I call it "THE - concept album." It's almost as if Phil Elvrum nearly single-handedly did what all others before him had tried to accomplish in attempting a thematically based musical piece of artwork. The title track from his stunning masterpiece digs deep into the thoughts of the main character as he battles life, struggles with suicide, and breaks down entirely. Besides the heart-wrenching lyrics, musically, the song is equally brilliant- utilizing both channels of the stereo to spin the listener around, sweeping organs, and a drop-dead gorgeous vocal performance all beginning with a kick ass fuzz-drone rock out featuring blazing drum fills. This songs brings me to tears every time I hear it.

Wow, I thought I was the only person alive who remembered them. A girl Cynthia I knew raved about them, and I saw them several times, once opening for Janis Joplin at the Village Theater. "Midnight Circus" was the highlight of the sets I remember, lots of swirling Farfisa organ (I seem to remember a very atractive girl playing it), and a very carchy chorus - of which I only remember "It's a Midnight circus"... I don't know if the song was ever recorded, either as part of a set or demo, but it was that good it should bew noted....

Bid band with violins, wind instruments (? i mean saxofons or trumpets), Curtis on guitar and everything with good arrangements.

I just try NOT to spoil this one of a kind artist with my bad english. Songs in this album pour essence from racial discrimination, political and drug problems. I think this was one of those songs that made black men to organize and to gain self-respect to reclaim their human rights.

I like the thing that you really can feel that Curtis has something on his mind, something important to tell about, not just telling how to make love and have good time. This places this song above others.

People are fucked and politicians say: "don't worry" - and still there is hope. Let's hope so.

This is (for me) one of the greatest songs of love ever written. The song describes the appearance of a goddess among women and is pure (if at times naive) poetry. The arrangement is simple lead and rhythm guitars and bass with an organ giving a more filled out feeling from the second verse and violin in the fourth. The tone is melancholy but happy, as if the singer is basking in the light of this most beautiful woman. It must have been written for someone, someone lucky to be thought so beautiful. But there is sadness in that the singer may be singing of his unrequited love. Some of the alliteration is fantastic too.

Loud drums and simple recurring guitar riffs are the setting for a melancholy, but rocking look back on a special time. Billy Corgan manages to sound like Mick Jagger. There's a kind of regretful feeling Smashing Pumpkins evoke that I felt in the movie "The Last Picture Show".

Delicate instrumental by Dave Grusin, that grows with each listen and has all the charachteristics of late 60s arrangements i love so much. The instrumentation is diverse, rich, yet subtle with piano, organ, horns, flutes and wonderfully arrangened, smooth strings and some harp embellishments thrown in. The mood is mellow, romantic with a dose of melancholia. Another great instrumental from the soundtrack, "California Montage", has recently appeared on "The Get Easy! Sunshine Pop Collection", while this one unfortunately is only available on vinyl.

Cool in the Xxtreme !
Sixties dance jazz funk instumental from harpist Dorothy. Complete with organs, flutes and bongos it is driving classy joyful music .

The album also contains the awesome "Action Line " which is weirdly atmospheric and deeply strange

Before the (deserved) hype and the sell out concerts, this tune- a B Side on one of their earlier EPs- was the first Franz tune I'd ever heard.

The raw, slightly out of tune vocals, the wonky synth/organ riffs, the lyrics about Archduke Ferdinand's assassination by Gavrillo Princip, as sung to his wife Sophia? How can anyone resist?

It's a shame they don't play this live at their shows!

a catchy organ riff and some duh duh wailing...it's just one of those fun obscure mid sixties soundtrack songs. sounds like a cheesy party sequence, although i've never seen the film it originates from.
good clean fun. Actually i was surprised when i found out morricone originally wrote this, because some cheap dance/pop bill (can't remember who right now)had a hit wich borrowed heavily from this sometime during the mid-to late nineties... why is it that every time something catchy pops in top 40-music, it turns out to be borrowed from one of the old masters?

A beautiful, soft, sad, fragile piece about a couple breaking up and bursting into tears as they do. Incredible for its intimate feel and sparse instrumentation (voice, organ, harmonica, egg shaker) chilling lyrics 'you close your eyes but there's no paradise, you count the cost of all we've lost and all we've wasted'. It hits the nail bang on the head! Love it to bits.

Apart from their hit songs, I have only recently got into The Smashing Pumpkins and this track stands out for me as brilliant. Great lyrics and a steady pumping beat make this difficult to not listen to over and over again. I think you need to invest time in their songs before you start to like them. That was definately the case with this song, on first listening it didn't really stand out, but now I would put it alongside 'Ava Adore' as one of the best tracks on the album 'Adore'. Also listening to 'Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness' at the moment, another album that grows on you once you put the time in.

This song has a very tender vocal, which I believe is by either Carl or Dennis, a super-cool reverb-laden piano and sweet handclaps that cue up organ and trumpets. As fully-realized a piece as anything on "Pet Sounds".

Best known for their organ-drenched debut 1967 hit "A Whiter Shade Of Pale", Procol Harum continued for quite a long while and in fact have re-formed in recent years. A lot of their 1970s songs seem to have an odd jerkiness about them, but "As Strong As Samson" is the one in which they put it all together properly, 'cause it's smooth, heavy, and it swings! With organ, piano, and pedal steel guitar all pitching in, surely this is high up somewhere in the 1970s top ten songs.

Produced by Chris Thomas, who later did "Back On The Chain Gang" for the Pretenders and the "Different Class" LP for Pulp, so that's quite a line of quality there.

The score for Pasquale Festa Campanile�s mean but effective film "Autostop Rosso Sangue (Hitch Hike)" seems to be a precursor to the score for Oliver Stone�s mean and ineffective "U-Turn." On second thought, not just the score but the entire film. I wonder if Stone had seen this movie before making "U-Turn." At any rate, I�m here to talk about the music, and both films feature absolutely incredible scores by Morricone.

The arrangement here is pretty spare � I�m pretty sure that this track is mostly improvised -- and plays like a toned down spaghetti western theme. Morricone can evoke more feeling from a small group of musicians than most film composers could from an entire orchestra. The twangy banjo sounds great over the plodding bass line, and I love the subtle organ sounds. Ultimately, the real star here is Edda Dell'orso whose wordless vocals meander over it all.

My obsession with this band continues. From a CD that failed to sell on ebay for 50 cents comes this amazing cut - a beautiful instrumental with prominent guitar and organ. While it's surf influenced, it goes beyond that. I'm kind of lost for words, but it's one of those 'This is the best track ever' tracks. You know what I mean?

The best opening to any album ever. Amazing guitar solos, lagging drums, warm organs, and Mr.Barrett himself. It doesn't get any better than this.

Sun Ra does a kind of classically themed mambo blues thing here. Great stinging guitar work, mambo (cha cha) beat and then he launches into classical themes on organ. Not as wierd as it soungs - it all works perfectly.

Many may already be aware of this samba due to Walter Wanderly's space-age tinged organ instrumental version, but Elis's original vocal version is far more powerful with relentless horn blasts. It also demonstrates her range of emotions put into the performance as she goes from delicate to belting.

An AMAZING rearrangement of "Eleanor Rigby". Earland kills on organ, and he's backed up by the incredible Melvin Sparks on guitar and Houston Person on tenor sax. An absolute classic of Hammond jazz.

When I heard this album by the Brazilian organist Ed Lincoln, I really wasn't expecting a tune like this. It's a beautiful, tender vocal, sounding like something from a Francis Lai soundtrack, with lovely male-female alternating vocals and an exquisite Morricone style trumpet blending well with the guitar/organ/percussion instrumentation. An absolutely stunning track - playful but slightly sad at the same time, with some spooky laughter/sighing from the female singer towards the end.

Teardrop Explodes� second single, "Bouncing Babies", was released in July 1979, following the departure of organist Paul Simpson and the arrival of his replacement Gerald Quinn. With those changes, the group's sound, too, would alter dramatically, as Quinn took the band into the crypt-like depths of proto-Goth; in true Phantom of the Opera style, his organ haunts the grooves, while Gary Dwyer pounds his drums like a man who�s just discovered he's been buried alive, and Michael Finkler reenacts the Texas Chainsaw Massacre with his buzzsaw guitar.

Ecstatic reviews greeted the single, but its lifespan was short � before long, �Bouncing Babies� was so hard to find that the Freshies came close to scoring a hit simply by bemoaning that difficulty � their &"I Can't Get (Bouncing Babies by the Teardrop xplodes)" itself ranks alongside its namesake among the most memorable of the age.
(AMG)

great piece of whiskey-soaked break up pop from our friend lee, here. it's basically driven by guitar and harpsichord, but a warbling hammond organ pops up in the end. really dig the balance between lee's weary voice and the backup singers' purring wordless hums here.

This song is haunting. The lyrics are about loss and are bouyed by a simple arrangement of guitar and organ.

I like this album more with each listen.

'You Were Here' is the first solo album from Ms. Harmer who is also one of the principle members of a Canadian folk/pop group called 'Weeping Tile'.

The recording may be raw, but this song reeks of pure insane genius. 60's-inspired organ-fueled sleaze. The band boasts the former organist of "The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black". This is one of many instrumental numbers consisting of guitar, organ, shakers and what sounds like an old drum machine. Shamelessly derivitive, lo-fi and spooky. It's one part surf and equal parts garage and swing. Henry Mancini-meets-The Mummies-meets-The Stray Cats.

Off the LP "Orlan Divo" Orlan Divo's first release on the Musidisc label. A collaboration with Ed Lincoln, Waltel Branco and other Musidisc luminaries. This LP/CD is available as a reissue from whatmusic.com

A laid back bossa/balanco track. Nice easy vocals by Orlan Divo who has a great voice (although I don't speak a word of Portugese so I couldn't say what he's singing about) and some really sweet understated organ licks from the usually over-the-top Ed Lincoln especially durring the vibes break. It's a great track off an even greater LP. I think the only other consistently solid LP like this one is that comes to mind would be Eumir Deodato's "Tremendao" on the equipe label.

