John Ford - No Talkin'

John Ford, UK, guitarist in a number of bands over the years - Strawbs, Blackmore's Night, Hudson Ford plus.

This album is 100% instrumental, with many tracks hinting to the sound of the UK 60's instrumental bands.

 The album’s cover is telling as every string plucked here belongs to a Fender, the only implicit thing about the record being the homage it pays to THE SHADOWS. This becomes obvious once the muscular chord of “The Reaper” starts hugging its gently rippling strum. Ringing in the years, its echo takes Ford down the memory lane, as no matter how long John’s been living on the other side of the Pond, the reminiscences he puts in “Granny Takes A Trip” still bear an imprint of foggy-eyed English psychedelia and “Tomorrow’s World” contrasts its futuristic self with an air of nostalgia, while out of the title cut the same axe carves a prime example of surf rock. The veteran also introduces exotic flavors to the mix, although the acoustic undercurrent makes the retro-jazz of “Looking For Django” and Mariachi-shaped “Spanish Jive” sound so cinematic they come out deliberately humorous.

But if the delicately swinging “36-34-36” provides a skeletal rock bottom to it all, “Dead Ending” grooves wildly – it’s so infectious, no words are needed, indeed. Music does all the talkin’ here, and this conversation that lasts less than half an hour speaks volumes of its creator’s singular talent.



Some great foot/finger tapping tunes & some beautiful melodies - if you have headphones on, I challenge you to listen to the track titled Joyce's Song and not succumb to the urge to stop what you're doing, sit back, close your eyes & dream of clouds.

Highly recommended.

 Track List:

01. The Reaper [02:50]
02. Spanish Jive [02:20]
03. No Talkin' [02:41]
04. Tomorrow's World [03:31]
05. Granny Takes a Trip [03:16]
06. Looking for Django [02:27]
07. Joyce's Song [03:15]
08. 36-24-36 [02:19]
09. Lost Horizon [02:41]
10. Dead Ending [02:31]
nochat

Harvey Mandel - Shangrenade (1973)

Harvey Mandel - Shangrenade (1973)

Blues rock with funk and jazz rock fusion elements

In the mold of Jeff Beck, Carlos Santana, and Mike Bloomfield, Mandel is an extremely creative rock guitarist with heavy blues and jazz influences. And like those guitarists, his vocal abilities are basically nonexistent, though Mandel, unlike some similar musicians, has always known this, and concentrated on recordings that are entirely instrumental, or feature other singers. A minor figure most known for auditioning unsuccessfully for the Rolling Stones, he recorded some intriguing (though erratic) work on his own that anticipated some of the better elements of jazz-rock fusion, showcasing his concise chops, his command of a multitude of tone pedal controls, and an eclecticism that found him working with string orchestras and country steel guitar wizards. Mandel got his first toehold in the fertile Chicago white blues-rock scene of the mid-'60s (which cultivated talents like Paul Butterfield, Mike Bloomfield, and Steve Miller), and made his first recordings as the lead guitarist for harmonica virtuoso Charlie Musselwhite. Enticed to go solo by Blue Cheer producer Abe Kesh, Harvey cut a couple of nearly wholly instrumental albums for Phillips in the late '60s that were underground FM radio favorites, establishing him as one of the most versatile young American guitar lions. He gained his most recognition, though, not as a solo artist, but as a lead guitarist for Canned Heat in 1969 and 1970, replacing Henry Vestine and appearing with the band at Woodstock. Shortly afterward, he signed up for a stint in John Mayall's band, just after the British bluesman had relocated to California. Mandel unwisely decided to use a vocalist for his third and least successful Philips album. After his term with Mayall (on USA Union and Back to the Roots) had run its course, he resumed his solo career, and also formed Pure Food & Drug Act with violinist Don "Sugarcane" Harris (from the '50s R&B duo Don & Dewey), which made several albums. In the mid-'70s, when the Rolling Stones were looking for a replacement for Mick Taylor, Mandel auditioned for a spot in the group; although he lost to Ron Wood, his guitar does appear on two cuts on the Stones' 1976 album, Black & Blue. Recording intermittently since then as a solo artist and a sessionman, his influence on the contemporary scene is felt via the two-handed fretboard tapping technique that he introduced on his 1973 album Shangrenade, later employed by Eddie Van Halen, Stanley Jordan, and Steve Vai. (By Richie Unterberger)

   

Tracklist:

