Customer Reviews

Essential

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4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

(with apologies to Wendy Carlos)

"Dang! Now, WHERE have I heard THAT before! "

If you're over 30, you'll be saying that a lot as you listen to "The Essential Perrey & Kingsley". In the late 1960s, while Wendy Carlos was switching on the music of "Papa" Bach and Dick Hyman was charting with "The Minotaur", both performed on the Moog Synthesizer, the music created by Jean Jacques Perrey and Gershon Kingsley wound up in TV commercials and as themes for TV shows.

"The Unidentified Flying Object" became the theme for the later seasons of "Wonderama", a Sunday morning 2-hour extravaganza of cartoons, games and live entertainment hosted by Bob McAlister and aired over Metromedia (which eventually became Fox TV). "Barnyard in Space" backed up a commercial for some toy made by Ideal, though I can't remember exactly which toy it was. "Visa to the Stars" may or may not be a tribute to the late Joe Meeks's instrumental masterpiece "Telstar" but is similarly evocative of the early space age. "The Savers" was the theme of "The Joker's Wild", hosted by Jack Barry who, much earlier, hosted TV's first interactive TV show, "Winky-Dink and You" (in the 1950s!).

The various pop covers received no more radio airplay than as fill music late at night.

The most sought-out gem is "Baroque Hoedown". Play it for anyone who has visited either of 2 well-known theme parks in Anaheim, California or Orlando, Florida in the past 20 years and they'll recall an electrified parade. This, however, is the original "Baroque Hoedown" before it was buried under "It's a Small World" and "The Mickey Mouse Club March". "Baroque Hoedown" is also the most satisfying sonic experience of the whole album, with a rich stereo soundfield reminiscent of Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" and fewer of Perrey and Kingsley's cutsie-pie trademark special effects.

Any collection that includes the music of Wendy Carlos, Isao Tomita and Dick Hyman won't be complete without a little Perrey & Kingsley. "The Essential Perrey & Kingsley" is all the serious collector will need. Though they may not have become household names like the other three, their music was certainly heard in many more places.

The Essential Perrey Kingsley is a compilation of two older vinyl albums from the late 60s, "Spotlight on the MOOG" and "The In, In Sound From Way, Way Out". The first soundtrack I ever heard that used real computers to generate music was Forbidden Planet from MGM. The same process used by Perrey & Kingsley was used to create the music you are listening to on this album.

Instead of being random tones to set a mood, the guys who put this album together made some fun music. This CD contains music that is fun for kids and adults. Some serious attempts at recreating serious music are included as well including The Umbrellas of Chermborgh, and The theme from the Jokers' Wild game show (which goes some completely different name on this album).

The sounds are far different than what you hear on music with an "Electronic" label hung on them nowadays. Most of todays music is made with keyboards, MIDI sequencers, and some computers to control the various elements. The songs on this disc were created using old fashioned computers, and rows of data banks and every sound is artificial and sounds like it.

It may not call up memories of the first time you saw Forbidden Planet, but I promise you it will be a CD you listen to for years to come.

The disc frequently goes out of print and then is silently reissued every few years. So keep your eyes open and order this disc while you can. It may not be around for long.

This is a great album featuring the most fun music you'll ever hear. If you like electronica this is an absolute neccesity.

Remember your days off from school in the seventies when you would wake up (late) to the fast and fun theme of "The Joker's Wild"? You knew that a morning of fun and games were about to begin! Well that theme (known as The Savers) is featured on this great CD along with other "Moog" instrumentals. You'll enjoy these upbeat tunes!

A collection of groundbreaking work by pioneers in electronic music. Some of it is whimsical, some perhaps trivial, but much of it quite good. The album, itself, is historically important.

I used to listen to these guys when their albums first emerged in the late 60's. The music is just so much fun to hear again! Perrey & Kingsley may not have been very popular in their time, but they made an enduring mark in history that has influenced many later recording artists. They were truly pioneers. As you listen, keep in mind that these recordings were done long before there was such a thing as "sampling"... many of the rhythms are accomplished using loops of hand-spliced reel-to-reel tape (remember that stuff?).

Perrey & Kingsley's version of Moon River has been playing in my head for (I think) the last 35 years... it is one of the most beautiful and haunting treatments of this song I have ever heard. Fallout has also been a favorite, along with others you will surely recognize. Just buy the CD and get ready to smile!

This CD features all the music from the two albums that Jean-Jacques Perrey and Gershon Kingsley recorded togther. These men were pioneers in the field of "electronic music". Using the Moog synthesizer and other electronic instruments, they created some very strange, but quite enjoyable, music. Due to the limitations of the instruments (i.e. the Moog could only play one note at a time), a lot of painstaking tape splicing was required to create the tunes. Anyway, this CD is a lot of fun to listen to, especially if you are interested in unusual sounds.

When I listen to some of the songs on this disc I somehow get the picture of being a toy in a Japanese Department store - and this the background music for that. It's light, it's nutty, it makes you smile. It's moog-a-riffic!

I have no idea why, but Perrey Kingsley's old-school eletronic music sounds a lot like somthing from you would hear in Disney's Electric Light Parade CD. This CD was a great hit when it first came out giving Electric Light Parade viewers the chance to own the electronica music on a CD. But they came and went so fast it is hard to find any of the CDs from that collection. I know for a fact that the song "Baroque Hoedown" is from Disney's Electric Light Parade. but I can hardly remember the rest of the songs since it was so long ago I have heard the CD. But, since Disney's Electric Light Parade started around the 1970's, i wouldn't doubt that more of perrey Kingsley's work is in it. if you like perrey's work and find Disney's Electric Light Parade CD, i would really recommend buying it.

The recording is very good quality, very clear. Joseph Ekaitis' review is well documented. However, I do remember that "The Unidentified Flying Object" was used for later broadcasts of "Baby Daphne," and not "Wonderama." "Electronic Can-Can" was actually used for "Wonderama." I deducted 1 star because the cartoon-like sound effects are funny, as intended, but they are a little overdone for my taste.