Pink Floyd are heard at their best with this piece of film music, keeping it simple and atmospheric. I find so much of their output over-ambitious, but here I think they got it right - a short melodic vocal section followed by a very simple organ chord sequence repeated to a very slow fade. This manages to sound gently, atmospherically organic and hypnotic where so often Floyd sound ludicrously overblown.

Goldsmith's score to this (supposedly forgettable) action film is mainly in a Lalo Schifrin/John Barry bag. This track even recalls Les Baxter's best work of the era. It begins with the main theme reminiscent of Barry's "Ipcress File." I think they even use the same instrument, the cymbalum. The main them then breaks out into this beautiful, lush orchestration topped with electric organ, a funky electric bass, and a very nice backbeat. It totally sounds like "Que Mango"-era Baxter. Anyway, this track and really the entire score are very cool in their own right.

The Cure meets Tamlla Motown ,well sort of, the ideas in Robert Smiths head celebrated the sound of black America yet still kept their fledgling gothic credentials intact.A syncopated bass line and drum pattern is supported by a persistant but low fi organ ,the song goes from sinister and unerving to joyous and euphoric in just a couple of minutes thanks to some well timed horns and hand claps whilst the original rhythym never misses a beat.A time when any band could try any thing and occasionally meet with a happy accident.

This track wasn't what I expected. My previous favorite version of this song (although I have many) was probably the one by Mel Torme on his 1962 album 'Right Now'. And since that version was arranged by Ogerman, I had expected this version to be simply an instrumental version like Torme's recording - a cool, finger-clicking, jerky pop number. In fact, there's something much cooler and more sophisticated about this version.

The tune is picked out first by an organ, and then by the brass and woodwinds before returning to the organ, which then jams around the main tune. A really beautiful string section comes in early on, creating some unusual chords that really add to the song and work very well alongside the 'cool' effect of the organ and rhythm. I wish Claus had recorded more songs with this mixture of percussion, jazzy instrumentation and lovely thick string parts. A few tracks on one of his other 60s LPs, 'Latin Rock,' come close, but I'm not sure any of them are as nice as this one.

At the time a unique fusion of cold synthetic and a warmer organic fragility,following two consecitive number ones "Are Friends Electric"and "Cars" this track revealed the enormous potential of Numan,s futuristic vision.A slow piano led "ballad" with aching cello and violin parts ,sad and beautiful and if i must say utterly pleasant.

Os Jovens were a duo from Rio de Janeiro in the mid 60s. "Coração de pedra" (heart of stone) is an powerful sixties garage track. With an over-the-top organ sound, fuzz guitar and a tight beat, this song shows that Brazilian musical history has a lot more to offer then Samba, Bossa Nova and MPB. The Jovem Guarda scene, which was concentrated in Rio and São Paulo, hosted some great musicians like Roberto Carlos, Erasmo Carlos, Wanderlea, The Beat Boys and Brazilian Bitles.

Its a delightful track, modern big beat sensibility with a great tune, a groover of the highest quality, sounds great in a car, in a club or at home. Full of hooks, vocal, guitar and rhythmic. One of the things I love about the band as well are the crappy pictures of themselves they use on their covers. Theres a promo 12 with a remix on it that is all Bongo's and Organ that didn't make it to release thats pretty good too.

This is by no means a new release, but I've recently gotten back in to it. Most people have a misconception about The Misfits. Yes they have recorded some very 'crap' songs, and the newly re-vised band and almost everything Danzig has done lately is complete garbage in my eyes, however the original Misfits early recordings, circa 1975-77 are simply amazing. 'Cough/ Cool' is a Hammond/ Fender Rhodes driven, atmospheric masterpiece. Danzig croons like Jim Morrison in this emotionally charged ballad(?). Granted, the lyrics are kind of dark, "scent of blood when you cough, cool, cool, cool, cough, cool ", and most of the other words are relatively indeciphrable, yet shockingly 'pretty'...at least in their tonal quality. The song is very scaled-down and under produced (organ, electric piano, bass and drums), but this is a good thing, it's part of its charm. The amount of reverb and slap-back echo on Glenn's voice is brilliant. So, I urge anyone who has never listened to The Misfits due to the forementioned reasons to get off their collective 'high horses' and give it a listen, they have some really great songs. Other good tracks from the same era include; "Return of The Fly", "She", "Hybrid Moments", "Come Back", "American Nightmare", etc...

pretty straightforward mid-sixties garage tune.
what really grabs me about this is the ambience created by the organ/ drum combo in the refrain, wich gives it a kind of mideval/ primal feel. (feel free to arrest me on this one as i know virtually nothing about those genres. it's just the description that sprung to mind:)
don't know too much about the band, as this was a random file sharing find.

is there any kind of music that fits better into a compilation format than the countless garage one hit- or no hit- wonders of the sixties? didn't think so.

You've got to love a guy who has a song on his first album that translates as "Catechism, Toothpaste and You". From that same LP, here's a great off-kilter tropicalia with a heavy baroque-pop influence and really odd instrumentation, featuring fuzz guitar, organ and trumpet in a very nice way.

A superb instrumental, featuring a nice organ sound and the sublime twangy guitar of Johnny Johnson. I believe Johnny has now left the Flaming Stars (who are led by Max Decharne, once of Gallon Drunk), which is a shame - he is a masterful guitarist. This is a rather dramatic, moody track, opening gently and building up nicely with fast strummed guitars. While I doubt this is deliberate, the overall effect is reminiscent of some of the tracks on Morrissey's guitar-heavy 1992 album 'Your Arsenal'. Anyway, like much of the band's other material, this is a nice hybrid of 50s and 90s styles.

dreamy, ultrascandinavian mellow forest music played on drums and electric organ. beautiful. simple melodies that make me think of mist, small cabins in the woods, owls and little lakes.
try listening to this when you're far from civilization. it's amazing.

Super organ led (Herbie Hancock no less) Swinging jazz dance number... Buy the album, if only for this track and the Brilliant cover!

"Brasilian Beat '67 featuring Alberto on the Marimbas & the Juan Morales Singers"
This record came out on the Budget Label "DESIGN".
Great Record with great Cover which is similar to Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66.
cover is visible on my website: www.easylounge.org

WOW! We all know how much the brazillians love Burt, well, this is a fine example of how well he was interpreted by the south.



They keep the original arrangement but spice it up a bit with snappy side-stick beat and pumped-up organ stabs ala' Wanderley.The singers are (I believe) Gracinha Leporace & Pery Ribeiro,and they harmonize beautifully as Manfredo Fest rythmically taps his organ paired with piano in a sumptuous unison.They carry the song along in gradually ascending stages of bliss,until they drop away only to build "Do-you -know-the-ways"in an rounded refrain to finsh it off...Absolutely gorgeous! Produced by Sergio Mendes in his imitable style!!!Also check out their version of "Up, Up, And Away", from the same LP.

This whole LP will make all you Ed Lincoln fans happy. It is a group led by Wilson Neves, the percussionist on a lot of major Bossa releases including all the Eumir Deodato LPs released on Equipe. This track is not the Elton John Kiki Dee version but the earlier Burt Bacharach version. The whole LP is loaded with great organ heavy instrumentals and dance-floor-burners performed by an extremely tight combo. Best of all its available on CD as part of the Odeon 100 Anos series. A lot of groups on the Parlophone label could crank out the cheesey sixties-organ sound and Bacharach covers but not many could match the rythms of Das Neves. How do they say it - ritmo calliente!

The Brand New Heavies were one of the significant groups of the then popular "Acid Jazz" sound in the early 90s. "Dream On Dreamer" still strikes me with it's precisely executed funk rhythm and lush production: Tight rhythm section with funky drums, guitar and bass combined with jazzy piano chords, swirling strings and a crisp brass section. On top of that some flutes, fluegelhorn, percussion and organ with a very pleasant vocal performance by N'Dea Davenport.

Mr. Quintron has been performing/ inventing for 20 years or so. He currently resides in the 9th ward of New Orleans, LA. His "one man band" sound does not really fit into any genre that I know of. If I had to describe it, I would say it's as if a mad scientist, a Hammond organ, early 80's techno and your favourite Jerry Lee Lewis or Elvis song met somewhere deep in the murky swamps of Louisiana. The song "Dungeon Master" is a geeky, upbeat, yet dark, tongue in cheek, seemingly blatant, but possibly unintentional theme song for anyone who has either played or is aware of the board game, "Dungeons & Dragons". *I've never played, but am familiar with it from my ..."less social" classmates from grade school. The song begins with a very techno-esque, oddly-timed organ solo that swells and then abruptly breaks as Quintron belts out, "DUNGEON MASTER, MAKE ME GO FASTER!!!", only to be followed by quirky Hammond and Vocoder sounds as Miss Pussycat chants along in her cheerleader style back-up vocals. After you think you've figured out the gimmick, "Q" channels Elvis Presley as he reaches the climax..."Comma, Comma, Comma, Come On" and erupts in other indecipherable grunts and yelps. Check it out.

Ely Arcoverde is a Brazilian organist. His sound is similar to Ze Maria but not as chime-like and almost even a church-organ sound at times. I love this LP because it has a real low meditative sound. It is a quality I find in much of the music from Bahia as opposed to that from the south. The quarteto inludes organ, drums, bass and - a quality that I love alongside the organ - an accoustic guitar. It is mostly instrumental with some vocals similar to the way Jorge Ben would just make repetetive humming and moaning noises in his early LPs. The whole record has a very dark and mysterious feel - sad and lonely the perfect LP for the dark just the light from the stereo tubes flickering. It is available on ebay a lot, it is Ely's most popular LP and it should run you about $50 - 75.

