KEEPING TRACK
Dateline December 2006

ENGLISH STRING MINIATURES Volume

6 – Royal Ballet Sinfonia / Gavin Sutherland. Moorside Suite (Holst), Chacony in G Minor (Purcell), Rosa Mundi (Paul Lewis), Winton Suite (Winchester) (Adam Carse), Bethlehem Down (Warlock), Very English Music (Cuckmere Haven, Cornish Air, Hunt Gathering) (Paul Carr), Waltz in E Minor (William Lloyd Webber) Two Nocturnes (Lionel Sainsbury), From Across La Manche (Malcolm Lipkin). Naxos 8.557753. Just when you thought the series must be running out, up pops another! For those who enjoy atmospheric landscape music then Holst, Adam Carse and Paul Carr fit the bill admirably. William Lloyd Webber was a much underrated and self deprecating composer whose works are only now being afforded the credit they deserve but he did sire two very musical sons! Edmund Whitehouse

RADIO VISION ONE Big City Walk, Dr. Watson’s Vision, The Artful Dodger, Your Perfume, You’re In My Heart, Yesterday On The Champs Elysees, Here In A Smoky Room, Lyric Moon, Early One Morning, Starlight Hours, Blue Lady, Mon Ami Mon Amour, Café Braziliana, Ce Soir, Sounds Latin, Gwendolyn, Mixed-up Mazurka, Hasta La Vista, Skyline Concerto, Dancing In Bavaria, Velvet Moon, For Fiddlers Only Apollo Sound APSCD 237, 57:15 mins. This is the first in a new series from Heinz Herschmann’s Apollo Sound specialising in easy listening music typical of the sounds to be heard on radio and television during the 1960s and 1970s. One track comes from Amphonic, with the remainder all sourced from Mozart Edition. Some composers will be familiar – Brian Fahey, Peter Hope, Heinz Hotter, Neil Richardson and Gordon Langford – whereas the others (presumably from the continent of Europe) are less well-known. Among the orchestras are those of George Hermann, Dolf van der Linden and the Orchestra Raphaele, plus an assortment of ensembles that typified the output of so many production music libraries of that period. Technical director Chris Churcher has put together a pleasing selection that will delight fans of what seems to have become known as ‘Test Card Music’. You’ll probably put it on the CD player as background music, and then suddenly find that it has grabbed your full attention. Let’s hope that Apollo Sound let us have some more like this. David Ades

JOHNNIE RAY – Just Walking In The Rain Prism PLATCD 1428. "The Nabob of Sob" was very big in the early to mid ‘fifties. It is said that he cried himself into a fabulous fortune. His first hit, Cry backed with The Little White Cloud that Cried, sold over two million in 1952; staying at No.1 in the US charts for three months and spending almost a year in the listings. It was followed by a second million seller, [Here Am I] Broken Hearted. His third million seller, Just Walking in the Rain came in 1956; it topped the UK charts for seven weeks. Other hits on this disc include Please Mr Sun, Walkin’ My Baby Back Home, All of Me, Hey There, Hernando’s Hideaway, and Such a Night. He is joined by Doris Day and Paul Weston and his Orchestra on Ma Says, Pa Says and A Full Time Job. Percy Faith and his Orchestra provide stellar support for Alexander’s Ragtime Band. Other orchestras involved are those of Johnny Carroll, Joe Reisman, Les Elgart and Mitch Miller. Apart from the title track all the recordings here are the originals. Also included are 11 "Bonus Tracks" from Johnnie’s Palladium Concert in 1954 when he beat the box office records set a few years earlier by Frankie Laine. With acceptable sound, good liner notes/track listings and a few seconds under 70 minutes music for a penny under £3, this is a big bargain buy – and an ideal stocking filler. Peter Burt

MAID OF THE MOUNTAINS – New London Orchestra / Ronald Corp. Helios CDH55246. If you enjoy Gilbert and Sullivan then you will certainly want to buy this new complete production of Harold Fraser-Simon’s classic musical. It opened during the First World War and ran for more than 1,300 performances, an incredible run bettered only by Chu Chin Chow, both records standing for more than 40 years. The star was Jose Collins and the show would have run longer had she not finally cried "enough!". The most famous songs are "A bachelor gay am I" and "Love will find a way" but some of the other offerings are G & S at their best – except they are not G & S! It is a tale of brigands, suitors and beautiful young ladies. Admirable stuff! Edmund Whitehouse

The Golden Age of Light Music: "Soloists Supreme" & "The Great Light Orchestras Salute Cole Porter" for full tracklistings please see pages 52-57 of the last issue of ‘Journal Into Melody’. The unprecedented success of the GUILD GOLDEN AGE OF LIGHT MUSIC series has, in no small way, been due to imaginative programming of the CDs. With the availability of a large resource of recorded material – much of which is drawn from the collections of RFS members – David Ades and Alan Bunting are constantly developing new ‘theming’ ideas. This has already resulted in two Hall Of Fame issues and the Salute To Richard Rodgers (GLCD5123) which is now joined by Salute To Cole Porter (GLCD5127). In common with Irving Berlin, Cole Porter wrote both his own ‘notes and words’ although, as the booklet comments :– ‘the music still stands up well without the lyrics’. This is obviously assisted by the quality of the arrangements and performing orchestras included here, in recordings spanning a 10-year period between 1945-1955. In addition to American and British GUILD ‘regulars’ such as Andre Kostelanetz, Percy Faith, David Rose, Sidney Torch, Mantovani and Stanley Black, we meet newcomers such as the orchestras of French musicians Guy Luypaerts and Eddie Barclay. This new offering proves conclusively that as a tunesmith, Porter was the equal of Berlin, Jerome Kern, and George Gershwin; his prodigious talent is evident on every one of the 21 tracks. Three of these contain selections or suites, and particularly worthy of special mention is the arrangement, made by the then Wally Stott for Sidney Torch, of the big numbers from Kiss Me Kate. Another conductor making his GUILD debut is Glenn Osser whose work, certainly in the UK, is not widely known, but who arranged for an impressive list of top US bands during the ’50s. Regrettably, the arranger of the final track the Cole Porter Suite by Louis Levy and his ‘Music from the Movies’ orchestra is not credited but it is likely to have been undertaken by one of several distinguished musicians who regularly ‘ghosted’ for Levy.

The other new release also features a new ‘angle’, reflected in its title – Soloists Supreme (GLCD 5126). This is an assemblage of compositions featuring a solo instrument, instrumental section or in two cases, a whistler! It’s a great opportunity to put together a collection of really excellent titles, most of which were recorded in the late-’40s/early-’50s. Sadly, not all of the soloists are known, but those credited include guitarists Dave Goldberg and Bert Weedon, pianists Edward Rubach and Joe Henderson, violinists Reginald Leopold, Mitch Miller playing both oboe and cor anglais and the ‘siffleurs’ Ronnie Ronalde and Muzzy Marcellino. Sidney Torch makes a rare appearance as a solo organist with Carroll Gibbons’ orchestra on a vintage 1932 recording , and I must especially mention the amazing saxophonist Freddy Gardner, with the Peter Yorke orchestra. Whilst this track – Valse Vanite has appeared on previous reissue CDs, it never fails to thrill, and as David writes in the booklet… ‘he [Gardner] finds notes on the instrument that weren’t supposed to be there…’ Virtually all of the orchestras and conductors will be familiar, with Robert Farnon being accorded the honour of three tracks – two with his own orchestra and one with the Danish State Radio Orchestra; the latter is the only non-commercial (Chappell) recording amongst the 25 tracks. So here we have yet another two very enjoyable and most worthy additions to the GUILD series. There are some more interesting issues in the pipeline, which will be reviewed in the next edition of the JIM.

Tony Clayden

VICTOR YOUNG Singing Strings and Orchestra. Manhattan Concerto; Love Letters; Cornish Rhapsody; Geraldine; Tara’s Theme; Invitation; My Foolish Heart; Hi-Lili Hi-Lo; Limelight; Call Of The Faraway Hills; Melba Waltz; Where Is Your Heart; Arizona Sketches; Stella By Starlight; Spellbound; Autumn Leaves; Blue Star…Frank Bristow FBCD151/152. A thousand thanks (from me at least) to Frank Bristow for letting us hear again this batch of four Victor Young 10 inch LPs and one 12 inch album from the Brunswick catalogue of fifty or more years ago which I thought I would never hear or see again. A Musical Sketch Book, Pearls On Velvet, Hollywood Rhapsodies, Love Themes and Cinema Rhapsodies between them contain 46 tracks by such as Steiner, Rozsa, Mancini, Korngold, Newman, Kaper and Raksin with Young himself contributing no less than 18 of his own compositions, most of which are now recognised as standards. All of which testifies to the quality of the basic material, much of which knowledgeable readers will probably know anyway, even if not in these particular settings which explore every facet of Victor Young’s genius. in my article on young in JIM159 I quoted Gordon Jenkins’ comment to me that Victor was a lovely man and a great composer, but he always had a bad band. Gordy may have exaggerated this point somewhat, for at that time, and on these sessions at least, I can’t fault the style and sound of his orchestras. You will find however that frank has boobed in reversing track 20 on disc one and track 1 on disc two, which doesn’t affect the quality one little bit. Arthur Jackson

The Massed Bands of HM ROYAL MARINES / Lt Colonel Chris Davis – Music from Beating Retreat 2006. Washington Grays, McAlpine (drum solo), On The Quarterdeck, Monforterbeek, Drummers Call, Band Call, Fall In, Sarie Marais, Royal Flourish, To Fight & Win, Per Mare Per Terram, Globe & Laurel, Royal Salute, Chatham, Portsmouth, Eastney, British Grenadiers, Soldiers of the Sea, HM Jollies, Gladiator, Captain General, The Day Thou Gavest, Sunset, Rule Britannia, The National Anthem, Heart of Oak, A Life on The Ocean Wave, Famous Songs of the British Isles, Mountbatten March, Wellington, Under the White Ensign. (67:00) Chevron / Doyen CHVCD24. Available from: The Blue Band HG06 HQBSRM, HMS Nelson, Portsmouth, PO1 3HH. Cheque for £12 payable to ‘The Blue Band’. Or online at www.royalmarinesbands.co.uk The sessions for this splendid studio representation of the famed Beating Retreat ceremony preceded the actual event held on Horseguards Avenue on June 16-17 by some two and a half months, the Royal Marines band service having wisely elected to go for a studio recording rather than the inherent risk of assorted extraneous off-stage noises of the somewhat limited sonics which accompany any live recording, not to mention the possible vagaries of the English weather. The recordings took place between 3-5 April with a composite band of mainly Plymouth personnel under the baton of Captain M.P. Dowrick. The complete programme of music, some 37 tracks in total – too many to detail here – was composed or arranged by Royal Marine musicians and comes replete with various bugle calls, fanfares, drum solos and an excellent choice of marches by the likes of Kenneth Alford – On The Quarter Deck, HM Jollies and, by that icon of military music, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Vivian Dunn, Captain General, the Mountbatten March and Under The White Ensign. One of the most moving tracks is Captain Green’s Familiar Sunset, which dates from 1932, and delivered here with great sensitivity and innate dignity. It would have been nice to have some information on the music played and/or a brief history of the Beating Retreat ceremony, but the time-scale involved here was incredibly short, with the resultant disc actually being on sale to the public at the event itself, the Royal Marines having to obtain the necessary street-trading licence! An indication of how little time was available to meet the deadline is that the track information details as shown go a little awry. Track 31 is actually the Mountbatten March, while track 33 is Vivian Dunn’s attractive arrangement of famous songs of the British isles, and not the other way round as shown. For those who attended this military spectacular, this Chevron release will be an invaluable souvenir of a memorable occasion, whilst those unfortunates like myself who weren’t present for an outstanding display of military music prowess at least have a superb and vividly recorded disc of what we sadly missed. An indispensable buy for all admirers of the Royal Marines band service. Roger Hyslop

Orchestral Works of DOUGLAS LILBURN – New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / James Judd. Aotearoa; Birthday Offering; Drysdale Overture; Forest; Song of the Islands; Festival Overture; Processional Fanfare. Naxos 8.557697. A pupil of Vaughan Williams, Lilburn nevertheless developed his own New Zealand style of lighter music and this eminently suitable CD will find a happy home on the shelf of many tuneful music lovers. Serious music with a lighter twist from a composer who deserves to be better known. Edmund Whitehouse

CAPRICE – Alison Balsom (trumpet), Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra / Edward Gardner. EMI 353255-2. Although a Classical release, there should be a fair number of the 18 trumpet transcriptions here that appeal to JIM readers who admire top-flight brass playing. The soloist is the young musician voted "Classic FM Listeners’ Choice" in the Classic FM Gramophone Awards 2006. She had previously won a Brit Award as "Young British Classical Performer of the Year". The opening number will be very familiar: Mozart’s Rondo alla turca. So, possibly, will be Ms Balsom’s version of the same composer’s Queen of Night aria, played on a piccolo trumpet, and Paganini’s Caprice No.24. Opera buffswill appreciate, too, Arban’s Variations on ‘Casta Diva’ from Bellini’s ‘Norma’[at six minutes, the longest item]. There are also nine Latin-inspired pieces by Piazolla and de Falla. An hour of enormously elevating music. Try it! Peter Burt

The Band of the GRENADIER GUARDS / Maj. D. Barton – The Music of the Grenadier Guards. Alwyn - The Young Grenadier; Bashford - Queen’s Company; Clarke - Forgotten Heroes; Godfrey - Guards Waltz; Sousa - King Cotton, The Liberty Bell; Wedderburn - Good Courage; Ewing - Toy Grenadier; Burton - First Guards; Waltts - Nairac G.C.; Hills - Nijmegan Company; Williams - The Guards Patrol; Mason - Invicta Grenadier; Eley - The Duke Of York… (78:00). Specialist Recording Company SRC135. This, the latest offering from the specialist recording company, featuring music associated with specific regiments, directs the spotlight on one of the premier and most distinguished components of the British army, namely the Grenadier Guards celebrating their 350^th anniversary. The CD booklet list all the principal conductors – bandmasters and directors of music – of this illustrious band from c.1780-present time. The current incumbent, major Denis Burton, has held this, one of the most prestigious appointments in army music, since 2002, and this new disc features some of his original compositions such as the slow march First Guards, composed for the queen’s birthday parade in 2003, and various attractive arrangements he has forged of English folktunes. Kenneth Alwyn, better known as a distinguished conductor who made some notable recordings for the Marco-Polo and ASV labels of the music of Richard Addinsell in the 1990s, is here represented in less familiar guise as composer of an impressive concert march The Young Grenadier, composed originally for the Queen’s Birthday Parade in 1992 and relating to a photograph depicting the then young princess Elizabeth wearing a Grenadier cap when she assumed the position of Colonel of the Regiment in 1942. Nigel Clarke, chiefly known as a film music composer, penned the concert march Forgotten Heroes. Described in the CD booklet as filmic in style, I found it written in a somewhat abrasive, unappealing modern idiom and distinctly lacking in a good strong memorable tune, which is surely such an indispensable ingredient of a successful well-constructed march. By contrast, a better exemplar of a modern concert march is Robin Wedderburn’s Good Courage, written partly in memory of his father, an army major who was killed whilst on duty in Singapore in 1960. The faster outer sections enclose a noble trio tune, not too far removed in character from the world of Sir William Walton. The two Sousa marches included in this collection are the popular Liberty Bell and King Cotton – the latter, famous for its use as a signature tune in BBC radio’s long-running Marching and Waltzing, is delivered with an intoxicating verve and swagger. Albert Williams, a DOM of the Grenadier Guards between 1896 and 1921 gives the band’s musicians an opportunity to exercise their vocal chords in a rousing and lusty rendition of The British Grenadiers, in his descriptive piece The Guards Patrol. Also well worthy of mention is a rare performance and rare recording of a light music gem from 1953 in the form of Montague Ewing’s delightful and witty Toy Grenadier. It is perhaps a pity that room could not have been found on this admittedly generously filled disc for Emile Waldteufel’s Grenadier Waltz, a product of a friendship which developed between the composer and Dan Godfrey, bandmaster of the Grenadier Guards whilst the Frenchman was in London conducting at a series of promenade concerts. The piece is however included in volume 9 of Marco Polo’s The Best Of Emile Waldteufel (B223687). There are all-told 28 tracks of music on this CD associated in some way with the Grenadier Guards, and with full, vivid and well-detailed sound, beautifully produced art work, close to maximum playing time and gloriously rich tonal burnished playing from the band, this is yet another outstanding new release from SRC and can be strongly recommended. Next in line in this particular series will feature the music of the Royal Engineers, due for release in a few months time. Roger Hyslop

Deep In My Heart: The Songs of SIGMUND ROMBERG. Living Era CD AJA 5642. Complementing the purely orchestral Mantovani album reviewed a couple of issues ago, this is the 24^th release in Living Era’s wonderful "Songs Of" series. There are 22 numbers here – some of the finest from the pen of the Dublin born last giant of American operetta claimed to be the first composer to write for film. So there are tracks from the "dream team" of Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald who achieved instant stardom in the 1935 movie ‘Naughty Marietta’. And Mario Lanza gets his golden tonsils round four hits from the 1954 picture of ‘The Student Prince’. On the CD’s title tune he is joined by Elizabeth Doubleday. There are duets from Tony Martin and Kathryn Grayson, Gordon MacRae and Lucille Norman, and Larry Douglas and Jean Carlton. Other artists featured are Richard Crooks [You Will Remember Vienna], Shirlee Emmons [Dance, My Darlings], Evelyn Laye [The Night Is Young], Jo Cameron [Lordy, What A Sweet World!], Howard Keel [Your Land And My Land], and Tony Bennett [My Heart Won’t Say Goodbye]. The composer himself conducts on at least three of the tracks. We get all this for around £8. Well done, again, Sanctuary Classics. Peter Burt

ROBERT SIMPSON – The Complete Symphonies. Hyperion budget-price boxed set CDS44191-7. Don’t pass this over because Robert Simpson was the one person at the BBC who put his money where his mouth was. In 1980 he resigned in protest at where Radio 3 and the Proms in particular were going. In his book "The Proms and Natural Justice" he then argued against the "avant garde nutcase school of composing" in favour of our tuneful musical heritage. His symphonies are unlike any other but contain echoes of many past great composers. There are 11 symphonies in all, plus Variations on a Theme of Nielsen. Edmund Whitehouse

CLASSIC CHILDREN’S SONGS. JUSCD003. Available from: Just Accord Music, PO Box 224, Tadworth, Surrey KT20 5YJ. £10 (to LMS members) including p+p. The field of children’s songs, in the sense of songs for children to listen to rather than to sing (though there are plenty of those, some memorable) is attractively explored on this disc. It is impossible to deal adequately with all 35 tracks in a 200 word review, but composers range widely over a period of perhaps a century, and they include light music practitioners like Victor Hely-Hutchinson, Liza Lehmann, Malcolm Williamson, Howard Blake, Harold Frazer-Simpson, Richard Rodney Bennett, Edward German, Christopher Le Fleming, Cecil Armstrong Gibbs, Donald Swann and Lord Berners, and distinguished British composers (just two songs are American) like Arthur Somervelle, Howells, Lennox Barclay, Britten and Ronald Stevenson. Lyric writers are similarly varied, with R.L. Stevenson and Walter De La Mare (five each), Kipling (four) and A.A. Milne and the whimsical Spike Milligan (three each) scoring the most, with Kenneth Grahame, Lewis Caroll and Tolkien among others also represented. There are just three women composers – Betty Roe, Lehman and Barbara Reynolds – and surprisingly only two female lyricists (Eleanor Fargein and Marjory Fleming who died at the age of 8). Not all songs rely purely on charm and melody; some have an underlying sadness. Performances, by baritone Roderick Williams and soprano Elizabeth Atherton, are intelligent, beautifully clear in focus and admirable in diction, with Iain Burnside an alert positive accompanist. Recording first-rate; though no words are reproduced, the booklet has full notes on the music and a general essay on children’s song. Highly recommended. Philip Scowcroft

ENGLISH LANDSCAPES Arnold Bax – Tintagel; Ralph Vaughan Williams – The Lark Ascending, Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1; Gerald Finzi – The Fall Of The Leaf; Frederick Delius – Summer Night On The River, On Hearing The First Cuckoo In Spring; Edward Elgar – As Torrents In Summer; John Ireland – The Hills The Hallé Orchestra and the Hallé Choir conducted by Mark Elder Sanctuary/Halle CD HLL 7512, 71:40 mins. As readers will be aware from many reviews in this magazine, there is a wealth of glorious English music available today on compact discs and the great news is that so much more is still being written by a new generation of composers. However in this instance, the emphasis is on the acknowledged masters, most of whom were born between 100 and 125 years ago, and anyone approaching this repertoire for the first time couldn’t have a better introduction than this hugely enjoyable selection. When I first heard Tintagel many years ago I was immediately reminded of some of Trevor Duncan’s majestic works – I’m sure that this will have been noticed by other RFS members! Mark Elder certainly pleased many light music fans when he conducted Eric Coates’ Calling All Workers on the Last Night of the Proms in September, and he has already been highly praised for his achievements. He received the CBE as long ago as 1989, and has held prestigious posts in the USA as well as throughout the UK. Clearly this CD is aimed at younger people who may not already have a wide selection of classical music on their shelves, but I suspect that many seasoned collectors will also welcome the opportunity to add new versions of these glorious works to their libraries. David Ades

Wilfred Askew has informed us of the following recent releases:

BILLY VAUGHN and his Orchestra – Sail Along, Silv'ry Moon / Blue Hawaii. Raunchy; Sail Along Silv'ry Moon; Sunrise Serenade; Sweet Georgia Brown; Sentimental Journey; Until Tomorrow; Jealous; Twilight Time; Sleepy Time Gal; I'm Getting Sentimental Over You; Moon Over Miami; Tumbling Tumbleweeds; Hawaiian War Chant; Blue Hawaii; Hawaiian Paradise; Little Brown Gal; My Isle Of Golden Dreams; Sweet Leilani; Coconut Grove; Trade Winds; Beyond The Reef; My Little Grass Shack; Song Of The Islands; Hawaiian Sunset; Aloha Oe. (58:19). Collector’s Choice CCM-0666-2. Original DOT recordings from 1958.

BILLY VAUGHN and his Orchestra – Theme From A Summer Place / Theme From The Sundowners. A Summer Place; Tammy; Tracy's Theme; Climb Every Mountain; Que Sera, Sera; The Terry Theme From Limelight; True Love; The Sound Of Music; Three Penny Opera; Some Enchanted Evening; All The Way; Sayonara; The Dark At The Top Of The Stairs; O Solo Mio; Never On Sunday; Old Cape Cod; The Green Leaves Of Summer; The Church's One Foundation; Mr. Lucky; The Sundowners; Everybody's Somebody's Fool; Walk Don't Run; Remember When; Volare; Love Is A Many Splendored Thing. (62:18). Collector’s Choice CCM-0667-2. Original DOT recordings from 1960.

