Ultra Lounge!

[Lady Day]

I gotta say, I love this series. I think its about 27 albums and I have every one (shows how Loungy I am ). Anyone else dig the series? Any favorites? Here are some of mine.

LD

 

[Sweet Polly Purebred]

I love the series as well!

My Faves are ..

Organs In Orbit
Cha-Cha De Amor
Bongoland
Mondo Exotica
Bachelor in Paris
The Crime Scene

Good stuff

 

[davew]

I have the whole set as well.Dont forget the 2 cd "On the rocks" and the artist volumes..Louis Prima,Bobby Darin,etc.Also falling under the "Ultra Lounge"catalog as well are the great 2 cd sets from Jackie Gleason,Les Baxter and Martin Denny.
If i had to pick faves id say the first 2 christmas volumes.Brad Benedict just did a unreal job putting that whole series together. :eusa_clap

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

LOVE it! Don't forget....

 

[Nathan Dodge]

This series was a godsend to those of us who wanted a taste of this "wacky side of Easy Listening" back in the 90s, though the fact that it's played with a "straight face" is what makes it so appealing!

Favorites:

BossaNovaville
Space Capades
Bongoland
Bachelor In Paris
Cocktail Capers

 

[Dutch McCoy]

I also LOVE this series! I have several but I am working on getting the rest. The Crime Scene is my favorite. It is on my computer at work and I was just listening to it yesterday.

 

[Nathan Dodge]

I also LOVE this series! I have several but I am working on getting the rest. The Crime Scene is my favorite. It is on my computer at work and I was just listening to it yesterday.

If you like "The Crime Scene", by all means go and hunt down Crime Jazz: Music In the First Degree. It's OOP, but well worth it.

 

[Rafter]

Even though it's not actaully an Ultra Lounge disc,
"The Music from Peter Gunn" is my all-time favorite lounge CD!!
Mancini's 1959 West Coast Jazz score for Peter Gunn was his defining moment.
It is a masterpiece of mood and is still is the essence of cool!

Of course any of Julie London's sultry smoky-voiced master of understatement
Liberty CD's from the late 50's can be defined as Ultra Lounge.
That gal knew how to fire up all the cylinders!

 

[Nathan Dodge]

Of course any of Julie London's sultry smoky-voiced master of understatement
Liberty CD's from the late 50's can be defined as Ultra Lounge.
That gal knew how to fire up all the cylinders!

...Even if she burned like a blue flame...so cool...

 

[Sweet Polly Purebred]

Crime Jazz: Music In the First Degree. It's OOP, but well worth it.

I have both of those (First and Second Degree) and they are great, well worth every penny.

 

[Nathan Dodge]

I have both of those (First and Second Degree) and they are great, well worth every penny.

Lucky dog! I couldn't find a copy of the second volume, even if the first is, IMO, the better of the two. Still, a great compilation.

 

[Cousin Hepcat]

Lady Day, you just have Too Much good taste.

My Faves are ..

Organs In Orbit
Cha-Cha De Amor
Bongoland
Mondo Exotica
Bachelor in Paris
The Crime Scene

Match on the first 2; liked those enough to buy the full CDs.

Add "Soundtracks with a Twist" on Rhino.

Not so much now, but was on a Huge lounge music trip 3 or 4 years ago. Even a couple LPs- Henry Mancini "Peter Gunn" (good call Rafter) & a couple others of his movie soundtracks, & Enoch Light's "Persuasive Percussion".

Of all that, Mancini is what's lasted in the ipod rotation.

 

[Rafter]

Lady Day, you just have Too Much good taste. Match on the first 2; liked those enough to buy the full CDs.
Not so much now, but was on a Huge lounge music trip 3 or 4 years ago. Even a couple LPs, & Enoch Light's "Persuasive Percussion".

Lady Day, I do own one of the Ultra Lounge Series CD's, "Vegas, Baby!".
Nat King Cole does a great version of I'm Shooting High.

