James Last - Russland Erinnerungen (1977)

And one more trip to Russia, this time again with James Last, the more famous brother of Robert. As you know, Mr. Last likes to travel around the world and to visit other civilizations. In 1977 he remembered some of Russia´s favorite tunes, and this is the record which has the famous "Der einsame Hirte" ("The Lonely Shepherd") on it. Written by Hansi himself, it features panpipe virtuoso Gheorghe Zamfir from Romania on the... make your guess.. yes, the panpipe. If you´re talking panpipes, forget about fake Indios in your pedestrian precinct. You cannot get around Gheorghe Zamfir, he´s THE icon of the panflute. Two legends together on this great record, who could ask for more?

Ray Conniff - Happiness Is (1965)

THE man who popularized vocal choruses and light orchestral music in a mix of popular standards and contemporary hits of the 60s is Ray Conniff. And this is the classic Ray Conniff, just as we all love him: Nostalgic, bright, happy and a little kitschy. I like him for bringing light music to me, he´s constantly making me happy and helping me feeling relaxed. If you too want to know what happiness is, just check out this album, it will show you...

Si Zentner - The Swingin´ Eye!!!!!!!! (1960)

Man, this is a crazy cover, isn´t it? And it features some crazy song titles as well, like e.g. "Yes! We Have No Bananas". And it has 8 (eight!) exclamation marks on the cover. Weird, that is... Germans might know the banana-song from the post-war era as "Ausgerechnet Bananen", younger ones might know it from the "5-Minuten-Terrine" commercial...

Trombonist Si (Simon) Zentner was born in 1910. He is best remembered for leading a quality big band, beginning in the late 1950s long after the big band era had ended, when many of the nation's ballrooms were closing down. Si began recording for Liberty in 1959, and after assembling a large touring swing outfit, toured steadily. A great PR man and promoter, Zentner's bands won an amazing 13 straight Down Beat polls for “Best Big Band.” Perhaps the most important among the regular members of the bands Zentner formed was pianist Bob Florence, whose arrangement of a twist-version of Hoagy Carmichael's "Up a Lazy River" crossed over into the top 50 pop charts, winning a Grammy for Best Instrumental, and gave Zentner his biggest hit. Mr. Zentner died in 2000 from leukemia...

Actually, here you´ll get some great swingin´ private-eye music here, some excellent spy sounds. The cover alone is worth this post...

I just found out that this one is still available, so I don´t post the link. Please get this one at your trusted record dealer...

Lester Lanin - Plays for Dancing (1964)

First of all I must apologize to you, the visitors. I changed my email due to continuous spamming, but I forgot to change my notifying address on blogger. Therefore I did not receive any comments over the past four weeks. Sorry for the inconvenience, but it´s fixed now. If you want to leave a comment, please feel free to do so. But now on to the music:

Born in 1907, Lester Lanin had a career as a bandleader spanning over 70 years. His grandfather, father, and six of his nine brothers were all bandleaders as well. He was called the "High Society Band Leader", because he played at the White House to Buckingham Palace to the grand ballrooms of the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers, and played at every presidential inauguration since Eisenhower except for two: Jimmy Carter thought he was too expensive and George W. Bush didn´t ask him. Lester composed the music for Grace Kelly's engagement party with Rainier and the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. You see, you can hardly get higher in society than that, right?

Here´s your chance to get a piece of the cake: Even though Mr. Lanin himself died in 2004, you can book his band under 212-265-5208. Just give them a call and hire them for your next wedding or birthday-party. Remember: Your society party without Lester Lanin is not a society party! If you can´t afford it, here´s a cheaper way to be a perfect host for your High Society guests: Just play this record...

Fritz Schulz-Reichel - Man müßte Klavier spielen können (1964)

First I want to draw your attention to the post on top of my page, called "My lacking lasts". I added a link which leads you straight to my wishlist on "RateYourMusic". I would be glad, if you happen to have one or the other record and consider uploading it. Thanks, and now on with the music:

Fritz Schulz-Reichel was one of Germany´s best piano players. He was born in 1912 and played so called "bar-music", for sitting in a small bar, sipping your Martini, nibbling some peanuts and making your move on the lady next to you. He also was a great composer, most Germans will know his tunes, like "Bon Soir, Herr Kommissar", "Im Café de la Paix in Paris" or "The Man with the Banjo". But the success came with playing songs on a mistuned piano and calling himself "Der schräge Otto", to the rest of the world: "Crazy Otto".
The title of this LP means something like "you should be able to play the piano", to score with women, that is... He also had a TV-show with the same title.
This little gem is real bar-music from 1964, and now you can order a Martini or a Creole´s Cream with 1 or 2 olives, depends on your style. Fritz died in 1990, to salute him, you should order a beer for the piano man...

