Customer Reviews

Baxter's Best

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The tracks "The High and The Mighty" and "Unchained Melody" found on this CD are the definitive versions. These are the recordings that were big hits on AM radio in the 1950's. When I first listened to this CD I was surprised at how many tracks I remember as hits. This CD is a great complilation. Every track is a gem and all are ORIGINAL RECORDINGS. As a former Top 40 DJ, I have an extensive collection of music and this CD makes my library richer. It's one of my favorites. Les Baxter performs beautifully. If you like great music this CD is for you. Buy it!

Though beloved as one of the granddaddies of the exotica movement, bandleader and arranger extraordinaire Les Baxter (recording under his own name as well as backing some of the biggest names in Capitol's '50s pop vocal stable) was responsible for some of the lushest, loveliest pop instrumentals of the 1950s and early 1960s. With silky strings, peppy percussion, otherworldly vocal choruses and an ear for crafting utterly unforgettable melodies, Baxter assembled many memorable singles.

This CD, a reissue of an circa 1962 compilation of '50s material with a few bonus tracks from the early '60s, provides an excellent intro to Baxter's work while standing very well on its own. The soaring "The High and the Mighty" and "Blue Star" mix well with the peppy "Poor People of Paris" and "Blue Tango," the moody "Because of You" and "Unchained Melody," and the lovely-yet-plodding "I Love Paris."

Baxter's exotic ways are here to boot, as demosntrated by his original "Quiet Village," which is far sexier than most subsequent versions (even -- or especially -- without the obligatory birdcalls).

A must for fans of '50s pop, and a primer for all aspiring orchestra leaders.

This is the master Les Baxter at his best. Some of his greatest hits - APRIL IN PORTUGAL, POOR PEOPLE OF PARIS, UNCHAINED MELODY - are here. (The latter was Leroy Anderson's biggest hit.) All the magic of Baxter's crisp amd marvelous percussions are here, well captured by Capitol. His imagination shines through in songs like NEVER ON SUNDAY. This master never forgets the melody. No one has captured the instrumental side of Piaf's song (La Gualante du Pauvre Jean) like Les Baxter... POOR PEOPLE OF PARIS. Maestro, well done.