BILLY VAUGHN and his Orchestra – Look For A Star / A Swingin' Safari. Look For A Star; Snowfall; Mona Lisa; Paper Roses; Greenfields; Beyond The Sunset; Because They're Young; He'll Have To Go; Theme From The Apartment; La Montana; Just A Closer Walk With Thee; Marta; Swingin' Safari; (It's No Sin); Born To Be With You; Alone; Glow Worm March; In The Chapel In The Moonlight; Sunday In Madrid; Love Letters In The Sand; Blue Flame; A Fool Such As I; Throw Another Log On The Fire; When The Saints Go Marching In. (54:19). Collector’s Choice CCM-0668-2. Original DOT recordings from 1960 and 1962 respectively.

LES BAXTER and his Orchestra – Ritual Of The Savage / Passions. Busy Port; Sophisticates Savage; Jungle River Boat; Jungle Flower; Barquita; Stone God; Quiet Village; Jungle Jalopy; Coronation; Love Dance; Kinkajou; Ritual; Bacoa; Despair; Ecstacy; Hate; Lust; Terror; Jealousy; Joy. (59:16). Rev-Ola CRREV171. Original Capitol recordings from 1951 and 1954 respectively.

PADDY ROBERTS – Strictly for Grown Ups / Paddy Roberts Tries Again. Love Isn't What It Used to Be; Follow Me; Don't Upset the Little Kiddywinks; Architect; Big Dee Jay; Anglais Aves Son Sang; Froid; Ballad of Bethnal Green; Love in a Mist; Short Song; Growing Old; I've Got the Blues; Lavender Cowboy; Poor Little; Country Girl; Let Me Introduce the Boys; I Gave My Love a Cherry; You're a Square; We've Never Had It So Good; I Want to Go Home; The Belle Of Barking Creek; Why Did It All Begin?; Awful Lot of Bull; I Love Mary; Pie Eyed Piper; Tattooed Lady; We've Got to Thank Columbus; What's All This Fuss About Love? (73:22). Must Close Saturday Records MCSR3022. Original Decca recordings from 1959 and 1960 respectively.

REGINALD KELL & his Quiet Music – Swing Low Sweet Clarinet***. Clarence Raybould - The Wistful Shepherd**; Fritz Kreisler – Liebesleid*; The King Steps Out* (Stars in my Eyes); Liebesfreud*; Schön Rosmarin*; Caprice Viennois*; Claude Debussy - Le Petit Berger* (Children's Corner); La fille aux cheveux de lin*; Rêverie*; La plus que lente*; Walter Mourant - Blue Haze*; The Pied Piper*; Ecstasy*; Anonymous - The Gentle Maiden; Stephen Collins Foster - Gentle Annie; Some Folks; Irish Traditional - The Snowy Breasted Pearl; Has Sorrow Thy Young Days Shaded; Sebastián Iradier - La paloma; Annie Fortescue - Harrison In the Gloaming; Michael William Balfe - Killarney; Reginald Porter-Brown - Dance of the Three Old Maids*; George H. Clutsam - Ma Curly-headed Baby**. (*with Camarata and his Orchestra; **with the BBC Salon Orchestra; ***with Ambrose and his Orchestra). (73:59). Clarinet Classics CC0049. Recorded 1942-55.

LAURIE HOLLOWAY – The Piano Player. Surrey With The Fringe On Top; People Will Say We Are In Love; Every Time We Say Goodbye; How To Handle A Woman; My Favourite Things; Hello Young Lovers; Some Enchanted Evening; Honeysuckle Rose; I Guess I'll Have To Change My Plans; Forgotten Dreams; Blue Skies; Pick Yourself Up; I Won't Dance; Smoke Gets In Your Eyes; They Can't Take That Away From Me; Cute; Blind Date/Beadle's About; Gymnopedie No 1; Shall We Dance; They Say It's Wonderful. (72:01). Universal 986 754-8.

ANDRE KOSTELANETZ – Sounds of Today / Today's Greatest Movie Hits. Born Free; Dommage, Dommage (Too Bad, Too Bad); Games That Lovers Play; In the Arms of Love; Summer Wind; Man and a Woman; Sound of Silence; Cabaret; Alfie; Strangers in the Night; Guantanamera; Two for the Road; Barefoot in the Park; Tara's Theme (from Gone With the Wind); Thoroughly Modern Millie; What to Do? (Theme from Woman Times Seven); The Eyes of Love (from Banning); Doctor Dolittle; This Is My Song (from A Countess from Hong Kong); Fabulous Places (from Doctor Dolittle); Dreamsville (from Peter Gunn); Happy Barefoot Boy (from Two for the Road). (56:11). Collectables COL-CD-7601. Original Columbia recordings from 1967.

HUGO WINTERHALTER and his Orchestra – Through the Years. With Peter Hanley, June Valli, Billy Eckstine, Ginny Gibson, Stuart Foster, Eddie Heywood, Sunny Gale, The Ames Brothers, The Rhythmettes and Don Cornell & The Ray Charles Singers. Blue Tango; Melancholy Serenade; Foggy River; The Second Star To The Right; I Understand; Wrong Wrong Wrong; Orchid Room; The Flying Dutchman; More Than You Know; Dream Of Olwen; Penthouse Serenade (When We're Alone); The Chosen Few; My Heart Says No; Smoke Dreams; Blow Blow Winds Of The Sea; Blue Christmas; Smilin' Through; If I Could Tell You / In My Garden; Memory Lane; Take A Look In The Mirror; The Winter Snow; Beyond The Blue Horizon; These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You); Mama; Land Of Dreams; Music Box In Blue; Vanessa; Salute To Industry; Make Believe Land; Something To Remember You By; Swingin' On A Star; Stairway To The Stairs; Stay With The Happy People; Are You Lonesome Tonight?; Prelude To The Stars;.My Destiny; Canadian Sunset; The Coca-Cola Company Theme; Let Me Go, Lover!; Unsuspecting Heart; Always; White Christmas; Music Of Manhattan / Memories Of Yesterday; Flaherty's Beguine; Leave It To Your Heart; Hopelessly; Seems Like Old Times; On The Trail; Through The Years. (155:22). Jasmine JASCD436. Original RCA recordings.

EMI has recently sent us a batch of new releases which should find their way into many Christmas stockings later this month.

Pride of place must go to a 3-CD box set that will certainly delight those with a soft spot for a certain American pop star. BOBBY VEE – The Singles Collection contains no less than 95 tracks spanning the years 1959-1977. The publicity notes inform us that this is a complete collection featuring all the hits, the US A-sides and B-sides, UK-only singles and rare material including tracks never previously released on CD – and even some Italian language versions. This collection has been produced in the UK, and the CD booklet is an example of how this kind of material should be treated; there are numerous photographs of Bobby Vee plus record labels and covers, some very comprehensive notes (you might like to have a magnifying glass handy!) plus full credits for the composers – one track Swahili Serenade is even the work of Sir Malcolm Arnold! I am slightly amused to see that the contents of sets of more than one CD are no longer identified as CD1, CD2 etc, but ‘Component 1’ etc! EMI Gold 367 3792.

The Essential RONNIE RONALDE 50 tracks 2 CDs 2:20 mins EMI Gold 370 2352. This collection concentrates on Ronnie’s recordings for EMI, so you won’t find the four sides he recorded with Robert Farnon for Decca (one of these is on the new Guild CD "Soloists Supreme"). Now in his eighties and living in Australia, Ronnie continues to perform and he has a loyal following of devoted fans. Paul Hazell has assembled an enjoyable selection (assisted by Ronnie) and the booklet cannot be faulted. I have not listed the titles because Ronnie’s admirers can be reassured that their favourites such as If I Were A Blackbird, In A Monastery Garden and Dream Of Olwen are all here. Like Bobby Vee (above) and the two collections which follow below, EMI have excelled themselves with informative and attractive booklets, and after criticising a lack of information in some instances in the past I am delighted to say that purchasers of these collections are certainly getting value for their money.

DICK HAYMES – The Complete Capitol Collection 2 CDs EMI Gold 371 3892. 36 tracks include It Might As Well Be Spring, The More I See You, The Very Thought Of You, You’ll Never Know etc.. This collection is simply what the title says – it contains the two LPs Dick Haymes recorded for Capitol in 1955 and 1956, plus a handful of singles. The LP "Rain or Shine" was conducted by Ian Bernard, who also contributed most of the arrangements, the others being by Johnny Mandel. "Moondreams" was entirely arranged and conducted by Ian Bernard. Billy May, Gordon Jenkins and Jackie Gleason had a hand with the singles. Musicologist and film historian Ken Barnes is responsible for this high quality product which stands as an example of the heights to which popular music had risen during the 1950s. A superb collection in every respect.

MATT MONRO – The Rare Monro Other People, Mirage, All Of A Sudden, Yours Alone, Let Me Choose Life, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Try To Remember, When I Look Into Your Eyes, Where In The World, New York New York, Taking A Chance On Love, Blue Moon, Birth Of The Blues, etc. 51 tracks EMI Gold 372 5582. British readers may have seen an excellent documentary on BBC4 about Matt Monro in recent months, subsequently repeated on BBC2 (pity the Radio Times couldn’t spell his name correctly). EMI’s blurb states: "Each time Matt Monro went into the studio with George Martin he would lay down five or six recordings. Those were then listened back to and a song was chosen that they thought would be the next hit. But what about the discarded songs? Well, they’re here!" The collection contains many previously unreleased tracks, and is largely the brainchild of Matt’s daughter Michele, who has also contributed the booklet notes and supplied a good selection of photos. Several songs are from non-EMI sources and the final track is a medley of four TV commercials sung by Matt early in his career. He was one of the few British singers of quality popular music during a period when rock ‘n’ roll just about overwhelmed everything else. It is good to know that his unique talent is still appreciated today, David Ades

Also new from EMI …

DEL SHANNON Home & Away A selection of ‘new’ material and a re-recording of his big hit Runaway – album recorded at Olympic Studios, London in February 1967. EMI seem to have resurrected a fondly remembered name from the past, although the repertoire used to be rather different – Zonophone! EMI Zonophone 374 8532.

CLIFF RICHARD Two’s Company The now familiar ploy of linking the ‘star’ with other singers. Someone must still be buying Cliff Richard CDs, because EMI keep issuing them! EMI 377 0722. David Ades

The American label Monstrous Movie Music may be unknown to many readers. It has come to our attention following the recent release of a rare Ron Goodwin score.

"THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS" (Ron Goodwin) 1962. The CD also includes music from "War Of The Satellites" (Walter Greene) 1958, "This Island Earth" (Herman Stein, Hans Salter and Henry Mancini) 1955 and "Earth vs the Flying Saucers" (Daniele Amfitheatrof) 1956 – Radio Symphony Orchestra of Slovakia. 60:12 mins, Monstrous Movie Music MMM-1954. The extremely detailed, and utterly fascinating booklet notes tell us that both Ron Goodwin and his colleague Ron Shillingford assisted in the preparation of the manuscripts for this recording, but it is clear that the film was not a happy experience for many people who worked on it. Both Allied Artists (of the USA) and the Rank Organisation (from Britain) were involved in the original production, and the first version was decimated to remove scenes where the special effects were far from special. Around 25 minutes was cut, including a lot of Ron Goodwin’s music. Extra scenes were subsequently shot to make the film sufficiently long for a first feature, but by then Ron had moved on to other projects. Johnny Douglas was brought in to add some music for the new material, but the producers also used some of his work to replace parts of Ron’s original score. Some music cues ended up being used in parts of the film for which they were not intended. Johnny Douglas did a good job, but it would have been far better if either he, or Ron, had been responsible for the complete film, because it seems that Johnny Douglas was not told to make sure that his music fitted the rest of the film. It all sounds like a typical case of producers thinking they know better than the creative artists themselves, and no doubt this kind of thing still goes on today. The CD is worth buying for the fascinating story in the booklet, and all admirers of Ron Goodwin will want to add this to their collections. Monstrous Movie Music is the only soundtrack label specialising in music from classic science fiction, fantasy and horror films, and if you are on the internet you should visit their website: www.mmmrecordings.com where you can buy by mail order.

Another recent release is "MIGHTY JOE YOUNG" (Roy Webb) 1949, plus "20 Million Miles To Earth" Mischa Bakaleinikoff and the Columbia Pictures’ music library) 1957, and "The Animal World" (Paul Sawtell) 1956. 61:48 mins, MMM-1953.

David Ades

THE BRITISH LIGHT MUSIC CLASSICS SERIES 77 tracks in a 4-CD box set The New London Orchestra Conducted by Ronald Corp Hyperion CDS44261/4. Most readers will already have one – if not all – of the CDs in this set; the first was released to considerable acclaim as long ago as 1996 with the fourth arriving in 2002. These modern stereo recordings introduced a new audience to the delights of 45 fine light music composers including Charles Ancliffe, Ronald Binge, Ernest Bucalossi, Eric Coates, Frederic Curzon, Robert Farnon, Herman Finck, Albert W. Ketelbey, Lionel Monckton, Sidney Torch, Gilbert Vinter and Charles Williams – to select just a few. We have not been advised that the four single volumes have been deleted, but if any RFS members would like all four this is surely a great bargain - not to be missed. David Ades This 4-CD set is available from the RFS Record Service for £19 [US $38].

For full details log on to the brilliant Hyperion website at www.hyperion-records.co.uk and go to Catalogue by Collection. You will also discover many other superb lighter music CDs from this very enterprising British company. Edmund Whitehouse

"Precious moment" EDDIE HENDERSON. To wisdom the prize, Blue in green, Around the world in 3/4, Precious moment, Dear old Stockholm, Unforgettable, Dance cadaverous, Wild flower, Silent night, (Kind of blue. KOB 10008) 55:53 mins. The opening tune written by Larry Willis with the crystal clear piano playing by Kevin Hays promises much for the rest of the CD. Things go slightly off form with Bill Evans’ beautiful "Blue in green". Eddie’s soloing rings changes in the Miles Davis version but not with the same tragic melancholy, so sounds aimless. Eddie is an inventive improviser - one I have enjoyed since his "Fusion" outings such as "Say you will", "Butterfly" and "Prance on". His rhythm section Kevin Hays, Ed Howard and Billy Hart have been with him for many years and the empathy shows. Two titles were written by his wife Natsuko, "Around the world in 3/4" and the title track. To be honest I wish he had kicked these into touch as they are the most forgettable! He should stick to ballads and better known composers. For me the most fascinating number is Eddie’s take on "Silent night" ticking percussion, wispy synthesiser sweeps and his soloing making up for lesser delights. Paul Clatworthy

"The Arthur Schwartz songbook" HERB GELLER. Dancing in the dark, Then I’ll be tired of you, Alone together, I see your face before me, A shine on my shoes, Come a wandering with me, By myself, Haunted heart, Girl in calico, I guess I’ll have to change my plan, You and the night and the music, They’re either too young or too old, How sweet of you, (medley Oh but I do, Something you never had before, Something to remember you by, That’s entertainment. (Hep Jazz CD2089) 60:58. Sleeve writer Gene Lees must have had a senior moment when he states "this is the first instrumental album devoted to the music of Arthur Schwartz". He is a Farnon Society member! That small quibble aside this album is bursting with good tunes immaculately played. Herb arranged all tracks which included some Schwartz songs new to me, and because I am a Big Band fan after a while the tracks set into a pattern, one medium tempo one medium fast - rather a churlish criticism as it was sent to me as a promo! (which probably means no more!) Lovers of small group jazz will love the album. Paul Clatworthy

"Rendezvous in Rio" MICHAEL FRANKS. Under the sun, Rendezvous in Rio, The cool school, Samba do Soho, The critics are never kind, Scatsville, The chemistry of love, Hearing "Take five", The question is why, Songbirds. (Koch records KOC-CD9964) 52:41. I have never heard a Michael Franks album that disappointed, this is no exception! His voice is unique, he writes most of his own output and always chooses so right backings. As befits the title this has a mainly Latin slant, one to put alongside the album he did with Eumir Deodata. I was hooked from track one till the end, beautiful tunes, sometimes "Bossa" other times "Samba" exceptionally clever lyrics, "I grew up listening to Mose and Chet" on "The cool school" summing up what he thinks of most critics by using quotes from Degas, Van Gogh and Gaugin on "The critics are never kind". There are no poor tracks on the album, the arrangers are Chuck Loeb, Charles Blenzig, Scott Petito, Roger Burns and Jeff Lorber, all raising their game to new

heights. Paul Clatworthy

PHIL KELSALL The Classic Collection Tritsch Tratsch Polka, Sailing By, Nola, My Heart and I, Bugler’s Holiday, The Girl From Corsica, Narcissus, In a Persian Market, Marigold, etc 21 tracks. Grasmere GRCD 126. This is a compilation of previous recordings which Phil describes as ‘my greatest tracks’. He has made an astonishing number of CDs, and has a big following in the organ fraternity. David Ades

KEEPING TRACK
Dateline October 2006

THE GREATEST GIFT IS LOVE - Mantovani and his Orchestra The Greatest Gift, Solitude, Sing, Cool Summer Evening, The Day Of The Locust, The Entertainer, Send In The Clowns, Love Song "The Freak", She, selections from Oliver!, Once In A Lifetime, Gonna Build A Mountain, I Wanna Be Rich, What Kind Of Fool Am I?... (77.15) Vocalion CDLK 4324. The first album, well thought of sonically by Mike Dutton, was Monty’s last original LP – recorded in Paris with French musicians during May and June 1975. In his brilliant biography of Mantovani [Melrose Books], Colin Mackenzie tells us that Monty showed signs of being unwell during the recordings and had help from Roland Shaw to finalise the album which, as well as being theologically correct, includes some beautiful sounds and is indeed a fitting climax to a lifetime in music. The Aznavour and Legrand tunes inevitably conjure up images of the French capital; Locust is one of John Barry’s many film themes; Cool was Monty’s final composition, and among his best; Charlie Chaplin’s Love Song from his proposed film The Freak proves again that his music is underrated. And what an enchantingly evocative melody Sondheim’s Clowns is. The second album is a 1962 release recorded for American ears only. Again, Mr Mackenzie tells us that a third medley, from Irma La Douce, recorded at the same time was not released. Pity, because I much enjoyed what we have here: two seamless suites from David Merrick produced British musicals of the day. The Bart score has remained a firm favourite down the years, and it makes a nice change [especially if you have young grandchildren] to hear the music divorced from the film. Both selections demonstrate once again that Monty was not just about strings alone as all sections of his accomplished orchestra are involved, with a special mention for the trumpeter on Gonna Build A Mountain. Peter Burt

A GREENWICH BANDSTAND - Royal Artillery Band/Lt. Col. Malcolm Torrent March: Trafalgar (Zehle), Greensleeves (Trad/arr Reed), Folk Festival from the film The Gadfly (Shostakovich/Hunsberger), The Love of My Life (McPherson/G Bragg), Shepherd’s Song (Trad/Goff Richards), Marche Militaire (Marche la Ronde) (Gounod/Trevor Sharpe), The Joyful Skeleton　(W G Lemon/W Duthoit), March: Prodana Nevesta (The Bartered Bride) (Smetana/Zavertal)... (76:01) Specialist Recording Company SRC124.The latest in the excellent ‘Bandstand’ series from the Specialist Recording Company visits Greenwich with its rich, naval heritage and thus it’s hardly surprising that the contents reflects something of this nautical dimension. Particularly welcome is the inclusion of John Ansell’s ‘other’ maritime overture The Windjammer receiving a rare stereo recording in which the composer makes effective use of the famous traditional sea shanty Shenadoah. Philip Sparke is a much respected and admired figure in wind and brass band circles having written a considerable corpus of works for these ensembles. On this disc we can sample both an exhilarating ride on the Orient Express accompanied by suitable train noises and be transported north of the border for the opening movement Andross Castle from the Hymn of the Highlands suite which is based on the haunting atmospheric and well known melody Highland Cathedral. Jazz enthusiasts amongst us will be well served with a flawless and stylish account of Artie Shaw’s Concerto for Clarinet which, as Lt Col Malcolm Torrent mentions in the CD booklet, was featured in the 1940 film ‘Second Chorus’ starring Fred Astaire. The soloist is Sergeant Ben Woodgate and his proficiency on the clarinet is surely ample testament to the high standards achieved by our military musicians these days. Of the remaining items on this imaginatively planned anthology it is refreshing to have such pieces as the Folk Festival from the film The Gadfly (rather than the somewhat over played Romance) and the stirring Fantasy of British Sea Songs by former Royal Artillery bandsman Gordon Langford. Langford made his first broadcast with the band as solo pianist in 1951. It would be extremely amiss of me to conclude this review without a reference to Robert Farnon’s State Occasion which is always a popular march with military bands and it receives here a truly resplendent performance — one of the best I’ve ever heard. With SRC’s usual vivid and well detailed recording, made in Woolwich Town Hall, there is plenty of contrast in the style and mood of the music on this disc, with predictably fine and outstanding playing throughout by the band. This CD makes for a very satisfying and absorbing aural experience — I thoroughly recommended to all with enthusiasm. Roger Hyslop

ENGLISH STRING MINIATURES Volume 5 - Royal Ballet Sinfonia/Gavin Sutherland Suite for Timothy (Pamela Harrison), Renaissance Suite (Francis Chagrin), Folksong and Fiddle Dance (Percy Fletcher), Suite Navarraise (Paul Lewis), Giocoso (Albert Cazabon), Three Pieces arr. Humphrey Searle (Thomas Roseingrave), Downland Suite arr. Geoffrey Bush (John Ireland). Naxos 8.557752. By now we know what to expect from the Philip Lane/Gavin Sutherland partnership and this CD is no exception - delightfully tuneful light music from lesser-known composers who, in some cases were better-known for other musical genres or, in other cases not known at all. Only one way to find out about their music. Buy it! Edmund Whitehouse

GREAT FILM FANTASIES - Cincinnati Pops Orchestra/Erich Kunzel Including music from Star Wars, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings... (61:48) Telarc CD-80664. Jeff Hall territory, really, but you can’t have too much of a good thing – and this is good. There are ten tracks from John Williams’ Star Wars, three from his Harry Potter and three from Howard Shore’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. If not exactly classical music [Classic FM, please note] it is classic film music and is certainly big on sound. The Main Theme from ‘Star Wars – A New Hope’ is still the star track in my opinion, although the jolly Cantina Band from the same episode is one of those pieces one constantly replays. The booklet notes tell us that Erich Kunzel is the most successful Billboard classical crossover recording artist in history; this is his 82^nd album with the Pops orchestra. The Telarc sonics are, as ever, almost worth buying the CD for. Peter Burt