Most of the soundtrack to this comedy-caper flick is pretty standard '60s soundtrack material. This track, however, is moody, top-notch crime jazz... The arrangement is chaotic but stirring with some really heavy bass-piano, wailing brass, and organ (used more as an atmospheric sound effect than to deliver any melody). Special thanks to Darrell Brogdon for playing this on his Retro Cocktail Hour.

This short, upbeat little instrumental is terrific! The organ playing sounds like Walter Wanderley on speed!

A lovely, gentle samba with wordless three-part mixed harmonies, gently swinging organ and subtle percussion.

Not everybody remembers this, but the "other" side of the famous "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" album featured five rather terrific songs. And this one has "cool passion" written all over it, because the lyrics are straight-ahead I'm-in-love-and-I'm-almost-tongue-tied-about-it but within a medium-paced 6/8 framework rather than a frantic groove. Meanwhile the organ and the choir-like backing vocals give it a lot of warmth. So it sounds like what I'm saying is that it manages to be both cool and warm at the same time. That may not make sense, but it's a great song off a classic LP.

Incidentally, rock writer Dave Marsh in one of his reviews said "It's now garbage" about this LP. Bullfeathers! It's still a classic. It makes me wonder what Marsh thinks is not garbage these days -- misogynous rubbish about ho's and bitches perhaps?

An incredibly perfect easy listening piece, this opens with an other-worldly, John-Barry-ish synth sound, and then leads into a groovy, lightly funky piano riff, with shimmering strings. Francis Lai's signature organ sound carries the tune as the song builds into a dramatic orchestral pop masterpiece. A standout track, with superb wistful, lazy, summer day feel, rather like some of the best tracks on the 'Sound Gallery' compilation of a few years ago.

This must be the epitome of French progressive rock, a (mostly) languid song made by piano and organ on top of the usual rock instrumentation. There is a short fast/noisy bit just before the middle that jars a bit, but basically you want to just lie back and relax while listening to this track, it's so mellow and lovely. Also recommended: "St. John's Avenue" and "The Gulf Of Knowledge" from their second LP "Windows".

It starts the LP with a blast of horns and a wail of Harry Stoneham on Organ, with a big intro that makes you check the LP sleeve - Is this really that folky ballad?

A drop down to a cowbell latin beat, and then back into the song proper. The main rendition is pretty good, but theres just something about that introduction that just turns it into a cheeseball, high kicking masterpiece. I start grinning every time I hear it, never fails to lift my spirits.

When I first started actively listening to Mancini, I guess it was in '94 or '95, I was put off by his work from the late '60s/early '70s. I guess my impression was that he wrote these brilliant pop scores until the mid-'60s and then just starting doing mediocre orchestral Beatles medleys and stuff like that. Well, lately I've been realizing how misinformed my first impression was. In fact, it seems i've been enjoying Mancini's work from this era even more than much of his older stuff. "Giovanna" is a great, jaunty little instrumental from Vittorio De Sica's 1970 film "Sunflower." The very Italian-sounding arrangement is carried by the organ and accordion. I think the "Sunflower" soundtrack is too often compared to Morricone. While I can maybe hear the influence, the sound is distinctly Mancini. Another good track from the album is "Love In The Sand" which features, uh, some very nice harpsichord work.

Brian Eno on guitar, percussion, organs and piano and John Cale on viola. When you put geniuses like these two together, something brilliant is bound to happen. In this case, it's this song. This one gets me every time.

One of the best groups immersed in the second wave of Italian progressive bands. They were able to fluidly combine classical and avant-garde elements in an involving manner with electric and acoustic instruments complemented by light, soft vocals. Arturo Stalteri piano, organ, spinet, cembalo, synth, glockenspiel, acoustic guitar, recorder, tambourine, violin Gaio Chiocchio electric & acoustic guitar, mandoline, harpsicord, synth, shaj baja, zither tirolese, sitar, bell Jacqueline Darby voice This group was formed by piano virtuoso Arturo STALTERI , it reminds me of Schoenberg+Ennio Morricone goes to the prog church with a crisp broadcast-like vocalist (experimental). Sometimes it makes people want to skin cats.

" It's difficult to place MOS in a genre as the song structures are unique, often complex. At the same time there are always the pop elements of catchy melodies and loads of harmony. Even though there are only two of them, they fill up the space with the monster, bass-heavy organ, creative drumming, and constant dueling vocals. The music can be sweet. At other times it's spastic, but either way, you leave MOS shows with a warm feeling.



Mates of State has been described by critics as unabashed joy, honesty at its best, a two piece with balls, and a band that you must see live. " (taken from official website)







amazing.

The 50s exotica standard performed "au moderne" on just two ARP synths and two Hammond organs, recorded live. And while it pales in comparison to the seminal Leroy Holmes version, it's the perfect background music to your next hip Laurence Welk luau.

Ridiculously sentimental and melodramatic like a number of songs on this album, but as often rescued by the singing and in particular by Sally Dastey's voice - really, this woman is genuinely the best singer I have ever heard - a beautiful, plaintive Australian accent that deserves to be ranked with asrtud gilberto as one of the most distinctive voices in pop.

The music here on this song very simple - just a banjo, guitar, and mouth organ for backing, with Dastey singing 'he was here, but not for long/ I'll let you in on a little secret now/' before suddenly just speaking, with immense sadness - 'he wasn't the best worker we ever had'. Really fantastic folk music.

Sally Dastey was one of the Tiddas, who I have gone on about elsewhere on this site.

The sound of Paul Wller finding his musical feet after the Jam split,a breezy acoustic mid tempo ballad that relies on organic components ,guitar ,hammond organ and hand claps to propel this celebration of love and unity through the roof .
Originally appeared on the B-side of an early single and sounding like a demo,it was later re recorded for the debut album "Cafe Bleu" but was really nailed on this version

Excellent organ-heavy song centered around the rhythm of Otis Redding's "Hard to Handle". Nice and fluid. Everything that is great about Jamaican soul in one neat little package, from Lee Perry's debut album as producer.

the peak of 80s garage from this boston based group! of all the 'new' garage bands who played 60s influenced music i think this one's the absolut best. danelectro guitars, fuzzed up tremolo and pop organ orgasm!

One of Puffy's Andy Sturmer productions, this track brings to mind things such as ABBA's "Fernando" with it's faux-Andalusian flavor...but those loopy sound effects and the theater organ solo just scream out Tokyo!

Got a haircut today (short, choppy, fab). Getting a haircut often makes me think of June because she did have the greatest barnet ever - that fringe!

So I've pulled out my June collection - a paltry 4 LPs but growing - and am lovin' a bit of this tonight. The instrumentation here reminds me a lot of Ella Mae Morse's corner of the market, someone I should really get around to recommending on this site.

How High The Moon opens gentle as duck down, moving into a light finger snappin' mood then onto a heavy big band scat rhythm. Christy's technique is superlative and you can almost hear her intuitively measuring the band, taking each note perfectly.

This LP is a set of re-interpretations of songs June originally sang with the Stan Kenton Orchestra. Being a June novice, I'm not aware of the original version but I doubt I could like it more.

Eighties pop with minimalist percussion, quirky lyrics, and jazz-club atmosphere. The organ intro, skillful guitar breaks, spare bass-drum beat, and catchy chorus are my lasting memories of this song which was one of my first "favorite songs." More info on this band at www.jazzbutcher.com

It's a sad fact that the Bee Gees are a group primarily remembered for only one thing. If this were a perfect world, people would realize what an jaw-droppingly amazing group they once were. To me, their first LP is an orchestral psychedelic pop masterpiece easily the equal of the Kinks' "Village Green" or Billy Nicholls' "Would You Believe", and also just about as close at Britain ever got to replicating "Pet Sounds". On this track, listen for the insane rubber-band bassline, the staccato organ fills, the odd timbre of the voices or the occassional flute bit. It's a song bursting with an enthusiam the likes of which people only had during the middle 60s.

Alan Price left The Animals in 1965 and began his career as as the lead singer of The Alan Price Set in 1966.

Their first single was a flop. This, their second, made the Top Ten, in England.

It's my personal favourite rendition of this much covered, Screamin' Jay Hawkins song. The most famous version is probably by Nina Simone, which I also rate very highly.

Alan's version is tremendously powerful, helped by his skilful, echoey use of the Hammond Organ.

Price never 'made it' in the USA as a solo performer. He was terrified of flying, so the necessary promotion of his work, stateside, suffered. He also gave this as his reason for leaving the Animals, who needed to spend a lot of time in the USA, as they had a huge following there.

He's one of my favourite British artists, solo & otherwise, of the '60's & I think this is my favourite of his songs.

This one has really been haunting me. I recently heard this rare and sought after album, and was entranced by the opening track, a devastating vocal. Although Lani Groves sings in English, in a style very similar to Sergio Mendes and Brasil 66, I knew that this was a Brazilian track that I had heard before.

Researching a song with as generic a title as 'I want your kiss' is hard though, and with no knowledge of who the composer was, most of the search engine results were soft porn stories. After a while I threw on Elis Regina's first album, Samba - eu canto assim, and happily found the information I was looking for. The original Portuguese song is called 'Sou sem paz', and was written by Adylson Godoy, who may or may not be the same person as Amilton Godoy, who was the pianist in the Zimbo Trio.

After all my research, I was disappointed to learn that this song has hardly ever been recorded; the only versions I know of are this and those by the Zimbo Trio and Elis Regina.

Trivia aside, this is a nice fusion of several of my musical passions. The chord sequence is unusual, delicate and surprising, and the vocal is passionate. I think it would be fair to say that Lani Groves doesn't have quite Elis's passionate delivery, but for me this is offset by the beautiful backing arrangement, featuring some great organ playing.