Cousin HepCat,
I have Enoch Light's 1959 "PersuasivePercussion" on vinyl!
It still sounds awesome hearing the unique "ping-ponging" stereo separation.
Have to remember to really separate the speakers to achieve the full effects.

Also have the companion to it,
"Persuasive Percussion, Vol. 2"
and other "ping -ponging '59/'60 albums including Sinatra's last Capitol Album,
"Come Swing With Me!", and the Alvino Rey Album's "Ping Pong" and "Swingin' Fling!".

 

[Sweet Leilani]

I have Enoch Light's 1959 "PersuasivePercussion" on vinyl!
It still sounds awesome hearing the unique "ping-ponging" stereo separation.
Have to remember to really separate the speakers to achieve the full effects.

Also have the companion to it,
"Persuasive Percussion, Vol. 2"
and other "ping -ponging '59/'60 albums including Sinatra's last Capitol Album, "Come Swing With Me!", and the Alvino Rey Album's "Ping Pong" and "Swingin' Fling!".

I have a couple of the Ultra-Lounge albums, but by and large I prefer the original vinyl. Like Rafter, I have many of the Persuasive Percussion & Provocative Percussion albums- as a matter of fact, I have an almost complete collection of anything recorded on the Command & StereoTime labels. I highly recommend purchasing anything you find on either label. They are often quite cheap (50 cents-$2.00) and will blow you out of the water when you crank up the hi-fi! (You can always tell an album is going to be great if they list all the different types of mics and tape machines used in the recording! )

Here's but a sampling- I highly recommend any of these albums, should you come across them:

 

[Lady Day]

This series was a godsend to those of us who wanted a taste of this "wacky side of Easy Listening" back in the 90s, though the fact that it's played with a "straight face" is what makes it so appealing!

Absolutely!

I found a copy at a used CD store and just looked up the rest on Amazon. I kept saying to myself "I must get all of these!"

Its just an amazing compilation. So so loungy

LD

 

[Cousin Hepcat]

...I prefer the original vinyl. Like Rafter, I have many of the Persuasive Percussion & Provocative Percussion albums- as a matter of fact, I have an almost complete collection of anything recorded on the Command & StereoTime labels.

Leilani, Rafter, do you have The Persuasive Trombone of Urbie Green?

May be the best of the Command output; the only Command with tracks still in my ipod after tiring of the others. Unfortunately never reissued on CD, but worth seeking out if you don't already have it.

Another fave - two pianos, twenty voices. Great for a candlelit dinner

Grand Award (parent label of Command) had a few; including my alltime favorite lounge album cover art, even beats out all those great cheesecake ones with ladies hiding behind pairs of bongos:

The one Mancini LP that to me equalled Peter Gunn: the uninterestingly titled "Unique". Didn't hurt that he had 3 or 4 Ellington covers. Great taste in selections on this one, including the obscure "Chelsea Bridge", Ellington's evocative 1940 musical depiction of his morning commute over the London bridge during a tour.

PS Anyone interested in Command & similar vinyl LPs $1/$2 ea, please PM me, I'm selling.

- C H

 

[Sweet Leilani]

I do have the Urbie Green one, as well as the Doc Severinsen one, at least two Tommy Mottolas, etc. ...gotta dig them out & listen to those again. I do not have the Two pianos & 20 voices one, tho- looks interesting. How did you get those tunes on your iPod?

 

[Cousin Hepcat]

I do have the Urbie Green one, as well as the Doc Severinsen one, at least two Tommy Mottolas, etc. ...gotta dig them out & listen to those again. I do not have the Two pianos & 20 voices one, tho- looks interesting. How did you get those tunes on your iPod?

Turntable -> preamp -> PC soundcard; a couple years back when I had the time, xferred lots of great LPs & about 150 78s that way.

 

[griffer]

Lady Day, bravo.

Now I must go buy more music.

Thanks.

No, really.

 

[Hawkcigar]

I only have one cd from the Ultra Lounge series but it's a good one.

After reading this thread I'm going to have to do some cd buying!