01. What the Funk (Victor Conte) 03:06

02. Fish Walk (Victor Conte) 04:46

03. Sugarloaf (Harvey Mandel) 04:16

04. Midnight Sun II (Harvey Mandel) 03:42

05. Million Dollar Feeling (Coleman Head) 03:32

06. Green Apple Quick Step (Harvey Mandel) 03:09

07. Frenzy (Victor Conte, Coleman Head, Paul Lagos, Harvey Mandel) 04:32

08. Shangrenade (Harvey Mandel) 04:14

harveyman

Elliot Easton's Tiki Gods Easton Island

Elliot Easton's Tiki Gods Easton Island

Easton Island's thirteen original instrumentals incorporate many different strains and influences: John Barry's spy music, Mancini's crime jazz, the exotic sounds of Les Baxter, Ennio Morricone, Jerry Goldsmith, surf music, martini lounge, and space age, merged with the lush, romantic sophistication of Hollywood 60's movie soundtracks, filtered through the sensibilities of musicians who grew up pop-culturally obsessed with the 60's and '70's. This CD release includes the bonus track "Monte Carlo Nights" from the Quentin Tarantino classic motion picture "Jackie Brown".
Wonderfully conceived album. Every musician that played on this album played their instruments impeccably. For those of you who remember Elliot Easton's work as lead guitarist of the Cars you won't recognize his work here. What the listener gets is a blend between the Shadows, Ventures, Polynesian, a bit of Dick Dale, and beatnik sound all rolled into one. The really reminds me of a sound that is more like something I would have heard in the 60's then in 2013. Having said that I really like what Easton has done here. Lovers of this type of genre will enjoy this music. Each of the songs has a different cadence and beat. They are close enough so one song flows well into the next. This is in no way a concept work it just takes you on a ride through your own image of Polynesia from Tiki Gods to surfing.

This is one of those works of music that I like more each time I play it. I hear something new. I get a newer and deeper appreciation for what I am hearing. Tiki Gods reminds me of why I like instrumental music so much. No words to guide you just the spirit of the music. Tiki Gods has a great vibe to it. Try it.

1. Tiki Gods Theme
2. Rarotonga
3. Blue Lava
4. Mu Empire
5. Tabu
6. Jill's Theme
7. Sir Surfalot
8. Sydney's Samba
9. Sabotogia (I Say Sabotage)
10. Isle of Canopic
11. Ballad of Cowboyardee
12. Nocturnia, Moon Goddess
13. Monte Carlo Nights

tikkitavi

Rondo Hatton - ST

Rondo Hatton - ST

Named after an actor with brutish features that appeared in many B-movies in the black n’ white era, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rondo_Hatton  this Louisiana based surf/instro combo has a light, twangy sound that really fits perfectly with the summery beach vibe that’s so associated with the genre. Pipeline Magazine sez, "There's plenty to enjoy here on an album that has sufficient quality and variety to keep the listener interested. 15 original tracks of surf music at its finest!" Playing a variety of music styles including surf, spy, hot rod, westerns and TV themes, you can, almost, smell the salt air, feel the ocean's breeze on your face and the sand between your toes as Rondo Hatton bathes you in their spectacular, musical salt water. This band is gaining international recognition with their classic sound and their extremely, well-crafted originals. Bruce Lamb - lead guitar- refers to some of the bands' covers as "odd ball instrumental songs". Very enjoyable.    

1.Pedal Pusher 2.Sea Breeze 3. Paso De Cascabel 4. Saguaro 5.    Little Ruby 6. Chiqhuahuac Point 7. Gaucho 8. Gale Force 9. Agave 10. The Devil's Reef 11. Lover's Cove 12. La Bahia Azul 13. Danger Zone 14. Skee-Daddle 15. 12 Corrido Rock

rodhatr5

The Raymond Scott Quintette - Microphone Music

The Raymond Scott Quintette - Microphone Music (2003)

Microphone Music is a 2003 double CD compilation by The Raymond Scott Quintette. It is "a collection of unreleased titles, radio performances, first-rate rehearsals and forgotten gems by the Raymond Scott Quintette recorded between 1936 and 1939." (The sizes of each version are correct, these are mono recordings converted to each format.)

Warner Bros. licensed his music for the Looney Tunes cartoons. Powerhouse and few others will be familiar to fans of these classic cartoons. Enjoy.