My favourite Canadian rock single of all time. It's a slow one, which starts with solo piano, picks up the acoustic guitar, then gets a heavy fuzzy guitar in the chorus that complements the melody perfectly. Then repeat! With an organ and full band. Followed by a nice guitar solo at the end! Add in some interestingly-placed key changes (which are necessary to keep it level) and you've got a masterpiece, says I. Needless to say, I'm the only person on the planet outside the artists themselves who remembers it ...

absolutely stunning. this shanty-esque version of "innocent when you dream" is meant to sound like an old 78 record, complete with vinyl crackle and boxy sound.
the street organ(?) is what really makes the song for me, it gives it sort of a "pre-war coney island-style carnival documentary footage"-vibe, if you`re able to make any sense out of that. it really is an absolutely stunning track to close an album with.

"running through the graveyard
we laughed my friends and i/
we swore we`d be together
until the day we died/
until the day we died"

(often i`m a bit uncomfortable when it comes to posting lyric exerpts, in my opinion whether or not a lyric is great is too often dependent on the delivery of the lines and the feel of the music. to me, seperating the lyrics from the song can often lessen their emotional impact. does anyone else feel that way?)

the organ is very powerful and ominous in a good way

There is a significant amount of groove present in this, Green's paean to his adopted hometown of Pittsburgh. Green's guitar playing is absolutely sublime in this trio arrangement featuring the incredible Big John Patton on Hammond and Ben Dixon on drums. Green takes the lead throughout the song, and Patton provides some inspired, laid-back organ playing with a few terrific vamps thrown in and Dixon lays down a perfect rhythmic counterpoint to it all. One of those tracks that you just can't help but to bop your head to.

An unusual-sounding instrumental that mixes a 3/4 time signature with a light breakbeat. The song (incorrectly cited as 'the name of the game' on the record I have) is a spooky and groovy instrumental, with a continuous organ riff, great strings, and a big beat. A different interpretation of this song by another British arranger, John Gregory, appears on the excellent German compilation 'the mad mad world of soundtracks'.

A wonderful track. As you may have read elsewhere, Wendy and Bonnie were young sisters who wound up releasing an album on the Skye label, which was owned by Cal Tjader, Gary MacFarland and Gabor Szabo. This recording benefits from some superb session musician work, and opens with a bluesey riff. The arrangement is simple, with a haunting organ joining the guitar and drums, and the Wendy and Bonnie singing and occasionally harmonizing over the top. The voices are clear and carry the melody very well. This short song has a rather enchanting moody feel to it, exemplified by the fade-out ending. The mix of earnest female vocals and great session musicians recalls the Feminine Complex.

A lovely little pop song, Jellypop perky Jean uses a standard Julian Cope trick - having a nice little repetitive musical phrase running in the background throughout the whole song. He then builds things up with a simple organ sound. The effect is very gentle and ambient and wonderful. At one point late in the song, Julian stunningly stops singing and starts talking. Here the real genius cuts through, and I start wondering why more people don't rant on about this guy as much as I do.

A very cool track, but not in the way I normally find Walter Wanderley's quick-draw hammond organ technique cool. This is a simple, bluesey number on which he is joined by the Brazilian singer Luiz Henrique. Luiz doesn't sing though, he just contributes some nice scat vocals, rather like the work Marcos Valle does on 'Garra'. In my experience, this is about as close as Walter gets to 'funky', and this version from the 'Popcorn' album is a great improvement from the 1967 'Kee-ka-roo' LP version.

A perfect segue into a perfect album, King of the Carrot Flowers is a masterpiece. This is the way songs should be written, performed, and produced. Jeff Mangum strums the catchiest 3 chords on his acoustic guitar while his piercing vocals spill lyrics of psychedelic sophistication. I can still remember the first time I heard him sing the lyric - 'and your mom would drink until she was no longer speaking, and dad would dream of all the different ways to die, each one a little more than he would dare to try' - in a rising climax. The energy and power is then sustained into a C drone from an organ, followed by an amped acoustic guitar being plucked clumsily. And like a street preacher we again hear Jeff, he belts 'I love you Jesus Christ' while the rest of the band hit fuzzed-out power chords F and C until a storm swells with cymbals, horn, bass, guitar, Jeff's voice and another rising movement to yet another climax. Propelled by an electric frequency that chops like a helicopter blade inches over-head we are lead into Part 3, often referred to as 'Up and Over'. This last part explodes into fuzz rock in all it's garage-roots glory with lyrics like - 'I will shout until they know what I mean, I mean the marriage of a dead dog sing, in a synthetic flying machine'. As the fuzz is sustained heavily the song ends with 1 last climax; the one-note piano brings us to a close.

King of the Carrot Flowers Part 1 introduces the theme of 'loss of innocence'. The narrator, addressing his lover nostalgically, compares the emotional deterioration of the older parents with the emotional and sexual discovery of their youth - 'your mom would stick a fork right into daddy's shoulder, and dad would throw the garbage all across the floor, as we would lay and learn what each other's bodies were for.' This motive returns later in the album, as does his 'Jesus Christ' theme. Jeff Mangum alerts the listener in his lyric sheet that he believes what he sings, and that this 'Christ' theme is but the spiritual light he finds within everything. The album further treats themes like the Holocaust, death of loved ones, visions of ghosts, and all the horrors of man with this light. It is a beautiful and terrifying experience unlike any rock record to date. Personally, my favorite song of all time.

Ever wonder what a collaboration between Kate Bush and Gary Numan in, say, 1982 might have sounded like? Well, now you know.... Pure organic/synthetic sex pop, kids. Submit to Allison's tubeway army - resistance is futile!

Okay so it's a cover song. Fleetwood Mac re-released it a few years ago when the original members get back together. Then there was the recent popularity of the Dixie Chicks version. Now, I will admit that it is tough to beat the original version.

But this one's *real* close.

This song came out of left field. From a group whose first work was primarily long, drawn-out, sometimes cacophonous chords, this song was like a splash of cold water in the face. The CD itself is a B-sides compilation that fits like a "lost chapter" to the Pumpkins early work.

Keep in mind; this is not a happy song. It was not supposed to be. That's why Billy Corgan's version stands well above the Dixie Chicks� version, His voice accompanied by a solo acoustic guitar is able is capture the abject heartache of the song�s words and rhythm.

Which makes it a great cover song.

Tijuana's favorites race through a tough Question Mark-esque organ 'n' handclap version of "The Philly Freeze".

pure bubblegum psychedelic soft pop, with lyrics about sucking on "lollipops". the most familiar version of this song is probably the one written for france gall, but i prefer the version where serge himself (in a great faux-na�ve manner)provides the vocals. the sugary strings of the original(?) are replaced by a great subdued wah wah guitar and organ backing on this version, and a lot of little touches wich help make the song a bit more bizarre and playful than the other version. nice for sunny picnics and bicycle rides in the countryside, eh?

It's a great funky, melodic tune with great Spanish hammond organist, Mauri Sanchis.
It is his first cd and his web is great also, www.maurisanchis.com

I am a connoisseur (er, fan) of Japanese pop music, not just young further-out acts/groups like Cornelius (lost w/o his tape loops) and Love Psychedelico (think Beatles Meets Velvet Underground). But also that strain of Japanese pop which draws heavily on the stylistic traditions of the usual Brill Building suspects. i.e. Solo Nihogo artists like Mariko Takeuchi, especially those tracks with arrangements by the great Tomaji Sogawa. Also Chage and Aska, Eichi Ohtaki, (sometimes called Japan's Phil Spector), Gospellers, Rag Fair and, of course, Pizzicato Five. I am especially drawn to the efforts of Tatsuro Yamashita as a solo artist, and of his tracks with his wife, Mariya Takeuchi, released under her name. On their own and as a team they have been recording since the 1980s and in (affectionately known by his fans as) Tats' case since the late seventies (his first album was co-produced and arranged in the U.S. by the 4 Seasons' Charles Callelo). There are a number of other artists like this in Japan with uncommonly lengthy---by U.S. standards---careers. And believe it or not, a hit record in Japan sells in numbers that are generally far larger than the U.S. despite a population that is roughly half as large.

One of my favorite Takeuchi - Yamashita collaborations (she writes and sings, he arranges) is "Let's Get Married," which would not be perceived as being retro or sixties or somesuch by (IMHO) the more flexible and openminded Japanese music audience. Even though, admittedly it does draw upon such musical conceits. Instead, Let's Get Married would merely be regarded as a great record, case closed.

This 1984 cut track is timelessly, and extra-territorily infectuous. But with the exception of Kyu Sakamoto in 1963 with his fluke number one single, Sukiyaki, to the best of my knowledge no Japanese artist of any musical inclination has been able to crack the U.S. charts in any significant way. General garden variety xenophobia coupled with a hard time wrapping the tongue around those hard-to-pronounce names with two many vowels and and syllables. It is doubtful that LGM, even though it is sung by Takeuchi in perfectly accented English, was ever released in the U.S.

Starting with a full blown fanfare of the Wedding March played on organ, after twenty seconds, Let's Get Married abruptly switches gears and mood and becomes an ever-ascending excercise in neo-Spectorian pop, replete with castinets, chimes, a swirling ooh-wah background chorale (courtesy of an overdubbed Yamashita), multiple drumkits, a full complement of string players and plenty of good old fashioned Gold Star Studio-style echo. A paen to the joys of marriage, my favorite moment happens at 1:42 way down in the mix right after Takeuchi sings the line "You and me with a small house and a dog," where, if you listen carefully you can hear the sound of a dog yapping for joy. Homage to the "Pet" at the end of Brian Wilson's "Caroline, No" perhaps?

