From the opening of Nelson Riddle's "Theme From Route 66", you're instantly transported back to a time of private eyes, smoky strip bars, secret agents, and dark alleys. This is the ultimate tribute to the bachelor pad of the mid 50's to the mid 60's. American men in this time period wanted to be Mike Hammer or James Bond, and this music perfectly captures the feeling and mindset of that era.
"Bachelor Pad Royale" is swingin', it's swanky, it's almost too cool. And sexy. This album oozes sex, which is strange, considering how conservative the 50's and early 60's were. From the appropriately named "Sexe" to the stripper anthem "Harlem Nocturne"- it's smolders with unbridled erotic energy. This is classic space age bachelor pop. You almost expect the Rat Pack to walk in the door any minute. "Bachelor Pad Royale" is one of the strongest entries in the Ultra-Lounge series, not that any of them are weak by any means. They're all fantastic. But this one really left an impression on me. It's the perfect musical nightcap!
Something about this time of year always gets me in the mood for La Streisand. And this is one of my favorite versions of "The Shadow Of Your Smile". Babs owns the song here, and it's got a wonderfully lush and dreamy vibe going on with it. This is classic Streisand. Enjoy!
Around 1954, Hi-Fi was invented. And with that came a musical genre just as weird and mysterious as Exotica...Space-Age Pop. The Atomic Age was underway. Suddenly outer space was the ultimate in the exotic-talk about far away lands! Of course, we needed the perfect soundtrack for this new, sophisticated lifestyle.
Music was instantly recorded to convey our fascination with outer space. With the Hi-Fi LP now a staple, the first true concept albums were recorded. We are in the dawn of new technologies here- think "The Jetsons", think NASA. Throw in Jerry Lewis from "The Nutty Professor"and you get the picture. It's music that was cold, moody, and usually employing the theremin,which gave the music a slightly queasy sci/fi-horror feel to it.
Now the term Space-Age Pop didn't actually exist back in the 50's and 60's, but it's a great description of what this music is. Les Baxter and Billy May of course appear on "Space Capades", but the album offers up many hidden gems. It's one of the campiest of all the Ultra-Lounge albums, and there's not a damn thing wrong with that. So suit up- we're preparing for blast off! Dim the lights and take a swig of your Tom Collins. We're boldly going into the future... and beyond.
"Mambo Fever" is the second installment in Capitol Records fabulous lounge music anthology. Imagine the Coconut Grove on a Saturday night... shaking maracas and bongo beats. Mambo, samba, and cha cha are all thrown deliciously into this spicy Latin cocktail, and the result is irresistible. This music was white-hot in the 50's and early 60's, and it's never sounded better than on this compilation. The sound quality is truly out of this world. After a highball or two, it's downright impossible to sit still with tunes like "Hooray For Hollywood (Cha Cha)" and "Manana (Is Soon Enough For Me)". And when the breathtaking and somewhat alarming Yma Sumac unleashes her shattering voice, it's something you will never forget.
You can practically feel the hot Latin wind with this album- that's part of the reason why these compilations are so special. Besides the fantastic music, it's also a fantastic state of mind. You are instantly transported back to a specific time and vibe with these CD's. I never tire of them. Yes, this is the place where bright flourescent neon mixes with the white jackets of the mariachi band. It's smoky, sweaty, and passionate... This is "Mambo Fever", and boy is it spicy! Hey, I think the conga line is forming...
Imagine sitting in a tiki-themed bar on some exotic beach. The palm trees sway intoxicatingly in the warm, balmy breeze. You order a cocktail and light the palm oil candle at your table. Somewhere close, an exotic bird answers the call of the wild... It's called "Exotica", and it arrived with the soldiers returning home from WWII. Suddenly in the 50's everyone everywhere had a taste for the exotic, the mysterious. Themed restaurants like Trader Vic's and Don the Beachcomber's started popping up everywhere, and a musical genre was born consisting primarily of music that we sophisticated Americans thought music from Polynesia, Southeast Asia, and Hawaii would or should sound like, although in reality it was complete and total fantasy. Still, it caught on like wildfire, and with artists like Martin Denny and Les Baxter releasing classic albums like "Exotica" and "Ritual of the Savage", by 1960 the exotica craze was in full swing. The genre would last until the late 60s and the Vietnam War, and then would become a forgotten part of musical history.