Jazz music, always known for its spirit of improvisation, was hardly the medium for composers or producers during its first 50 years. Even the greatest early arrangers – Duke Ellington, Fletcher Henderson, Don Redman – allowed plenty of room for solos, and would've been deserted by most of their musicians if they hadn't. All of which explains why Raymond Scott was never considered a jazz artist. His pieces, impressionistic yet rigidly composed, did use all the same components of a jazz band and exhibited close superficial similarities to Duke Ellington's early jungle band and the Benny Goodman Orchestra. The difference lay with his insistence on perfection, in his recording techniques and the members of his band. The Raymond Scott Quintette was a clean, technical, utterly precise swing machine – the logical progression, in his mind, of the noisy jazz racket originally delivered on record by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band in 1917. Microphone Music, another Scott-related reissue by the Basta label, is a two-disc bonanza of unreleased titles, rarities, and rehearsals from the late '30s that will taste of manna from heaven for listeners who spent a decade in the wilderness after Columbia's greatest-hits volume, 1992's The Music of Raymond Scott: Reckless Nights & Turkish Twilights. These certainly don't sound like afterthoughts, either; Scott took quality control very seriously, and the result is a set of 40 splendid, fascinating songs that often sounds better even than the Columbia release. Most of the songs are new to CD, and even the familiar titles (like the Scott perennial "Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals") are presented in radically different interpretations. Drummer and percussionist Johnny Williams (father of composer John Williams) is revealed as an extraordinary talent, not just keeping time for the quintette, but splitting it into halves and quarters with his brisk, perfectly timed fills. As for Scott, who's usually recognized solely as a compositional or arranging genius, the focus here is on his talent for sound reproduction. The title is a nod to the importance of engineering and microphone placement in his music – a reprint of a Popular Mechanics article appears in the liner notes – and his constant recording experiments produced dynamic music utterly unlike anything heard before, since sound had never been picked up and amplified the way Scott did it. The relative scarcity of Quintette recordings is enough to boost this set into recommended status, but the bounty of fabulous music inside makes it essential for fans and highly recommended for the uninformed. Really fun with headphones.

oooops- for you early adopters - disc1 is now fixed.

DISC 1
1. Egyptian Barn Dance (April 1938)
2. The Penguin (December 1938)
3. Christmas Night In Harlem (March 1939)
4. Pretty Petticoat #1 (April 1939)
5. Square Dance For Eight Egyptian Mummies (1938)
6. Moment Whimsical (December 1938)
7. Devil Drums (June 1939)
8. A Little Bit Of Rigoletto (APril 1939)
9. Hypnotist In Hawaii (April 1939)
10. Dinner Music For A Pack Of Hungry Cannibals (April 1937)
11. The Toy Trumpet (December 1936)
12. Suicide Cliff (December 1939)
13. Siberian Sleighride (1938)
14. Steeplechase (April 1939)
15. Peter Tambourine (March 1939)
16. Celebration Of The Planet Mars (January 1938)
17. Brass Buttons And Epualettes (January 1938)
18. Bumpy Weather Over Newark (June 1939)
19. Pretty Petticoat #2 (May 1939)
20. Turkish Mish-Mush (March 1939)
(UNLISTED TRACK)
21. Powerhouse (rehearsal) (1940)
DISC 2
1. Microphone Music (January 1938)
2. Twilight In Turkey (February 1939)
3. New Year's Eve In A Haunted House (December 1938)
4. Tobacco Auctioneer (April 1939)
5. The Girl With The Light Blue Hair (January 1939)
6. Sleepwalker (March 1937)
7. The Happy Farmer (April 1938)
8. Oil Gusher (January 1939)
9. Boy Scout In Switzerland (March 1939)
10. Reckless Night On Board An Ocean Liner (April 1937)
11. Swing, Swing Mother-In-Law (December 1936)
12. Girl At The Typewriter (1939)
13. Yesterday's Ice Cubes (March 1937)
14. Pretty Petticoat #3 (April 1939)
15. War Dance For Wooden Indians (February 1939)
16. Dead End Blues (January 1937)
17. Harlem Hillbilly (June 1939)
18. The Quintet Goes To A Dance (March 1939)
19. Bugle Call Rag (March 1937)
20. Powerhouse (June 1939)
(UNLISTED TRACK)
21. A Happy Frenzy At Aquackanack

wowser d1

wowser d2

Jesus Christ Surferstar

Hi all - busy with Holy week so a quickie - as our tradition here at FCCL get your religious groove on with one of the best surf tributes out there.