BALLAD ESSENTIALS - Gene Harris Concord Jazz CCD-2170-2. (67:00). Made up of carefully chosen selections, this collection from the Concord catalogue of the 1989-1997 era provides a very welcome introduction to the great Gene Harris, a vastly underrated jazz pianist. His style is an engaging mix of funk with charismatic class. Sweet And Lovely explains this reasoning with a solid bass line by Ray Brown while Harris plays an elegantly modern styling of this classic song. Others in this quietly lyrical album include a misty This Masquerade with a great solo by guitarist Ron Eschete and a heart rending playing of That’s All which is another fine example of how hypnotic Gene Harris could be when he sat down at the piano. Ron Eschete is again finely lyrical as spun silk on this number. Together they lead the group in a swinging finale that defies words. Amidst these fine performers, there are some guests like Scott Hamilton on tenor in a gorgeous rendition of At Last with just Harris on piano. The late Jack McDuff is here on his Hammond B-3 organ, contributing an interesting contrast with Harris’ piano as they trade phrases back and forth. Although a great album for letter writing, this is also a much deeper album full of great feeling which were a highlight of Gene Harris’ artistry. Richard Jessen

ARRIBA/BONGOS FROM THE SOUTH - Edmundo Ros and his orchestra Vocalion. CDLK 4313. Another excellent release, 24 tracks all excellent and all standards; those that stand out are Siboney, Holiday for Strings and of course Brazil, great stuff but what is interesting is that there are two recordings of In a Little Spanish Town, one of which is 2:02 and the other 2:45 but I for one cannot tell the difference. I was hoping for some new releases of orchestras like Stanley Black but will have to be patient. At around £10 Vocalion recordings are exceptional value for money. Alec Hellyer

SINGS HER WONDERFUL SONGS - Rosemary Clooney 20 original recordings for under £3! (55.51) Disky SI 903626. Come On-A My House, Botch-A-Me, Hey There, Mambo Italiano, Wish I Wuz, Tenderly are all here. This Ole House should be but, although listed, has somehow been replaced by If I Loved You Half As Much. Guy Mitchell duets on You’re Just In Love and Rosie is joined on Too Old To Cut The Mustard by the great Marlene Dietrich. Another great, Percy Faith is credited on two tracks, Who Kissed Me Last Night and Mixed Emotions, that would have benefited from Alan Bunting’s audio attention. None the less something of a super bargain. Peter Burt

THE DIRECTOR’S CHOICE - Band of the Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons)/Major D. D. Robertson The Watch Tower (Herze), Action Front (Blankenburg), Glorious Victory (Kendall), Machine Gun Guards (Marechal, The Standard of St George (Alford),: Wellington (Zehle)... (77:00) Specialist Recording Company SRC 151. This impressive assemblage of parade marches with a satisfying blend of the familiar and less familiar promises to be the first volume in a new series by the Specialist Recording Company, whereby a band’s Director of Music is tasked with making his own personal selection of marches. On this new release they vary in mood from the ebullient General Mitchell to the rather more sombre strains of The Vanished Army. Of the Alford pieces, Eagle Squadron was the last march to flow from the pen of this talented man, appearing in 1942 and saluting the American pilots who joined the RAF in 1940, a year before the USA entered the Second World War. Interestingly and coincidentally, also in 1942 a feature film was released in the UK bearing the same title as Alford’s march, depicting American flyers who join the RAF, based on a story by the well-known Hornblower novelist C. S. Forester. Other attractions on this new disc include a bracing On the Square by the ‘March King’ of Pittsburg, Frank Panella, whilst Hermann Starke provides an irrepressible, foot-tapping example of the Parade March. The strains of Thomas Bidgood’s The British Legion will be instantly familiar to any of us who watch the annual televised Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance from the Royal Albert Hall, as this piece is invariably played during the muster of Standards at the beginning of this moving and poignant ceremony. The composer Lloyd Thomas appears to have been a somewhat shadowy figure and Major Robertson in the informative booklet notes comments that little information appears to exist about Thomas other than the fact that he frequently recorded for the Regal Zonophone label in the 1930s, playing on the mighty Wurlitzer organ in the Granada Cinema, Tooting. I wonder whether any of our readers can supply further information on this composer/performer? In sum, those with a zest for exhilarating, tuneful and stirring music splendidly realised by the Blues and Royals, and with vivid, well-balanced recording, produced at the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, will be well rewarded here. If the excellence of this first in the series is anything to go by this promises to be an exciting, outstanding, and landmark contribution to the art of military music discography. Roger Hyslop

WEST COAST VIBES - Roy Ayers Sound And Sense, Days Of Wine And Roses, Reggie Of Chester, It Could Happen To You, Donna Lee, Ricardo’s Dilemma... (51:01) EMI MQP1107. Being a fan of big bands means small group jazz does not often feature on my wants list! Roy is an exception! I like to think I have most of his recordings. He has gained most fame as a purveyor of quality soul music but his early career was in jazz, influenced by his father (trombone) and mother (piano). At a very early age he was given a set of vibes by Lionel Hampton who was very impressed with his talent. In the early 1960s he joined Curtis Amy’s group. This recording was the first under his own name, backed by a three-piece rhythm section and supported by his mentor Curtis Amy on tenor and soprano sax. Two titles self-written, others by Benny Golsen, Charlie Parker, Leonard Feather, Theolonious Monk and pianist Jack Wilson. Roy has a rare feel for ballads, well displayed here. The group do not add much to the jazz regulars but unless you have the original issue this is well worth investigating. Two tracks have been added recorded the previous year when Roy was a member of the Vi Redd group. Paul Clatworthy

UPTOWN ELEGANCE - Joe Negri Featuring arrangements by Dr. John Wilson Including Sweet And Lovely; It’s A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood; The Best Thing For You... (52:11). MCDJ-1015. This CD is definitely one which comes under the heading of a nourishing meal and a half! With scores evenly divided between a big band and small group, Joe Negri has another fabulous CD with great charts by Dr. John Wilson. Starting off with a big band swinger Sweet And Lovely, Negri displays the quietly hard driving swinging style which is his alone. The big band backing him is hot and really cooking. Making unorthodox charts for How My Heart Sings and A Weaver Of Dreams, trombones provide a dark cushion for Negri’s gently flowing performance, full of light and sunshine. And it’s always a wonderful day when we hear Negri’s spirited playing of the famous Fred Roger’s song It’s a Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood. The two Duke Ellington offerings (Solitude and Caravan) are worth mentioning for the fresh treatment each gets, especially Solitude which in Negri’s hands becomes a beautifully swaying bossa nova. Nina’s Smile spotlights Negri’s lyrical abilities in this tenderly reflective work. And after this handsome feast we get a desert: jazz clarinettist extraordinaire Buddy DeFranco and vibist Terry Gibbs come on board for a rousing conclusion with the small group for Blues For Brody. Both DeFranco and Gibbs are in excellent form as is Negri who plays magnificently throughout. The big band charts remind one of the Alvino Rey big band of the middle 1940's. Which is enough incentive to buy this sparkling recording. Richard Jessen

THE LATIN SPLENDOUR OF…/ON THE MOVE - Werner Muller and his Orchestra Vocalion CDLK 4303. 26 tracks of which 12 are standards which have been recorded many times and none of which are new to me. But when it comes to the second 13 that is different as several are new to me and while I like the sound it is not as big as I expected. The version of my all-time favourite Brazil is some 6 seconds shorter than the Edmundo Ros version on his new album. While I would most certainly buy another Muller album it is not a must for me, which is certainly not the case with Edmundo Ros. Alec Hellyer

KOGA MELODIES/RYOICHI HATTORI MELODIES - Percy Faith and his Orchestra 24 tracks (69:21) Taragon TARCD-1106. These must be two of the rarest LPs ever to make it onto CD. Not only have they not been on CD before, they have never been issued in any format either in the US or UK. They were recorded in the 1970s especially for the Japanese market. Masao Koga [1904-1978] was Japan’s most popular song composer and Ryoichi Hattori [1907- 1993] was also highly regarded in his native land for, among other things, his film music. Maestro Faith has taken a dozen each of their compositions and arranged them in his customary immaculate style. Alan Bunting, who has compiled the CD, was a prime mover behind its release and relates in his liner notes how Hattori was stunned at the complexity and richness that Percy brought to his work. The re-mastered sound is of the high quality for which the American company Taragon is renowned. This is a beautiful disc which, given its provenance, should be a prime purchase for every Faith aficionado. Peter Burt

MARCHES AND CEREMONIAL Authentic sound recordings from the last century CARLIN CAS 029. This recent 2-CD set from Carlin Production Music offers an astonishing array of marches of all kinds. Just a few are familiar (such as American anthems) but the rest are seemingly from a variety of sources and cultures which enthusiasts of this kind of music should find intriguing. It’s fun to sample in small batches, and the catalogue number will alert collectors to the fact that this archive series from Carlin has now built up to an impressive body of repertoire spanning many different moods. David Ades Carlin CDs are only available from the RFS Record Service.

TO LOVE AGAIN - Chris Botti with the London Sessions Orchestra Various singers including: Sting (Embraceable You), Paula Cole (My One And Only Love), Michael Buble (Let There Be Love), Gladys Knight (Lover Man), Paul Buchanan (Are You Lonesome Tonight?)... (59:45) Columbia 826 7677 5052. As with his previous CD Chris employs top class arrangers and musicians. An amalgam of lyricism and stirring exploration, all the musicians impress individually and as a unit, again a cross of jazz and soul music, very hard to categorise. Jeremy Lubbock’s string writing is spellbinding, only one track let down by a weak vocal. Chris’s pianist Billy Child’s writes the Gill Evans ‘Chug’ into Pennies from Heaven. Greg Phillingans arrangement and Fender Rhodes playing on Good Morning Heartache provides real competition. Chris and his eloquent trumpet soloing has set a winning formula. I hope he keeps them coming! Paul Clatworthy

AFTERNOON IN RIO Joe Negri with Kim Nazarian, Duduka Dafonseca, Marty Ashby, Dwayne Dolphin, Jay Ashby O Grande Amor, Modinha, Red On Red, Lush Life... (40:55) Jazz MCG-1004. If difficulties arise in purchasing this CD, write to: Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild, 1815 Metropolitan Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15233 or visit ww.mcgjazz.org. For those of you who may already know, Joe Negri was known to millions of children as Handyman Negri, working alongside Fred Rogers on the popular PBS show Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood. What many haven’t known until recently that he is also a great jazz artist of the first rank. Starting off with Jobim’s O Grande Amor showcases Negri’s lyrical bent with this time honoured bossa nova classic. Kim Nazarian’s clear, vibrant voice comes over beautifully in her duet with trombonist Jay Ashby’s husky vocals. Above it all, Negri rides a high octane flying solo that’s so full of pulsing life. Nazarian is heard to excellent advantage on Modinha with Negri’s deeply felt playing on his solo. Jay Ashby plays a great trombone solo during "Red On Red," interacting with Negri as well having more than enough room to stretch as a performer. Negri plays with a quietly driving energy that keeps everyone moving. And just in case you were wondering, Billy Strayhorn’s Lush Life does work as a bossa nova, with a long introduction by Negri alone before settling into the beat with strong yet light support by Duduka DaFonseca on drums. This is simply a magnificent set, short though it may be. It proves that Joe Negri is one great artist. Richard Jessen

ON THE HOLLYWOOD SOUND STAGE - Johnny Green and the MGM Studio Orchestra High society overture, Lili excerpts, Heather On The Hill, Silk Stockings, Glass Slipper, Barretts Of Wimpole Street... (77:48) Frank Bristow FBCD145. A wonderful selection comprising MGM soundtracks and studio recordings from the early 1950s, some of which I haven’t heard for years. One of these is Sunday Jumps which I had on a 78 (backed with Fred Astaire’s Every Night at Seven which recalls Fred’s dance with a hat rack and gymnasium equipment...). Another is Serenade for a New Baby which Marge & Gower Champion did in Everything I have is Yours, and which I remember because it came along at exactly the same time as our new baby. Other soundtracks of the musicals are self-evident, but what might not be so obvious are the dramatic scores by such as Bronislau Kaper (though his Invitation is a latter-day classic), Miklos Rozsa, Herbert Stothart and, of course, Green himself. But I don’t think that at this stage we need another An American in Paris as heavily re-edited by Green and Saul Chaplin to fit the screen action. This is a valuable contribution by the estimable Frank Bristow to the ever-growing library of orchestral music. Arthur Jackson

STRIKE UP THE BAND! - Band of the Royal Swedish Air Force/Jerker Johansson Wind Band Classics Series - Including Florentine March, Entry Of The Gladiators (Fucik), March Of The Toys (Alford), Anchors Aweigh (Zimmerman), Under The Double Eagle (J.F.Wagner), Military March No.1 (Schubert)... (77:00) Naxos 8.557545. this latest new arrival from Naxos, described as ‘marches from around the world’, is a generously filled disc mainly of popular parade marches but with several less predictable choices. Thus included here are such famous and renowned personages as The Dambusters, whose outer sections are rather too briskly done, Old Comrades and the redoubtable Colonel Bogey. The more unexpected items come in the form of Johann Schrammel’s Vienna will always be Vienna, reminiscent of the style of Johann Strauss, whilst Kurt Noaks’ Brownies’ Guard Parade, apparently his one big hit, is a real charmer. Semyon Tchernevsky is not widely known but in his own country is regarded as the Russian Sousa; his march Salute to Moscow is one of his most popular, and it begins with a quotation from Moscow Radio’s interval signal. Gounod’s engaging Funeral March of a Marionette, made famous by Alfred Hitchcock, is beautifully done, and who could not respond to Johannes Hansson’s infectuously tuneful Valdres March, described by composer Ole Olsen as the finest march he had ever heard? This thoroughly exhilarating and enthralling disc is rounded off to splendid effect with Paul Lincke’s exultant and joyous march The Air in Berlin (Berliner Luft ) which originally featured in the composer’s musical Frau Luna and was so successful that he used it again in a 1906 musical which was itself named Berliner Luft. The band of the Royal Swedish Air Force had some unlikely roots when in 1905 some employees of the Gothenburg Tramways Company started a brass sextet which gradually developed to become a fully fledged band owned by the company which, not unreasonably, expected the musicians to serve as tram drivers! From 1992 the name was changed to Goteborgs Musiken and since then has become a fully professional ensemble. Five years on it was commissioned to perform as required at ceremonial events as the Band of the Royal Swedish Air Force. Certainly on the evidence of this new disc there is more than ample evidence of their technical prowess producing a full sound with consistently spot-on intonation. As this impressive new release ticks all the right boxes – generous playing time, super-budget price, superb sound and high technical accomplishment, it earns an automatic recommendation. Rest assured you do not have to be a military band ‘junkie’ to obtain considerable pleasure and satisfaction from this thrilling disc! Roger Hyslop

TOUCHDOWN! - Percy Faith and his Orchestra Mr Touchdown, U.S.A., On, Brave Old Army Team!, Anchors Aweigh, Far Above Cayuga’s Waters, Fight On, Pennsylvania, The Olive And the Blue... 19 tracks. Taragon TARCD-1105. This is a fun and immensely enjoyable CD. It comprises American football songs of the ‘50s performed by Percy’s brass players and a male chorus. I am not surprised to learn that the originals were extensively used by many radio stations for intros to shows about or broadcasts of football games. I don’t suppose it will sell in great numbers outside the US – and even there 32 minutes might be considered short measure. But if like some Faith fans you buy everything he recorded, then you won’t be disappointed by this. Peter Burt

JAZZ/CONCORD/SEVEN COME ELEVEN - Herb Ellis with Joe Pass, Ray Brown, Jake Hanna Look for the Silver Lining, Happiness is the Concord Jazz Festival, In a Mellow Tone, Seven Come Eleven... (78:58) Concord Jazz CCD2-2168-2. This CD set contains the very first performances recorded by Concord Records in 1973 and 1974 respectively. And what performers! When one has Herb Ellis and Joe Pass on guitars with Ray Brown on bass and Jake Hanna on drums, the experience is one which few people will ever want to leave out of their jazz collections. With an exquisite beginning played by Joe Pass, Look for the Silver Lining leads off the first CD Jazz/Concord with an eloquence seldom heard either live or recorded. Stuffy shows off the group’s cohesiveness while Georgia brilliantly displays the different characteristics of Pass and Ellis: the former with his bright, cleanly articulated playing while Ellis is a softer edged yet edgy attitude to his playing. The second disc Seven Come Eleven is a live 1974 performance at the Concord Summer Festival which Carl Jefferson, the Festivals’ president and general manager, sets the tone with a terse, "Have a good time and listen to some fine guitar interplay." An understatement if there ever is one! The first three tracks alone demonstrate what great performances come out of the Ellis-Pass Duo. There is some fine gelling between these two gentlemen on In a Mellow Tone with a delicious solo played by the world’s finest bass player, Ray Brown. But mellow, it’s not, with a fine driving beat. The title track, Seven Come Eleven is literally fireworks on the frets with Ellis, Pass, and Ray Brown burning it up with fiery solos and tight group work. Jake Hanna spurs everyone on with a quietly driving force. This essential classic is available in various formats. However, this two disc set is the best as the sound is clear with a fine sense of stage presence. Don’t miss it! Richard Jessen

HALL OF FAME Volume 2 - Various Artists Hard on the heels of Vol 1 of The Hall of Fame (GUILD GLCD5120 – JIM 168) comes its new companion – Vol II (GUILD GLCD5124). Once again we are presented with a compilation which, on its own admission, "mixes the familiar with – occasionally – the unknown". The disc opens with a version of Zes Confrey’s Dizzy Fingers by Percy Faith, which makes use of a small choir (billed as ‘The Magic Voices’), using a vocalese style which also became popular with other British and American orchestras during the ’50s. Another notable inclusion is Possession (from Harry Revel’s Perfume Set To Music) by the Les Baxter Orchestra, which features the electronic music instrument known as the "Theremin"; this track was discovered by our US-based RFS member Enrique Renard. Also worthy of special mention is the amazing Angela Morley arrangement of Victor Herbert’s March Of The Toys, performed by the Geraldo Tip Top Tunes Orchestra, which dates from 1949 – you’ve never heard it like this before! Whilst the majority of tracks are taken from commercial (USA and UK) sources, some publishers’ recordings have been included, providing an interesting contrast to the former. The featured composer this time is none other than the late lamented Leonard Charles Trebilco. Writing under the name of Steve Bretton as well as his usual pseudonym of Trevor Duncan he is accorded the honour of four tracks, including of course High Heels and Grand Vista (the famous Pearl and Dean theme). This is a carefully chosen programme which, aided by a particularly satisfying sound quality, will give a great deal of pleasure. Tony Clayden

CHILDHOOD MEMORIES - Various Artists The second new Guild Music offering brings the current total in the series to twenty-five – a quite remarkable achievement on the part of all concerned – and for me is a real winner. Although the title "Childhood Memories" (GLCD 5125) is a reference to the names of the various compositions which all have children’s connotations, a number of the pieces themselves evoke powerful memories of my own childhood. As described in Peter Luck’s excellent article on BBC Television Newsreel (also in JIM 168), the Corporation introduced a spinoff – BBC Children’s Television Newsreel – in 1950. I watched this regularly from the beginning; we had acquired our first TV during 1948. At least three of the tracks were often used behind the newsreel stories – Playbox (F. Charrosin), Toy Town Parade (A. Ferraris) and a piece I have waited more than fifty years to hear once again – one of the movements (Marbles) from Joseph Engleman’s delightful Children’s Playtime Suite. Unfortunately, the correct order of the four movements has not been followed on the CD (Ring O’Roses should be placed first, not last; the other three are as the composer intended), and I am grateful to RFS member David Mardon for providing this information. A probable fourth contender is Angela Morley’s Tinkerbell, which I am pretty certain appeared from time to time on Children’s Newsreel. UK readers of a certain age may also remember the series of "Whitehall Farces" staring Brian Rix, starting with the famous Dry Rot. These were screened during the ’50s and early ’60s directly from London’s Whitehall Theatre, and the intro music was always Roger Roger’s Clowneries, whilst another favourite of mine, Clockwork Clown (Edward White) was featured for a time around 1953/4 on the daily BBC demonstration film broadcast for the benefit of the Radio and Television trade. There are many other hugely enjoyable pieces on this absolute gem of a CD. Alan Bunting has worked his usual magic and these vintage tracks have never sounded so good. ‘Childhood Memories’ is highly recommended, especially to those who were amongst the first generation of "TV kids" in the pioneering days of post-war British television. For a full track listing for both of these new releases see JIM 168. Tony Clayden

With thanks to Wilfred Askew for the following details of recent releases...

THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT - Various Artists A 6-CD set celebrating the golden age of MGM musicals, 1929-58. 135 remastered soundtrack recordings from: Singin’ In The Rain, An American In Paris, High Society, Annie Get Your Gun, Show Boat, Kiss Me Kate, Seven Brides For Seven Brothers, Meet Me In St Louis, The Wizard Of Oz... With performances by Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Doris Day, Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne. Includes one disc of 25 newly discovered tracks, and a 108 page booklet. (7 hours 50 mins) Rhino 8122 73192-2.

JAZZ ACCORDION - Jo Basile and his Orchestra Original Audio Fidelity recording, including Lullaby Of Birdland, Don’t Blame Me, A Fine Romance, Pennies From Heaven, Taking A Chance On Love, On The Sunny Side Of The Street... (31:02) Blue Moon BMCD 1623, Distributor: Discovery.

LISTEN - The Hi-Los with Orchestra conducted by Frank Comstock Original 1955 Starlite recording, including June In January, I Don’t Want To Cry Anymore, Whatever Lola Wants, Fools Rush In, Have You Met Miss Jones?, Where Are You?... (27:56) Cherry Red ACMEM67CD

MAH-NA-MAH-NA - The Dave Pell singers Original 1969 Liberty release, including Oh, Calcutta!, Sugar Sugar, Keem-O-Sabe, Laughing, Get Together, Sweet Caroline... (34:17) Cherry Red ACMEM77CD

NAT: AN ORCHESTRAL PORTRAIT OF NAT KING COLE - Nelson Riddle and his Orchestra Original 1965 Reprise recording, including Straighten Up And Fly Right, It’s Only A Paper Moon, Mona Lisa, Pretend, Ballerina, Ramblin’ Rose... (34:21) Collectables COL-CD-6736

WHITE ON WHITE AND OTHER HITS OF 1964 - Nelson Riddle and his Orchestra Original 1964 Reprise recording, including Shangri-La, The Shelter Of Your Love, Java, Beautiful Obsession, I Wish You Love, My Heart Cries For You... (28:28) Collectables COL-CD-6737

PARIS WHEN IT SIZZLES/INTERPRETS GREAT MUSIC, GREAT FILMS, GREAT SOUNDS - Nelson Riddle and his Orchestra Original 1963 and 1964 Reprise recordings, including Gabrielle, Brandy Glow, That Face, Valse De Paris, Bastille Cha-Cha, Touch Of Tenderness, Charade, Saw Dust And Spangles And Dreams, Little Girl Blue, Over And Over Again, My Romance, This Can’t Be Love... (65:42) Collectables COL-CD-7493

THE SAVAGE AND THE SENSUOUS - The Don Ralke Oorchestra Original 1960 Warner Bros release, including Safradesia, Ju-Ju Man, Zulu Magic, Head Hunter, Poison Dart, Sacrifice Of The Maidens, Session Grande... (48:04) Harkit HRKCD 8207, Distributor: Pinnacle

THROUGH THE YEARS - Hugo Winterhalter and his Orchestra 2 CDs, 49 tracks. Original RCA recordings, including Blue Tango, I Understand, Blue Christmas, Smilin’ Through, Memory Lane, These Foolish Things, Mama, Land Of Dreams, Vanessa, Stairway To The Stars, My Destiny, Unsuspecting Heart, Always, Leave It To Your Heart, On The Trail... (155:22) Jasmine JASCD 436.

