Si Plays Big Hits 1&2

Si Zentner | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 26, 2000)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Collectables
• ASIN: B00004XSIX
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #281,907 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Asia Minor

2. African Waltz

3. Walk, Don't Run

4. Raindrops

5. Tenderly

6. Calcutta

7. Save the Last Dance for Me

8. Wonderland by Night

9. Apache

10. Because They're Young

11. Will You Love Me Tomorrow

12. The Hollywood Twist

13. Autumn Leaves

14. Perfidia

15. Blue Moon

16. Honky Tonk, Pt. 2

17. Heart and Soul

18. Nice 'N Easy (Twist)

19. Never on Sunday

20. Take Five

See all 24 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 50s and 60s Hit Fare Effectively Rewickered for Big Band, July 20, 2001

By 

Eugene G. Barnes (Dunn Loring, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Si Plays Big Hits 1&2 (Audio CD)

Quick, which group won the Downbeat Poll for best big band thirteen times straight? Aw, you peeked. I first saw Si Zentner's "Orchestra" live around 1960 at a shopping center (no malls in those days). An afternoon performance, out in the hot sun, Si and his gang were frankly wonderfully noisy and rowdy beyond belief (for this 12 year old anyway). Most distinct memory was Si telling the audience, "Now settle down, we're going to play something nice and quiet," and then letting all hell break loose, doing something even louder than the previous six songs. This recording (actually a two-fer of 1961-2 Liberty LPs from Collectables) captures that rambunctious spirit, but sometimes squanders the opportunity, choosing instead to showcase some less than compelling hit material. The tracks are all short, good for airplay but frustrating if one wants to hear an extended solo. The well-conceived big band arrangements of the hits are largely high quality, transforming those slim pickin's into aesthetically acceptable, listenable goodies. Zentner's trombone can be stubbornly lyrical, even when the rest of the band is flailing away uptempo. The recorded sound is top-notch (Liberty was an early stereo advocate). Time has been unkind most to the few songs he did with a twist beat, with one glaring exception, the vigorous, joyful "Lazy River," a Grammy-winning single, which still ranks as one of the best two-minute excursions in Hitsville in the early '60s.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Natural Upper!, June 20, 2003

By 

Robert L. Ferrett (Ypsilanti, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Si Plays Big Hits 1&2 (Audio CD)

As a trombone player, I'm probably biased, but it seems to me that most of the really great big bands were centered around trombone-playing leaders. Tommy Dorsey and Glen Miller played mellow swing; Si Zentner played raucous music that brought a smile to your face. His pedigree was spectacular, playing with Les Brown, Harry James, and Jimmy Dorsey before forming his own band in the late 50s. If you've never listened to his music, this is a great place to start--it is an excellent compilation. The only regret is that his arrangement of "Walk on the Wild Side" was not included.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just good music, October 16, 2009

By 

John M. Pamer (Port Saint Lucie, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Si Plays Big Hits 1&2 (Audio CD)

One of the last big bands, Si Zentner had a unique sound and some fantastic arrangements. There was never a question of who was playing the trombone when you heard a Zentner rendition... Up A Lazy River is a classic example of how he could take a standard and make it new.