Stereo 35 MM/Far Away Places

Personnel: Jack Brown, Jerry Packer, Alan Sokoloff, Herb Davidson, Lois Winter (vocals); Al Casamenti, Tony Mottola (guitar); Dominic Cortese (accordion); Phil Bodner (saxophone); Doc Severinsen (trumpet); Billy Rowland (piano, harpsichord); Don Lamond (drums); Phil Kraus , Bobby Rosengarden (percussion).
Audio Remasterer: Robin Cherry.
Recording information: Carnegie Hall (1961).
This collection merges two of groovy easy listening pioneer Enoch Light's 1961 albums, the show tunes-centric Stereo 35MM and Far Away Places, a foray into the beginnings of exotica. Coming off of the enormous success of his Persuasive Percussion album series, Light's orchestra utilizes stereo field recording techniques that were pretty mind-blowing for the early '60s on both albums. Stereo 35MM is the stronger half of the collection, offering fully orchestrated instrumental versions of schmaltzy movie songs like "My Romance" and "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart" recorded at Carnegie Hall. Far Away Places tends more toward the tiki torch environments of Martin Denny's Quiet Village-era exotica with less interesting results, marinated in vaguely Hawaiian influences with plenty of harpsichord and beatniky bongos. ~ Fred Thomas