Frank Valdor - Live in Rio (1972)

Frank Valdor. Hmm. Very little is known about Frank, except that he´s from Hamburg and still touring with his topless and non-topless costumed girls and a band of 9 to 16 musicians. I hope, that he changed his girls in the last 30 years... But if you look at the back-cover, you´ll see him in his legendary seventies-Elvis-like-suit, that he still wears on stage. The music is not as bad as it looks, on the contrary! Very good arrangements and surprisingly good orchestrations. And this is not a Live-recording, the title may be a little deluding. It´s a great record of Brazilian music plus it´s got some good-looking girls on the cover. Who could ask for more? And now fetch yourself a mulatto girl (or boy, depends on your taste) and start to dance...

Roberto Delgado - Letkiss (1964)

Do YOU remember this dance? Well, I don´t, ´cause I wasn´t on this earth at that time. It was good old Germany´s Roberto Delgado, who made this popular back in 1964. It´s an adapted dance from Finland and it had a lot of successors with names like "Letjanka", "Letjulischka", "Letvodka" and "Letborschtsch" or something like that. The dance itself is with some turning and hopping, you know, like "you put your left foot in, you put your left foot out" etc.

Now please enjoy Mr. Delgado, or plainly "Horst" as we know him with a very fine piece of unusual hop-and-dance-music.

Bert Kaempfert - Ssh! It´s... (1967)

Ssh! Don´t you dare to talk! It´s Germany´s greatest composer again...

(I just discovered that only the back-cover is contained in the file. As front-cover please take the one above.) SSSSHHHHHH!!! (Yes, sorry...)

Dick Schory - Re-Percussion (1957)

This album is credited to Richard Schory, who is not the brother of Dick, it´s in fact his alter ego, or just his nickname. Well, Dick is the nickname, not Richard. Or was his real name Dick and his nickname was Richard? Anyway... Dick (or Richard) was a percussionist at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. His popularizing of percussion music in 1957, when this album was released, paved the way for an entire movement in pop music in the late 50's and early 60's that lasted up to 1969. I posted the fantastic "Music for Bang, Baaroom and Harp" earlier, so here is it´s predecessor from 1957. Please enjoy Mr. Schory´s percussion ensemble...

Bobby (Boris) Pickett - The Original Monster Mash (1962)

Yep, why not join other people´s traditions? Especially when they´re fun... There´s been no such thing as Halloween in Germany, but lately you can buy Halloween-equipment to stuff your house. I cought myself scooping a pumpkin and preparing pumpkin-soup yesterday, that´s when I thought I could post a Halloween-album. Even if it´s not instrumental. Well, you can´t say "singing", that´s going a bit too far, but let´s call it "vocal"...

Anyway, this is my contribution to this years Halloween-craze, it´s a long play record, but it features only one smash-hit (for further details see title). Now fetch your costume and listen to Bobby Pickett and his Crypt-Kickers. If you don´t have a costume, you can disguise yourself as a mummy with a few rolls of toiletpaper. Or even cheaper, but not necessarily healthier (depending on where you live) the classical "Adam" disguise. All you need is a leaf, the size depends on... well, you know what...

Sonny Bono - Congratulations, Mr. Hammond (1967)

No, not THAT Sonny Bono! Not the guy who was married to this native American singing sensation, who starred in the Airplane!-movie and who became the mayor of Palm Springs later on. Or is it really him? Did he play the Hammond organ as well? Hmm, I don´t know. And I couldn´t find out either. But there is "Cinderella Rockefella" on it. Wasn´t that Sonny & Cher? Oh, no, that was that couple from Israel, what were their names again? Oh, yes: The Ofarim Family. Or was is just a duo? Abe and Es? What about Gil? Isn´t that their son? But that´s going a bit too far... This is a record from the year 1967, pressed in Austria. Austria is well known for its exports, especially since they brought the Gouvernator to California. So, if you like Hammond-sounds, you should get this record, since this is definitely without Cher. I promise... :o)

James Last - Around the World (1970)

