Waikiki Wilf 's CHOICE:

-Click on the small record covers to see the bigger version!

 

Bullitt. Soundtrack LP from the 1969 film. Lalo Schifrin's jazz-edged
soundtrack was the ideal complement to Steve McQueen's cool & rugged cop,
Jacqueline Bisset's svelte artist & Robert Vaughn's ice-cold, manipulative
DA. And of course Steve's 1968 Mustang Fastback, as it crests the brow of a
hill reflected in the rear-view mirror of the hitmen's Dodge Challenger.

 

Basie meets Bond. JB goes to the CB bodyshop for a bit of coachwork and the
well-oiled Basie band smoothly shifts into Swing-o-matic; if John Barry was
an Aston Martin DB5 then this would be a large Cadillac limousine, complete
with on-board piano bar and big brass fittings. Relax back into the plush
upholstery with a Vodka Martini and a hand-made Balkan cigarette and let
the Count take over the wheel.

 

The Avengers & Other Themes by Johnny Gregory, who also released records as
Chaquito, and The Cascading Strings. Fine big-band arrangements of early
60s British & US crime show themes. The (original) Avengers theme was
composed by Johnny Dankworth in 1961 for the first series, when Steed was
partnered by Dr. David Keel, played by Ian Hendry.

 

Enter the Dragon. Soundtrack LP from the 1973 film, the last Bruce Lee
completed before his untimely death. Lalo Schifrin blended Oriental mystery
with the driving modernity of the funky wah wah to produce the perfect
soundtrack for Bruce, John Saxon & JIm Kelly to battle it out with the evil
Han, his artificial hand accessories & his hordes of kung fu henchmen.

 

Hawaiian Hot Shots. Virtuoso performances by some of the legends of the
Hawaiian guitar, including Sol Hoopii, Roy Smeck & King Benny Nawahi.
Forget the 'soft lapping of waves on a beach' effect that most Hawaiian
music aspires to, this is more of a 'crabs & lobsters chasing each other
laughing through the surf' job. Intricate & superior guitar work.

 

Cha Chas for Dancing. My favourite cha cha record. Hugo Montenegro not only
delivers the goods, he blasts them right through your front window with
arrangements that bristle with vitality. The vibrant brass, liquid
saxophones & crisp percussion sashay purposefully back & forth through the
stereo field with a choice selection of old favourites. The irresistable
bongos meet the immovable cowbell.

 

Per-cus-sive Jazz. Vibraphone led mixture of crime jazz & standards. The
sleeve boasts that it "is an audiophile's dream - the happy blend of
superlative jazz in the modern idiom with percussive treatments, brilliant
virtuosity and engineering wizardry... the dynamics of the 1812 Overture
are bland by comparison."

 

The Prisoner. Soundtrack selections from the radical, enigmatic & superbly
stylish 1967 TV series. Paranoia clad in impeccable politeness, & a remote
and picturesque village populated by "retired' secret agents with no names,
only numbers. The music runs the whole gamut, from the razor twang of Ron
Grainer's theme to Albert Elms' classical arrangements, pursuit jazz &
fiesta music.

 

Music for a Private Eye. Ralph Marterie & his Marlboro Men. Amazing to
think that a bunch of men in jeans on horseback wearing moustaches,
Stetsons and big rawhide jackets could knock out this slice of perky
big-band crime jazz featuring all the usual suspects; Peter Gunn, M Squad,
The Thin Man, Perry Mason and 77 Sunset Strip.

 

Swinging with Randy. This fine collection of cha chas & mambos was mostly
penned by Randy Carlos himself, & he sure knew how to use his compact
orchestra to the full. Prominent guitar & piano interspersed with tasty
horn parts and the occasional vocal, as displayed in the first track
'Fantasmas' which I can only describe as a cheeky horror cha cha.