VA-Decca Cavalcade of Stars

Here is a sampler I bought last trip to the record store for $5. Many famous folks on here. Some of which appear regularly on this blog. Pete Fountain, Bing Crosby, Brenda Lee, Red Foley, Loretta Lynn, the Weavers, Bert Kamepfert. A literal who’s who of this blog. From 1965. And obviously, Decca.

I could have gone with one of my favorite blog artists on this. However, I decided to go with two of my favorite blog tunes. From Ethel Smith, here is “Tico-Tico”. Similarly, from Carmen Cavallaro, here is Chopin’s “Polonaise”. Did not really feel like writing this post today but quick internet almost made it a necessity.

Tico Tico
Polonaise

Elario- Guitar Moods

Here is a record I bought both for the tracklist and the autograph. To George or Georgie possibly. I think Best Wishes. Regardless, I paid $6 for this. This is classical guitar.

From his own EPI cover from 1982, we have this collection of songs by one Elario Lozano from San Antonio. Known for his Continental Cabaret, Elario performed for 14 years at the Mystick Den Lounge at the Royal Sonesta Hotel. According to his web page, which I am throwing up here, he currently teaches guitar in the Woodlands.

This track list contains all the instrumental standards of the last century, ” “Girl from Ipanema”, “Malaguena”, “Theme from Love Story”, “Black Orpheus”, “The Godfather”, “The Sting”, “El Condor Pas”, etc. Pretty good interpretations as well. For a sample, I am going with “Laura’s Theme” from Dr Zhivago. I could have easily done two- three months worth of posts based on this song as it was quite popular and covered often. Btu for whatever reason, no. I put all my time in covers of “Caravan” and “Brazil” ( and to a lesser extent, “Send Me The Pillow That You Dream On”. Well, for whatever reason, I chose to acknowledge the popularity of this song today. Also, I really liked the drum machine use on this. Overall, really good little classical guitar album.

Laura’s theme

The Houston Symphony conducted by Samuel Jones- American Contemporary

Here is a recent record I bought for $6 due to its local ties. Good time to point out I am going to see the Houston Symphony this weekend tackle the Rites Of Spring. Sort of feel I am getting half the event by not seeing the ballet, but I wanted to hear the music. Incidentally, a recording of this ballet has proved to be elusive. I am debating going all out to find a copy for next month but I just really do not want to spend the money. Also, if the Half Price Books in Rice Village was still open, I bet I could find a copy. Perhaps I should get back to this record though, from Composers Recordings in 1976.

According to the back cover, the Houston Symphony was founded in 1913. Notable music directors include Leopold Stokowski, Andre Previn, and just recently, Andres Orozco- Estrada. Juraj Valcuha currently holds the role. At the time of this record, the MD was Lawrence Foster.

Samuel Jones ( 1935 Inverness, Miss) served as conductor on this album. He also composed two of the tracks, the sample and “Let Us Now Praise Famous Men” ( the third from Paul Cooper; ” Symphony # 4 ( Landscape). He served as the first dean of Rice’s Shepard School of Music. After 24 years at Rice, Jones retired from teaching at Rice to relocate to the Pacific Northwest and focus on composition. This is somewhat lazy writing on my part so I am going to simply throw a link out to correct this. I know I said I was going to dedicate more time to this as I have nothing to do with my time now but…… you know……Procrastination.

Regardless, here we have Jones and the symphony with “Elegy for String Orchestra”. I chose this as it was the shortest number and I do like the samples short. Written after the JFK assassination, it is a pretty moving piece.

Elegy For Strings

Moussorgsky/ Boris Christoff/ Paris Conservatorie Orchestra w/ Andre Cluytens- Boris Godounov

If you have been paying attention to the blog, you may know that among my favorite classical pieces Modest Moussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition rank among my favorites, despite owing more of a debt to Ravel. I have posted the album here, here, here, here, and here. As this piece was known as Moussorgsky’s opus , plus the will of me to hear something different from this composer made this an inevitability.

However, for many months I did not want to listen to a four record set. Additionally, I do not really want to write this despite having the time to do so know. Well, as I have put this off every month last year and as this blog is coming to a close, here we have this which I paid $8 for, most likely at the closed Half Price Books in Rice Village which had a great classical section. Released by Angel.

As one of the Mighty 5 and as working a day job as a clerk, Moussorgsky composed his only completed opera between 1868 and 1873, making its debut in St Petersburg, 1874. The piece has an historical basis dealing with the Tsar Godunov and his foil the False Dmitry around the start of the 17th century.