Wow, I almost started a discussion on another blog about sharing files that are not your own. A few people joined this discussion, some pinheads as well, but it was only meant as a comment. So, here are my thoughts concerning this topic:

If you are planning on re-uploading my files and putting the post on your blog, I cannot and I won´t prevent it. It´s good to share music with other people, that´s why I´m doing this, because other people are sharing with me. And to save mankind some everlasting sounds. But please don´t adorn yourself with borrowed plumes (I got that phrase from the LEO dictionary). You may re-tag the files if you want, because mine aren´t tagged at all. But it should be a point of honor to mention the person who gave it to you, because he did the work to bring it to you. He bought the record, he ripped it, he remastered it, he took the pictures of the cover, he edited them, he uploaded the file (which alone takes me about 90 minutes per 50 MB, due to my slow internet-connection!) and he wrote the post on his blog. That should be enough for a little "Thank you", don´t you think?

For those peabrains, who still don´t get my point, here´s a vivid example: Imagine this situation: It´s your birthday and your beloved uncle gives you a Mercedes, which he has bought and restored in many days. Now, whom do you thank: Your uncle for giving it to you? Or Mercedes-Benz for manufacturing the car? Well, I wonder how many letters Mercedes has in their archives...

And another one: Now imagine that you are the beloved uncle. You bought an old car, you´ve restored and refurbished it in many days, and now somebody steals it. The thief gives it to your nephew, because it´s the nephew´s birthday. He doesn´t even mention your name, or where he got this car from, he just tells the nephew: "Hey, nephew, I don´t know where I got this car from, but you should thank Mercedes-Benz for building such a fine car!" Now, if you were the uncle, would you feel happy?

Well, I wouldn´t. To me, it takes a lot of fun out of blogging, seeing other people giving away my work without mentioning my name and / or website. Now, to optimize the sound is a lot of work too. I won´t do it anymore, so you´ll get the real vinyl sound with all the crackle, pops, hisses and other surface noises. Of course I´ll still restore and clean the record itself, but if there´s someone out there who will do the work to remaster this gem, I´d be thankful and I would certainly download it. But now on to the music:

Every real friend of instrumental music should own this James-Last-Box, but it´s pretty rare and therefore very hard to find, especially in a good condition. It contains 3 LPs with one country on each side. That´s in fact 6 countries, Mr. Last has visited musically in 1970: Spain, Mexico, Russia, Italy, France and England. Is your home-country among them? Well, mine isn´t, but Hansi put out a few dozens of other LPs interpreting the music of Germany. This box set resides way up there with a handful of other outstanding records he made, like "Well Kept Secret", "Voodoo Party", "Happyning", his version of "Hair" and many others. Just wait ´til you´ve heard his "Sabre Dance", "Kosaken-Patrouille" or his about 7.5-minute-version(!) of "Greensleeves". And now, sit back in your armchair and take the tour around the world with Sir Hansi and his Orchestra...

James Last - Op Klompen (1969)

Hmm, only 14 people who dropped me a mail for the Jimmie Haskell file. Not very popular, these space-age-records, I guess. Enoch Light went away about 200 times, Les Baxter too... Or is it that people are a little lazy when it comes to do a little thing before getting something?

Well, anyway: Time´s up for Jimmie, here´s another gem from good old James Last. This one is for our friends from the Netherlands and it´s from 1969. "Op Klompen" means to wear these obscure wooden boots, just like Hansi does on the cover. Holland´s (and Germany's) favorites are nice to hear, try to sing along if you dare, but don´t mix up the words... ;o)

Here´s the tracklist:

1) Hoog op de gele wagen
Een karretje op de zandweg reed
De paden op, de lanen in
Hela, gij bloempje

2) In 't groene dal in 't stille dal
Langs berg en dal klinkt hoorngeschal
't Zonnetje gaat van ons scheiden

3) Moeke, d'r staat 'n vrijer bie de deur
Catootje
Daar kwam ene boer van Zwitserland
In Holland staat een huis

4) Vier weverkens
Hoe zachtkens glijdt ons bootje
Knaapje zag een roosje staan

5) Door de bossen door de heide
Limburg mijn vaderland
De bloempjes gingen slapen
Op de grote stille heide

6) 'n Boer wol noar zien noaber tou
Het kwezelken
Daar was laatst een meisje loos
Wel Annemarieke

7) Des winters als het regent
Wie rusten wil in 't groene woud
Roodborstje tikt tegen het raam

8) De wielewaal
De uil zat in de olmen
Een vreemde arme snuiter

Phew, that was hard to type, believe me... Now I´m waiting for Hansi "In Scandinavia", ´cause I still don´t have it...