BRITISH LIGHT MUSIC PREMIERES Volume 3 - Royal Ballet Sinfonia/Gavin Sutherland, Paul Murphy Rhythmic Overture: Highway to the Sun (Ernest Tomlinson); Overture to a Pantomine (Victor Hely-Hutchinson); Elizabethan Express (Clifton Parker); Three Court Dances (Phillip Lord); Ballet Suite (James Langley).... Dutton Epoch CDLX 7170

MAYNARD FERGUSON HORN 2/THE BALLAD STYLE OF MAYNARD FERGUSON - Maynard Ferguson "Maynard Ferguson Horn 2" CBS 65027 (1972) Give it One (Downey; Ferguson arr Alan Downey); Country Road (Taylor arr Keith Mansfield); Theme from Shaft (Hayes arr Keith Mansfield); The Summer Knows (Legrand; Bergman arr Kenny Wheeler); Mother (Lennon arr Keith Mansfield); Spinning Wheel (Clayton-Thomas arr Adrian Drover)... "The Balland Style of Maynard Ferguson" CBS 63514 (1969) with the Keith Mansfield Orchestra. Born Free (Barry; Black); Girl Talk (Hefti; Troup); If He Walked Into My Life (Herman); The Fool on the Hill (Lennon; McCartney); The Impossible Dream (Leigh; Darion); Somewhere (Bernstein; Sondheim)...Vocalion CDSML 8421.

THE MOMENT OF TRUTH/EVERYBODY’S TALKIN’ ABOUT… Salena Jones "The Moment of Truth" CBS 63613 (1969) with the Keith Mansfield Orchestra. For Once in My Life (Miller; Murden); Alone Together (Schwartz; Dietz); For Me (Unknown); This Girl’s in Love (Bacharach; David); Just a Couple of Losers (Unknown); The Moment Of Truth (Satterwhite; Scott)... "Everybody’s Talkin’ About…" CBS 63901 (1970) Am I the Same Girl (Soulful Strut) (Record; Saunders); Everybody’s Talkin’ (Neil); Without Him (Nilsson); My Way (Anka; Thibaut; Revaux; Francois); The More I See You (Gordon; Warren); Morning Dew (Rose; Dobson)... Vocalion CDSML 8422

TERMINATOR - Nick Ingman Original 1976 recording. Brass Knuckles (Ingman); Come Together (Lennon; McCartney); That’s Fine (Ingman); Tricky Nicky (Ingman); American Pie (McLean); An Octave Faster (Ingman)... Vocalion CDSML 8423

THE RIGHT TIME - The Pete Cater Big Band You Don’t Know What Love Is (Raye; DePaul arr Kevin Wedrychowski); Getting There (Matt Wates arr Wates); Holland Park (Frank Griffith arr Griffith); Firm Roots (Cedar Walton arr Adrian Fry); Teach Me Tonight (Cahn; DePaul arr Frank Griffith); Yes and No (Wayne Shorter arr Adrian Fry)... Vocalion CDSA 6815

KEEPING TRACK

Dateline June 2006

The GUILD series has undoubtedly been an unprecedented success – and still they keep coming, thick and fast!! These five releases cover a very wide timescale and a huge range of different musical styles.

SAY IT WITH MUSIC is the subtitle – taken from the name of the first track – of VOLUME III OF THE 1950s, and spans the years 1952-1955 [GLCD5119]. It follows the established format of combining the well-known with the less-familiar, and features mainly commercial recordings, interspersed with just a few from publishers’ libraries. In addition to works by some of the Great American Songbook composers such as Berlin, Kern, Rodgers and Schwartz, we encounter a number of British, European and American writers, who achieved fame (and hopefully fortune) with their purely orchestral compositions included here. Although some of the titles may not immediately spring to mind, many of the tracks would have been regularly heard on radio broadcasts, certainly those of the BBC. As I have remarked before, there is a definite difference in style and character between Light Music of the mid- to late-’40s on the one hand, and the early-’50s on the other; although this may not have been very obvious at the time, it becomes much more so with the benefit of hindsight, particularly when listening to this very enjoyable new collection.

The next CD marks a significant change in direction for the GUILD series [GLCD5120]. THE HALL OF FAME – VOLUME I – on its own admission – is aimed at newcomers to the World of Light Music, whilst still intending to appeal to established collectors, who are promised some surprises amongst the familiar items. Although a number of the titles may have already appeared elsewhere on CDs, the opportunity has been taken to carry out completely new digital restorations from the original 78s; this is claimed to offer improvements over releases from the late 1990s, due to the more advanced processing technology now available. There is a wide range of musical styles, resulting in a very varied programme – Percy Fletcher’s My Love To You in a 1930s performance by the Reginald King Orchestra, and Nöel Coward’s Mad About The Boy in an André Kostelanetz arrangement from 1955, represent the two extreme time-points. An innovation is the Featured Composer, in this case Clive Richardson, who takes pride of place with three of his popular pieces in recordings dating from 1945-47. Although David Ades’ biographical notes state that Richardson ‘first trained as a doctor’, this is not strictly true; in an exact parallel with Charles Shadwell, he started studying medicine, but soon gave it up in favour of a musical career and certainly never qualified as a physician. All-in-all, a well thought-out programme which happily ‘kept me company’ during a recent long car journey!

For many years, Haydn Wood has been much overshadowed by his contemporary (and rival?), Eric Coates. This is more than a little unfair; Wood was a highly inventive and versatile composer, and his works encompassed a wider range of genres and styles than those of Coates, who tended to keep to a very few well-trodden paths. Whilst most of the items on JOYOUSNESS – THE MUSIC OF HAYDN WOOD [GLCD5121] will not only be familiar but are likely to be in many collections, this is undoubtedly a very worthwhile addition to the GUILD series. It was inspirational to include the Peter Yorke/ Freddy Gardner recording of Roses Of Picardy, together with Wood’s orchestration of Charles Marshall’s I Hear You Calling Me; other highlights are Seville, Bird Of Love Divine, and the Homage March. It is pleasing that Haydn Wood’s music is now getting its due recognition, and the appearance of this new CD can only assist in that regard.

BRITISH CINEMA AND THEATRE ORCHESTRAS – VOLUME II [GLCD5122] covers the years 1927-39; once again, we are presented with a mixture of the very familiar and the almost unknown – but immediately enjoyable! Amongst the conductors, the names of (Arthur) Anton with organist Al Bonnington, Richard Crean, Joseph Muscant and Frank Tours are prominently featured; judging by the number of recordings that they made (some of which have appeared on previous GUILD CDs) they must have achieved great popularity in their day.The programme opens with what is probably the fastest-ever recorded performance of Buccalossi’s Grasshoppers Dance - I am tempted to wonder just what sort of ‘grass’ these particular hoppers were ‘on’!! Although the composer of the España Waltz is credited as Emmanuel Chabrier, the piece here is really a slightly abridged arrangement of Emil Waldteufel’s famous version of the original Chabrier work Rhapsody – España. There seems to be an increasing interest in music of this type (no doubt helped by Volume I - GUILD 5108) and this new CD will certainly appeal to all those who enjoy Light Music of the pre-WWII era.

And so to the final new arrival – GREAT LIGHT ORCHESTRAS SALUTE THE MUSIC OF RICHARD RODGERS [GLCD5123]. This is another departure from the usual GUILD format and the booklet notes state that it is the first such SALUTE, the implication being that there will be more to follow. Although the works of Rodgers and his collaborators have been much-recorded, this must surely be the first time that such a diverse collection has appeared on CD in purely orchestral guise, performed by so many different ensembles and conductors. This composer wrote little else but Theatre and Film music, and every track is taken from a show, with the recordings dating from 1949-55. By that time Rodgers (in partnership with Oscar Hammerstein) was arguably at the height of his popularity, although the Rodgers and Hart compositions actually date from much earlier. Considering that most of these pieces were originally conceived as songs with lyrics, they have been very successfully transformed into their new format. In this connection, it is good to report that the names of arrangers are included in the booklet notes where appropriate; too often they are the unsung heroes, without whose talents performances like these could never have happened! This is another enjoyable addition to the series and it would be interesting to know which other composers are destined to appear in future SALUTES – as always, watch this space. Tony Clayden

If any readers would like to know the full contents of these Guild CDs, they were listed in our last issue, starting on page 62. All Guild CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

THE BBC RADIO 4 UK THEME – Royal Ballet Sinfonia / Gavin Sutherland. The moment it was announced that the medley of British folk tunes which has started the day on Radio 4 for the past 33 years was to be scrapped, producer Herbie Flowers arranged for the music to be recorded and released as a single, the ‘B’ side of which is Ronald Binge’s Sailing By. The disc is available for £1.99 in the shops, or 78p per track to download from the internet; proceeds are going to the Light Music Society. The performance here is fresh and solidly assured - quite superior to the original recording broadcast on the radio! Isn’t it fascinating how we don’t tend to appreciate something until we’ve lost it? Perhaps a small but significant event like this will help raise the profile of light orchestral music. The Radio 4 Theme single has no catalogue number - but is available in the UK from Asda, HMV, Tesco, Virgin and Woolworths or at the web address www.savetheradio4theme.co.uk Peter Edwards

IN THE LOUNGE WITH GARY WILLIAMS & HIS MUSICIANS Music to Watch Girls By (Velona; Ramin); Sweet Lorraine (Parish; Burwell); I Thought About You (Mercer; Van Heusen); A Swingin’ Affair (Myers; Cass); I Can’t Give You Anything But Love (Fields; McHugh); I’ve Got the Sun in the Morning (Berlin); Lover Come Back to Me (Hammerstein; Romberg); Fly Me to the Moon (Howard); I’m Glad There Is You (Madeira; Dorsey); Baubles, Bangles and Beads (Wright; Forrest); Call Me (Otis; Hendricks); All That Jazz (Carter; Stillman); Change Partners (Berlin); Let’s Get Lost (Loesser); Let There Be Love (Grant; Rand); Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries (De Sylva; Brown; Henderson); As Long as I’m Singing (Darin) Arrangements by Andrew Cottee and Richard Rodney Bennett Recorded at Abbey Road Studio No.3, London, February 2006 Vocalion CDSA 6814. One could describe this collection as ‘cocktail’ or ‘late night’ music, but that would imply that it should be enjoyed while doing something else – possibly more interesting. But that is not the case! Gary’s approach to his lyrics, and his empathy with his musicians demand your full attention, and his choice of numbers confirms what a wonderful period in history the last century was for high quality popular songs. Being the supreme professional that he is, Gary occasionally surprises by slipping in a verse that others have not treated us to previously. The general tone of the album is up-tempo, and the fine musicians performing the great arrangements created specially for Gary include Graham Harvey (piano), Dave Chamberlain (bass), Matt Skelton (drums), Martin Kershaw (guitar), Andrew Cottee (vibes) and Luke Annesley on reeds and flute. If I have one minor criticism it concerns the almost unreadable printing in part of the booklet – but that is the fault of the printers, not the musicians! Gary Williams simply gets better all the time – a great CD. David Ades All Dutton Vocalion CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

LONDON LIGHTS – Streamline (Palace Theatre 1934) New Mayfair Orchestra / Ray Noble; Going Greek (Gaiety 1937) Debroy Somers; Stop Press (Adelphi 1935) New Mayfair Orchestra / Percival Mackey; Seeing Stars (Gaiety 1935)  Debroy Somers; The Little Dog Laughed (Palladium 1939) London Palladium Orchestra / Clifford Greenwood; Operette (His Majesty’s 1938) His Majesty’s Theatre Orchestra / Ben Frankel; Slipping round the corner (from The Good Companions, His Majesty’s 1931) Debroy Somers; On the outside looking in (from The Little Dog Laughed, Palladium 1939) George Scott Wood and his Six Swingers; I’m on a see-saw (from Jill Darling, Saville 1934) Billy Cotton; You’re the top (from Anything Goes, Palace 1935) Jack Hylton; Mad about the boy (from Words & Music, Adelphi 1932) Savoy Hotel Orpheans; After you, who? (from The Gay Divorce, Palace 1933) Henry Hall; Sitting beside ‘o you / What are you going to do? (from Yes Madam? London Hippodrome 1934) George Scott Wood. Evergreen Melodies CL07. Available from: Evergreen Melodies, PO Box 52, Cheltenham, GL50 1YQ, England – tel. 01242 515156 or online at sales@thisengland.co.uk Credit cards accepted. Price £9.95. Most of the 2,000 musicals which have graced the West End stage since Gilbert and Sullivan have been forgotten so this CD of original orchestras playing the original lively music – complementing the book "London Lights" - is a welcome addition to the Evergreen Melodies catalogue which now boasts almost 150 titles. The first six tracks are tuneful compilations of the complete musical and have never before been released on CD. The other seven tracks are melodic foot tapping singles, all adding up to a delightful light music CD with a swing in the step. Edmund Whitehouse

TEST CARD MUSIC Volume 10 Organ Grinder (Frederick Less), Hora (Ilja Genic), Girline (Less), Scaramuccia (Paul Rolke), Nikolashka (Rudolf Maluck), Pizzi Pizzi (L. Rey), Goodnight Madamoiselle ((Armand Bernard), Countrywise (James Turner), Lonely Journey (Alan Perry – real name Ernest Tomlinson), Welcome Waikiki (Laiser & Laube), Honolulu (Reipsch & Ackerman), Minute for String Orchestra (Capuzzi), Hot Line (William Gardner), Bossa Nova in the Moonlight ((Geo Voumard), Polka on the Rocks (Heinz Hőtter), Five to Play (Hőtter), Shake it Down (Hans Gluck), Bavarian Ramble (Gardner), Rainbow Room (Marino & Rollefson), West One (Gardner), Goo Goo Eyes (Frank Chacksfield) and Filigree (H. Lehmann). Apollo Sound APSCD236, 56:59 minutes. Fans of this enterprising series have been waiting some while for this latest release, but their patience has finally been rewarded. And ‘rewarded’ is the right word, because Test Card Music enthusiasts will find much to delight them in this latest collection – as usual the brainchild of our good friends Heinz Herschmann and Chris Churcher. With the exception of the two Heinz Hőtter numbers from Bosworth & Co., all the tracks are from Mozart Edition GB Ltd. The Orchestra Raphaele is featured on no less than eight tracks, and it is good to hear the fine Cologne Studio Orchestra. There are plenty of pleasant, relaxed light orchestral sounds among the more up-tempo numbers, and I personally think that this is one of the best selections among Apollo Sounds’ recent releases. You can’t help but feel happy when you listen to this CD! David Ades All Apollo Sound CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

PAUL MAURIAT "Le Couturier Musical" 3-CD collection featuring the famous French conductor, composer and arranger in his best-known works. Paul Mauriat plays his International Hits Love is Blue, Sabre Dance, Those Were The Days, New York New York, I Say a Little Prayer, Lara’s Theme, A Man and a Woman, Ebb Tide etc. [22 tracks] Paul Mauriat – Composer I Will Follow Him, Piano Star, Last Summer, Voila Voila, You, Baby [22 tracks, including vocals by Petula Clark, Caterina Valente etc.] Paul Mauriat – Arranger featuring various singers and four tracks under Mauriat’s pseudonym ‘Nico Papadopoulos’ [20 tracks] France Mercury Universal 983 230-5. This superb tribute is the creation of RFS member Serge Elhaik, and it is a beautifully produced box set which will make Mauriat’s fans very happy indeed! A glossy booklet featuring numerous photographs is bound into the box itself, and anyone with basic schoolboy French should not find it too difficult to understand most of the text. This is a high-quality product in all respects, and we send our sincere congratulations to Serge for his splendid work. David Ades This collection is available to special order through the RFS Record Service.

THE SPLENDOUR OF THE MARCH PART 1 - In Concert. The Band of HM Royal Marines School of Music / Lieutenant Colonel F. Vivian Dunn CVO OBE FRAM RM with Frederick Harvey (Baritone). Neville - Silver Bugles; Alford - Old Panama; Hall - The New Colonial; O’Reilly-Sanderson - Drake Goes West; Dodgson-Phillips - The Fishermen of England; Anderson - Bugler’s Holiday; Dunn - The Admiral’s Regiment; Farnon - Derby Day; Sousa - Manhattan Beach, Hands Across the Sea, The Invincible Eagle, The Black Horse Troop, The Pride of the Wolverines; Work - Marching Thro’ Georgia. THE SPLENDOUR OF THE MARCH PART 2 - The 1968 Royal Tournament. The Massed Bands, Corps of Drums and Fanfare Trumpets of HM Royal Marines conducted by Lieutenant Colonel F. Vivian Dunn CVO OBE FRAM RM. Display by the Royal Marines Corps Of Drums and Fanfare Trumpets; The Royal Marines Massed Bands - Marching Display & Finale/Salute and March Off. (59:00) Eastney Collection RMHSEC012. Available from: Eastney Collection, 60 Mayford Road, London SW12 8SN, telephone 0208 673 6157. www.eastneycollection.com The latest arrival from the Eastney Collection features more of Sir Vivian Dunn’s renowned recordings with the Royal Marines Band Service, while he was serving as their Principal Director of Music. The disc divides into two distinct sessions, the first and longer section is based on studio recordings with the Royal Marines School of Music Band, whilst the remainder of the disc emanates from live recordings made at the 1968 Royal Tournament featuring The Massed Bands, Corps of Drums and Fanfare Trumpets of HM Royal Marines. Considering all the obvious difficulties inherent in producing a live recording in such a vast echoing area as Earls Court, the engineers have achieved wonders and the results give the listener a compelling sense of being caught up in a great, historic and thrilling occasion. This was Sir Vivian’s last appearance at a Royal Tournament as PDM of the Royal Marines – he was subsequently to retire a few months later, and amongst the music featured in this sequence is a Kenneth Alford Medley, Cavalry of the Steppes and a stunning Sunset, played by no less than eighty buglers! The studio recordings referred to earlier consist mainly of marches and were made in the famous EMI Abbey Road Studio. Included is one of Vivian Dunn’s own superb essays in the genre, The Admiral’s Regiment, written specially for the 1964 Royal Marines Tercentenary and a quintet of marches by the American March King, John Phillip Sousa; of which The Black Horse Troop, with its simulated hoofbeats is particularly engaging. Sir Vivian was a stalwart champion throughout his life of quality light music and two fine examples of the genre are included in this compilation. Leroy Anderson’s ebullient Bugler’s Holiday, is brilliantly played by three expert Royal Marine musicians, whilst Robert Farnon’s lively Derby Day, is crisply and stylishly delivered. There is incidentally in the booklet notes, a photograph of Robert Farnon and Vivian Dunn discussing the score of A La Claire Fontaine at Deal, which the latter went on to record with the Light Music Society Orchestra and is currently available on a Vocalion CD – CDLK4182. One further strong inducement (if more were needed) to acquire this highly desirable disc is the presence on two of the tracks – Drake Goes West and The Fisherman of England, of the fine baritone voice of Frederick Harvey with its enviable clear articulation. The Eastney Collection is to be congratulated on restoring such valuable and distinguished recordings back to circulation and Brian Culverhouse, an EMI Recording Producer 1952-1972 who supervised the original recording sessions has expertly processed the digital re-mastering of these musical treasures to excellent effect. Roger Hyslop

MARCH MONTAGE – The Band and Bugles of The Light Division featuring the Pipes and Drums of the Scots Guards Association (Manchester Branch) / Major Calum Gray BA (Hons.) ARCM psm Fucik - Entry of the Gladiators; Meyerbeer/Godfrey - Les Huguenots; Mc Bain - Mechanized Infantry; Williams - Midway March; Mendelssohn – Wedding March; Texidor - Amparito Roca; Greig - Funeral March; Ganne – Marche Lorraine; Ord-Hume - The BB and CF; Alford - The Vanished Army; Sousa - The Stars and Stripes Forever; Jessell arr. Gould - The Parade of the Wooden Soldiers (73:00) CHEVRON CHVCD 23. If you are somewhat daunted at the prospect of sitting through 70 minutes or so of non-stop marches, perhaps I might allay such fears by quoting the comments of the Director of Music of the Band of the Light Division, Major Calum C. Gray in the introductory notes to this CD thus – "It would be perfectly understandable, if on picking up a band recording featuring marches, your mind immediately conjures up images of a parade square replete with band, marching troops and a terrifying RSM barking out his orders. Yet as this recording wil demonstrate, the musical genre entitled ‘The March’ is incredibly diverse, capable of stirring up emotions ranging from pride and joy to tragedy and despair". This claim is amply borne out on this new release from Chevron, with a splendidly wide ranging selection representing marches from the Parade Ground, Silver Screen, Stage & Concert Platform and extending in mood from the flamboyant joyous character of the Spanish March Amparito Roca – the provenance of which now seems to be in some doubt – to the solemn heart rending strains of Grieg’s Funeral March, written as a tribute to the composer’s great friend and composer of the Norwegian National Anthem, Rikard Nordraak. Other highlights are the music from Meyerbeer’s opera Les Huguenots, heard each year at the Trooping the Colour ceremony on Horse Guards and Leon Jessell’s popular Parade of the Wooden [Tin?] Soldiers - famous for its use many years ago for BBC Radio Children’s Hour ‘Toytown’ Series, in Morton Guild’s somewhat quirky arrangement. Kenneth Alford’s poignant march The Vanished Army, dates from 1918, and it is dedicated to the first 100,000 who ‘gave their all’ during the First World War. Further contrast is provided by three appearances by the Pipes and Drums of the Scots Guards Association, playing medleys of traditional Scottish marching tunes arranged by Major Gray. The sound is excellent, full vivid and detailed and the sessions took place in the Regimental Chapel of Sir John Moore Barracks, Winchester. Interestingly, they were recorded, engineered, produced and mastered by the Royal Marines Band Service. A first class product! Roger Hyslop

EMI have recently released a further batch of ‘2 on ones’…

JULIE LONDON "Julie / Love on the Rocks" EMI 3530262.

