columbia Records
1970

Be My Love
Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing
What Kind Of Fool Am I?
If Ever I Would Leave You
Fools Rush In
What Now My Love
Days Of Wine And Roses
Tonight
Love Me With All Your Heart

Favorites From TV - Patti Page

 

Happy Days Are Here Again

On Camera
Patti Page Favorites From TV
Mercury Records MG 20398
1959

From the back cover: For more than two years of topping her own TV show weekly, Patti Page and her manager, Jack Rael, along with a corps of clerical help, have come up with statistics, tabulated from mail received, indicating that the most-requested tunes from TVviewers during the 24 months are:

It's A Pity To Say Goodnight
It's A Good Day
When Day Is Done
(I Wanna Go Where You Go, Do What You Do) Then I'll Be Happy
Happy Days Are Here Again
Sometimes I'm Happy
The Gypsy
For Sentimental Reasons
I Didn't Know What Time It Was
Crazy Rhythm
Darling Je Vous Aime Beaucoup
Gypsy In My Soul

And, to keep the format strictly video, these are the very same arrangements by the very same Oklahoma lassie, as beamed out over millions of television screens weekly.

The Fabulous Les Paul & Mary Ford

 

Am I Blue

The Fabulous
Les Paul and Mary Ford
Harmony Columbia STEREO HS 11133
1965

The Poor People Of Paris
Jura (I Swear I Love You)
Am I Blue
Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams (And Dream Your Troubles Away)
Goodnight, Irene
Makin' Whoopee!
Your Cheatin' Heart
East Of The Sun (And West Of The Moon)
After You've Gone
'Deed I Doe3

Monday, August 2, 2021

Rose Garden - Country Road

 

Rose Garden

Rose Garden
Sung By Country Road
Pickwick STEREO JS-6105
A Product of Pickwick International, Inc.

Rose Garden
Room Full Of Roses
Orange Blossom Special
Flowers Speak Louder Than Words
I Can't Help It If I'm Still In Love With You
Stand By Your Man
I Walk The Line
Cold, Cold Heart
Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes

The One And Only Lefty Frizzell

 

Why Should I Be Lonely

The One And Only Lefty Frizzell
Columbia CL 1342
1959

From the back cover: His very first record for Columbia first recorded in 1950, was "If You've Got The Money, I've Got The Time", and became a dual success, for Lefty and for Jo Stafford as well. The song itself had been discarded by Lefty because he didn't like it. Now he says he "can't tell what's good and what isn't... they can really fool you!" "Always Late", another of his best-known numbers, was written in a car enroute to Shreveport, La. Lefty was late getting there and began to work out the tune in his mind as the car sped along. Upon his arrival, he forgot the song, and it remained dormant until his next recording session, when the song popped back into his mind, was tried out, and became one of the year's biggest hits.

Hallmarks of Lefty's style – he gets his name from his left-hand boxing technique – are his pronunciation of "way-yaays," "day,yaays" and "lay-yaate." He explains these locutions by his "mixed-up" accent, a result of being born in Texas and raised in Arkansas and Louisiana. With his band, he has played at parks, fairs, auditoriums, on the radio, on television – and in Fayetteville, in a tobacco warehouse. He used to transport his entourage in a bus with six-sleepers, traveling as far as the state of Washington, until he was signed to appear on the "Grand Ole Op'ry." Thereupon he sold the bus and bought a station wagon and trailer, which served until the call of the public forced him to invest in an airplane, covering an average of three thousand miles each week.

If You've Got The Money, I've Got The Time
Mom And Dad's Waltz
Signed, Sealed And Delivered
Nobody Knows But Me
Release Me
Why Should I Be Lonely
Always Late
I Love You A Thousand Ways
My Bucket's Got A Hole In It
Is It Only That You're Lonely
I Want To Be With You Always
If You're Ever Lonely, Darling

Sunday, August 1, 2021

The Bird Has Flown - The Keating Sound

 

The Bird Has Flown

The Bird Has Flown
The Remarkable Orchestral Excitement of The Keating Sound
Johnny Keating and His Orchestra
Warner Bros. WS 1638
1966

From the back cover: Keating terms this album "a presentation of all the experiments I've done in my life." By writing for two rhythm sections, one (guitar, bass guitar, piano, drums) working in counterpoint to the other (guitar, double-bass, drums and percussion), he has written loving arrangements of twelve popular melodies. They range from Thinking Man's Glenn Miller to a Feeling Man's Lennon-McCartney. Those who think of Keating as strictly a big band man (Ted Heath) or background man (Caterina Valenti, Sammy Davis, Tony Bennett) will discover another Keating here: during the past three years, Johnny's gone through many phases, dropping certain instruments, picking up others, until he reached this unique combination. This is, in fact, the sound he's been looking for – The Keating Sound. And well worth the wait, it is.

The Bird Has Flown
Moonlight Serenade
It Was A Very Good Year
The Shadow Of You Smile
Girl Talk
A Felicidad
Canadian Sunset
Ebb Tide
Who
Michelle
Imprevu
Shangri-La

Midnight Sun - Earl Grant

 

Black Coffee

Midnight Sun
Earl Grant
Decca Records DL 4338
1960

From Billboard - February 13, 1963: Earl Grant is in great form in a set which embraces a fine version of the title opus as well as "Stranger On The Shore," plus such favorites as "Red Sails In The Sunset," "Don't Worry About Me" and "Island In The Sun." With organ disks going well, the bevy of Grant admires will make this a profitable item.

Midnight Sun
Red Sails In The Sunset
Azure
Don't Worry About Me
Mr. Lucky (from CBS-TC Series "Mr. Lucky")
Island In The Sun
Stranger On The Shore 
Black Coffee
Ill Wind (You're Blown' Me No Good)
Sweet Slumber
I'm Falling For You
Warm Sand (By The Coral Sea)