Sunday, April 23, 2017

Nero To 1967 In Seconds Flat

 


















This album swings back and forth between hippish-lounge music and schmaltz (sometimes within the same song) all of it lead by Nero's facile piano playing. Occasionally Nero's jazz chops shine through (particularly  on "Ding Dong!").


Peter Nero-Nero-ing In On The Hits

RCA Victor ‎– LPM-3871  1967


Up, Up & Away
Alfie
Casino Royale
A Whiter Shade Of Pale
The Impossible Dream
Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead
Fiddler On The Roof
Somethin' Stupid
Music To Watch The Girls By
The Flower Children
Nero-Ing In

Atkins Diet LP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 




Chet Atkins could play the phonebook and sound great (and he probably has).
Despite the "3 Dimensions" in the title, this is a mono album and unfortunately not one of the bachelor pad/hi-fi show-off albums that would soon flood the market. At about 29 minutes it's a bit more thin (i.e., "diet") than would be nice.

Wiki notes that "The recording mixes unique arrangements of traditional tunes, pop songs and classical arrangements (hence the three dimensions of the title). Atkins stated in his 1974 autobiography that this album was the first time he strayed away from country, even though he had been fired numerous times from various radio shows for "not sounding country enough"."

Chet Atkins-Three Dimensions

RCA Victor LPM-1197 (Mono) 1955
  1. "Arkansas Traveler" (Traditional) – 2:18
  2. "Londonderry Air" (Traditional) - 3:05
  3. "Ochi Chornya (Dark Eyes)" (Traditional) – 2:41
  4. "La Golondrina" (Traditional) – 2:42
  5. "Blues in the Night" (Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer) – 2:23
  6. "Tenderly" (Walter Gross, Jack Lawrence) – 3:20

  1. "Little Rock Getaway" (Carl Sigman, Joe Sullivan) – 2:10
  2. "Tiptoe Through the Tulips With Me" (Joe Burke, Al Dubin) – 2:18
  3. "Johan Sebastian Bach Medley" – 2:25
  4. "Intermezzo" (Robert Henning, Heinz Provost) – 2:29
  5. "Schön Rosmarin" (Fritz Kreisler) – 1:57
  6. "Minute Waltz" (Frédéric Chopin) – 1:42

Thursday, April 20, 2017

Ping-----------harmonica-----------Pong



















Harmonica player Eddy Manson steps into the generally-uncrowded "Hi-Fi stereo harmonica" genre with fairly satisfying results. My google-fu fails me in narrowing down the date of this LP to anything more accurate than "early 60's."

OBIT:
Eddy Lawrence Manson, a harmonica virtuoso who composed for television and films, died on July 12 at Brotman Medical Center in Culver City, Calif. He was 77 and lived in Hollywood.
Mr. Manson began performing at 15 with Borrah Minnevitch's Harmonica Rascals. He toured with the U.S.O. in World War II and often appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in the 1950's. He also performed with Mitch Miller's orchestra.
He wrote scores for such early television shows as "Armstrong Circle Theater," "Kraft Theater" and "Studio One." More recently he wrote scores for "A Love Affair: The Eleanor and Lou Gehrig Story" and "Eye on the Sparrow." He also composed for series, including "Ben Casey" and "The Virginian."
His feature film work included writing and playing a harmonica score for the 1953 film "The Little Fugitive" as well as writing the scores for "Lovers and Lollipops" (1956) and "Three Bites of the Apple" (1967). His harmonica work was part of the music for "Coal Miner's Daughter," "The Longest Day" and "Born on the Fourth of July."
His concert works included "Fugue for Woodwinds," "Parable for 16 Horns" and "Yankee Doodle Toccata." He was also president of Eddy Manson Productions, an award-winning producer of television commercials.
Mr. Manson was widowed twice.
He is survived by a son, David, of Los Angeles, a producer and director; a sister, Lilyan Robbins, of Palm Desert, Calif., and a granddaughter.

Eddy Manson-Ping Pong Percussion and the Harmonica
 Promenade 2230


A1Wish You Were Here
A2 Slaughter On 10th Avenue Theme
A3 I Love You
A4 In The Still Of The Night
A5 Ciribiribin
A6 Jumping Jack
B1 Old Devil Moon
B2 September Song
B3 La Paloma
B4 Yellow Rose Of Texas
B5 Cheyenne
B6 Nellie Bly