Both Yamashita and Takeuchi had number one albums in Japan last year. Unlike most of their 70s and 80s U.S. rock/pop counterparts, they have not been cast aside by the bulk of Japanese record buyers, but continue to peak at the top of the charts with every new issue. A listen to this perfectly crafted, classic, three minute (well. . . 3;45 actually) track should help illustrate why this is so.

Bill Reed (new to this list)

One of the best songs from the cd 'Sunny Side of Original Love' and one of my favorite songs by Original Love. The instrumentation is typical of this cd: Organ, a driving bass line, drums, a funky guitar riff, brass and a very interesting flute. (Why don't western bands use flutes more? Japanese bands surely seem to realize how they can enhance the mood of a song.)

I love the chords and harmonies in this song. Together with the instrumentation and the suggestive title they make this song very strongly emotional. I can almost feel myself leaving the dull everyday life, escaping to the dark side of the moon as I listen to this song. Oh, and Takao Tajima's vocals are as good as ever.

If you like this song, you may also like 'Sunshine Romance' from the same CD, although this one is the better of the two in my opinion.

From the Italian western of the same name. I haven't seen the film, but it seems to be a comedy starring Thomas Milian and in the mode of the popular Trinity films. This track is kind of a light-hearted square dance with typically brilliant instrumenation by Morricone -- bells, banjo, organ, chorus, acoustic guitar, drums and violins. This makes a nice companion to the "Wanted Dead Or Alive" track I recommended earlier. Lots of fun.

It's hard to pick a particular Gary McFarland song to recommend: although I love almost all of them, there aren't that many that particularly stand out. Most have some of the same trademarks: whistling or wordless vocals, brass, guitar, and a gentle bossa nova beat. They're slightly wistful, and make me feel like it's summer whenever I hear them. McFarland also worked with some outstanding musicians, including Gabor Szabo and Kenny Burrell on guitar, Grady Tate on drums, and Willie Bobo on percussion.

Long live the king is actually slightly different - it's a simple, upbeat number with a rock beat, bacharach-style trumpet, and picked guitar; a boogaloo-style saxophone also makes an occasional appearance, as does a hammond organ. The German 'Latin Lounge' CD showcases his work on the Verve label, and it's all excellent.

First of all let me say that I have been violently blindsided by this group! ...they very quickly entered my favorite 60's pop group stratosphere and have not budged from my rotation for months now. I first got "From you unto us", the singles collection which is good for what it is, but I think the best introduction to the band is the albums themselves, original ordering of songs in this case is vital to the listening experience.
I liked the singles collection OK, but my first impression was muted and okish until I noticed a couple songs later on sticking in my head for hours... picked up the first album on CD (Wondering the whole time if I should be doing this as I have most of the tracks on the comp, CD right? I like the original ordering BEST! Glad I did, no regrets at all...) and have played little else for some time...

I just got Timeless and I'm choosing one off their second album because the first album is one of the few immaculate pop albums of all time IMO and choices there are easy favorites... the second album seems to be less popular, but there are some serious gems here too and It's also a stone cold favorite...

I am choosing Look Away because I think the most distinctive sonic quality of Eternity's Children are these wonderful uplifting bouncy organ driven songs... ET have several tracks that deliver a great song, beautiful and original atmospheric production, great performances in a deeply satisfying way that is rare... This song is pure pop bliss from the opening notes to the end. I honestly can't think of a better compliment than that this song makes me glad to be alive.

For those of you who played in the band and stumble across this:
From the bottom of my heart THANK YOU!

A classic, congenial, groundbreaking electronica score to Ridley Scott's movie "Blade Runner". While the most significant cues like "Love Theme" and "Memories of Green" were included on numerous compilations before, it took 12 years for the soundtrack to get released officially. Since Vangelis "recompiled" the music for the soundtrack, adding new music, reworked cues and left out parts of it, it's the best sounding but far from complete version of the soundtrack. Due to this fact there have been a huge amount of unofficial bootleg releases over the years, mostly private releases put out in small quantities. Even after over 20 years since the soundtrack has been recorded it still sounds fresh and highly evocative as ever before. The feeling throughout the soundtrack is a neo-retro, future-noir mood with grand soundscapes created with a mass array of various analogue synths. Especially the wonderful use of the Yamaha CS-80, with it's somewhat organic, sweeping, harmonica-style polyphonic sound gives the music such a remarkable feel. On "Love Theme" though Vangelis prominently features pretty much the only "real" instrument on the whole soundtrack, a saxophone played by Dick Morrisey.

A moment of silence, (and/or eardrum-shredding noise), please folks, for the memory of the late, great Mr. John Balance of Coil who passed earlier this month. This track is one of my favorite �songs� by this organization, the title track from their sardonic exploration of club culture in the early 1990�s. Coil were never an �industrial� band � though they could create tracks of brutal, grinding sound. They were always too musical, too playful, too smart. On this tune � and there is a really catchy tune here � Balance does his best Christopher Lee impression, growling/singing of love as sickness, mixing quotes from William Blake and Roy Orbison, over a backing track that sounds like H. P. Lovercaft does Esquivel. Brilliant stuff from a brilliant man, who will be missed.

metro area brings a lot of things together. there is the oldskool discovibe. there is retro-electro. there is detroit. and there is always organic stuff within like in this track, the nice flute-riff which appears only once or twice.
the whole album is highly recommandable. all tracks are arranged in a deep disco mood, as i would describe it. but you can't compare it to real disco from the 70s as there are a lot of other ingredients. for example a 909 fourtofloorbeat in many tracks and synthiepads sweeping in and out. nice mixture.
i think some tunes should be familiar to club-goers (miura, athmosphrique) but this one is more for your home-audio-experience...=)

An instrumental with a fascinating fusion of styles, this track starts out quietly and then explodes delightfully. Hemmingson plays what sounds like a church organ (alongside various other keyboard instruments), but mixes it in with wah-wah guitar, funky beats and percussion, strings, and a dirty, blaxploitation soundtrack-style flute, to produce a compelling sound. Sabu Martinez plays the congas.

I can't offer a great deal of background information here, since I picked this up on a third-hand recommendation, but there are a few great tracks on the album

What a strange and beautiful song! Cool-toned organ melodies played against a thick, warm, bass vein running through the entire song, complex drum backing, and the oddly distant, yet personally reflective lyrics of Karin Krog, combine to create a dream-like sound.

A charming little song which clocks in at around 35 seconds, opening the superb 'Friends' album. In a way which complements the superb Beach Boys track 'our prayer', 'meant for you' has a slight hint of a religious, hymn-like tone, with a prominent organ sound and uplifting words. The overall effect is a very warm, beautiful track which you keep wanting to hear again.

A beautiful and really unique track which merges Brazil with electronica (Arto is Brazilian, and a guy called DJ spooky added some beats). It opens with a bare, spacey beat. Fragmented guitar, vocals and organ drift in and out until the song builds into a climax with a simply beautiful synth-string sound. The song manages to be uplifting while retaining a slightly spooky twin-peaks type of feel to it.

"Hammond Explosion"-Dieter Reith
German Hammond Organist
There are brilliant funky breaks and Hammond sounds on this awesome record!
Record Cover is visible on my website: www.easylounge.org

Nick Drake's style is probably catagorized under British folk rock. This song is smooth with the happy keys jumping around and the organ in the background. Best if played while driving with the windows down on a cool morning.

A beautiful song by a rare artist. I would never have heard this gorgeous song if it weren't for filmmaker John Waters. It is about a man who is completely devoted to his faithless love. He will sit and wait for eternity in the hope that the woman he loves will return. The vocal was recorded inside a small closet and the acoustics provide a haunting sound in Mr. McCall's voice. He is accompanied by piano, a soulful organ, and percussion. This song alone is worth the purchase price of the Hairspray soundtrack!! Pick it up today!

Ed Lincoln is a Samba Organist and this was probably his best known song at the time, its on all his greatest hits LP's. Its a pretty wild number, with lots of silly organ tricks, a kazoo (!), some Mexican style trumpets and lah, lah vocals. It stops and starts, is groovy, is damn catchy and makes every day a sunny day. (very useful if you live in the UK).

No one's recommended this? This song is unreal in so many ways. First, it sounds like relaxing lounge jazz, then all of a sudden it changes into music for a Scooby-Doo episode, then the strange wailing comes in and you're floating through the deep void of space in an alternate reality without worrying about oxygen or the laws of physics. That is all within the first minute of the song. And then, and then, let's not forget the way the Brother kills on the organ, my friends. Then there's the sample appeal, most obviously this was slowed down for A Tribe Called Quest's "Scenario", and recently reworked by Jay Dee, in that trademark handclap hitting, hypnotic head-nodding Dilla fashion.

This short track opens the classic 1995 easy listening compilation The Sound Gallery. I'm sure it's well known to anyone with a remote interest in the whole revival scene. It's a really beautiful track, with funky drums, organ, a gentle, whispery vocal chorus, and some great jazz piano. Evocative and glamorous, this evokes a swinging party attended by people wearing sparkly dresses. For me, this is perhaps the ultimate stylish/glamorous 60s recording.

