Following up on my last post, which had a dozen new ambient stereo remasters, today we have a second set of 12, this time from the pop, jazz and soundtrack catalogues.One of this week's remasters is an LP of 1938 and 1944 records featuring cornetist-trumpeter Bobby Hackett, reminding me of how much I enjoy his playing. Those early records are squarely (no slight intended) in the Chicago-style jazz vein, but Hackett also made a career of being the lead voice for easy listening instrumentals, including the LP depicted above. That disc is newly transferred for today's post.
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| Bobby Hackett |
Hackett (1915-76) was just 23 when the Chicago-style records commenced in 1938, but was in his mid-40s and very much in his prime when Capital engaged him for the lovely instrumental LP, Rendezvous, in 1957.
He had became known for these types of LPs through his solos on several popular easy listening LPs issued under the name of TV personality Jackie Gleason. Hackett was never paid much for those spots, but Capitol and later other companies engaged him for a long series of instrumental albums under his own name. There were both mood music records and small group jazz performances with such like-minded artists as Jack Teagarden.
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| Glenn Osser |
The backings on Rendezvous were led by studio veteran Abraham "Glenn" Osser (1914-2014). Like many in the industry at the time, he was a former big-band arranger who had moved on to providing charts for recording artists on the Mercury and Columbia labels, along with a few LPs of his own.
The results are smooth and entirely pleasant, similar to what Osser might have devised for such vocalists as Vic Damone or Mindy Carson, albeit with Hackett as the voice. You will hear echoes of Glenn Miller (a former employer of Hackett) and the style of George Shearing (also contracted to Capitol at the time).
The songs were all standards, with the possible exception of the following:
- "Autumn Nocturne" - written by Kim Gannon and Josef Myrow and first recorded in 1941 by Claude Thornhill
- "When I'm with You" - by Mack Gordon and Harry Revel, introduced by Shirley Temple in the 1936 film Poor Little Rich Girl
- "Two Cigarettes in the Dark" - by Lew Pollack and Paul Francis Webster, from the 1934 Broadway comedy Kill That Story
- "Love Me" - a Victor Young-Ned Washington song, also from 1934
- "One Kiss" - written by Sigmund Romberg and Oscar Hammerstein II for the 1928 operetta The New Moon
The jacket suggests that Hackett plays trumpet on this date rather than cornet, but it really didn't make much difference in how he sounded. He seldom used the bigger instrument's more brilliant upper register.
I do love the colorful cover for Rendezvous, with the ambiguous nature of the establishment the couple is entering.
Ambient Stereo Remasters
Today's ambient stereo remasters are in a variety of styles, perhaps something to interest you...
Duke Ellington - Mood Ellington. The Duke's 1947 recordings are not among his most celebrated, but they are plenty good in their own right. This is a classic band, led by one of the greats, and showing off Ellington's current interest in tonal colors.
Georges Auric's Music for Bonjour Tristesse. A gorgeous score by the French composer Auric in support of the 1958 film version of Françoise Sagan's popular novel. Juliette Gréco's languid rendition of the title song defines the term "world weary."
William Warfield - Deep River. The distinguished bass-baritone in magnificent recordings of folk and folk-derived repertoire. Note: all Warfield's solo recordings are available on the blog, except for his remake of Copland's Old American Songs.
Dick Haymes Sings Irving Berlin. Haymes' complete Berlin LP with pianist Carmen Cavallaro is the basis of this collection of numbers from the great songwriter's canon. It also includes seven other 78 sides from 1945-49, including numbers from Annie Get Your Gun.
Neal Hefti on Coral. The arranger-bandleader's 10-inch Coral Reef LP and its 12-inch successor are the sources of this post, which also includes Count Basie's contrasting readings of two of the Hefti compositions - "Why Not?" and "Sure Thing." From the early 1950s.
Ella Mae Morse - Barrelhouse, Boogie and the Blues. R&B covers can be a dreary listening experience, but not these specimens. The marvelous Miss Morse is backed by a Big Dave Cavanaugh combo, and the whole LP sizzles. Also has one of the greatest covers ever.
Hugh Martin and Alec Wilder - The Grandma Moses Suite. The two distinguished songwriters combined to produce the score for a 1951 documentary on folk painter Grandma Moses, producing this treasurable (and almost unknown) piece of Americana.
Victory at Sea - the 1953 Recording. The awesome score to the televised Victory at Sea series of documentaries is as much a tribute to orchestrator and collaborator Robert Russell Bennett as it is to composer Richard Rodgers. This is the original recording.
Andre Kostelanetz Conducts Grofé and Kern. An LP combining Kosty's recordings of Ferde Grofé's Mississippi Suite and Jerome Kern's Mark Twain, the latter of which the conductor commissioned. Interesting works, again in the Americana vein.
Cy Coleman Trio - Piano Patterns. The distinguished songwriter was also a formidable pianist. This was his first LP (or so I believe). It came out on the small Benida label in 1955, several years before Coleman's celebrity as a Broadway composer.
Bing Crosby - High Tor. The excellent soundtrack to a 1956 television adaptation of Maxwell Anderson's fantasy High Tor. With lyrics by the author, music by Arthur Schwartz, and vocals by Bing and the young Julie Andrews. A particular favorite of mine.
The links above will take you to the original posts. There, check the end (or near the end) of the comments for the download links. All these posts feature new artwork as well.
The link to Bobby Hackett's Rendezvous is in the comments to this post, as usual.
