Customer Reviews

Our Man in New Orleans

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

 

 

Honey In The Horn is his best single album full of rich, beautiful and unforgetable tunes. The second half Our Man In New Orleans is all Dixieland. I'd suggest unless you really like Dixieland you get the Honey In the Horn/ More Honey In the Horn album instead for more of that romantic style of music. Other good albums worthy of getting by Al: Are Rainy Night In Georgia, Jazzin' At The Pops, and Sugar lips/Fancy Pants which is newly released. Also Horn A Plenty is currently out of stock, but is very good!! His best greatest hits album is easy to spot, it has all the reviews by fans. Avoid the others claiming to be his best hits. I've followed and collected Al Hirt since the early sixties when I was all of 14. Even then while I loved rock and roll, there was nothing that grabbed me more and held my attention like the romantic honey In The Horn sound of Al Hirt. Thanks Big Al! Your music never grows old.

Back in the 60's my Father bought the vinyl version of "HONEY IN THE HORN" and it was an album that us 9 kids loved to hear over and over again. Until one day my little sister took the tonearm and went back and forth across destroying not only my Dad's cartridge but also the record, leaving this album unplayable especially on side 1 and made all of us mad, but my little sister was too young to know any better, until now when I always remind her about it and we now just laugh. I wasn't able to find the vinyl version again until years and years later and I did find a "1S" copy of this which sounds ok for what vinyl was back then for RCA Dynagroove. I was overjoyed at finding this was released on CD and it is the best album by Al Hirt. Our family would do the twist to "Java" all through the house! There is not one bad song on this album. Another one of MY FAVORITE ALBUMS OF ALL TIME! Another reviewer recommended the other CD on the Collectables label because of the other album with it, but I have both versions and this RCA Victor version is much more deeper clearer fuller and more focused than the other. Especially if you are an audiophile, you will hear what I mean.

I owned a vinyl copy of "Our Man in New Orleans" many years ago. It was transferred to reel-to-reel, then to cassette, then to MP3. It was clearly time for a fresh copy. I was surprised to see it's now a double album, including "Honey in the Horn". The two halves of this CD are as different as night and day. "Honey" is unbearably corny, with a small chorus supporting Al Hirt's playing. His sound is as clear and vital as ever, but the music sounds like unhip bachelor-pad stuff. You'll be embarrassed if anyone catches you listening to it. It's that bad.

But then there's "Our Man in New Orleans". This album takes Hirt's small Dixieland ensemble and punches it up with a big band comprised entirely of brass. The arrangements are short, without a lot of room for the group to stretch out. Still, they manage to play some real Dixieland and the arrangements are quite effective.

There's no way to do justice to Al Hirt's sound. It's bold and open, with astonishing technical finesse. He's perhaps a bit of a show-off, but who wouldn't be with a sound like that?

This is the type of music that makes one want to lie back with closed eyes and just enjoy. I have enjoyed it from the start. Great CD and great ordering experience from Amazon.

What can you say - Al was the best. Great sound, fantastic technique and range and my only gripe is that there aren't more recordings of all those Dixieland favorites I'd have loved to hear him play. We lost Al way too soon and there ain't gonna be another.

This is a great array of Al Hirt's more popular selections for very easy and enjoyable listening, but also shows off his amazing musicianship.