Although far removed from the adventurous group that had long ago dabbled in minimilist, almost avant-garde electronics, all these years later the Human League continued to take its pop seriously. "One Man in My Heart" could have been a total throwaway, a gloopy little love song without a single redeeming quality, beloved by grannies and tweenies, gag-inducing for those outside those age parameters. But the band obviously gave the number time and attention, and thus ensured that it can't be so easily dismissed. Inserting a much sampled electro effect into the intro, creating an intriguingly intricate rhythm, counterpointing swelling, lush synths with a palpitating '70s-styled organ, layering on vocals and harmonies, and conjuring up a romantic milieu flushed with delicate atmospheres, the group produced a love song unlike virtually all typical pop fodder. The work, effortless as it sounds on disc, paid off, and this 1995 single swept into the U.K. Top 15.
(AMG)

Opening with a brat beating bass and melody that is scarily reminiscent of some late 70s euro disco pathos, it�s only when Brian James� raunchy guitar kicks in that you know you�re well away from the lights of that dance floor and in the grips of a very different master. A hedonistic web of Bators� beloved conspiracy theorizing, the logical successor to the Wanderers� paranoia-packed repertoire, �Open Your Eyes� previewed a closet of horrors that embraced organized religion, the impending World Tour of Pope John Paul II, Bolshevik plots and Ronald Reagan�s apparent rush towards nuclear Armageddon. With session man Matt Black�s synthesizers giving the whole thing a classic rock feel that merged edgily with the band�s own punkish sensibilities, it was, as always, Bators� viperous lyrics that brought the whole thing into the twilight zone of pre-Internet intrigue. The 80s politicking of Margaret Thatcher�s Britain and Reagan�s cold war America pretty much ensured that both sides were far happier not having to open their eyes. A gleeful Bators was there, though, to make sure they did.
(AMG)

I came to Callier's music via arranger/producer Charles Stepney and delicado's recommendation of a Stepney-produced Ramsey Lewis track -- "Julia".

Well, Callier's "Ordinary Joe" (produced by Stepney) is a great track which I listen to over and over.

Of all the tracks I've recommended, this is probably the only one I would recommend by virtue of lyrical content alone: "Now politicians all try to speech you / Mad color watchers all try to teach you / Very few will really try to reach you / If you're lost in a stack / That's OK, come on back." Great stuff.

Thankfully the musical content is also very good. Kind of a pop-jazz style tightly arranged from Stepney. I say tightly, but it never really comes across that way. It really has a pretty breezy and organic sound.

Also, look for an earlier version on Callier's "First Light" which is a bit more mellow, but at least as good as the Stepney-produced version. Maybe better in some ways...

Has a nice folky feel to it. Very relaxing.

This Hillard and Garson song first recorded by the Romantics in 1963 gets a smoothe Bossa makeover on Eduardo Costa's LP "Eduardo Costa & Os Hitmakers." It has Hammond organ leads and 60's guitar and a mod sound similar to the many Parlophone/Odeon releases of the same period. Its a sweet melody and the LP has a fantastic cover with Eduardo standing at the Hammond in s shag-rugged recording studio wearing an outfit that would make Austin Powers jealous.

Up fer listening to some snotty American teens brag about how utterly monged they all are?!... Lord, just writing that there sentence makes me want to clutch my head and groan� �well exactly, so how does no strike you?� Fair, it strikes me as fair. But hear me out. You see, these drug-addled Wailers set their braggings against a backdrop of the crankiest, mankiest rock�n�roll the wrong side of the Sonics. �Is that the tape disintegrating?�, �Do I hear the wallpaper of heaven being torn down?� No, you don�t, that�s the music. �And is that the �Satisfaction� riff honk-honking like an ocean liner in a storm?� Aye yes captain, like the truest garage rockers they filch their riffs from the big leaguers (listen to that other meisterwerk �Psychotic Reaction�). It�s a genre that favours execution over original ideas, and man the Wailers execute that �Satisfaction� riff alright. Yes, sir, by the end there�s black smoke billowing out like burning plastic. ��And I can hear a�a wicked organ swirling around in the cacophony. It sounds really big, like it was recorded in a church, you know like that Belle & Sebastian track� �Lazy Line Painter Jane�?� �well, yeah� I suppose�

�Still these lyrics though�? I cannae bear kids, ANYONE, recounting their drunken, drugged, whatever, adventures out on the town. ESPECIALLY when every other word is �crazy�. I thought psychedelic drugs were meant to expand your mind?� Well, yeah, I agree, but like when you listen to any other drug-addled teen, your brain just switches them off after a time, �out runnin� around/seein� every crazy sight� ma na na na ma na ma ma!� At least until the chorus, when the kids notice you drifting, and jolt your slumbering brain by bellowing in your ear, �HEY! We gotta be� OUT OF OUR TREE!!! OUT OF OUR TREE!�� Yes, yes, it certainly sounds like it.

Another hidden gem ,unreleased and gathering dust untill the age of "Deluxe Editions".A well known song from Tears for Fears covered by the then "hot"Paul Young within a matter of weeks of the original release.Stripped down to acoustic guitar and demo piano and some blokey backing vocals ,Youngs powerful voice cuts through the originals somewhat fey vocal style and reveals the songs muscle and sinew and another example of a song from a supposed synthetic era being as good as their organic rivals.

Gorgeous organ swirl with McLennan's harmonies. Just a beautiful song.

From the album Morrison Hotel, Peace Frog is a bouncy toe tapping tune encapsulating funky wah wah with jazzy tones and a hint of country.

What I love about this tune is it's ability to make me get up and dance, head bounce toes tap.

Facinating lyrics, quite contradictory in contrast with the merry, whimsicalness of the music.

"There�s blood in the streets� it�s up to my ankles"

However when your dancing around It has little precedence, the organs and drums take you away and the lyrics are gone.....

Interesting Beatles related Exploitation Record with a nice Cover!
The Sound is much similar to the Original Beatles from Liverpool!

Go to http://www.easylounge.org to see the cover and look for other interesting Records! (Organ Sounds, Easy Listening, Funky Big Band Beats, Cheesy Listening.....a lot of them with sound samples!)

The middle class ,friendly face of new wave,mostly known for the student sing a long 2 4 6 8 Motorway ,this track however is the sound of late seventies London a cowbell driven social comment which evolves into a beligerent news cast berating man,s basic lack of freedom before returning for arousing chorus.
An underplayed but constant hammond organ gives the track a modern hymn like feel,a little idealistic but a great musical document of the sound of the U.K for a few months in 1978

This is definitely the best song you never heard. An (so far) impossible track for me to find on vinyl. Its a catchy up tempo Samba Rock song that will keep you moving. For sure! After an organ and drum intro and a break, the song continues with singing and handclapping. I don't know why, but I think almost every song with handclapping in it is outstanding. It is something I like in Flamenco as well.

unbelievably cool track, one of my top ten gainsbourg compositions. great jazzy sex beat, smooth vocals.
it's one of his more agressive songs, similar to the also recommended "un poison violent c'est l'amour".
there seems to be a bit of a bit of a prog vibe going on (in lack of better words, i'm not exactly an expert in the technicalities of music).
nice guitar hook. though the track is pretty repetitive, it's by no means boring. the repetition only helps to make it more intense and interesting.
taken from the film le pacha. i think a lot of gainsbourg's soundtrack work is pretty interesting stuff, though some of it often seems a bit rushed or too similar to other cool compositions from the same era (hey, i'm a sucker for plagiarism...)
the soundtrack to cannabis comes especially recommended.

A super cool french vocal with an excellent organ sound running through it. Serge's jazzier output (showcased on the excellent 'du jazz dans le ravin' CD compilation) really blew me away when I first heard it, and this track is probably my favorite from this period.

The B-52's were one of several late-'70s bands for which there was no real category. With their modified surf guitar sound, their thrift-shop fashion sense, and their jokey demeanor, they certainly weren't in the rock & roll mainstream, but they exhibited none of punk's sneering rebelliousness or musical aggression, either � the only anarchy that seemed to interest the B-52's was of the sartorial variety. "Rock Lobster" was the first B-52's song to catch popular attention, and it's easy to see why. The minimalist guitar lick is like a beach-bum's rendition of the James Bond theme, the one-note organ ostinato complements it perfectly, and Fred Scheider's campy sprechgesang jumps out at you immediately. Yet despite the song's self-consciously weird texture and silly lyrics about earlobes falling off and communal towel coordination, there's a thread of darkness weaving through it. Make no mistake � this is not a song with hidden meaning lurking below the surface. But its surface is a little more complicated than it seems to be at first. For one thing, it's almost seven minutes long, and it does start to drag toward the end. Right when it does, you notice the mood getting darker � Schneider delivers lines about "having fun" and "baking in the sun" in a hoarse croak, and the guitar starts sounding repetitive in a slightly creepy way. Suddenly you realize that the whole song has been in a minor key, and as Schneider shouts and the guitar barks out its angular riff over and over, you start to wonder if maybe there's some kind of commentary going on here. But then Kate Pierson's angelic voice comes in with a surprisingly pretty falling harmony part that can only be described as a descant, which repeats several times, gradually paring itself down to a single phrase, and abruptly the song is over. The whole song ends up being a goofy party confection with a slightly crunchy center � a pretty satisfying overall flavor combination.
(AMG)

I think this one was recorded in '79...It was released late that year and peaked (at least in the US) in 1980.

Strikes a perfect balance between simplicity (Forbert's a singer-songwriter type) and complexity (there are several sections mixed and matched). Probably my favorite of the 1980s.

You've likely heard this song if you were listening to Pop music in 1980; it also received Adult Contemporary and Rock airplay. It has a beautify piano introduction which is repeated throughout. The intro piano gives way to a piaon-acoustic guitar-bass-drumkit backing to Forbert's vocals; later embellishments include backing singers, organ, and electric guitar.

Anyone heard this one?

"Russian Dolls" is a finely crafted song about the abuses of power. It uses guitar and muted organ to establish an ambience of quiet menace. I love the lyrics, which are clever and true. You can see the video on <a href='http://www.neilyoung.com/lwwtoday/lwwvideospage.html'>Neil Young's 'Living With War' site</a>

A storming upbeat bossa on the A & M label, produced by Sergio Mendes. It's a short track which sounds essentially like Mendes's Brasil '66 only better. Walter Wanderley or someone who sounds very like him adds some great touches on the organ, and the singers steal a refrain from Bacharach's then-current 'Casino Royale' movie theme 'Bond Street' and work it into the chorus. Really great stuff, written by a genius: Jorge Ben.