Exotica, like swing, experienced a white-hot comeback in the 1990's. Re-surfacing as "lounge" music, suddenly this long forgotten musical genre was discovered again. In 1996, along with the Swing Revival, Capitol Records put out the definitive (in my opinion) collection of "lounge" music- "Ultra-Lounge". Starting with "Mondo Exotica", the collection would brilliantly cover not only exotica, but swing, jazz, space-age pop, mambo... you name it. Packed with fantastically fun information on the origins of each genre and fabulous photos, the CD sets are amazing time capsules- it's music so original and weird that you can't help but gasp in delight. I was immediately hooked and within 3 months had the first 22 in the series.
"Mondo Exotica" is pure mood and atmoshphere. It's music that requires candlelight and imagination. This is coolness at its coolest. You're immediately transported to a dark, smoky Polynesian lounge, or possibly some other faraway land. Throw in a dash of adventure, romance, and intrigue and what! Instant action. These CD's even come with at least 2 different cocktail recipes in each booklet! Full of classic exotica, it's an extra-ordinary album for the times when Top 40 just won't do. And the sound quality is nothing short of astonishing. Mysterious, evocative, sultry, and campy, it's simply some of the coolest music ever recorded. I know I keep saying "cool" alot, but after listening to this CD you'll understand. No luau is complete without this playing in the background, so light the tiki torches and pour yourself a Zombie. You are in for a trip...
Nothing evokes Christmas memories like Vince Guaraldi's magical and wonderful score to the holiday chestnut "A Charlie Brown Christmas". This was Christmas to me, and it hasn't lost one bit of its charm . It simply wouldn't be Christmas without Charlie Brown, and that's all I have to say about it.
One of my favorite vocalists of the era is the smoky, sultry Julie London. London would go on to record 32 albums, and would find even more fame as the wife of "Dragnet" star Jack Webb. London was an actress as well, but will always be known for her suggestive album covers and even more suggestive lyrics. In 1955, she released "Julie Is Her Name", and followed with a string of memorably smooth albums. Julie is perfect lounge music. Not technically the greatest singing voice, but it doesn't matter with her. She sings so soft and sensual that her voice conjures up images of Champagne cocktails and candlelight. She was white-hot throughout the 50's, and achieved immortal status with the re-discovery of lounge music in the 90's. One of the greats, Julie London pops up many times in the Ultra-Lounge, and after hearing her albums, it's easy to see why. Sexy and steamy!
Most know Jackie Gleason from either tv's "The Honeymooners", or roles in such movies as "The Hustler", "Smokey and the Bandit" and "The Toy". But few realize that in the 1950's and into the 60's, Gleason created a series of best-selling, jazzy "mood music" albums on Capitol Records. "Mood music" you ask? In case you didn't know, "mood music" was basically background music to play while making out on the sofa... Gleason might take a popular tune of the day, smooth it down... make it romantic, lush. Soft lighting, cigarettes, a warm brandy maybe... it's all in the mood. Apparently, the sexually restrained public in the 50's ate it up, as Gleason's first ten albums all sold over a million copies. Apparently there was a lot of making out in the dark back then...
I am a huge fan of "mood music"- I own the entire Ultra-Lounge series, as well as many of Jackie Gleason's full albums. This mood- that soft, warm 50's glow- that's my happy place. It's comforting...relaxing. This is music for martinis and memories. Gleason, Les Baxter, and Martin Denny- they certainly deliver. I am hopelessly obsessed with the 1950's- I always have been. And obsessed with this music as well... it's campy and kitschy. White-hot. If you have not discovered the wonderful world of the Ultra-Lounge, I highly suggest it. It changed my life. Forever. So turn out the lights, pour a cocktail, and pull up a chair. Tomorrow's a moonshot, kid...