Easter - time for those who celebrate the occasion to have something other than the standard pious muck to listen to. Grab this and give to the minister, preacher, bishop, evangelist of your choice and freak them out. Hey, now is your chance to "spread the word" --
heeheeheee

Phil Dirt:What a cool concept! Andrew Lloyd Webber's controversial rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar goes to the beach - mostly. 21 instrumentals and a handful of interesting vocals. Most of the instros are surf. The whole package is well done. Vocal tracks on this amazing CD include a delightful faux-pomp performance of "Strange Things Mystifying" by Prawns With Horns, the traditional surf backtracked "Simon Zeabotas" from Pipelines, the heavy garage fuzz and organ pound of Babyshaker's "Damned For All Time / Blood Money," the dry edged power of "The Arrest" from the HiFi Ramblers, and the Texas heavy fuzz of Johnny Vortex's "Juda's Death." Phil DirtThe songs are quite strongly melodic which play very well to the surf structure – they stand up as instrumentals. I wind up adding the lyrics in my head. One of the few tributes that stand out as a solid collection on it’s own and in some ways – depending on your mood – improves on the original. Get the original below and go with the flow on Easter, however the wind blows.
Disc 1
1. Overture - Daikaiju2. Heaven On Their Minds - Urban Surf Kings3. What's The Buzz - The Waistcoats4. Strange Things Mystifying - Prawns with Horns5. Then We Are Decided - Breakfastime6. Everything's Alright - Susan & Surftones7. This Jesus Must Die - Atomic Mosquitos8. Hosanna - El Ray9. Simon Zealotas - Pipelines10. Poor Jerusalem - Lava Rats11. Pilate's Dream - 3 Piece Suit12. Temple, The - Ward 6913. I Don't Know How To Love Him - Crime Factor Zero14. Damned For All Time/Blood Money - Babyshaker

Disc2
15. Last Supper, The - Hypnotic IV16. Gethsemane (I Only Want To Say) - Surfones17. Arrest, The - HiFi Ramblers18. Peter's Denial - Fabulous Planktones19. Pilate & Christ - Capacitors20. King's Herod's Song - Susan & Surftones21. Could We Start Again Please - Noseriders22. Judas Death - Johnny Vortex23. Trial Before Pilate - The Supertones24. Superstar - The Atlantics 225. Crucifixion - Longhorn Devils26. John Nineteen Forty One – Aqualads

set as separate dls for ease 

jcss 1

jcss 2

Ixtahuele - Pagan Rites

This is a new release, by a modern band, but the sound is brilliantly-made classic exotica. If you love the holy trinity of the genre: Martin Denny, Les Baxter, and Arthur Lyman, then this album is definitely for your ears. Most definitely the best exotica recording in a decade. These all-original compositions sound so clear and intoxicating you would swear they were a lost Martin Denny record. Instead, we have an ensemble performing exotica the way it was meant to be played - organically without synthesizers or computers. 

There are some killer tracks. While this Swedish group has captured the *sound* of those great recordings, these aren't retreads of old standards. There's no "Bali Hai," "Yellow Bird," "Quiet Village" or "Hawaiian War Chant." Instead, Ixtahuele -- named for a group of Polynesian islands -- has written & recorded ten all-new instrumental numbers. And though the band and album are modern, the music is decidedly classic in feel.

Here's the test: Put Pagan Rites in a mix with classics by the masters, punch "random," and see if you notice when Ixtahuele is playing. It blends beautifully!

Buy Pagan Rites. Put on your aloha shirt and/or fez. Mix up a Mai-Tai. Relax, and let the exotic sounds of Ixtahuele take you away...

Tracks

1. Black Sand
2. Rarohengen Dance
3. Brugmansia
4. Stone Gods of Bimini
5. Orust Luau
6. Lotus Eaters
7. Searching the Souq\
8. Huahine
9. Dengue Fever
10. Garden of Mu
11. Untitled bonus
    
    
    exoticsoundz
    
    

Don Tiki - the Forbidden Sounds Of Don Tiki

If you're an exotica fan and like the music of Martin Denny, Les Baxter, Arthur Lyman, Robert Drasnin, Eden Ahbez, or Hawaiian music you'll love this too. Martin Denny himself even makes a guest appearance on 2 of the tracks and his wonderful piano solo on "Forever and Ever" is alone worth the price of admission. Here is all the best of exotica - bird calls, jungle sounds, sultry female vocals, congos, bongos, xylophones, vibraphones, flutes and much more. Jim Howard's use of the flute, alto flute, and bass flute is particularly enjoyable and refreshing. There are a pleasing mix of styles and rhythms, some are slow and soft and others have a beat that will make you want to get up and dance. This is perfect music for your next Tiki party or Hawaiian luau, or you can play it like I do to just relax and let your mind pleasantly wander. For pure listening pleasure, it's like MaiTai for the mind.

