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From the Vault...
04/05/2009
#1145 |
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info
Martin Denny
"Exotica I And II"
© Scamp Records
Year of Release: 1996
Rating:
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track listing
Quiet Village
Return To Paradise
Hong Kong Blues
Busy Port
Lotus Land
Similau
Stone God
Jungle Flower
China Nights
Ah Me Furi
Waipo
Love Dance
Soshu Night Serenade
Island Of Dreams
Japanese Farewell Song
Singing Bamboos
The Queen Chant
(E Lili U E)
Wedding Song
Ke Kali Ne Au)
Escales
When First I Love
August Bells
Bacoa
Ebb Tide
Rush Hour In Hong Kong
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WSVNRadio Archives
Martin Denny related sites:
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Martin Denny
"Exotica I And II"
I do not recall the music of Martin Denny while growing up, yet as I researched
the Billboard #1 Albums chart, Martin Denny reached the top spot with his 1957
release, Exotica. This album would reach the #1 albums chart in two years later,
in the summer of 1959. A good time of season of summer was appropriate for this album,
as the Exotica release has similar Hawaiian overtunes, and mostly the songs do resemble
a strong and warm feeling. The second volume of Exotica was released in 1958; it
didn't reach the top spor as of its successor, being that the first Exotica would
be Denny's only #1 album of his career. None of the songs themselves reached #1 on the
singles Pop chart, although many of the songs on this double reissue could have easily
been, on many charts of Easy Listening and Jazz fans.
Another interesting instrumentalist (as Denny) was Enoch Light. Like Denny's
Exoticas, Light's music truly defines great Big Band/Jazz styles. Sad to say,
Light's releases are discontinued on compact disc, where most of Denny's original
releases can be found on CD. As for Enoch Light, he was another bandleader who I didn't
remember growing up, as Martin Denny.
The first 12 tracks of the two volumes of Exotica I & II easily fits the
moderate Easy Listening (and more appropriate) Jazz overtones. "Quiet Village"
would be the biggest hit from here, and other standouts are the Jazz'd "Busy
Port," "Similau" to name a few.
The remaining 12 songs (Exotica II) equals the first volume, making
this 2 Volume set exceptional to listen to. "Island Of Dreams" is
simply beautiful and relaxing. The familiar (Hawaiian) "Wedding Song"
will bring memory bells to those who remember this song (with vocals) by Andy
Williams. Most of the songs on Exotica II have a more slower, more easy
going style, than the first volume, yet all in all both volumes as a whole are
exceptional.
There is really no need to explain each song from the Exotica volumes.
Each song stands out on their own. Displaying a unique sound -- It's Jazz -- It's
Hawaii music -- It's Romantic music -- It's great background music for a relaxing
atmosphere. And summarizing in one word, EXOTIC. Martin Denny would record many
albums from the late 1950s into the next 2 decades. Obvious to some, his name was
not household, yet, his music was truly entertaining, of the likes of Enoch Light,
and even Jackie Gleason. (Recently, both Enoch Light
and Jackie Gleason were reviewed on
WSVNRadio.net.) Like Gleason and Light, adding Martin Denny to the list truly
defines each bandleader creating music in their own unique ways and styles, and
resulting in truly beautiful, entertaining music for generations to come.
© WSVNRadio.net. All rights reserved.
Review or any portion may not be reproduced
without written permission. Cover art is the
intellectual property of
Scamp Records
and is used for reference purposes only.
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