There's an instrument in the background (harp? xylophone?) that really appeals to me. The song is pretty mellow which is cool. Corgan's voice tends to be screechy at times but the magic instrument (in the background) along with some nice (well timed) bass evens it out.

I just heard this for the first time and was completely bowled over. Summer Samba, which in its famous Walter Wanderley organ version sounds like a not-particularly-hip roller-rink tune, is here given a funky treatment with organ and guitar. The guitar gets a little noodley, but in a cool way. Most of Howard Roberts's capitol albums have just been re-released as 2-on-1 CDs; I hope they are all as good as this one.

From The 12 Dreams Of Dr Sardonicus, this final track on side 2 has got to be one of the most beautiful songs with its full organ sound underpinning fragile high register vocals that develop into harmonies that send shivers all over. Recorded at a studio picked for it's resident organ, the quality of the recording is crystal!

This theme is taken from the 1960s hit TV-series 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.' starring Robert Vaughn and David McCallum. Although I don't recall ever hearing this version of the theme I know I've heard variations of it in the series. I particually remember a vibraphones only theme that was played in a store in one of the episodes from the first season.

This version is a laidback bossa song with trumpets, trombones, organs and vibraphones. I'm not sure if this theme was especially written for Vaughn's characher Napoleon Solo, but I guess you could call it his theme since it was often played during his scenes. This is a great song!

�Something Better Change� was released in July of 1977 as the first single from The Stranglers upcoming second album No More Heroes which would appear in mid September. Along with the albums title track, �Something Better Change� would signal a move in a more overtly pop direction that was only hinted at on the group�s first album and would manage to peak at #9 on the U.K. singles chart. This is not to say that The Stranglers abandon their reputation as caustic agitators as No More Heroes was littered with politically contentious tracks such as �I Feel Like A Wog�, �Bring On The Nubiles� and �Bitching�, but the song�s infectious guitar riff and winning melody suggests a tenuous party rock atmosphere. It�s left to singer J.J. Burnel�s particularly gruff vocal performance to keep thing in the punk zone as he alternates between a gnarly throated delivery and a melodic toned timbre. Pumping organ and a buoyant mid-tempo rhythmic romp keep the energy high as he confronts the status quo with a tirade against stifling apathy, flaunting the punk new order with the taunting second verse, �Don�t you like the way I dance? / Does it bug you? / Don�t you like the cut of my clothes? / Don�t you like the way I seem to enjoy it? / Stick my finger right up your nose!� The bridge becomes a jubilant anthem where Burnel voices a punk battle cry to a flurry of organ runs and a growling bass line, �Something�s happening and it�s happening right now / You�re too blind to see it / Something�s happening and it�s happening right now / Ain�t got time to wait�. The chorus is a simple statement, Burnel demanding �Something better change!� with support from the boys in the band who join in for a group shout. Ironically, the arrangement also shows signs of classic rock moves, including a stinging guitar solo and an old school build up of the chorus late in the track.
(AMG)

If anyone could improve this Classics IV ditty, it's the adorable Mr. Montez!

Although the arrangement doesn't change much, (it didn't need to) Nick De Caro did add some nice little "effects" that really set the mood. Like a cool bit of "spooky" delay/filter effecting after the refrain...nice.

Montez's voice just seems to add to the story of the song. Like a guy like him could get spooked by a chick more than your average dude... he's sensitive.

Great Grusin-like organ solo too... That just nails it for me!

One of two astounding percussive cuts on the soundtrack 'No way to Treat a Lady'. The film is apparently a light-hearted look at murder. This cut has a solid beat, which sits behind a church organ sound. This is soon joined by a dirty-sounding guitar. The effect is trashy, but very cool. This track reminds me of the John Schroeder cut 'Soul Trek' (aka 'Astra Nova Orchestra's 'Soul Sleeper'), with a feel that is slightly 'rock'.

Back in the mid 90's, my booty was real far into the UK underground indie scene. For a short time, I was buying virtually all the 45's from a small coterie of labels and, of course, making sure I kept the inserts intact.

The Slampt Underground Organisation were, for a time, the UK's most uncompromisingly independent label. Their hearts were in the right place and their principles tight - against 'selling out', and for 'making music in your bedroom'. There was a real affinity with the riot grrrl / Olympia scene in the US, and Slampt had a way of looking at things not unlike Calvin Johnson and K records.

Avocado Baby were Pete and Rachel, the founders and organisers of Slampt. They released a handful of tapes and 45s on their own and other tiny record labels.

Steal Yo Sixes is about playing ludo. It's pretty daft, and the lowest lo-fi imaginable with a toy horn, xylophone and tape hiss being the only instruments. Still, it has an undeniable childlike charm, and due to its obscurity and short length, makes perfect mix tape / CD-r fodder.

There a line, "When we play ludo, why do I always lose-o?" that gets across the feel perfectly.

This is an astonishing song! The band from New Jersey was closely related to Timothy Leary's community for which they performed gigs, like on 4th of July 1967.This song wasn't even published, only one acetate is left of the recording session which was in Apostolic studios in N.Y in 1968. Billy Barth which was the member, recalls that this was the only song recoreded.There is an instrumental "Flesh Kingdom" which was issued by TV Toy Billy's brother's band.
The song has a marvelous organ introduction and it has love relation lyrics which fit very well to melody.Apparently this band did not have appropriate management because he deserved a much better fate.

This story-song uses an imposing repeating piano riff, 12 string guitar, a little tasteful organ, and dramatic wistful strings as it recounts someone's first, well, lay. On a hot June day/night the singer loses his virginity with a older Southern belle. The version on the Honey CD though isn't as good as the original Bobby Goldsboro vinyl- it seems too lavishly produced, and is from the Summer of '42 soundtrack.

Sound is suttle in the beginning- (a mute organ is playing)and rises gradually. Voice is insanely calming.
The song has so much meaning and it just makes you think about what's out there and it'ss my fav song write now. It's kind of a love-song- but it makes me think more?

I love the organ used in this song's intro, and Tyson Ritter has really yummy vocals. :D Okay, well, besides that, it's a soppy, lovey-dovey song about loneliness and heartbreak and losing your girlfriend (I guess). The lyrics may seem a bit tacky but it's still a cool melodic song with lots of catchy hooks and a great sing-along!

Perky British beat-era novelty hit with great Vic Flick-style twanging guitars and weezy organ. Somehow there's something very distinctive and appealing about the way the guitars sound on UK records before the Beatles. Sort of plonky-plonk deadpan with a slight electric fizz. Or does that just sound silly?

Margo Guryan wrote several quite famous songs in the 60s, the most famous of which are probably 'Sunday Morning' (made famous by Spanky and our Gang; also recorded by Julie London and others) and 'Think of Rain' (recorded by Claudine Longet, among others).

After the incredibly brilliant reissue of Margo's solo LP, 'Take a Picture', Franklin Castle released a compilation of Margo Guryan's demos. This is the standout track on that disc, a very spare and funky number with a cool organ sound, nice drums and catchy vocals. As would be expected from a recording intended only as a demo, this is a little rougher sounding than the studio LP, but it's a brilliant song. I wonder if anyone else ever recorded it...

I'm a sucker for Hammond organs. And no place is that more true than in spy tv & film scores. Here is a cut which really swings from one of the genre's masters, Lalo Schifrin.

nice one! i discovered chris montez lately and i like what he has done.
this song is a cover of astrud gilbertos song from the album "beach samba" (which i didn't recognize until reading it at allmusic.com) and begins with a nice organ-melody as an intro. i especially like the sound of that organ, it's a very sweet and not to heavy one. so that it fits perfect into the mood of this song and giving it a little more sweetness.
as always chris montez sings like a woman and if one doesn't know this it wouldn't be necessarily clear to one. (correct english....?)
while searching for chris montez stuff i came across "the more i see you" performed by montez which was covered last year by a onehitwonderband here in germany and you couldn't escape to hear it at least twice a day no matter where you were leaving and going. the cover was very strict arranged along montez' version. i wonder how i would think of the montez original if this onehitwonder band wouldn't have done this cruelty?!
anyway, last years summer was great anyway...(sex every day...)
and now, you go and listen to that montez guy!!

A simple but catchy track with an excellent arrangement which is helped along by a nice slice of organ in the mix. Dreamily atmospheric, and of course beautifully sung.

A rockin' one and a half minute long instrumental unlike any other Delerue work I've come across. If you know of any other Delerue work like this, please let me know. The arrangement includes really heavy bass, wailing brass, surf guitar, organ, and drums. Maybe it's a little generic, but I like it.

why can't primal scream do a record with songs like this one? organ drenched with girls chanting ye-ye-yeah! dance 'til you drop! some might say that primal scream peaked with screamadelica, i say hell no! even if screamadelica is a great record, possibly one of the hundred best albums from the last century...

I love the WCPAEB, they really seem to encapsulate Psychedelia perfectly. Light, blurred and dreamy. And unlike many of their contemporaries seem completely untouched by Garage authenticity. Not that theres anything wrong with garage punk per se, but it means that theres none of blundering of 'talk about girls' to fray those tinted moods.

Oh, it has loud guitars and harmonies right enough, but the whole thing is pitched just right to lift the dregs of any mood enhancers you may have floating around in your bloodstream and send them spinning into your brain.

A real journey, from a gentle acoustic introduction to an earth-moving riff-feast in the middle, and developing organically towards a satisfying ending. Neurosis really are an extraordinary band, and this is one of their very best tracks.