The release of these two albums has been heavily influenced by requests from the many Julie great standards such as "Somebody Loves Me", and "Bye Bye Blackbird". "Love On The Rocks" is an album which contains outstanding tracks which include "Willow Weep For Me", "A Cottage For Sale", and "Love On The Rocks".

KAY STARR "Just Plain Country/Tears and Heartaches" EMI 3529302.

On "Just Plain Country" Kay Starr proves that even country music isn't beyond her vocal talents, zipping through the classics like "Crazy", "Walk On By", and "Singing The Blues". "Tears And Heartaches Old Records" also contains a few classic country tunes; "Make the World Go Away" and "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" to name but two.

AL MARTINO "We Could / Think I'll Go Somewhere And Cry Myself to Sleep" EMI 3530152. Two great Al Martino albums making their debut on CD. "We Could" is an album of ballads sung with Al Marline's unique rich Latin voice. "Think I'll Go Somewhere and Cry Myself to Sleep" contains the title track as well as "Wiedersehn", "Husbands and Wives", and "You Hurt Me".

JUNE CHRISTY "The Cool School/Do Re Mi" EMI 3510172.

"The Cool School" is an album featuring familiar tunes like "When You Wish Upon A Star", and "Swinging On A Star". In contrast "Do Re Mi" is an album of songs from the Broadway show of the same name. "Cry Like The Wind", "Make Someone Happy" and "Fireworks" are the highlight tracks but the whole album swings in great style.

NANCY WILSON "From Broadway with Love/Tender Loving Care" EMI 3512832.

"From Broadway with Love" contains a dozen great classics from the Broadway show stage. This album features orchestrations which fall into three distinctive styles and as usual Nancy Wilson gives all of these songs her very own treatment. "Tender Loving Care" is an album of love songs but not all sung or orchestrated in the form of slushy ballads. Some are pure romance and love but others really swing. Billy May arranges and conducts on this album.

The Essential NANCY SINATRA Bang Bang, Sugar Town, Somethin’ Stupid, Kind of a Woman, Let Me Kiss You, You Only Live Twice, etc. (26 tracks) EMI 356 2332. If your Dad is someone like Frank Sinatra it could be said that you have a head start in life, but somehow one gets the feeling that Nancy would have made a success of her career whoever her parents had been. Her big hits are here including duets with the likes of Dad (naturally) and Lee Hazlewood. Nancy has penned her own sleeve notes, and fans will certainly want this compilation. David Ades

WIENER MUSIK – Robert Stolz conducting the Berlin and Vienna Symphony Orchestras 12-CD Box Set Sony/BMG 82876678902. In his liner notes for Guild’s ‘Buried Treasures’ album [GLCD 5118], David Ades reminds us that Robert Stolz, who lived to the grand old age of 95, was an acclaimed Austrian composer, extremely popular in his homeland, [who] went to Hollywood to escape the Nazis where he enjoyed success writing music for films such as ‘Spring Parade’ and ‘It Happened Tomorrow’. He returned to the country of his birth in 1946, and as well as being one of the major composers of the last century – he was often described as "the king of the silver operetta" – he was also a fine conductor of 19^th century Viennese dance music. At the age of nineteen he had actually met Johann Strauss Jr. – another "king": of the waltz. We have here 155 of the best tunes not only from the Strauss Family but also from Joseph Lanner, Joseph Libitzky, Joseph Gungl, Philipp Fahrbach, Franz von Suppé, Bélá Kéler, Karl Komzàk Sr, Juventino Roses, Carl Michael Ziehrer, Richard Heuberger, Franz Lehar, Julius Fučik, Leo Fall, Siegfried Translateur, Karl Komzŕk Jr, Emmerich Kálmán and Robert Stolz himself. This really is a super collection, working out at around £2.50 a disc. If, like me, you are captivated by the annual New Year’s Day Concert from the Austrian capital, or if you are just looking for a life enhancing listen, then these dozen discs [the shortest is over an hour, the longest just under 75 minutes] of this most graceful, captivating music – beautifully played and recorded – will enchant you all the year through. Peter Burt

THE TERRY CAVENDISH ORCHESTRA "All In An Afternoon’s Work" Leagueliner, Delicado, Blue Lou, Colonel Bogey, Moonglow, These Foolish Things, Tuxedo Junction, Big Noise from Winnetka, Fools Rush In, Organ Grinder’s Swing, Stay With It, When the Sun Comes Out, I’ll Be Around, 9.20 Special, Time for Change, Agotado, Monomania, Issmak, Crash Pad, Joyride, Hadrian’s Wall Vocalion CDSML 8419. These recordings first appeared in the Boosey & Hawkes Cavendish Music library, from which you will quickly realise that ‘Terry Cavendish’ is simply a made-up name! The real brain behind this fine group of British session musicians is Ray Davies who provided the arrangements and five of the compositions. The first 14 tracks come from CAV LP 9 made in 1973, featuring updated versions of well-known swing classics published by companies in the B&H group – the only exception being the first track composed by Ray. This album was subsequently released commercially by Pye. The final seven tracks are from other Cavendish albums of the same period. The top players include Alan Hawkshaw, Herbie Flowers, Denis Lopez, Alan Parker and Alf Bigden. Oliver Lomax deserves a special mention for his very interesting and informative booklet notes. David Ades

LES BAXTER AND HIS ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS Unchained Melodies Unchained Melody, Because of You, Blue Tango, April in Portugal, Tropicana, Ruby, I Love Paris, Gigi, Cornflakes, The High and the Mighty, etc plus tracks from the suites ‘Music Out of the Moon’, ‘Perfume Set to Music’ and ‘Le Sacred u Sauvage’ Sanctuary Living Era CD AJA 5572, 75:40 mins. The music of Les Baxter seems to be enjoying something of a revival (another CD can be found later in this feature) and he is also featured in Guild’s second ‘Hall of Fame’. He made some nice orchestral arrangements alongside his more commercial recordings with voices, and as more of his 1950s items fall out of copyright they are likely to be made available once again. David Ades All Sanctuary Living Era CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

DANIEL SMITH (bassoon), with Martin Bejerano (piano), John Sullivan (bass), Ludwig Afonso (drums) – Bebop Bassoon. Killer Joe (Golson), Anthropology (Parker/Gillespie), Blue Monk (Monk), Sister Sadie (Silver), In a Sentimental Mood (Ellington), All Blues (Davis), Doxy (Rollins), Up Against the Wall (Coltrane), Birk’s Works (Gillespie), Sticky Wicket (Gordon) (45:11). Guild Zah Zah ZZCD9820. Daniel Smith has steadily built up a reputation as ambassador of the contemporary bassoon. He continues to amaze us by his portrayal of the instrument, making it do things we never thought bassoons were meant to do. His latest disc is original in conception and immaculate in execution. The bassoon, whilst being the novelty instrument, is one of four equal voices in the quartet; it is not over-exposed, nor are the microphones unequally balanced as can sometimes be the case with such recordings. Smith gives the bassoon a new voice, bringing out the silky smooth middle and upper register of the instrument in preference to the lower, stereotypically clownish qualities more associated with orchestral solos. The bassoon thrives in this register, perhaps putting itself into the territory of the tenor or alto saxophone; but its tone quality is quite individual. A double reed in jazz is rather special and has to be heard to be believed. Peter Edwards This Guild CD is available from the RFS Record Service.

NIGHTS OF GLADNESS In the Palm Courts of the Thirties Nights Of Gladness - Charles Ancliffe & His Orchestra, Loin Du Bal – Bijou Orchestra, Stephane Gavotte - Ferdy Kaufman & His Orchestra, Clock And The Dresden Figures - Albert Ketelbey & His Concert Orchestra, Serenade Notturno D'Amore - Rendezvous Orchestra, Sizilietta - Charles Prentice Drury Lane Theatre Orchestra, Wedding Of The Rose (Der Rose Hochzeit) - Jack Hylton & His Orchestra, Hearts And Flowers - J.H. Squire & His Celeste Octet, Monsieur Tricotin (A Sketch Of Montmarte) - Mantovani & His Tipica Orchestra, Entr'Acte Gavotte - Marek Weber & His Orchestra, Musette - Fred Hartley & His Quintet, Occhi Di Zingara - Alfredo & His Orchestra, Pierrette - Leslie Bridgewater & His Quintet, Fairies In The Moon - Joseph Nuscant & The Troxy Broadcasting Orchestra, Cuban Serenade - Albert Sandler Orchestra, Poupee Valsante (Waltzing Doll) - Orchestre Raymonde, Nola (A Silhouette) - Serge Krish & His Sextet, Poeme - Edith Lorand & Her Orchestra, Teddy Bears Picnic - Alfredo Campoli & His Salon Orchestra, Jealousy (Jalousie) - Emil Roos, & His Orchestra, Serenade Number 1 - Barnabas Von Geczy & His Orchestra, Cuckoo Waltz - New Mayfair Orchestra, Shy Serenade - New Mayfair Orchestra, Grasshopper's Dance - Troise & His Mandoliers Sanctuary Living Era CD AJA 5601, 74:42 mins. Happily there do not seem to be many duplications with some other recent CDs in a similar vein, and with a generous helping of 24 tracks admirers of this kind of genteel light music should not hesitate to add this latest offering to their collection. Peter Dempsey has made an interesting selection, and his informative booklet notes add to the enjoyment. David Ades

LIGHT FANTASTIC! – The Radio Light Orchestra / Lieutenant Colonel John Ware Alford - On the Quarter Deck; Anderson - Blue Tango; Lewis - Autumn Love/Great Western Railway; Farnon - Westminster Waltz; Lai - A Man and a Woman; Vintner – Screwball; Jenkins - Happy Times/Trumpet Concertino (moderato); Richardson - Beachcomber; Hope - Jaunting Car (The Ring of Kerry Suite); Buttall - Autumn Embers/The Lone Ar-ranger Goes Orchestral! Duncan - Tomboy; Sullivan - Selection: The Pirates of Penzance (53:00) CLOVELLY CLCD13805. Available from: Clovelly Recordings Ltd., 1The Old Cannery, Hengist Road, Deal, Kent CT14 6WY Tel/Fax 01304 239356. www.clovellyrecordings.com The Radio Light Orchestra was established in 1999 in the West Country by ex Royal Marines musicians who make up approxiamately half of the players on this new Clovelly release. Despite the fact that the BBC are apparently so ill informed or out of touch with the current music scene that they continue to peddle the line that there is very little demand for light music, this newly established Light Orchestra has been compelled to move to ever larger venues as their fame spreads and demand grows. It’s most recent appearances have been at Plymouth Guildhall attracting audiences of over 600 people! The Orchestra numbers some 38 members - roughly the size I would guess of the old BBC West of England Light Orchestra, and their conductor is a former Principal Director of Music of the Royal Marines.The programme is nicely varied and whilst some of the titles will be very familiar to readers of JIM, there are one or two surprises which makes this disc a valuable new addition to Light Music discography. Paul Lewis is represented by two items: Autumn Love, the theme from a TV sitcom which starred Jimmy Jewel and his Great Western Railway, inspired by all those picturesque West Country branch lines which conveyed happy holidaymakers to their seaside resorts. Gilbert Vintner’s piece Screwball was conceived as a virtuosi xylophone solo and it is played with great dexterity by Kathryn Northcott, whilst particularly valuable is the inclusion of Trevor Duncan’s Tomboy, which is not otherwise available as far as I’m aware in an equivalent modern recording. Clive Jenkins, a Devon composer who has written many works for solo instrument and orchestra is featured by a cameo piece Happy Times, and by the second movement of his Trumpet Concertino, which makes a positive impression - particularly when it is as well played as it is here by Andy Stark. Philip Buttell, another Devon composer arranged a rapidly moving ‘quickfire skit on a number of well known tunes as his The Lone Ar-ranger Goes Orchestral, somewhat reminiscent of Kenneth Alford’s Musical Switches. A nice touch and a refreshingly change is a good old fashioned extended selection rather than the far more usual Overture from The Pirates of Penzance, and rest assured that the strings of the RLO cope well enough with Blue Tango and ‘The Guvnor’s‘ Westminster Waltz. This is a promising and impressive CD debut from this recently formed ensembe, and its not exactly everyday that a new Light Concert Orchestra appears ‘on the block’, so despite somewhat modest running time they should be given every encouragement from all who support the cause of Light Music. The well detailed, spacious recording was made at Alford Hall, Torpoint, Cornwall. More, gentlemen, please! Roger Hyslop

THE VERY BEST OF REGINALD DIXON 2-CD collection featuring many medleys and selections, plus individual numbers such as Tiger Rag, Twelfth Street Rag, Canadian Capers, Espana Waltz, La Paloma and Czardas. EMI Gold 094635599725. It seems incredible that Reginald Dixon died over 20 years ago, so this fine tribute is perhaps long overdue. Tim Wills has made a good choice from Reg’s EMI LPs from the era of the 1950s to 1970s when music at the English seaside resort of Blackpool simply meant Reg Dixon. "Mr. Blackpool" became a legend in his own lifetime, and the CD booklet contains many nostalgic photos. David Ades

THESE FOOLISH THINGS – The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Includes songs by Mack Gordon, Al Hoffman, Buddy DeSylva, Cole Porter, Brooke Bowman, Harry Warren, Rod Thomas and Jack Strachey, incidental music by Ian Lynn. Vocals by Brian Lawrance, Jack Evetts, Anne Lenner, Cathi Ogden, Pete Zorn, Clare Teal, Judith Owen. (57.00) Sony BMG 82876803782. This disc is a selection of music from the film, which mixes original dance band recordings with newly composed incidental music. The vintage recordings are great, but Ian Lynn’s underscore is trashy and makes no attempt to be in keeping with the period. The final track, Strachey’s beautiful song These Foolish Things is heard in a most unattractive arrangement in which the original harmonies have been simplified and ruined. Peter Edwards

FÈTE AU VILLAGE SICILIEN ET NAPOLITAIN France Marianne Melodie 061591 – 49 tracks.This latest 2-CD compilation from Pierre-Marcel Ondher, the foremost authority on vintage light music in France, explores the fascinating repertoire from southern Italy and Sicily. The majority of the recordings come from the first half of the 1950s, but there are generous helpings also from the 1930s and 1940s. There are tarantellas, mazurkas, polkas and waltzes galore, and all tracks have detailed information regarding the recordings. PMO has written the comprehensive booklet notes in French, but English-only readers will be glad to know that Ralph Harvey has contributed some paragraphs in English. Many RFS members have purchased previous collections from this team, and they can be confident that the usual blend of the tuneful, and unexpected, is here in plenty. David Ades This 2-CD set is available to special order from the RFS record Service.

SALONORCHESTER SCHWANEN Conducted by GEORG HUBER Salon Orchestra Favourites Vol. 4 GERMAN HIT SONGS OF THE 1930s, featuring music by Gerhard Winkler, Peter Kreuder and Werner Richard Heymann. The fact that this series has now reached volume 4 is ample proof that there is a healthy demand for this kind of music. Vocals are provided by Annette Postel (in German, of course!) although a few items are purely orchestral. The orchestra performs with obvious enthusiasm, and those of you who purchased the first three volumes are sure to want this one as well. David Ades All Naxos and Marco Polo CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

Recent re-releases of classic LP recordings, compiled by Wilfred Askew…

ANDRE KOSTELANETZ (Original Columbia recordings)

Murder on the Orient Express (1975) + Never Can Say Goodbye (1975) Including: Root Beer Rag, Tenderly, Love’s Theme, Stardust, My Own Best Friend, Violets & Silverbells, Maiysha, It’s a Paper Moon. (64:38) Collectable COL-CD-7811.

Wonderland of Sound: Broadway’s Greatest Hits (1962) + Plays Hits of Funny, Finian’s Rainbow & Star! (1969) Including: I believe in You, Tonight, Till there was You, The Rain in Spain, My Favourite Things, My Ship, Funny Girl, My Man. (57:04) Collectables COL-CD-7813.

The Lure of France (1957) + The Lure of Paradise (1959) Including: Mimi, April in Paris, Pizzicato Polka, Reverie, Kalua, Sweet Leilani, Lotus Land, We Kiss in a Shadow. (75:29). Collectables COL-CD-7814

LES BAXTER – The Fruits of Dreams: Ports of Pleasure (1957) + The Sacred Idol (1960) (Original Capitol recordings) Including: City of Veils, Monkey Dance of Bali, Pearls of Ceylon, The Gates of Annam, Fruit of Dreams, Aquaducts, Temple of Gold, Pyramid of the Sun. (70:49) Cherry Red ACMEM57CD.

THE JOHNNY MAN SINGERS – Sixties Man (Original Liberty recordings) Including: The Girl from Ipanema, Snow, Call Me, Cherish, Mrs Robinson, Daydream, Goldfinger, A Taste of Honey. (60:01) Cherry Red ACMEM53CD.

SAMMY KAYE – Midnight Serenade (1959) + Ballroom Date (1960) (Original Columbia recordings) Including: I’ll See You in My Dreams, It Had to be You, I’ll Get By, The Very Thought of You, Baby Face, Blue Prelude, Temptation, Tea for Two. (63:22) Collectables COL-CD-7698.

THE FRANK CHACKSFIELD ORCHESTRA – I Could Have Danced All Night. Including: Wouldn’t it be Lovely, Carousel Waltz, Shall We Dance, On the Street Where You Live, Hello Young Lovers, Stranger in Paradise, Ascot Gavotte, Moon River. (49:23) Start Entertainment Parade PAR 2088

PERCY FAITH – The Oscar: Soundtrack music. Collectables COL-CD-7815

LAWRENCE WELK & HIS CHAMPAGNE MUSIC – Bubbling Over (original mono recordings 1938-1954. Including: Bubbles in the Wine, Two Sleepy People, Maria Elena, Sweethearts or Strangers, Shenandoah Waltz, Moonlight Bay, Ivory Rag, Oh Happy Day. (77:19) Sanctuary Living Era CDAJA 5552.

Finally we have a batch of late April releases from Mike Dutton’s Vocalion label…..

WERNER MÜLLER "ON THE MOVE & THE LATIN SPLENDOUR OF..." ON THE MOVE PFS 4029 (1964) STEREO Istanbul (Kennedy; Simon); American patrol (Meacham arr. Forster); In Hamburg sind die Nächste lang (Bette); Brazil (Barroso; James; Pepper); Arrivederci Roma (Rascel); Mustapha (Assam; Barclay); South of the border (Kennedy; Carr); Vaya con Dios (Russell; James; Pepper); Calcutta (Gaze); A foggy day in London Town (G & I Gershwin); April in Portugal (Kennedy; Ferrao); I love Paris (Porter); Sayonara (Yoshida; Morgan arr. Forster); España (Chabrier; arr. Flor) THE LATIN SPLENDOR OF… PFS 4199 (1970) STEREO Delicado (Azevedo; Lawrence); Perfidia (Dominguez); Pepito (Truscott; Taylor); Yours (Gamse; Sherr; Roig; Rodriguez); Eso es el amor (Iglesias; Elgos; Skylar); Mambo jambo (Prado; Karl; Towne); Frenesie (Dominguez; Charles; Russell); El Cumbanchero (Hernandez); Solamente una vez (You belong to my heart) (Lara); Cumana (Allen; Spina; Hillman); Amor, amor (Ruiz; Mendez; Skylar); A Banda (De Hollanda) TELDEC ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4303.

EDMUNDO ROS "ARRIBA! & BONGOS FROM THE SOUTH" ARRIBA! PFS 4092 (1966) STEREO In a little Spanish town (Wayne; Lewis; Young); Siboney (Lecuona; Morse); The laughing samba (Rizzo; Johnson; Meroff; Spear); Get me to the church on time (Loewe; Lerner); Hello, Dolly! (Herman); Oye negra (Morales; Camacho); Holiday for strings (Rose); Corcovado (Dunn; Rixner); Heartaches (Hoffman; Klenner); From Russia with love (Bart); Al di la (Donida; Mogol; Drake); If you love me (Monnot) BONGOS FROM THE SOUTH PFS 34010 (1962) STEREO Deep in the heart of Texas (Hershey; Swander); Lisbon Antigua (Portela; Galhardo; da Vale); Lady of Spain (Evans; Reaves; Damerell); La comparsa (Lecuona); My old Kentucky home (Foster arr. Ros; Hanmer); Brasil (Russell; Barroso); When the saints go marching in (Trad arr. Ros; Hanmer); Moon over Miami (Burke; Leslie); Roses from the South (Strauss arr. Ros; Hanmer); Taboo (Lecuona; Stillman); In a little Spanish town (Wayne; Lewis; Young); El Cumbanchero (Hernandez) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4313.

MANTOVANI "THE GREATEST GIFT IS LOVE & STOP THE WORLD... & OLIVER!" THE GREATEST GIFT IS LOVE SKL 5216 (1975) STEREO The greatest gift (Mancini; David); The old fashioned way (Garvarentz; Aznavour; Kasha; Hirshorn); Si (Go before you break my heart) (Pilat; Panzeri; Conti; Pace; Newell); Solitude (De Lange; Mills; Ellington); Sing (Raposo); Cool summer evening (Mantovani); What are you doing the rest of your life? (A & M Bergman; Legrand); The day of the locust (Barry); The entertainer (Joplin; arr. Shaw); Send in the clowns (Sondheim); Love song ‘The Freak’ (Chaplin); She (Aznavour; Kretzmer) STOP THE WORLD I WANT TO GET OFF & OLIVER! PS 270 (1962) STEREO OLIVER! (Bart) I’d do anything; You’ve got to pick a pocket or two; Consider yourself; Where is love?; Oom-pah-pah; Reviewing the situation; Oliver; Who will buy?; As long as he needs me STOP THE WORLD (Bricusse; Newley) Lumbered; Someone nice like you; Meilinki Meilchick; Once in a lifetime; Gonna build a mountain; I wanna be rich; What kind of fool am I? DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4324.

FRANK CHACKSFIELD "VINTAGE ’52 & GREAT COUNTRY AND WESTERN HITS" VINTAGE ’52 PFS 4413 (1977) STEREO Cry (Kohlman; Churchill); (I wonder why) You’re just in love (Berlin); (Ah, the apple tree) When the world was young (Gerard; Vannier; Mercer; Colpet); Lullaby of Birdland (Shearing; Forster); Kiss of fire (Villoldo; Allen; Hill); Wheel of fortune (Benjamin; Weiss) with Kenny Baker (solo trumpet); High noon (Do not forsake me) (Tiomkin; Washington); No two people (Loesser); Under Paris skies (Giraud; Gannon; Drejac); Aufwiederseh’n Sweatheart (Storch; Sexton; Turner) GREAT COUNTRY AND WESTERN HITS PFS 4080 (1966) STEREO with chorus I walk the line (Cash); I can’t stop loving you (Gibson); Sixteen tons (Travis); Anytime (Williams; Jordan); Lovesick blues (Mills; Friend); Don’t let the stars get in your eyes (Willet); El Paso (Robbins); Cold, cold heart (Williams); Jambalaya (Williams; Feltz); Your cheatin’ heart (Williams); Half as much (Williams); Walking the floor over you (Tubb) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4325.