Xavier Cugat - Bread, Love and Cha-Cha-Cha (1957)

And one more time the great Xavier Cugat, this time he brings to us some bread, some love, and a lot of cha cha cha cha cha cha cha...

Enoch Light - The Private Life of a Private Eye (1959)

I´ve seen this one on another blog, but I´ve prepared this one before, and it´s too great to forget about it. These are spy sounds, as you may have already guessed. Get out your long coat and the sunglasses...

Bert Kaempfert - 6 Plus 6 (1972)

Hmm, six plus six equals... Maybe you can find out how many tracks are on this LP from 1972 by my favorite composer? But let me give you a hint: If you count the months in one year, you get a similar result. If you count all the hours in one day (including the night) and divide the sum by two, what will you get? How many disciples did Mr. Jesus have? Well, this last question was just to give you a hint if your mathematical skills are a little weak. But then you should be good in religion! If you think that you got the correct answer, then simply ... well, you should ask someone who knows this...

By the way: The shadow on the cover is me holding my camera. But you can only see it, when you look very closely. So please don´t bother...

Jimmie Haskell - Count Down! (1957)

This is THE outer space album of that era. And to me it´s one of the best either. It features the theremin and some talking alien, and the style is close to surf-music. On the cover you can see Mr. Haskell himself playing his self-developed synthesizer. This one is a must-have, if you like space-age music.

And one more thing: On the picture above you can see the stereo-version. I found that picture on the web, when I prepared this post. My version is the mono-thing, which should be in better quality than the stereo-version, according to some reviewers. I can´t tell, because I haven´t heard the stereo-thing. My file includes pictures of the front and back cover as well.

Enoch Light - Beatles Classics (1974)

Another one from the fantastic Enoch Light, this time the Beatles get a classical treatment. If you like the Beatles and if you like Enoch Light, this will be the perfect mix. The album is from the year 1974, but it hasn´t lost it´s charm yet, and I guess it never will...

Sid Ramin - New Thresholds in Sound (1963)

*sniff* ... No presents, no congratulations, no flowers... *sniff* ... But it was my blog´s birthday! I´ve been blogging one year now, and nobody notices... *sniff* ... Sad, sad, sad... But what can I do? Nothing. Except bringing this post to you without the link. That´s my revenge. For not noticing! That´s all your fault! And I tell you: You´ve missed a really great record by Sid Ramin from the year 1963...

James Last - Käpt'n James auf allen Meeren (1973)

Captain James continued his journey in 1973. This time "auf allen Meeren" which means "on the seven seas". The expression in German is much better, ´cause it says literally "on every sea". There are more than seven, aren´t there? Anyway, for those who haven´t discovered more than seven yet, there was a map included, also to follow Hansi's tour with the finger. Here you will get it without the map, because we all use our GPS today, don´t we? So, if you still got some Rum left, pour yourself a glass. If not, get another keg and off we go again!

And here´s the tracklist:

1) Ein Morgen im Hamburger Hafen
Hamburg ist ein schönes Städtchen
Muß i denn
Blow Ye Wind
Wo die Nordseewellen
Kleine Möve, flieg nach Helgoland

2) Good Mornin'
The Sailor Boy
Rule Britannia

3) Greensleeves
Auf Fahrt
Fuadach nan Gaidheal

4) De Käpt'n, de Stüermann, de Bootsmann un ick
When Irish Eyes Are Smiling

5) All Hands on Deck
Drei Matrosen
In Portugal
Von Porto nach Barcelona

6) Lady of Spain
Carmen Marsch

7) Shenandoah
Sorrento
Santa Lucia
Ferry-Boat Serenade

8) Piräus
Ein Schiff wird kommen

9) High Barbaree
Havah Nagila

Los Indios Tabajaras - Sweet and Savage (1957)

Hmm, I know what you want to say. We all know those Indios with their flutes playing "El Condor Pasa" in the pedestrian precincts of each and every town. And yes, it´s annoying me too. But this one is different. Yes, dear friends of great music, as you might already know, "Maria Elena" is one of the best guitar instrumentals ever written. Here you can listen to the original version by the famous Indios, it hasn´t lost it´s charm yet. This nice Bolero will complete a nice evening with your partner more than "El Condor Pasa" ever can, believe me...