It's no matter what you do but how you do it! This is a darker song in the Ladytron repertoire and electro disco pop at its very best. Very synth bass heavy yet melodic thanks to these people who understand the recipe of making me happy! Ladytron succeed in making their highly synthetic music sound very organic. Just like Kraftwerk have always done. Apart from Kraftwerk this reminds me of... The Human League. But with a modern touch, leaving the trademark 8t's echoes out. Get up on the dancefloor!

One of the coolest-sounding things from the past couple of years! A very funky breakbeat, odd sound effects, wordless vocals and an organ sample come together in this very chic (and very Japanese) melting pot. This comes to us from Masanori Ikeda, who was a longtime resident DJ at Blow-Up in London (DJ Nori) and also records under the guises of Mansfield and the High Yummies.

One of my all time favourites.This is garage psychedelia at its best.It has a haunted manor feeling with the organ sound (Darryl)which is just hypnotising.The lyrics are also perfect.One of those mistery songs which were blasters but did not make it for some reason.

Another superb instrumental track which had vanished from my mind during the last few years, but which I found again yesterday during a self-indulgent marathon record-listening session. This is a very memorable theme, produced by Joe Meek. There's a cool opening with a catchy drum pattern. The rest of the instrumentation is organ, bass, and some very cool twangy guitars, often with some heavy reverb.

A modern love song! The videclip is gorgeous!

Singer Gal Costa was born in Salvador (Bahia state). Together with other musicians from Bahia: Caetano Veloso, his sister Maria Bethânia, Gilberto Gil and Tom Zé, she moved to São Paulo in 1964. There she bacame one of the most important members of de Tropicalia movement. I consider �Tuareg� as her best song.

�
Pois ele é sentimental
Humano, é nobre é mouro
È muçulmano
Pois ele é guerreiro
Ele é bandoleiro
Ele é justiceiro
Ele é mandingueiro
Ele é um tuareg

�Tuareg� is from an era in which the attitude towards Muslims was a lot more positive then these days. The song is written by Jorge Ben and a fruitful mixture between Brazilian and Arabic music. I love the sound of the ud (the classical Arabic lute) and ghaita (or oboe: a double reed instrument) which Ben put together with an organ, a bass and a groovy rhythm. The song reminds me of Yusef Lateefs version of �Brazil�, Ary Barbosa�s hit. This jazz musician was also exploring and fusing musical cultures, and often used instruments of the Eastern world.

i love the organ.

basically a great war protest song from the 60's. the only bad thing is tom rapp's lisp.

I had forgotten quite how brilliant this track is until it strangely popped into my head yesterday. It was originally available on Al's superb 'Sounds for Spies and Private Eyes' album, as well as volume 2 of the 'Music to Read James Bond By' series on United Artists records. It's very obviously James Bond rip-off music, but it's so perfectly executed, with cool percussive brass and Al's reverb-laden guitar nicely complemented by a swinging organ, that you can't help but love it.

Strange, plodding piece for this film about the '72 Munich Olympics. Very odd tempo (7/4 time?) with a warm cornet right up front that interplays nicely with the organ.

Ellen Foley is best known for being the foil to Meat Loaf on "Paradise By the Dashboard Light" (and for a season on the TV show "Night Court"). This track which opens her first LP "Nightout" is a thunderous roar that rivals Phil Spector's wall of sound like little else. It starts quietly enough with piano motifs and an organ backing, but really cranks it up in time for the chorus. Ian Hunter and the late Mick Ronson produced. Repeat after me: bombast is good!

This track is pure, unadulterated soft rock/sunshine pop heaven. This could easily be mistaken for a lost Association gem with beautifully arranged vocal harmonies by Hi-Los'Clark Burroughs, who, in fact, also produced "Never My Love" and "Windy" (and the rest of the "Insight Out" album for The Association). Combined with a slightly baroque sounding harpsicord, organ, xylophone embellishments and highly idealistic lyrics it makes a lovely piece of sunhsine pop.

vital organ skaish tune from swedsih mod band babysnakes. the forceman rules!

Quincy Jones is renowned more for his great arrangements than for his melodies, but I think this tune, from the soundtrack to 'the deadly affair' is really great. It's a slow bossa with a haunting lyric. Astrud sings in her trademark cool, detached style. I never grow tired of hearing this one. Astrud seems to have made a few impromptu appearances on film soundtracks, and I'm always on the lookout for more; one other great one was the Ennio Morricone score 'casse' (burglars), on which she sings two tracks.

This exceptionally haunting and lyrical song by Quincy Jones has received its definitive interpretion by Astrud Gilberto with arrangement and accompaniment by the Brazilian organist Walter Wanderley. The melancholy urgency of the piece resonates well with the dark/sad tonality that pervades so much of Bossa Nova music, though its character is also reminiscent of certain otherwise very different pieces from the bebop era, which had a formative influence on Quincy Jones' music. There is definitely the remote influence of Charlie Parker and especially Dizzy Gillespie. It's truly a completely unique piece. The drifting melody which seems to skirt over the chord changes has a beautiful inevitability. Only a very gifted and skilled musician could have contrived such a beautiful work. So Quincy Jones deserves especial credit for crafting this song from the film "The Deadly Affair."

Astrud's delivery, so typically limpid and restrained, only serves to heighten the intensity of this darkly passionate song. The subtle but somehow fierce organ playing of Walter Wanderley acheives a sizzling romanticism that perfectly complements the reading of Astrud's apparently detached fatalism.

In my opinion, this track is a true musical masterpiece. Its remarkable economy of means is a testament to the skill of the composer as well as the artistry of the performers. In fact, it's a nearly perfect combination of expressive means and poetic intent. The beautiful resolution, with Astrud's perfect striking of the high B-flat over the half-diminished F-minor seventh, is a moment of sublime dramatic intensity, though profoundly understated, as is typical of her finest artistic moments. One is reminded of Miles Davis. Her poetic skill is rooted in subtlety.

I have listened to this extraordinary track hundreds of times, and always experienced chills rising up on the back of my neck. How amazing that this incredible musical gem was omitted from the original album A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness. Perhaps it was too intense, too heavy; whatever the case, it's a truly remarkable piece of music.

I'm truly grateful to have discovered this great albeit minor musical masterpiece. There's really nothing else quite like it! The sizzling but subtle sensitivity of the rhythm section (Claudio Slon on drums, possibly Joao Gilberto on guitar and Jose Marino on bass) adds an intensity to the piece which helps project the almost existential tone of the song.

I'm really swept away by this obscure and neglected work, which attains -- for me at least -- to a peak of poetic intensity really rare in music. As is usual with Astrud at her best, it accomplishes its artistic ends with what seems like the most minimal of means. But subtlety is always the avenue to the most profound of artistic experiences. I think this is a remarkable example -- one of the greatest -- of the wedding of popular music and high art. It is a truly perfect performance. In my opinion, its greatness increases rather than diminshes with repeated listenings. There is only one word for that -- it's magic!

This is an utterly lovely song with synthesized strings and organ (and a real oboe) which actually made the Top Ten on the east side of the pond, the side where more people have "musical taste" it would seem. The bowed strings back much of the song, while the plucked strings and the oboe make some nice fills between vocal lines. And the line "I sat on the roof", out of context, sounds exactly like the identical line in Elton John's "Your Song", although that one continues "and kicked out the moss" while this one continues "and watched the day go by" ...

Preston [in fact there is no performer name on this 45 e.p. but this seems to be the label name so its as good as any ] and the band take a minimal take on this Nilsson song and give it a slightly Latin feel. And its Preston's delivery coupled with the organ that make this track essential. Unfortunately the other titles on the e.p. fall short of even interesting

I couldn't possibly say that this is the best version of the old MacLen chestnut (there are simply too many of them out there for me to ever hear them all), but it probably qualifies as one of the most original. Hyman's virtuoso keyboard skills were already quite reknowned, but on this album he tackled an entirely different animal...the harpsichord. On this track, he starts out using the harpsichord in a very conventional fashion, performing a baroque solo. About two-thirds of the way into the song, however, comes a drastic slowing of the tempo, the bass & drums come in and it mutates into a jazz trio arrangement! He even plays solos on the 'chord that make it sound like a Hammond organ...absolutely amazing!! Much of this album is rather difficult to listen to, but when it's good, it's sublime.

When I think of my favorite stuff by Tom Waits, I always look back to the time when the writing and arranging of his songs were more playful, avant pop exercises, colored by a range of intense and deep emotional swatches, yet always with humor. My favorite stretch in his catalog of work is from Swordfishtrombones to Franks Wild Years (Marc Ribot?). Songs were always off-kilter, tenuous, unpredictable...far-away organs played against a punchy latin rhumba beat...oh, here comes the circus, jolted by a bended-note/feedback guitar part. Wha?

I heard a lot more characters in his voice, too. The sideshow barker, the Ironweed hobo, the cocky but sensitive playboy, or the frustrated, suburbia-warped freespirit looking to make a break.

This track off Franks Wild Years feels like an old, worn out, spaghetti western-inspired guitar shuffle. Its whispered from the lips of a grizzled shopkeeper in a soon-to-be ghosttown, telling his concerned companion the need to reach for where your dreams dwell: "out where your enemies lie." There's little consolation against what most likely will be an exercise in futility, but necessary nonetheless, to carve out some sort of happiness. Get used to it.

Somehow it seems to fit these times very well...

This was actually never one of my favorite Bacharach songs, but I find this version delightful. It opens with a simple bassline and a groovy breakbeat, which are soon joined by delicate strings and woodwinds, and finally Cal's cool vibes. There are a lot of cool sounds in the mix; I think I can hear both a 12 string guitar and a hammond organ. Anyway, the track swings very nicely, and the groovy beat carries on relentlessly in the background. The all-Bacharach album this comes from is apparently disliked by purists, but I think it's really rather wonderful.

Killer organ-laden soundtrack cut with a wordless vocal provided by a male chorus, and featuring the incessant cackling of a young Candace Bergen.