RONNIE ALDRICH "LOVE STORY & THE WAY WE WERE" LOVE STORY PFS 4222 (1971) STEREO It’s Impossible (Manzanero); (I Never Promised You) A Rose Garden (South); My Sweet Lord (Harrison); Mr Bojangles (Walker); Woodstock (Mitchell); I Think I Love You (Romeo); Amazing Grace (Trad arr. Aldrich); What Is Life (Harrison); Theme from "Love Story" (Lai; Sigman); Candida (Wine; Levine); El Condor Pasa (Robles arr. Milchberg); Togetherness (Aldrich) THE WAY WE WERE PFS 4300 (1974) STEREO Love’s Theme (White); The Way We Were (Hamlisch; Bergman); Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress) (Laurie); I’ll Have To Say I Love You In A Song (Croce); Top Of The World (Bettis; Carpentier); Have You Heard (Pinder); Last Time I Saw Him (Masser; Sawyer); What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life? (Bergman; Legrand); Vado Via (Riccardi; Albertelli); Wave (Jobim); Happiness Is Me And You (O’Sullivan); Dark Lady (Durrill) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4331.

GUY LOMBARDO "LOMBARDO GOES LATIN & BELLS ARE RINGING" LOMBARDO GOES LATIN ST 1191 (1960) STEREO Cha Cha Cacciatore (Bergman); Ti-Pi-Tin (Grever; Leveen); Besame Mucho (Velasquez); Venezuela (Coleman; Corenzo); Glow Worm (Lincke; Larry arr Owens); Frenesi (Dominguez; Whitcup); Perfidia (Dominguez; Leeds); Cecilia (Dreyer; Herman); The Breeze And I (Lecuona; Stillman); Dinah (Akst; Lewis; Young); A Una Ola (Grever; Dole); Green Eyes (Menendez; Rivera; Utrera; Woods) BELLS ARE RINGING ST 1453 (1961) STEREO Just In Time (Comden; Styne; Green); Do It Yourself (Comden; Styne; Green); It’s A Perfect Relationship (Comden; Styne; Green); Drop That Name (Comden; Styne; Green); I Met A Girl (Comden; Styne; Green); Mu-Cha-Cha (Comden; Styne; Green); Better Than A Dream (Comden; Styne; Green); The Midas Touch (Comden; Styne; Green); Bells Are Ringing (Comden; Styne; Green); The Party’s Over (Comden; Styne; Green); I’m Going Back (Comden; Styne; Green) CAPITOL ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4333.

CARROLL GIBBONS & HIS BOYFRIENDS VOLUME 3 "Life of the party": Introducing; Life of the party; Roses in December; Damsel in distress: Nice work if you can get it; A foggy day; Things are looking up; Double or nothing: Introducing; It’s the natural thing to do; Moon got in my eyes; Smarty; Mr Dodd takes the air: Introducing; Am I in love; Remember me; Carroll Gibbons looks back - Part 1: Introducing; Margie; Whispering; Some of these days; Carroll Gibbons looks back – Part 2: Introducing; Chinatown; My sweetie went away; I ain’t got nobody; Remember? - Part 1: Introducing; You forgot to remember; My heart stood still; I’ll see you again; Remember? - Part 2: Introducing; My blue heaven; Can’t help lovin’ that man; This year’s kisses; That certain age: Introducing; You’re as pretty as a picture; My own; Be a good scout; The gay imposters: Introducing; I wanna go back to Bali; Day dreaming; The Latin quarter; East side of heaven - Part 1: Introducing; Sing a song of sunbeams; That sly old gentleman; East side of heaven - Part 2: East side of heaven; Hang your heart on a hickory limb; What have we got to lose (Heigh ho, lack-a-day); Shuffle off to Buffalo; Stars fell on Alabama; Judy; Let me give my happiness to you; Three wishes; Sleepytime down South; Life is just a bowl of cherries; Black coffee; With thee I swing; If it’s the last thing I do; You can’t have everything - film selection: Introducing; The loveliness of you; Afraid to dream; Please pardon us, we’re in love. Vocalion CDEA 6113.

JACK HYLTON VOLUME 5 • THE DECCA YEARS • "THE LAST ROUND-UP" Nevertheless (I’m in love with you); You’re my decline and fall; Me; I don’t know why; Just once for all time; When the music is playing; Today, I feel so happy; Just friends; Ever since I kissed her on the Volga; Dream sweetheart; You’re taking a chance with me; The flies crawled up the window; I want to cling to Ivy; A bungalow, a piccolo and you; Underneath the arches; Wrap your arms around me; Masquerade; St Louis Blues; Hylton stomp; Love is the sweetest thing; Shadow waltz; We’re in the money; After you; It’s the talk of the town; The last round-up; T’ain’t Vocalists: Pat O’Malley, Eric Breeze, Billy Munn. Vocalion CDEA 6115.

KEN MACKINTOSH, HIS SAXOPHONE & HIS ORCHESTRA "OFF-SHORE" Kiss me again; The man I love; I’ll be around; Plink, plank, plonk; Harlem nocturne; It ain’t necessarily so; Stop! Sit down! Relax! Think!; Strange music; The haunted ballroom; The glow worm; Crew cut; Plymouth sound; The creep; Istanbul; Theme from film ‘Front Page Story’; Off shore; Edwardian; The monster; Air express; Riot in cell block 11; Black velvet; Shifting sands; The very thought of you; Oh my papa; Creeping Tom; Lovers in the dark; That Old Feeling Vocalists: The Mackpies, The Peter Knight Singers. Vocalion CDEA 6116.

KATHY KIRBY "MORE RARITIES & LIPGLOSS!" DECCA SINGLES 1962-66 Big man (Westlake); Who Knows** (Scott; Martin); Playboy (Westlake; Gregory); Too bad for Johnny* (Shuman; Carr); Someone to watch over me (G & I Gershwin); I’ll get by (Ahlert; Turk); Can’t help lovin’ that man (Kern; Hammerstein; Wodehouse); The man I love (G & I Gershwin); I can’t give you anything but love (Mchugh; Fields); Who’s sorry now (Snyder; Kalmar; Ruby); Acapulco 1922 (Allan; Talmy); No regrets (Dumont; Vaucaire; David); Shangri – la (Malneck; Maxwell; Sigman); You’re the answer to everything (Glanzberg); Reach out for me (Bacharach; David); That old feeling (Brown; Fain); Things I want to hear** (unknown); The way of love (Dieval; Stillman); Where in the world (Dunstall); Body and Soul (Green; Sour; Heyman; Eyton); Get Happy (Arlen; Koehler); My Man (Yvain; Charles; Pollock; Willemetz); Till the end of time (Kaye; Mossman); Spanish Flea (Wechter; Stellman) **Unreleased tracks *US release only DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4292.

CATERINA VALENTE WITH SILVIO FRANCESCO DEUTSCHE EVERGREENS SLK 16189-P (1961) STEREO Sing mit mir (Grothe; Dehmel); Kuß mich, bitte, bitte, kuß mich (Carste; Richter); Es war einmal eine Liebe (Jack; Balz); Fur eine Nacht voller Seligkeit (Kreuder; Schwenn); Die kleine Stadt will schlafen gehn (Bochmann; Bergner); Wer ist hier jung, wer hat hier Schwung? (Bochmann; Schulz; Gellen); Ich weiß, es wird einmal ein Wunder geschehn (Jary; Balz); Ganz leise kommt die Nacht (Grothe; Dehmel); Haben Sie schon mal im Dunkeln geküßt? (Jary; Beckmann; v. Pinelli); Kauf dir einen bunten Lutfballoon (v. Pinelli); Musik! Musik! Musik! (Kreuder; Beckman); Sag beim Abschied leise "Servus" (Kreuder; Lengsfelder; Hilm) WENN ES NACHT WIRD IN DEN STÄDTEN ND 625 (1965) STEREO Wenn es Nacht wird in den Städten (Peeters); Wer war der Mann neben dir (Peeters); Paris – C’est très chique (Peeters); San Francisco – Sailor’s Nightclub in Golden Frisco (Scharfenberger); Wien – Charly, zünd die Kerzen an (Galatis); London – In allen Kneipen von Soho (Phillips); Der Abend wird schön (Scharfenberger); New York – Blauer Asphalt (Scharfenberger); Berlin – Julius, ach Julius (Galatis); Rom – Schöne schwarze Rose (Scharfenberger); Mexico City – Mexikanischer Wein (Peeters); Wenn es Nacht wird in den Städten – Finale (Peeters) TELDEC ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4305.

JESS CONRAD "JESS FOR YOU & DECCA SINGLES COMPILATION" JESS FOR YOU LK 4390 1961 Walk away (Kaufman; Anthony); Why am I living (Slavin; Gail); That’s my weakness now (Greene; Stept); You too (Crompton; Sutherland); Rag doll (Pomus; Shuman); Cherry pie (Josea; Taub); (I Wanna) love my life away (Pitney); Little ship (Pomus; Shuman); An angel cries (Davis; Edwards); It tears me all to pieces (Pomus; Shuman; Sair); Out of luck (Gluck Jnr.); Mystery girl (Peacock) PLUS DECCA SINGLES COMPILATION DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4326.

ANTHONY NEWLEY "TONY & NEWLEY DELIVERED" TONY LK 4406 (1961) STEREO Yes! We have no bananas (Silver; Cohn); You’re free (Landesman; Wilder); I was never kissed before (Ellis); Drink to me only with thine eyes (arr. Hackney); All or nothing at all (Lawrence; Altman); Pack up your troubles in your old kit-bag (Powell; Asaf); Pop goes the weasel (arr. Hackney); Who can say (Salvador); Bye bye blackbird (Dixon; Henderson); I should care (Cahn; Stordahl; Weston); Basin Street blues (Williams; Plante); By myself (Dietz; Schwartz) NEWLEY DELIVERED LK 4654 (1965) What kind of fool am I (Bricusse; Newley); I saw her standing there (Lennon; Mc- Cartney); You made me love you (Monaco; Mc Carthy); I guess it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy (Anthony; Mann); Young only yesterday (Perper); Pop goes the weasel (arr. Hackney); And the heavens cried (Elias; Reid); Girls were made to love and kiss (Léhar; Herbert); Addio addio (Modugno; Migliacci; Sigman); Deep river (Trad. arr. Keating; Newley); There’s no such thing as love (Fraser; Hackney); Letters to my love (Moutet; Newley); Strawberry Fair (Sharp; Baring-Gould; adapt. Clapton); You are too beautiful (Rodgers; Hart); What now my love (Becaud; Sigman); I don’t want to set the world on fire (Marcus; Benjeman; Durham; Seiler) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4327.

GORDON MACRAE VOLUME 2 • "STRANGER IN PARADISE" Two-faced heart; Oh! Oh! Oh! Ophelia; This is heaven to me; River of smoke; I’m yours to command; I’ll buy you a star; Ol’ Man River; On a Sunday at Coney Island; Cuban love song; Last night when we were young; Down the old ox road; Cuddle up a little closer; Baby Doll; Be my guest; Laughing at love; These things shall pass; Gentle hands; Blame it on my youth; There’s a lull in my life; How do you speak to an angel; Congratulations to someone; C’est magnifique; Homin’ time; Stranger in Paradise; Never in a million years; I don’t want to walk without you; High on a windy hill; Soothe my lonely heart Orchestras: Paul Weston’s Dixie Eight, Orchestra conducted by Carmen Dragon, Orchestra conducted by Carlyle Hall, Orchestra conducted by Van Alexander, Orchestra conducted by Frank De Vol, Orchestra conducted by Axel Stordahl Vocalion CDUS 3035.

LIGHT MUSIC CLASSICS "FINGER BUSTIN’" SIDNEY TORCH, CHARLES WILLIAMS, ROBERT FARNON, CAMARATA, PETER YORKE, ERIC COATES, AMBROSE Charmaine; The Horse Guards - Whitehall (signature tune of radio show "Down Your Way"); Coronation Scot (signature tune of radio detective series "Paul Temple"); Dance of an ostracised imp; Shooting star (signature tune of TV arts feature "Kaleidoscope"); Ring around the moon; Shopping centre; Jumping bean; Portrait of a flirt; The runaway rocking horse; Jazz legato; Jazz pizzicato; Fingerbustin’ Rhapsody for saxophone; London suite; London suite again Vocalion CDVS 1946. This is a budget release which, hopefully, will serve to introduce some people to the pleasures of Light Music and encourage them to investigate the available repertoire more fully. RFS members probably have all these pieces in their collections, although they may welcome the opportunity to hear some of these pieces again in new digital restorations.

LES BROWN "SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY" Leap frog; Out of nowhere; Daybreak serenade; I’ve got my love to keep me warm; I’m a-telling you, Sam; High on a windy trumpet; Lover’s leap; Doctor, lawyer, Indian chief; Day by Day; Jumpy Stumpy; Sentimental Rhapsody; Dardanella; Triskaidekaphobia (Tris-ky-dec-a-fobia); There’s good blues tonight; A foggy day (in London town); Drifting and dreaming; Beware my heart; Floatin’; I bring you Spring; Blue moon; Green eyes; Deep purple; Sentimental journey; Taking a chance on love Vocalists: "Stumpy" Brown, Butch Stone, Doris Day, Eileen Wilson, Jack Haskell Vocalion CDVS 1947.

KEEPING TRACK

Dateline June 2006

The GUILD series has undoubtedly been an unprecedented success – and still they keep coming, thick and fast!! These five releases cover a very wide timescale and a huge range of different musical styles.

SAY IT WITH MUSIC is the subtitle – taken from the name of the first track – of VOLUME III OF THE 1950s, and spans the years 1952-1955 [GLCD5119]. It follows the established format of combining the well-known with the less-familiar, and features mainly commercial recordings, interspersed with just a few from publishers’ libraries. In addition to works by some of the Great American Songbook composers such as Berlin, Kern, Rodgers and Schwartz, we encounter a number of British, European and American writers, who achieved fame (and hopefully fortune) with their purely orchestral compositions included here. Although some of the titles may not immediately spring to mind, many of the tracks would have been regularly heard on radio broadcasts, certainly those of the BBC. As I have remarked before, there is a definite difference in style and character between Light Music of the mid- to late-’40s on the one hand, and the early-’50s on the other; although this may not have been very obvious at the time, it becomes much more so with the benefit of hindsight, particularly when listening to this very enjoyable new collection.

The next CD marks a significant change in direction for the GUILD series [GLCD5120]. THE HALL OF FAME – VOLUME I – on its own admission – is aimed at newcomers to the World of Light Music, whilst still intending to appeal to established collectors, who are promised some surprises amongst the familiar items. Although a number of the titles may have already appeared elsewhere on CDs, the opportunity has been taken to carry out completely new digital restorations from the original 78s; this is claimed to offer improvements over releases from the late 1990s, due to the more advanced processing technology now available. There is a wide range of musical styles, resulting in a very varied programme – Percy Fletcher’s My Love To You in a 1930s performance by the Reginald King Orchestra, and Nöel Coward’s Mad About The Boy in an André Kostelanetz arrangement from 1955, represent the two extreme time-points. An innovation is the Featured Composer, in this case Clive Richardson, who takes pride of place with three of his popular pieces in recordings dating from 1945-47. Although David Ades’ biographical notes state that Richardson ‘first trained as a doctor’, this is not strictly true; in an exact parallel with Charles Shadwell, he started studying medicine, but soon gave it up in favour of a musical career and certainly never qualified as a physician. All-in-all, a well thought-out programme which happily ‘kept me company’ during a recent long car journey!

For many years, Haydn Wood has been much overshadowed by his contemporary (and rival?), Eric Coates. This is more than a little unfair; Wood was a highly inventive and versatile composer, and his works encompassed a wider range of genres and styles than those of Coates, who tended to keep to a very few well-trodden paths. Whilst most of the items on JOYOUSNESS – THE MUSIC OF HAYDN WOOD [GLCD5121] will not only be familiar but are likely to be in many collections, this is undoubtedly a very worthwhile addition to the GUILD series. It was inspirational to include the Peter Yorke/ Freddy Gardner recording of Roses Of Picardy, together with Wood’s orchestration of Charles Marshall’s I Hear You Calling Me; other highlights are Seville, Bird Of Love Divine, and the Homage March. It is pleasing that Haydn Wood’s music is now getting its due recognition, and the appearance of this new CD can only assist in that regard.

BRITISH CINEMA AND THEATRE ORCHESTRAS – VOLUME II [GLCD5122] covers the years 1927-39; once again, we are presented with a mixture of the very familiar and the almost unknown – but immediately enjoyable! Amongst the conductors, the names of (Arthur) Anton with organist Al Bonnington, Richard Crean, Joseph Muscant and Frank Tours are prominently featured; judging by the number of recordings that they made (some of which have appeared on previous GUILD CDs) they must have achieved great popularity in their day.The programme opens with what is probably the fastest-ever recorded performance of Buccalossi’s Grasshoppers Dance - I am tempted to wonder just what sort of ‘grass’ these particular hoppers were ‘on’!! Although the composer of the España Waltz is credited as Emmanuel Chabrier, the piece here is really a slightly abridged arrangement of Emil Waldteufel’s famous version of the original Chabrier work Rhapsody – España. There seems to be an increasing interest in music of this type (no doubt helped by Volume I - GUILD 5108) and this new CD will certainly appeal to all those who enjoy Light Music of the pre-WWII era.

And so to the final new arrival – GREAT LIGHT ORCHESTRAS SALUTE THE MUSIC OF RICHARD RODGERS [GLCD5123]. This is another departure from the usual GUILD format and the booklet notes state that it is the first such SALUTE, the implication being that there will be more to follow. Although the works of Rodgers and his collaborators have been much-recorded, this must surely be the first time that such a diverse collection has appeared on CD in purely orchestral guise, performed by so many different ensembles and conductors. This composer wrote little else but Theatre and Film music, and every track is taken from a show, with the recordings dating from 1949-55. By that time Rodgers (in partnership with Oscar Hammerstein) was arguably at the height of his popularity, although the Rodgers and Hart compositions actually date from much earlier. Considering that most of these pieces were originally conceived as songs with lyrics, they have been very successfully transformed into their new format. In this connection, it is good to report that the names of arrangers are included in the booklet notes where appropriate; too often they are the unsung heroes, without whose talents performances like these could never have happened! This is another enjoyable addition to the series and it would be interesting to know which other composers are destined to appear in future SALUTES – as always, watch this space. Tony Clayden

If any readers would like to know the full contents of these Guild CDs, they were listed in our last issue, starting on page 62. All Guild CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

THE BBC RADIO 4 UK THEME – Royal Ballet Sinfonia / Gavin Sutherland. The moment it was announced that the medley of British folk tunes which has started the day on Radio 4 for the past 33 years was to be scrapped, producer Herbie Flowers arranged for the music to be recorded and released as a single, the ‘B’ side of which is Ronald Binge’s Sailing By. The disc is available for £1.99 in the shops, or 78p per track to download from the internet; proceeds are going to the Light Music Society. The performance here is fresh and solidly assured - quite superior to the original recording broadcast on the radio! Isn’t it fascinating how we don’t tend to appreciate something until we’ve lost it? Perhaps a small but significant event like this will help raise the profile of light orchestral music. The Radio 4 Theme single has no catalogue number - but is available in the UK from Asda, HMV, Tesco, Virgin and Woolworths or at the web address www.savetheradio4theme.co.uk Peter Edwards

IN THE LOUNGE WITH GARY WILLIAMS & HIS MUSICIANS Music to Watch Girls By (Velona; Ramin); Sweet Lorraine (Parish; Burwell); I Thought About You (Mercer; Van Heusen); A Swingin’ Affair (Myers; Cass); I Can’t Give You Anything But Love (Fields; McHugh); I’ve Got the Sun in the Morning (Berlin); Lover Come Back to Me (Hammerstein; Romberg); Fly Me to the Moon (Howard); I’m Glad There Is You (Madeira; Dorsey); Baubles, Bangles and Beads (Wright; Forrest); Call Me (Otis; Hendricks); All That Jazz (Carter; Stillman); Change Partners (Berlin); Let’s Get Lost (Loesser); Let There Be Love (Grant; Rand); Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries (De Sylva; Brown; Henderson); As Long as I’m Singing (Darin) Arrangements by Andrew Cottee and Richard Rodney Bennett Recorded at Abbey Road Studio No.3, London, February 2006 Vocalion CDSA 6814. One could describe this collection as ‘cocktail’ or ‘late night’ music, but that would imply that it should be enjoyed while doing something else – possibly more interesting. But that is not the case! Gary’s approach to his lyrics, and his empathy with his musicians demand your full attention, and his choice of numbers confirms what a wonderful period in history the last century was for high quality popular songs. Being the supreme professional that he is, Gary occasionally surprises by slipping in a verse that others have not treated us to previously. The general tone of the album is up-tempo, and the fine musicians performing the great arrangements created specially for Gary include Graham Harvey (piano), Dave Chamberlain (bass), Matt Skelton (drums), Martin Kershaw (guitar), Andrew Cottee (vibes) and Luke Annesley on reeds and flute. If I have one minor criticism it concerns the almost unreadable printing in part of the booklet – but that is the fault of the printers, not the musicians! Gary Williams simply gets better all the time – a great CD. David Ades All Dutton Vocalion CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

LONDON LIGHTS – Streamline (Palace Theatre 1934) New Mayfair Orchestra / Ray Noble; Going Greek (Gaiety 1937) Debroy Somers; Stop Press (Adelphi 1935) New Mayfair Orchestra / Percival Mackey; Seeing Stars (Gaiety 1935)  Debroy Somers; The Little Dog Laughed (Palladium 1939) London Palladium Orchestra / Clifford Greenwood; Operette (His Majesty’s 1938) His Majesty’s Theatre Orchestra / Ben Frankel; Slipping round the corner (from The Good Companions, His Majesty’s 1931) Debroy Somers; On the outside looking in (from The Little Dog Laughed, Palladium 1939) George Scott Wood and his Six Swingers; I’m on a see-saw (from Jill Darling, Saville 1934) Billy Cotton; You’re the top (from Anything Goes, Palace 1935) Jack Hylton; Mad about the boy (from Words & Music, Adelphi 1932) Savoy Hotel Orpheans; After you, who? (from The Gay Divorce, Palace 1933) Henry Hall; Sitting beside ‘o you / What are you going to do? (from Yes Madam? London Hippodrome 1934) George Scott Wood. Evergreen Melodies CL07. Available from: Evergreen Melodies, PO Box 52, Cheltenham, GL50 1YQ, England – tel. 01242 515156 or online at sales@thisengland.co.uk Credit cards accepted. Price £9.95. Most of the 2,000 musicals which have graced the West End stage since Gilbert and Sullivan have been forgotten so this CD of original orchestras playing the original lively music – complementing the book "London Lights" - is a welcome addition to the Evergreen Melodies catalogue which now boasts almost 150 titles. The first six tracks are tuneful compilations of the complete musical and have never before been released on CD. The other seven tracks are melodic foot tapping singles, all adding up to a delightful light music CD with a swing in the step. Edmund Whitehouse

TEST CARD MUSIC Volume 10 Organ Grinder (Frederick Less), Hora (Ilja Genic), Girline (Less), Scaramuccia (Paul Rolke), Nikolashka (Rudolf Maluck), Pizzi Pizzi (L. Rey), Goodnight Madamoiselle ((Armand Bernard), Countrywise (James Turner), Lonely Journey (Alan Perry – real name Ernest Tomlinson), Welcome Waikiki (Laiser & Laube), Honolulu (Reipsch & Ackerman), Minute for String Orchestra (Capuzzi), Hot Line (William Gardner), Bossa Nova in the Moonlight ((Geo Voumard), Polka on the Rocks (Heinz Hőtter), Five to Play (Hőtter), Shake it Down (Hans Gluck), Bavarian Ramble (Gardner), Rainbow Room (Marino & Rollefson), West One (Gardner), Goo Goo Eyes (Frank Chacksfield) and Filigree (H. Lehmann). Apollo Sound APSCD236, 56:59 minutes. Fans of this enterprising series have been waiting some while for this latest release, but their patience has finally been rewarded. And ‘rewarded’ is the right word, because Test Card Music enthusiasts will find much to delight them in this latest collection – as usual the brainchild of our good friends Heinz Herschmann and Chris Churcher. With the exception of the two Heinz Hőtter numbers from Bosworth & Co., all the tracks are from Mozart Edition GB Ltd. The Orchestra Raphaele is featured on no less than eight tracks, and it is good to hear the fine Cologne Studio Orchestra. There are plenty of pleasant, relaxed light orchestral sounds among the more up-tempo numbers, and I personally think that this is one of the best selections among Apollo Sounds’ recent releases. You can’t help but feel happy when you listen to this CD! David Ades All Apollo Sound CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

PAUL MAURIAT "Le Couturier Musical" 3-CD collection featuring the famous French conductor, composer and arranger in his best-known works. Paul Mauriat plays his International Hits Love is Blue, Sabre Dance, Those Were The Days, New York New York, I Say a Little Prayer, Lara’s Theme, A Man and a Woman, Ebb Tide etc. [22 tracks] Paul Mauriat – Composer I Will Follow Him, Piano Star, Last Summer, Voila Voila, You, Baby [22 tracks, including vocals by Petula Clark, Caterina Valente etc.] Paul Mauriat – Arranger featuring various singers and four tracks under Mauriat’s pseudonym ‘Nico Papadopoulos’ [20 tracks] France Mercury Universal 983 230-5. This superb tribute is the creation of RFS member Serge Elhaik, and it is a beautifully produced box set which will make Mauriat’s fans very happy indeed! A glossy booklet featuring numerous photographs is bound into the box itself, and anyone with basic schoolboy French should not find it too difficult to understand most of the text. This is a high-quality product in all respects, and we send our sincere congratulations to Serge for his splendid work. David Ades This collection is available to special order through the RFS Record Service.