1. Exotica '97 2. An Occational Man 3. Barbi In Bali 4. Hot Like Lava 5. Close Your Eyes
6. Maidenhair Fern 7. Terminal 8. Polyamore 9. Clutch Cargo Cult 10. Bam-Boozled
11. Itchy Palms 12. Da T'ing He Grow 13. Forever And Ever

 forbidden

Skinny Dip with Don Tiki

 The follow-up to Forbidden Sounds, Don Tiki's 2nd album again combines sweeping range of exotic, mellow, upbeat, and loungy tunes, moving the art of Modern Exotica forward into the new millennium. The vocals are more native/island sounding that your typical mainland-produced track from the 60's, but here it only adds to the atmosphere. It has my most favorite non-pc track of the genre – the very cool “The Natives Are Restless Tonight.” The liner notes are written by none other than Sven Kirsten, author of the Book Of Tiki. This is a must have for any Exotica collector to add to their collection. Pick this album up and listen to it, now. It's another glimpse into the almost non-existent genre of Modern Exotica.

1. All Quiet Flows The Don 2. The Natives Are Restless 3. Primitiva 4. Heat 5. Flower Humming
6. Bwana Banana 7. The Other Side Of The Moon 8. Wet Cave 9. Pinakbet 10. El Producto
11. Sweet And Sour 12. Axolotl 13. That Hypnotizing Man

 

skinnykinney

Don Tiki -- Adulterated - The Remix Project

Every couple of years we are treated to a new neo-Exotica treasure from Honolulu's Don Tiki. The new album, Adulterated, is a remix project featuring 11 tunes from their first two albums. Now I'm sure some of you are thinking this is a recipe for disaster (we are all too aware of failed "lounge" remix projects, right?). In this case, Don Tiki have done it the right way. As implied by the title, this is a remix of classic Don Tiki sounds, which pay homage to Martin Denny, Arthur Lyman and all the forefathers of exotica. Even repertory tracks have been mixed, reshaped, refined and re-invented by a coterie of top deejays - call it Martin Denny for the millennium - and the tunes take on new sass.For the most part, the remixes stay true to the vibe of the original songs, so things are mellow and relaxing and not hyper and kinetic. Some good tracks in this mode are All Quiet Flows the Don, remixed by 8FatFat8, and Close Your Eyes, remixed by A Certain Frank. Adulterated features three standout tracks, starting with DJ Jimmy B's remix of The Natives Are Restless. Now, we're big fans of the original song but Jimmy B's remix takes it up a notch. Extremely effective remix effects and nice spoken word pieces highlight this mix, along with chanting to die for. Br Cleve contributes a HiNRG "Bongo Congo" mix of Bwana Banana that somehow fits in even though this has a much higher BPM than the rest of the album. "The Other Side of the Moon," remixed by Ursula 1000 of NYC as heard on the Samsung Electronic worldwide TV campaign. Lastly, Clutch Cargo Cult gets a great remix from 8FatFat8 that includes a nice rap by Julio Davis. Now, things aren't all Mai Tai's for Adulterated. An Occasional Man has a syncopated remix style that I found annoying (honestly, I'm not a fan of the original version either) with several grating effects.

There's a mix of sultry, intermittent vocals with inventive instrumentals. This is party music that collates a myriad of styles, from exotic jazz to ska, from funk to pop. Light the tiki torches, turn on the lava lamps, haul out the tiki mask and start groovin!'

A review in Time Out/NY states, "Don Tiki have a sexy allure along with flair and a good sense of humor." The Honolulu Advertiser says, "Don Tiki captures exotic sounds, party spirit...this is Martin Denny for the Millenium!" This sensuous, flowing piece of work is an instant classic.

1 The Other Side of the Moon 2 Clutch Cargo Cult
3 Heat [Jack Fetterman's Tabuzack Mix] 4 Da T'Ing He Grow
5 An Occasional Man 6 Close Your Eyes 7 The Natives Are Restless
8 Polyamoré 9 Bwana Banana 10 Terminal [Perry Coma's Comatose Mix]
11 All Quiet Flows the Don

 

dadonad