Neil Hefti - Hefti in Gotham City (1966)

This is like a soundtrack to the '60s television series Batman, since all of the tracks were written and performed by Neal Hefti for use on the TV show. There's the familiar "Batman Theme", of course, as well as a number of rousing adventure and comical villainous themes. Here comes this little gem directly from Gotham City. Batman à Gogo! Here we gooooooooo!

James Last - Games That Lovers Play (1967)

So, after some requests there should be something new on this page as well: This is one of my favorites from Hansi. A classic one from the year 1967, featuring four of his own compositions, among them the title track. Please enjoy James Last at his best...

Xavier Cugat - The King Plays Some Aces (1958)

And some more hot rhythms for Sweden, where it´s cold out there... Is there something like summer in Sweden? Or are those blonde hot girls just a cliché that hasn´t been verified since Agnetha in the late 70´s? Anyway, please enjoy some hot Cugat, pouring oil in the glooming fire of Sweden´s girls. And women, of course... And their men... ;o)

Bert Kaempfert - Golden Memories (1975)

Would you like some memories? I guess so. And especially when they´re golden, right? This is one of Bert´s later albums, it´s from the year 1975, and features six compositions that he did together with Herbert Rehbein. Some Gershwin, Hammerstein and Kern is added, and you have this great album. Please enjoy the great Bert once more... And please download the cover-art from here, because I prepared this post without having my digi-cam...

The Beach Boys - Summer Days (and Summer Nights!!) (1965)

I´ve seen this one on another blog, but the file was gone, so I thought I could put up this one too, although it only features one instrumental. But this is a classic one by the Beach Boys and you should listen to this. It features some major hits by the boys, like "California Girls" and "Help Me, Rhonda". "The Girl from New York City" was a response to "The Boy from New York City," a hit by The Ad-Libs earlier in 1965. "Then I Kissed Her" was a cover of the 1963 Crystals hit, "Then He Kissed Me," obviously switching gender roles. If you like those boys, then get this album while summer lasts...

Xavier Cugat - Cugat Cavalcade (1958)

Another one from the great Xavier Cugat. It´s a "Best of..." from 1958 and is a request. Have fun, Lasse! :o)

James Last - Happy Lehár (1969)

Franz Lehár (1870 - 1948) was an Austrian composer from Hungary. He studied in Prague and spent his life writing operettas, which are light versions of operas, as you might already know. He was a close friend to Giacomo Puccini and was inspired by his operas as well. But here you get the James-Last-versions of his greatest hits, which he mostly wrote for tenor Richard Tauber, whom we know from the classic Pogues´ song "The Sick Bed of Cullaillallain" or so. (Pardon my Irish.) But I´m drifting off... Anyway, even if you hate opera, if you get sick from operettas, then give good old Hansi a chance to get you back on track to the happy music between the two world wars. For my American guests: Between 1918 and 1939...

Sondi Sodsai - Sondi (1956)

Because I don´t know what to post this week, one week before my vacation on the Baltic Sea, I chose to post this one. This is Siamese pop. As the elder ones of you know, Thailand once was Siam.

Why they changed it I can´t say.
People just liked it better that way...

The classic Thai pop LP is this one by Sondi Sodsai. She was voted "Miss Thailand" in 1960. She also appeared in an obscure TV-series named "Adventures in Paradise" in the early sixties, and represented the stereotype of a Tahitian beauty. And by the way, she is or was the court-entertainer of the King and Queen of Thailand, as it is stated on the record. It´s the cryptic writing on top of the frontcover, that looks like Thai, but is in fact English. Try to decrypt this... The album was produced by Martin Denny, and I especially like the "Siamese Cat Song" from the Disney-movie "Aristocats" and the last one, "Japanese Farewell Song", which we all know from the movie "M*A*S*H". Please enjoy, although this could be tough for non-trained listeners...

Les Baxter - Wild Guitars (1959)

Sounds like... No, not Herb Alpert, although he´s got a record with the same title. No, not "Wild Guitars"... "Sounds Like..."! But anyway, this one almost sounds like Esquivel, it was Baxter´s version of a Stereo Action record. I´m sure you´ll like it, so don´t miss it.