THE SPLENDOUR OF THE MARCH PART 1 - In Concert. The Band of HM Royal Marines School of Music / Lieutenant Colonel F. Vivian Dunn CVO OBE FRAM RM with Frederick Harvey (Baritone). Neville - Silver Bugles; Alford - Old Panama; Hall - The New Colonial; O’Reilly-Sanderson - Drake Goes West; Dodgson-Phillips - The Fishermen of England; Anderson - Bugler’s Holiday; Dunn - The Admiral’s Regiment; Farnon - Derby Day; Sousa - Manhattan Beach, Hands Across the Sea, The Invincible Eagle, The Black Horse Troop, The Pride of the Wolverines; Work - Marching Thro’ Georgia. THE SPLENDOUR OF THE MARCH PART 2 - The 1968 Royal Tournament. The Massed Bands, Corps of Drums and Fanfare Trumpets of HM Royal Marines conducted by Lieutenant Colonel F. Vivian Dunn CVO OBE FRAM RM. Display by the Royal Marines Corps Of Drums and Fanfare Trumpets; The Royal Marines Massed Bands - Marching Display & Finale/Salute and March Off. (59:00) Eastney Collection RMHSEC012. Available from: Eastney Collection, 60 Mayford Road, London SW12 8SN, telephone 0208 673 6157. www.eastneycollection.com The latest arrival from the Eastney Collection features more of Sir Vivian Dunn’s renowned recordings with the Royal Marines Band Service, while he was serving as their Principal Director of Music. The disc divides into two distinct sessions, the first and longer section is based on studio recordings with the Royal Marines School of Music Band, whilst the remainder of the disc emanates from live recordings made at the 1968 Royal Tournament featuring The Massed Bands, Corps of Drums and Fanfare Trumpets of HM Royal Marines. Considering all the obvious difficulties inherent in producing a live recording in such a vast echoing area as Earls Court, the engineers have achieved wonders and the results give the listener a compelling sense of being caught up in a great, historic and thrilling occasion. This was Sir Vivian’s last appearance at a Royal Tournament as PDM of the Royal Marines – he was subsequently to retire a few months later, and amongst the music featured in this sequence is a Kenneth Alford Medley, Cavalry of the Steppes and a stunning Sunset, played by no less than eighty buglers! The studio recordings referred to earlier consist mainly of marches and were made in the famous EMI Abbey Road Studio. Included is one of Vivian Dunn’s own superb essays in the genre, The Admiral’s Regiment, written specially for the 1964 Royal Marines Tercentenary and a quintet of marches by the American March King, John Phillip Sousa; of which The Black Horse Troop, with its simulated hoofbeats is particularly engaging. Sir Vivian was a stalwart champion throughout his life of quality light music and two fine examples of the genre are included in this compilation. Leroy Anderson’s ebullient Bugler’s Holiday, is brilliantly played by three expert Royal Marine musicians, whilst Robert Farnon’s lively Derby Day, is crisply and stylishly delivered. There is incidentally in the booklet notes, a photograph of Robert Farnon and Vivian Dunn discussing the score of A La Claire Fontaine at Deal, which the latter went on to record with the Light Music Society Orchestra and is currently available on a Vocalion CD – CDLK4182. One further strong inducement (if more were needed) to acquire this highly desirable disc is the presence on two of the tracks – Drake Goes West and The Fisherman of England, of the fine baritone voice of Frederick Harvey with its enviable clear articulation. The Eastney Collection is to be congratulated on restoring such valuable and distinguished recordings back to circulation and Brian Culverhouse, an EMI Recording Producer 1952-1972 who supervised the original recording sessions has expertly processed the digital re-mastering of these musical treasures to excellent effect. Roger Hyslop

MARCH MONTAGE – The Band and Bugles of The Light Division featuring the Pipes and Drums of the Scots Guards Association (Manchester Branch) / Major Calum Gray BA (Hons.) ARCM psm Fucik - Entry of the Gladiators; Meyerbeer/Godfrey - Les Huguenots; Mc Bain - Mechanized Infantry; Williams - Midway March; Mendelssohn – Wedding March; Texidor - Amparito Roca; Greig - Funeral March; Ganne – Marche Lorraine; Ord-Hume - The BB and CF; Alford - The Vanished Army; Sousa - The Stars and Stripes Forever; Jessell arr. Gould - The Parade of the Wooden Soldiers (73:00) CHEVRON CHVCD 23. If you are somewhat daunted at the prospect of sitting through 70 minutes or so of non-stop marches, perhaps I might allay such fears by quoting the comments of the Director of Music of the Band of the Light Division, Major Calum C. Gray in the introductory notes to this CD thus – "It would be perfectly understandable, if on picking up a band recording featuring marches, your mind immediately conjures up images of a parade square replete with band, marching troops and a terrifying RSM barking out his orders. Yet as this recording wil demonstrate, the musical genre entitled ‘The March’ is incredibly diverse, capable of stirring up emotions ranging from pride and joy to tragedy and despair". This claim is amply borne out on this new release from Chevron, with a splendidly wide ranging selection representing marches from the Parade Ground, Silver Screen, Stage & Concert Platform and extending in mood from the flamboyant joyous character of the Spanish March Amparito Roca – the provenance of which now seems to be in some doubt – to the solemn heart rending strains of Grieg’s Funeral March, written as a tribute to the composer’s great friend and composer of the Norwegian National Anthem, Rikard Nordraak. Other highlights are the music from Meyerbeer’s opera Les Huguenots, heard each year at the Trooping the Colour ceremony on Horse Guards and Leon Jessell’s popular Parade of the Wooden [Tin?] Soldiers - famous for its use many years ago for BBC Radio Children’s Hour ‘Toytown’ Series, in Morton Guild’s somewhat quirky arrangement. Kenneth Alford’s poignant march The Vanished Army, dates from 1918, and it is dedicated to the first 100,000 who ‘gave their all’ during the First World War. Further contrast is provided by three appearances by the Pipes and Drums of the Scots Guards Association, playing medleys of traditional Scottish marching tunes arranged by Major Gray. The sound is excellent, full vivid and detailed and the sessions took place in the Regimental Chapel of Sir John Moore Barracks, Winchester. Interestingly, they were recorded, engineered, produced and mastered by the Royal Marines Band Service. A first class product! Roger Hyslop

EMI have recently released a further batch of ‘2 on ones’…

JULIE LONDON "Julie / Love on the Rocks" EMI 3530262.

The release of these two albums has been heavily influenced by requests from the many Julie great standards such as "Somebody Loves Me", and "Bye Bye Blackbird". "Love On The Rocks" is an album which contains outstanding tracks which include "Willow Weep For Me", "A Cottage For Sale", and "Love On The Rocks".

KAY STARR "Just Plain Country/Tears and Heartaches" EMI 3529302.

On "Just Plain Country" Kay Starr proves that even country music isn't beyond her vocal talents, zipping through the classics like "Crazy", "Walk On By", and "Singing The Blues". "Tears And Heartaches Old Records" also contains a few classic country tunes; "Make the World Go Away" and "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" to name but two.

AL MARTINO "We Could / Think I'll Go Somewhere And Cry Myself to Sleep" EMI 3530152. Two great Al Martino albums making their debut on CD. "We Could" is an album of ballads sung with Al Marline's unique rich Latin voice. "Think I'll Go Somewhere and Cry Myself to Sleep" contains the title track as well as "Wiedersehn", "Husbands and Wives", and "You Hurt Me".

JUNE CHRISTY "The Cool School/Do Re Mi" EMI 3510172.

"The Cool School" is an album featuring familiar tunes like "When You Wish Upon A Star", and "Swinging On A Star". In contrast "Do Re Mi" is an album of songs from the Broadway show of the same name. "Cry Like The Wind", "Make Someone Happy" and "Fireworks" are the highlight tracks but the whole album swings in great style.

NANCY WILSON "From Broadway with Love/Tender Loving Care" EMI 3512832.

"From Broadway with Love" contains a dozen great classics from the Broadway show stage. This album features orchestrations which fall into three distinctive styles and as usual Nancy Wilson gives all of these songs her very own treatment. "Tender Loving Care" is an album of love songs but not all sung or orchestrated in the form of slushy ballads. Some are pure romance and love but others really swing. Billy May arranges and conducts on this album.

The Essential NANCY SINATRA Bang Bang, Sugar Town, Somethin’ Stupid, Kind of a Woman, Let Me Kiss You, You Only Live Twice, etc. (26 tracks) EMI 356 2332. If your Dad is someone like Frank Sinatra it could be said that you have a head start in life, but somehow one gets the feeling that Nancy would have made a success of her career whoever her parents had been. Her big hits are here including duets with the likes of Dad (naturally) and Lee Hazlewood. Nancy has penned her own sleeve notes, and fans will certainly want this compilation. David Ades

WIENER MUSIK – Robert Stolz conducting the Berlin and Vienna Symphony Orchestras 12-CD Box Set Sony/BMG 82876678902. In his liner notes for Guild’s ‘Buried Treasures’ album [GLCD 5118], David Ades reminds us that Robert Stolz, who lived to the grand old age of 95, was an acclaimed Austrian composer, extremely popular in his homeland, [who] went to Hollywood to escape the Nazis where he enjoyed success writing music for films such as ‘Spring Parade’ and ‘It Happened Tomorrow’. He returned to the country of his birth in 1946, and as well as being one of the major composers of the last century – he was often described as "the king of the silver operetta" – he was also a fine conductor of 19^th century Viennese dance music. At the age of nineteen he had actually met Johann Strauss Jr. – another "king": of the waltz. We have here 155 of the best tunes not only from the Strauss Family but also from Joseph Lanner, Joseph Libitzky, Joseph Gungl, Philipp Fahrbach, Franz von Suppé, Bélá Kéler, Karl Komzàk Sr, Juventino Roses, Carl Michael Ziehrer, Richard Heuberger, Franz Lehar, Julius Fučik, Leo Fall, Siegfried Translateur, Karl Komzŕk Jr, Emmerich Kálmán and Robert Stolz himself. This really is a super collection, working out at around £2.50 a disc. If, like me, you are captivated by the annual New Year’s Day Concert from the Austrian capital, or if you are just looking for a life enhancing listen, then these dozen discs [the shortest is over an hour, the longest just under 75 minutes] of this most graceful, captivating music – beautifully played and recorded – will enchant you all the year through. Peter Burt

THE TERRY CAVENDISH ORCHESTRA "All In An Afternoon’s Work" Leagueliner, Delicado, Blue Lou, Colonel Bogey, Moonglow, These Foolish Things, Tuxedo Junction, Big Noise from Winnetka, Fools Rush In, Organ Grinder’s Swing, Stay With It, When the Sun Comes Out, I’ll Be Around, 9.20 Special, Time for Change, Agotado, Monomania, Issmak, Crash Pad, Joyride, Hadrian’s Wall Vocalion CDSML 8419. These recordings first appeared in the Boosey & Hawkes Cavendish Music library, from which you will quickly realise that ‘Terry Cavendish’ is simply a made-up name! The real brain behind this fine group of British session musicians is Ray Davies who provided the arrangements and five of the compositions. The first 14 tracks come from CAV LP 9 made in 1973, featuring updated versions of well-known swing classics published by companies in the B&H group – the only exception being the first track composed by Ray. This album was subsequently released commercially by Pye. The final seven tracks are from other Cavendish albums of the same period. The top players include Alan Hawkshaw, Herbie Flowers, Denis Lopez, Alan Parker and Alf Bigden. Oliver Lomax deserves a special mention for his very interesting and informative booklet notes. David Ades

LES BAXTER AND HIS ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS Unchained Melodies Unchained Melody, Because of You, Blue Tango, April in Portugal, Tropicana, Ruby, I Love Paris, Gigi, Cornflakes, The High and the Mighty, etc plus tracks from the suites ‘Music Out of the Moon’, ‘Perfume Set to Music’ and ‘Le Sacred u Sauvage’ Sanctuary Living Era CD AJA 5572, 75:40 mins. The music of Les Baxter seems to be enjoying something of a revival (another CD can be found later in this feature) and he is also featured in Guild’s second ‘Hall of Fame’. He made some nice orchestral arrangements alongside his more commercial recordings with voices, and as more of his 1950s items fall out of copyright they are likely to be made available once again. David Ades All Sanctuary Living Era CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

DANIEL SMITH (bassoon), with Martin Bejerano (piano), John Sullivan (bass), Ludwig Afonso (drums) – Bebop Bassoon. Killer Joe (Golson), Anthropology (Parker/Gillespie), Blue Monk (Monk), Sister Sadie (Silver), In a Sentimental Mood (Ellington), All Blues (Davis), Doxy (Rollins), Up Against the Wall (Coltrane), Birk’s Works (Gillespie), Sticky Wicket (Gordon) (45:11). Guild Zah Zah ZZCD9820. Daniel Smith has steadily built up a reputation as ambassador of the contemporary bassoon. He continues to amaze us by his portrayal of the instrument, making it do things we never thought bassoons were meant to do. His latest disc is original in conception and immaculate in execution. The bassoon, whilst being the novelty instrument, is one of four equal voices in the quartet; it is not over-exposed, nor are the microphones unequally balanced as can sometimes be the case with such recordings. Smith gives the bassoon a new voice, bringing out the silky smooth middle and upper register of the instrument in preference to the lower, stereotypically clownish qualities more associated with orchestral solos. The bassoon thrives in this register, perhaps putting itself into the territory of the tenor or alto saxophone; but its tone quality is quite individual. A double reed in jazz is rather special and has to be heard to be believed. Peter Edwards This Guild CD is available from the RFS Record Service.

NIGHTS OF GLADNESS In the Palm Courts of the Thirties Nights Of Gladness - Charles Ancliffe & His Orchestra, Loin Du Bal – Bijou Orchestra, Stephane Gavotte - Ferdy Kaufman & His Orchestra, Clock And The Dresden Figures - Albert Ketelbey & His Concert Orchestra, Serenade Notturno D'Amore - Rendezvous Orchestra, Sizilietta - Charles Prentice Drury Lane Theatre Orchestra, Wedding Of The Rose (Der Rose Hochzeit) - Jack Hylton & His Orchestra, Hearts And Flowers - J.H. Squire & His Celeste Octet, Monsieur Tricotin (A Sketch Of Montmarte) - Mantovani & His Tipica Orchestra, Entr'Acte Gavotte - Marek Weber & His Orchestra, Musette - Fred Hartley & His Quintet, Occhi Di Zingara - Alfredo & His Orchestra, Pierrette - Leslie Bridgewater & His Quintet, Fairies In The Moon - Joseph Nuscant & The Troxy Broadcasting Orchestra, Cuban Serenade - Albert Sandler Orchestra, Poupee Valsante (Waltzing Doll) - Orchestre Raymonde, Nola (A Silhouette) - Serge Krish & His Sextet, Poeme - Edith Lorand & Her Orchestra, Teddy Bears Picnic - Alfredo Campoli & His Salon Orchestra, Jealousy (Jalousie) - Emil Roos, & His Orchestra, Serenade Number 1 - Barnabas Von Geczy & His Orchestra, Cuckoo Waltz - New Mayfair Orchestra, Shy Serenade - New Mayfair Orchestra, Grasshopper's Dance - Troise & His Mandoliers Sanctuary Living Era CD AJA 5601, 74:42 mins. Happily there do not seem to be many duplications with some other recent CDs in a similar vein, and with a generous helping of 24 tracks admirers of this kind of genteel light music should not hesitate to add this latest offering to their collection. Peter Dempsey has made an interesting selection, and his informative booklet notes add to the enjoyment. David Ades

LIGHT FANTASTIC! – The Radio Light Orchestra / Lieutenant Colonel John Ware Alford - On the Quarter Deck; Anderson - Blue Tango; Lewis - Autumn Love/Great Western Railway; Farnon - Westminster Waltz; Lai - A Man and a Woman; Vintner – Screwball; Jenkins - Happy Times/Trumpet Concertino (moderato); Richardson - Beachcomber; Hope - Jaunting Car (The Ring of Kerry Suite); Buttall - Autumn Embers/The Lone Ar-ranger Goes Orchestral! Duncan - Tomboy; Sullivan - Selection: The Pirates of Penzance (53:00) CLOVELLY CLCD13805. Available from: Clovelly Recordings Ltd., 1The Old Cannery, Hengist Road, Deal, Kent CT14 6WY Tel/Fax 01304 239356. www.clovellyrecordings.com The Radio Light Orchestra was established in 1999 in the West Country by ex Royal Marines musicians who make up approxiamately half of the players on this new Clovelly release. Despite the fact that the BBC are apparently so ill informed or out of touch with the current music scene that they continue to peddle the line that there is very little demand for light music, this newly established Light Orchestra has been compelled to move to ever larger venues as their fame spreads and demand grows. It’s most recent appearances have been at Plymouth Guildhall attracting audiences of over 600 people! The Orchestra numbers some 38 members - roughly the size I would guess of the old BBC West of England Light Orchestra, and their conductor is a former Principal Director of Music of the Royal Marines.The programme is nicely varied and whilst some of the titles will be very familiar to readers of JIM, there are one or two surprises which makes this disc a valuable new addition to Light Music discography. Paul Lewis is represented by two items: Autumn Love, the theme from a TV sitcom which starred Jimmy Jewel and his Great Western Railway, inspired by all those picturesque West Country branch lines which conveyed happy holidaymakers to their seaside resorts. Gilbert Vintner’s piece Screwball was conceived as a virtuosi xylophone solo and it is played with great dexterity by Kathryn Northcott, whilst particularly valuable is the inclusion of Trevor Duncan’s Tomboy, which is not otherwise available as far as I’m aware in an equivalent modern recording. Clive Jenkins, a Devon composer who has written many works for solo instrument and orchestra is featured by a cameo piece Happy Times, and by the second movement of his Trumpet Concertino, which makes a positive impression - particularly when it is as well played as it is here by Andy Stark. Philip Buttell, another Devon composer arranged a rapidly moving ‘quickfire skit on a number of well known tunes as his The Lone Ar-ranger Goes Orchestral, somewhat reminiscent of Kenneth Alford’s Musical Switches. A nice touch and a refreshingly change is a good old fashioned extended selection rather than the far more usual Overture from The Pirates of Penzance, and rest assured that the strings of the RLO cope well enough with Blue Tango and ‘The Guvnor’s‘ Westminster Waltz. This is a promising and impressive CD debut from this recently formed ensembe, and its not exactly everyday that a new Light Concert Orchestra appears ‘on the block’, so despite somewhat modest running time they should be given every encouragement from all who support the cause of Light Music. The well detailed, spacious recording was made at Alford Hall, Torpoint, Cornwall. More, gentlemen, please! Roger Hyslop

THE VERY BEST OF REGINALD DIXON 2-CD collection featuring many medleys and selections, plus individual numbers such as Tiger Rag, Twelfth Street Rag, Canadian Capers, Espana Waltz, La Paloma and Czardas. EMI Gold 094635599725. It seems incredible that Reginald Dixon died over 20 years ago, so this fine tribute is perhaps long overdue. Tim Wills has made a good choice from Reg’s EMI LPs from the era of the 1950s to 1970s when music at the English seaside resort of Blackpool simply meant Reg Dixon. "Mr. Blackpool" became a legend in his own lifetime, and the CD booklet contains many nostalgic photos. David Ades

THESE FOOLISH THINGS – The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Includes songs by Mack Gordon, Al Hoffman, Buddy DeSylva, Cole Porter, Brooke Bowman, Harry Warren, Rod Thomas and Jack Strachey, incidental music by Ian Lynn. Vocals by Brian Lawrance, Jack Evetts, Anne Lenner, Cathi Ogden, Pete Zorn, Clare Teal, Judith Owen. (57.00) Sony BMG 82876803782. This disc is a selection of music from the film, which mixes original dance band recordings with newly composed incidental music. The vintage recordings are great, but Ian Lynn’s underscore is trashy and makes no attempt to be in keeping with the period. The final track, Strachey’s beautiful song These Foolish Things is heard in a most unattractive arrangement in which the original harmonies have been simplified and ruined. Peter Edwards

FÈTE AU VILLAGE SICILIEN ET NAPOLITAIN France Marianne Melodie 061591 – 49 tracks.This latest 2-CD compilation from Pierre-Marcel Ondher, the foremost authority on vintage light music in France, explores the fascinating repertoire from southern Italy and Sicily. The majority of the recordings come from the first half of the 1950s, but there are generous helpings also from the 1930s and 1940s. There are tarantellas, mazurkas, polkas and waltzes galore, and all tracks have detailed information regarding the recordings. PMO has written the comprehensive booklet notes in French, but English-only readers will be glad to know that Ralph Harvey has contributed some paragraphs in English. Many RFS members have purchased previous collections from this team, and they can be confident that the usual blend of the tuneful, and unexpected, is here in plenty. David Ades This 2-CD set is available to special order from the RFS record Service.