With Boris Chrsitoff in the lead role, backed by the Paris Conservatorie Orchestra conducted by Andre Cluytens, we present this piece of work, which to follow my use of adjectives, was quite good.

For a samples, I decided to submit excerpts from the prologue, Act 1, Act 2, and Act 4. Pretty glad to be done with this record.

Prolong
Act 1
Act 2
Act 4

Eugene Ormandy/ The Philadelphia Orchestra- The Gay Parisienne/ Les Sylphides

There is no use beating around the bush. I bought this for the cover. Yes, even in this day and age. It was the cover which cemented this purchase of $4. Even despite the fact I posed a similar record of both pieces some years ago. I was on the fence about posting the link. but awe why not. Here it is. This is an odd paring or really is it. The work of two classical composers summarized for ballet.

This is somewhat super embarrassing on my part, but I chose the exact same songs from the last time I posted this combo, which is lined above. Did you not get that? Why? Why I say? Regardless, I was going to put more the emphasis on Chopin this go around then Offenbach. Well, here they are. And before you accuse me of lack of originality, I must say that both versions of this song are quite good and at the very least more better than the first ones I posted. Did that last sentence make your back shiver? Well good.

Chopin Piece
Of course it is the piece with Can Can in it

Peter Schickele- The Intimate P.D.Q. Bach

See, I told you there was another Bach piece this month. Just not that Bach. From 1973 and Vanguard Records, we have this comedic piece of classical from Peter Schickele, who has been on this blog before, thus diminishing the need to go into explanation regarding Schickele’s alter ego, the late and lost composer P.D.Q. Bach I paid $1 during a closing sale of the Half Price Books in the Village. Ah, we have lost the Best Half Price’s in Houston over the years. This closing was right before Covid broke. The rent is just too damn high.

Four songs on this, including the first side opus ” Hansel and Gretel and Ted and Alice” from which I will play the finale.

Finale

Christopher Parkening- Plays J.S. Bach

I bought this record back for a dollar back in 2015 as it looked interesting enough. I believe I listened to it shortly after purchase, which must have been that great Labor Day Haul of ’15 in which I bought too many records and created the log jam I have been dealing with for the past 7 years. From Angel/ EMI in 1971/72, here is what the album bills as “America’s first Important classical guitarist”, Christopher Parkening ( Los Angeles, 1947).

Decent enough record. Good purchase. Not sure why it went so long on the shelf but at least we were able to correct that. If you have no sense of deduction, this is the songs of Bach as played by classical guitar. Also, this will be the first time out of two that we will see a Bach this month ( in a cheeky way).

For a sample, I went with Bach’s ” Gavotte I & II from Cello Suite V”, for no other reason that it reminded me of the opening instrumental song from Rushmore. In fact, I had to check the soundtrack to make sure they were not the same thing and was slightly annoyed that I had to put on my reading glasses to do so.

Gavotte I & II

Andres Segovia-Espana

Going back to yet another inherited record today. For those who do not know, I get my records two ways. Buying them and somebody giving me theirs ( or in most cases from someone recently deceased). In this case, from the estate of Big Al Pallister, we have this 1968 repackaging of a 1950 effort from Spanish classical guitarist Andres Segovia. This is the part where I normally tell you how much I paid for this but I can not do that with these. I don’t want you to feel cheated out of it.

Good album. The guys knows how to guitar ala classical. From Granados, we have “Tonadilla”.

tonadilla

Rossini- The Barber of Seville Highlights

We are blowing thru the rest of the week so here is this Angel Record with highlights from Rossini’s famous opera which kids of my age and older may know from various cartoons, the best of which is too politically incorrect for today’s tastes.

I paid $4 for this because it had Beverly Sills on it. She is rounded out by Sherrill Milnes, Nicolai Gedda, Renato Capecchi, Ruggero Raimondi, and the London Symphony Orchestra/ John Aldis Choir conducted by James Levine.

As much as I wanted to Largo it up, I went with “Contro un cor che accende” featuring Sills as Rosina and Gedda as the count. Good record.

Contro

Dr Hajime Murooka- Lullaby From The Womb

Here is a record from Capitol, 2974, from the Japanese doctor who suggested that babies would benefit from sounds inside the womb. I thought it was an interesting concept. I paid $6.

I should put more on here but you know… time. The record features internal sounds and vibrations, classical music , and combinations of both. I am submitting this combo of “Sounds from the Womb coupled with Wolf-Ferrari’s Intermezzo from the Jewels of the Madonna.

Womb and Intermezzo