James Last - Polka-Party (1971)

Don´t worry about the picture above, I included front and back picture in the files. But the question is: Can you make is through this record? Without consuming a barrel of beer? Haardly, I´llll till youu... Buuuut this shows aggagain thee imense verssatililility of James Last´s Orchestra. *hic* As for treklist, I meen *hic* traracklissT I included a pitschure off his beck as well, I meen from The reCoRd! Did I teelll yu thatt? *hic* Of CooRS! sinz i Can HHarrdly faind me kEYs, THIS KEYS, off coors! Welll, jussst lissen to sis and Dents!...I meen dANtss..., now: DAAAAAAANCE ´til you drop like me...

Attilio Mineo - Man In Space With Sounds (1962)

This is the complete version with spoken word introductions. "Man in Space with Sounds" was composed by Arthur 'Attilio' Mineo in the early 50s and was played through the sound system in "The Bubbleator", an exhibit that was part of the 1962 Seattle Space Age World's Fair. "The Bubbleator" was a 150-passenger spherical clear plastic elevator that moved 2.5 million people through the "World of Tomorrow" displays that promised an easier life ahead and a glimpse of life in the future! To accompany their journey, the sound system piped in the evocative orchestral and electronic music of Man in Space with Sounds that helped to create a futurist experience for the passengers. The original LP was released in limited quantities on the World's Fair record label around 1962 in two versions: one with a short piece of spoken word introduction before each track and one without the introductions. As I said, this is the version with introductions. Neither LP was in stereo, but THIS is Space Age! Even in mono...

The Three Suns - The Things I Love in Hi-Fi (1957)

Another one of those great three guys. I don´t have to tell you "the things I love" about them, do I? ;o) Please enjoy, and don´t forget to look for my lacking James Lasts for me! I´d really appreciate this...

Xavier Cugat - Cugat in France, Spain & Italy (1960)

This is a request for a repost from Lasse of Sweden, who gave me 5 Last-LPs I´ve been looking for a long time. He´s a nice guy who runs an online-recordshop with a lot of stuff to choose from. You may want to visit his store by clicking this link, maybe you´ll find something you´ve been looking for:

Honest Joe´s Records ´n´ Postcards

Thanks a lot again, Lasse!

Another gem from the great Xavier Cugat from 1960. He was born in 1900 (as: Francisco De Asis Javier Cugat Mingall De Cru Y Deulofeo) and then changed his name, ´cause it didn´t fit on the record sleeves. Cugat's recordings of the 50´s featured the singing of his third wife, Abbe Lane. In the mid 60´s, he featured his fourth wife, Charo, who he billed as a "folksinger". Upon his retirement in 1970, Cugat returned to Spain. He died in Barcelona on October 27, 1990. His band, which was led by Tito Puente following his retirement, continues to perform under the direction of dancer, musician and vocalist Ada Cavallo. Please enjoy this piece of music. Have fun, it´s a great dance record too!

James Last - Käpt'n James bittet zum Tanz (1968)

Two years later, after his big success with "Ännchen von Tharau", he put some sea-shanties from Hamburg and from the rest of the world into a new costume. That record was this one, another classic of our beloved Hansi. Here you can see that the James-Last-Band was and still is the most versatile Lounge-band in the world. Just listen to his albums "Hair" and "Voodoo-Party", recently shared at xyz-cosmonaut´s and xtabay´s.
Allright, sailors, get yourself an eye-patch and a wooden leg, cut off your left hand and put on a hook, teach your parrot how to curse, poor yourself a big cup of Rum and then let´s go sailing!

But not without the tracklist:

01) Nimm uns mit Kapitän
Einmal noch nach Bombay
Der Junge an der Reling

02) La Paloma
My Bonnie
Kari Waits for Me

03) The Banks of Sacramento
What Shall We Do With the Drunken Sailor
Madagaskar

04) The Wreck of "John B."
The Yellow Rose of Texas

05) Wenn das Schifferklavier an Bord ertönt
Fahr' mich in die Ferne
Hein spielt abends so schön auf dem Schifferklavier

06) Eine Seefahrt, die ist lustig
Heut' geht's an Bord
Das ist die Liebe der Matrosen

07) Aloha Oe
John Kanaka
Up She Goes

08) Rolling Home
Winde weh'n

09) Wir lieben die Stürme
The Color Flaggs
Hey, Hey, Hey!

10) Good Night, Ladies
In der Heimat
Muß i denn

Dr. Samuel J. Hoffman & Les Baxter - Music Out of the Moon (1947)

I promised to get this back to you, didn´t I? A nice piece of music and, by the way, so completely different from the James Last works. Nonetheless I´m still searching for 80 albums from James Last, please see section above...