SALONORCHESTER SCHWANEN Conducted by GEORG HUBER Salon Orchestra Favourites Vol. 4 GERMAN HIT SONGS OF THE 1930s, featuring music by Gerhard Winkler, Peter Kreuder and Werner Richard Heymann. The fact that this series has now reached volume 4 is ample proof that there is a healthy demand for this kind of music. Vocals are provided by Annette Postel (in German, of course!) although a few items are purely orchestral. The orchestra performs with obvious enthusiasm, and those of you who purchased the first three volumes are sure to want this one as well. David Ades All Naxos and Marco Polo CDs are available from the RFS Record Service.

Recent re-releases of classic LP recordings, compiled by Wilfred Askew…

ANDRE KOSTELANETZ (Original Columbia recordings)

Murder on the Orient Express (1975) + Never Can Say Goodbye (1975) Including: Root Beer Rag, Tenderly, Love’s Theme, Stardust, My Own Best Friend, Violets & Silverbells, Maiysha, It’s a Paper Moon. (64:38) Collectable COL-CD-7811.

Wonderland of Sound: Broadway’s Greatest Hits (1962) + Plays Hits of Funny, Finian’s Rainbow & Star! (1969) Including: I believe in You, Tonight, Till there was You, The Rain in Spain, My Favourite Things, My Ship, Funny Girl, My Man. (57:04) Collectables COL-CD-7813.

The Lure of France (1957) + The Lure of Paradise (1959) Including: Mimi, April in Paris, Pizzicato Polka, Reverie, Kalua, Sweet Leilani, Lotus Land, We Kiss in a Shadow. (75:29). Collectables COL-CD-7814

LES BAXTER – The Fruits of Dreams: Ports of Pleasure (1957) + The Sacred Idol (1960) (Original Capitol recordings) Including: City of Veils, Monkey Dance of Bali, Pearls of Ceylon, The Gates of Annam, Fruit of Dreams, Aquaducts, Temple of Gold, Pyramid of the Sun. (70:49) Cherry Red ACMEM57CD.

THE JOHNNY MAN SINGERS – Sixties Man (Original Liberty recordings) Including: The Girl from Ipanema, Snow, Call Me, Cherish, Mrs Robinson, Daydream, Goldfinger, A Taste of Honey. (60:01) Cherry Red ACMEM53CD.

SAMMY KAYE – Midnight Serenade (1959) + Ballroom Date (1960) (Original Columbia recordings) Including: I’ll See You in My Dreams, It Had to be You, I’ll Get By, The Very Thought of You, Baby Face, Blue Prelude, Temptation, Tea for Two. (63:22) Collectables COL-CD-7698.

THE FRANK CHACKSFIELD ORCHESTRA – I Could Have Danced All Night. Including: Wouldn’t it be Lovely, Carousel Waltz, Shall We Dance, On the Street Where You Live, Hello Young Lovers, Stranger in Paradise, Ascot Gavotte, Moon River. (49:23) Start Entertainment Parade PAR 2088

PERCY FAITH – The Oscar: Soundtrack music. Collectables COL-CD-7815

LAWRENCE WELK & HIS CHAMPAGNE MUSIC – Bubbling Over (original mono recordings 1938-1954. Including: Bubbles in the Wine, Two Sleepy People, Maria Elena, Sweethearts or Strangers, Shenandoah Waltz, Moonlight Bay, Ivory Rag, Oh Happy Day. (77:19) Sanctuary Living Era CDAJA 5552.

Finally we have a batch of late April releases from Mike Dutton’s Vocalion label…..

WERNER MÜLLER "ON THE MOVE & THE LATIN SPLENDOUR OF..." ON THE MOVE PFS 4029 (1964) STEREO Istanbul (Kennedy; Simon); American patrol (Meacham arr. Forster); In Hamburg sind die Nächste lang (Bette); Brazil (Barroso; James; Pepper); Arrivederci Roma (Rascel); Mustapha (Assam; Barclay); South of the border (Kennedy; Carr); Vaya con Dios (Russell; James; Pepper); Calcutta (Gaze); A foggy day in London Town (G & I Gershwin); April in Portugal (Kennedy; Ferrao); I love Paris (Porter); Sayonara (Yoshida; Morgan arr. Forster); España (Chabrier; arr. Flor) THE LATIN SPLENDOR OF… PFS 4199 (1970) STEREO Delicado (Azevedo; Lawrence); Perfidia (Dominguez); Pepito (Truscott; Taylor); Yours (Gamse; Sherr; Roig; Rodriguez); Eso es el amor (Iglesias; Elgos; Skylar); Mambo jambo (Prado; Karl; Towne); Frenesie (Dominguez; Charles; Russell); El Cumbanchero (Hernandez); Solamente una vez (You belong to my heart) (Lara); Cumana (Allen; Spina; Hillman); Amor, amor (Ruiz; Mendez; Skylar); A Banda (De Hollanda) TELDEC ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4303.

EDMUNDO ROS "ARRIBA! & BONGOS FROM THE SOUTH" ARRIBA! PFS 4092 (1966) STEREO In a little Spanish town (Wayne; Lewis; Young); Siboney (Lecuona; Morse); The laughing samba (Rizzo; Johnson; Meroff; Spear); Get me to the church on time (Loewe; Lerner); Hello, Dolly! (Herman); Oye negra (Morales; Camacho); Holiday for strings (Rose); Corcovado (Dunn; Rixner); Heartaches (Hoffman; Klenner); From Russia with love (Bart); Al di la (Donida; Mogol; Drake); If you love me (Monnot) BONGOS FROM THE SOUTH PFS 34010 (1962) STEREO Deep in the heart of Texas (Hershey; Swander); Lisbon Antigua (Portela; Galhardo; da Vale); Lady of Spain (Evans; Reaves; Damerell); La comparsa (Lecuona); My old Kentucky home (Foster arr. Ros; Hanmer); Brasil (Russell; Barroso); When the saints go marching in (Trad arr. Ros; Hanmer); Moon over Miami (Burke; Leslie); Roses from the South (Strauss arr. Ros; Hanmer); Taboo (Lecuona; Stillman); In a little Spanish town (Wayne; Lewis; Young); El Cumbanchero (Hernandez) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4313.

MANTOVANI "THE GREATEST GIFT IS LOVE & STOP THE WORLD... & OLIVER!" THE GREATEST GIFT IS LOVE SKL 5216 (1975) STEREO The greatest gift (Mancini; David); The old fashioned way (Garvarentz; Aznavour; Kasha; Hirshorn); Si (Go before you break my heart) (Pilat; Panzeri; Conti; Pace; Newell); Solitude (De Lange; Mills; Ellington); Sing (Raposo); Cool summer evening (Mantovani); What are you doing the rest of your life? (A & M Bergman; Legrand); The day of the locust (Barry); The entertainer (Joplin; arr. Shaw); Send in the clowns (Sondheim); Love song ‘The Freak’ (Chaplin); She (Aznavour; Kretzmer) STOP THE WORLD I WANT TO GET OFF & OLIVER! PS 270 (1962) STEREO OLIVER! (Bart) I’d do anything; You’ve got to pick a pocket or two; Consider yourself; Where is love?; Oom-pah-pah; Reviewing the situation; Oliver; Who will buy?; As long as he needs me STOP THE WORLD (Bricusse; Newley) Lumbered; Someone nice like you; Meilinki Meilchick; Once in a lifetime; Gonna build a mountain; I wanna be rich; What kind of fool am I? DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4324.

FRANK CHACKSFIELD "VINTAGE ’52 & GREAT COUNTRY AND WESTERN HITS" VINTAGE ’52 PFS 4413 (1977) STEREO Cry (Kohlman; Churchill); (I wonder why) You’re just in love (Berlin); (Ah, the apple tree) When the world was young (Gerard; Vannier; Mercer; Colpet); Lullaby of Birdland (Shearing; Forster); Kiss of fire (Villoldo; Allen; Hill); Wheel of fortune (Benjamin; Weiss) with Kenny Baker (solo trumpet); High noon (Do not forsake me) (Tiomkin; Washington); No two people (Loesser); Under Paris skies (Giraud; Gannon; Drejac); Aufwiederseh’n Sweatheart (Storch; Sexton; Turner) GREAT COUNTRY AND WESTERN HITS PFS 4080 (1966) STEREO with chorus I walk the line (Cash); I can’t stop loving you (Gibson); Sixteen tons (Travis); Anytime (Williams; Jordan); Lovesick blues (Mills; Friend); Don’t let the stars get in your eyes (Willet); El Paso (Robbins); Cold, cold heart (Williams); Jambalaya (Williams; Feltz); Your cheatin’ heart (Williams); Half as much (Williams); Walking the floor over you (Tubb) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4325.

RONNIE ALDRICH "LOVE STORY & THE WAY WE WERE" LOVE STORY PFS 4222 (1971) STEREO It’s Impossible (Manzanero); (I Never Promised You) A Rose Garden (South); My Sweet Lord (Harrison); Mr Bojangles (Walker); Woodstock (Mitchell); I Think I Love You (Romeo); Amazing Grace (Trad arr. Aldrich); What Is Life (Harrison); Theme from "Love Story" (Lai; Sigman); Candida (Wine; Levine); El Condor Pasa (Robles arr. Milchberg); Togetherness (Aldrich) THE WAY WE WERE PFS 4300 (1974) STEREO Love’s Theme (White); The Way We Were (Hamlisch; Bergman); Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress) (Laurie); I’ll Have To Say I Love You In A Song (Croce); Top Of The World (Bettis; Carpentier); Have You Heard (Pinder); Last Time I Saw Him (Masser; Sawyer); What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life? (Bergman; Legrand); Vado Via (Riccardi; Albertelli); Wave (Jobim); Happiness Is Me And You (O’Sullivan); Dark Lady (Durrill) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4331.

GUY LOMBARDO "LOMBARDO GOES LATIN & BELLS ARE RINGING" LOMBARDO GOES LATIN ST 1191 (1960) STEREO Cha Cha Cacciatore (Bergman); Ti-Pi-Tin (Grever; Leveen); Besame Mucho (Velasquez); Venezuela (Coleman; Corenzo); Glow Worm (Lincke; Larry arr Owens); Frenesi (Dominguez; Whitcup); Perfidia (Dominguez; Leeds); Cecilia (Dreyer; Herman); The Breeze And I (Lecuona; Stillman); Dinah (Akst; Lewis; Young); A Una Ola (Grever; Dole); Green Eyes (Menendez; Rivera; Utrera; Woods) BELLS ARE RINGING ST 1453 (1961) STEREO Just In Time (Comden; Styne; Green); Do It Yourself (Comden; Styne; Green); It’s A Perfect Relationship (Comden; Styne; Green); Drop That Name (Comden; Styne; Green); I Met A Girl (Comden; Styne; Green); Mu-Cha-Cha (Comden; Styne; Green); Better Than A Dream (Comden; Styne; Green); The Midas Touch (Comden; Styne; Green); Bells Are Ringing (Comden; Styne; Green); The Party’s Over (Comden; Styne; Green); I’m Going Back (Comden; Styne; Green) CAPITOL ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4333.

CARROLL GIBBONS & HIS BOYFRIENDS VOLUME 3 "Life of the party": Introducing; Life of the party; Roses in December; Damsel in distress: Nice work if you can get it; A foggy day; Things are looking up; Double or nothing: Introducing; It’s the natural thing to do; Moon got in my eyes; Smarty; Mr Dodd takes the air: Introducing; Am I in love; Remember me; Carroll Gibbons looks back - Part 1: Introducing; Margie; Whispering; Some of these days; Carroll Gibbons looks back – Part 2: Introducing; Chinatown; My sweetie went away; I ain’t got nobody; Remember? - Part 1: Introducing; You forgot to remember; My heart stood still; I’ll see you again; Remember? - Part 2: Introducing; My blue heaven; Can’t help lovin’ that man; This year’s kisses; That certain age: Introducing; You’re as pretty as a picture; My own; Be a good scout; The gay imposters: Introducing; I wanna go back to Bali; Day dreaming; The Latin quarter; East side of heaven - Part 1: Introducing; Sing a song of sunbeams; That sly old gentleman; East side of heaven - Part 2: East side of heaven; Hang your heart on a hickory limb; What have we got to lose (Heigh ho, lack-a-day); Shuffle off to Buffalo; Stars fell on Alabama; Judy; Let me give my happiness to you; Three wishes; Sleepytime down South; Life is just a bowl of cherries; Black coffee; With thee I swing; If it’s the last thing I do; You can’t have everything - film selection: Introducing; The loveliness of you; Afraid to dream; Please pardon us, we’re in love. Vocalion CDEA 6113.

JACK HYLTON VOLUME 5 • THE DECCA YEARS • "THE LAST ROUND-UP" Nevertheless (I’m in love with you); You’re my decline and fall; Me; I don’t know why; Just once for all time; When the music is playing; Today, I feel so happy; Just friends; Ever since I kissed her on the Volga; Dream sweetheart; You’re taking a chance with me; The flies crawled up the window; I want to cling to Ivy; A bungalow, a piccolo and you; Underneath the arches; Wrap your arms around me; Masquerade; St Louis Blues; Hylton stomp; Love is the sweetest thing; Shadow waltz; We’re in the money; After you; It’s the talk of the town; The last round-up; T’ain’t Vocalists: Pat O’Malley, Eric Breeze, Billy Munn. Vocalion CDEA 6115.

KEN MACKINTOSH, HIS SAXOPHONE & HIS ORCHESTRA "OFF-SHORE" Kiss me again; The man I love; I’ll be around; Plink, plank, plonk; Harlem nocturne; It ain’t necessarily so; Stop! Sit down! Relax! Think!; Strange music; The haunted ballroom; The glow worm; Crew cut; Plymouth sound; The creep; Istanbul; Theme from film ‘Front Page Story’; Off shore; Edwardian; The monster; Air express; Riot in cell block 11; Black velvet; Shifting sands; The very thought of you; Oh my papa; Creeping Tom; Lovers in the dark; That Old Feeling Vocalists: The Mackpies, The Peter Knight Singers. Vocalion CDEA 6116.

KATHY KIRBY "MORE RARITIES & LIPGLOSS!" DECCA SINGLES 1962-66 Big man (Westlake); Who Knows** (Scott; Martin); Playboy (Westlake; Gregory); Too bad for Johnny* (Shuman; Carr); Someone to watch over me (G & I Gershwin); I’ll get by (Ahlert; Turk); Can’t help lovin’ that man (Kern; Hammerstein; Wodehouse); The man I love (G & I Gershwin); I can’t give you anything but love (Mchugh; Fields); Who’s sorry now (Snyder; Kalmar; Ruby); Acapulco 1922 (Allan; Talmy); No regrets (Dumont; Vaucaire; David); Shangri – la (Malneck; Maxwell; Sigman); You’re the answer to everything (Glanzberg); Reach out for me (Bacharach; David); That old feeling (Brown; Fain); Things I want to hear** (unknown); The way of love (Dieval; Stillman); Where in the world (Dunstall); Body and Soul (Green; Sour; Heyman; Eyton); Get Happy (Arlen; Koehler); My Man (Yvain; Charles; Pollock; Willemetz); Till the end of time (Kaye; Mossman); Spanish Flea (Wechter; Stellman) **Unreleased tracks *US release only DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4292.

CATERINA VALENTE WITH SILVIO FRANCESCO DEUTSCHE EVERGREENS SLK 16189-P (1961) STEREO Sing mit mir (Grothe; Dehmel); Kuß mich, bitte, bitte, kuß mich (Carste; Richter); Es war einmal eine Liebe (Jack; Balz); Fur eine Nacht voller Seligkeit (Kreuder; Schwenn); Die kleine Stadt will schlafen gehn (Bochmann; Bergner); Wer ist hier jung, wer hat hier Schwung? (Bochmann; Schulz; Gellen); Ich weiß, es wird einmal ein Wunder geschehn (Jary; Balz); Ganz leise kommt die Nacht (Grothe; Dehmel); Haben Sie schon mal im Dunkeln geküßt? (Jary; Beckmann; v. Pinelli); Kauf dir einen bunten Lutfballoon (v. Pinelli); Musik! Musik! Musik! (Kreuder; Beckman); Sag beim Abschied leise "Servus" (Kreuder; Lengsfelder; Hilm) WENN ES NACHT WIRD IN DEN STÄDTEN ND 625 (1965) STEREO Wenn es Nacht wird in den Städten (Peeters); Wer war der Mann neben dir (Peeters); Paris – C’est très chique (Peeters); San Francisco – Sailor’s Nightclub in Golden Frisco (Scharfenberger); Wien – Charly, zünd die Kerzen an (Galatis); London – In allen Kneipen von Soho (Phillips); Der Abend wird schön (Scharfenberger); New York – Blauer Asphalt (Scharfenberger); Berlin – Julius, ach Julius (Galatis); Rom – Schöne schwarze Rose (Scharfenberger); Mexico City – Mexikanischer Wein (Peeters); Wenn es Nacht wird in den Städten – Finale (Peeters) TELDEC ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4305.

JESS CONRAD "JESS FOR YOU & DECCA SINGLES COMPILATION" JESS FOR YOU LK 4390 1961 Walk away (Kaufman; Anthony); Why am I living (Slavin; Gail); That’s my weakness now (Greene; Stept); You too (Crompton; Sutherland); Rag doll (Pomus; Shuman); Cherry pie (Josea; Taub); (I Wanna) love my life away (Pitney); Little ship (Pomus; Shuman); An angel cries (Davis; Edwards); It tears me all to pieces (Pomus; Shuman; Sair); Out of luck (Gluck Jnr.); Mystery girl (Peacock) PLUS DECCA SINGLES COMPILATION DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4326.

ANTHONY NEWLEY "TONY & NEWLEY DELIVERED" TONY LK 4406 (1961) STEREO Yes! We have no bananas (Silver; Cohn); You’re free (Landesman; Wilder); I was never kissed before (Ellis); Drink to me only with thine eyes (arr. Hackney); All or nothing at all (Lawrence; Altman); Pack up your troubles in your old kit-bag (Powell; Asaf); Pop goes the weasel (arr. Hackney); Who can say (Salvador); Bye bye blackbird (Dixon; Henderson); I should care (Cahn; Stordahl; Weston); Basin Street blues (Williams; Plante); By myself (Dietz; Schwartz) NEWLEY DELIVERED LK 4654 (1965) What kind of fool am I (Bricusse; Newley); I saw her standing there (Lennon; Mc- Cartney); You made me love you (Monaco; Mc Carthy); I guess it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy (Anthony; Mann); Young only yesterday (Perper); Pop goes the weasel (arr. Hackney); And the heavens cried (Elias; Reid); Girls were made to love and kiss (Léhar; Herbert); Addio addio (Modugno; Migliacci; Sigman); Deep river (Trad. arr. Keating; Newley); There’s no such thing as love (Fraser; Hackney); Letters to my love (Moutet; Newley); Strawberry Fair (Sharp; Baring-Gould; adapt. Clapton); You are too beautiful (Rodgers; Hart); What now my love (Becaud; Sigman); I don’t want to set the world on fire (Marcus; Benjeman; Durham; Seiler) DECCA ARCHIVES • Vocalion CDLK 4327.

GORDON MACRAE VOLUME 2 • "STRANGER IN PARADISE" Two-faced heart; Oh! Oh! Oh! Ophelia; This is heaven to me; River of smoke; I’m yours to command; I’ll buy you a star; Ol’ Man River; On a Sunday at Coney Island; Cuban love song; Last night when we were young; Down the old ox road; Cuddle up a little closer; Baby Doll; Be my guest; Laughing at love; These things shall pass; Gentle hands; Blame it on my youth; There’s a lull in my life; How do you speak to an angel; Congratulations to someone; C’est magnifique; Homin’ time; Stranger in Paradise; Never in a million years; I don’t want to walk without you; High on a windy hill; Soothe my lonely heart Orchestras: Paul Weston’s Dixie Eight, Orchestra conducted by Carmen Dragon, Orchestra conducted by Carlyle Hall, Orchestra conducted by Van Alexander, Orchestra conducted by Frank De Vol, Orchestra conducted by Axel Stordahl Vocalion CDUS 3035.

LIGHT MUSIC CLASSICS "FINGER BUSTIN’" SIDNEY TORCH, CHARLES WILLIAMS, ROBERT FARNON, CAMARATA, PETER YORKE, ERIC COATES, AMBROSE Charmaine; The Horse Guards - Whitehall (signature tune of radio show "Down Your Way"); Coronation Scot (signature tune of radio detective series "Paul Temple"); Dance of an ostracised imp; Shooting star (signature tune of TV arts feature "Kaleidoscope"); Ring around the moon; Shopping centre; Jumping bean; Portrait of a flirt; The runaway rocking horse; Jazz legato; Jazz pizzicato; Fingerbustin’ Rhapsody for saxophone; London suite; London suite again Vocalion CDVS 1946. This is a budget release which, hopefully, will serve to introduce some people to the pleasures of Light Music and encourage them to investigate the available repertoire more fully. RFS members probably have all these pieces in their collections, although they may welcome the opportunity to hear some of these pieces again in new digital restorations.

LES BROWN "SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY" Leap frog; Out of nowhere; Daybreak serenade; I’ve got my love to keep me warm; I’m a-telling you, Sam; High on a windy trumpet; Lover’s leap; Doctor, lawyer, Indian chief; Day by Day; Jumpy Stumpy; Sentimental Rhapsody; Dardanella; Triskaidekaphobia (Tris-ky-dec-a-fobia); There’s good blues tonight; A foggy day (in London town); Drifting and dreaming; Beware my heart; Floatin’; I bring you Spring; Blue moon; Green eyes; Deep purple; Sentimental journey; Taking a chance on love Vocalists: "Stumpy" Brown, Butch Stone, Doris Day, Eileen Wilson, Jack Haskell Vocalion CDVS 1947.