Now, here are the liner notes from this album, where our favorite podiatrist worked with Les Baxter:

The music in this album is in reality an exploration ... using exotic harmonies, timbre
and composition to play upon the more remote realm of human emotions.

It is music of a type that has been outstandingly successful as a mood-creating
background for motion pictures dealing with the macabre, the fantastic.

It is music that can affect the sensitive mind in a way that is sometimes frightening ...
always fascinating.

Harry Revel created the basic "idea" and themes, while Leslie Baxter, arranger and
conductor, has given them appropriately unique tone color, using the mass harmonies
or human voices as unusual instrumental effects with woodwinds, strings and brass;
some without rhythm, others with a dominant, demanding beat.

In many of the numbers you will hear the Theremin — a little known member of the
musical family that is played by the motions of the hands in the air over an electronic
field. The right hand gives pitch, the left volume, yet neither comes in direct contact
with the instrument. A throbbing, almost human tone is created that has an eerie,
vibrant beauty.

The artist who plays the Theremin is Dr. Samuel J. Hoffman, whose brilliant technique
was heard in the music of "Spellbound," "Lost Weekend," "Spiral Staircase" and "The
Red House."

A word about your first hearing of "Music Out of the Moon": You cannot get its full
significance from a casual playing in a record booth, where the appeal may well be
lost. But take it home — set the stage, in the evening when you are perhaps a little
weary of the work-a-day world; its hypnotic beauty assures a unique musical
adventure.

James Last - Ännchen von Tharau bittet zum Tanz (1966)

Here we start with the "Hansi-Craze" I promised. This is hardcore, I´ll tell you. Ancient German folksongs in swingin´ rhythm. Some people (such as me) say that this is a masterpiece. And so it is. Even if you´re not old enough to enjoy this kind of music, you can still swing a little the easy way with James and his singers. So grab your grandparents and dance a little. But slooooowly... ;o)
You can get this fabulous record in three pieces, because I can only upload up to 25 Mb. Sorry for the inconvenience...

And here´s the tracklist:

01) Wem Gott will rechte Gunst erweisen
Üb' immer Treu und Redlichkeit
Ein Männlein steht im Walde

02) Sah ein Knab' ein Röslein steh'n
In einem kühlen Grunde
Wenn alle Brünnlein fließen

03) Du, du liegst mir im Herzen
Der Mai ist gekommen
Das Wandern ist des Müllers Lust

04) Ännchen von Tharau ist's
Es zogen drei Burschen

05) Lang, lang ist's her
Muß i denn
Mädele ruck, ruck, ruck

06) Horch, was kommt von draußen rein
Ein Jäger aus Kurpfalz
Freut euch des Lebens

07) Gold und Silber lieb' ich sehr
Wenn ich ein Vöglein wär'
Am Brunnen vor dem Tore

08) Steh' ich in finst'rer Mitternacht
Weißt du wieviel Sternlein stehen
Nun ade du mein lieb' Heimatland

09) Guter Mond, du gehst so stille
Ich weiß nicht, was soll es bedeuten

10) Das Lieben bringt groß' Freud
Im Krug zum grünen Kranze
Es klappert die Mühle am rauschenden Bach

Bert´s Watch (and mine...)

Here it is, Bert´s legendary watch, from the back sleeve of his album "Kaempfert '76". And mine, of course... A Rolex "Air King". The one with the most beautiful dial. I wear this one with pride to special occasions, because it honors me that Bert and me not only have the same taste in music, but in wristwatches as well. I´m sure that if I had known him personnally, we would have gone fishing while listening to great music and looking at our beautiful wristwatches. But not for the time, just for the beauty of our little gems...

James Last - Voodoo Party (1971)

Finally! I got it, YES! Thanks to Gary from Soundsational! This is really a fantastic record. Strange, when you listen to "Mr. Giant Man" or "Voodoo Ladys Love". I think they took some drugs when recording this, but what kind of? If you know what they took, please let me know...

But even if you´re still drug-free, I highly recommend this record!

Bert Kaempfert - Gallery (1974)

You all know perfectly that Bert was the best composer, arranger, conductor etc. of Germany ever and you know too, that I´m a big fan of him. I also own the same wristwatch from the 70´s that he always wore. Here´s one of his later albums: "Gallery" from the year 1974.
This one never gets old! It includes "The Entertainer" as well as the famous "For Bert", which was written by Anita Kerr to honor him and his work.