The Word: Select top instrumental and vocal pop of the expected kind plus "incredibly strange" unknowns, including private-press or micro-label oddballs, otherwise unclassifiable classics, perky percussionists, glib guitarists, ham-fisted amateurs, Hammond cheese, cheesecake jackets, greasy kid stuff, weird warblers, and other manna for the adventurous and absurdist alike. Spoken records (literature, instruction, product-promotional, occult curios, sex-ed, etc.) have their own sub-page.
Further below: trade wants
Links: are to subpages or artists bio/discog pages in the Hyp Records guide:
Images: accurately represent items but are not always the exact copy listed/purchased
Discount: ALWAYS try to buy more than one item at a time
Christy Minstrels: East Meets West; Karan AW-14304; 1979; sealed S $100 -- pop rock/vocal; no mention anywhere of this impossibly rare (private press?) Tennessee-made oddball (no relation to the New Christy Minstrels), no doubt either a studio one-off that didn't sell or perhaps was withdrawn or forced into a name change to avoid conflict; we chanced it for the superbly tacky jacket art (rice bowl with burger-fries-soda combo) and then were pleased to hear it it has something going for it inside too! (we're keeping 1 of 2 sealed copies; this one can be yours); features great group singing (even some hip vocalese!) but with some funky Nashville touches, such as a couple of clean drum intros, it's more like "Hair" than anything more easily defined; You Need Someone to Love, Make it With You (Bread), Wig Wam, Because (Beatles), Turtles & Trees, Brother, Close to You (Carpenters), Hard to be Without You, South American Getaway (best cut--mod wordless vocalese, like Novi Singers!), East Meets West
Miss Pat Collins (the hip hypnotist): Turn On!--The Power of the Mind--Songs & Self Suggestions; Warner Bros. WS-1721; 1967; E-/E- S $30 -- spoken/occult/lounge-act; Pat Collins is the marvelous performer responsible for the climax of the movie "Divorce, American Style"; Side 1 is the hypno talk; Side 2 is Dora Hall-worthy bad singing (golden-throat style); Imagination, I Only Have Eyes for You, I'll See You in My Dreams, Goin' Out of My Head, You Stepped Out of a Dream
The [Fabulous] Conti Family [Presents Sounds of America]; Sounds of America CF-3220; AUTOGRAPHED white label E-/E- S $50 (or blue V/V S $30, specify) -- lounge act/kid funk; one of the big two by this newly rediscovered '70s family act, in this case for the The Conti kids' "Hey Boogie Mama" (super funky with hip call-out vocal, bongo breakbeat, etc.) with the second pick being "Great Jubilation" (breakbeat); low-priced for condition--some wear or pressing noise but well worth it!
The Conti Family: Family Power; Seabird KM-2387; AUTOGRAPHED V+/E- S $15 -- lounge act; whie not one of the famous two earlier ones, it's signed, has a group photo and liners, and "You've Got Me Goin' Baby" (Gino Conti solo, disco-funk w/synth) is the best cut; some other interesting moments, such as "Be Careful Boy" sung by the girls
The Conti Family; Seabird [no #]; AUTOGRAPHED N/N S $15 -- reissues "Family Power" but with different liner notes and a different jacket photo (tho from the same session, looks similar)--just what you need to demystify/enshrine the group!
Neil Diamond: Velvet Gloves & Spit; MCA 37056 (reissues Uni 73030); sealed S $25 (or sealed cutout S $20, specify) -- hip, weirdbeard Neil Diamond LP!; legendary for the nutty 4-min. wonder "The Pot Smoker's Song," which features confessional interview-narratives by young hipster-dopers punched up by Neil's inscrutably chirpy chorus!--"hip, hip, you want to be hip--you're nowhere at all if you don't take a trip"--the idea seems to be that hard drugs are bad so Neil wants you to stick to pot; also: Shilo, Two-Bit Manchild, Holiday Inn Blues, Brooklyn Roads, Sunday Sun, Practically Newborn..
Disney souvenir LPs -- Moog
Troy Donahue/Connie Stevens/Ty Hardin/Stefanie Powers/Robert Conrad: Palm Springs Weekend ST; Warner Bros. W-1519 (mono); cutout N/N shrink $30 -- twist/crime/mod/golden throat/bossa/folk; rarest and best of the great WB ST series (Hawaiian Eye, Cricket, Poncie Ponce are others); it's very upbeat for the most part, with real twist and electric-guitar solos, like a great beach-movie ST or anything you'd want from the period should be (even the folk is good); Live Young, Hurricane Twist, Ox Driver, Shilly-Shally, What Will I Tell Him, Palm Canyon Bossa Nova, Hurricane Twist (2), Go Go Devil, Bye Bye Blackbird, Palm Springs Scramble, Prescription for Recovery, A Little Bit of Give, Live Young (closing)
Troy Donahue/Connie Stevens/Ty Hardin/Stefanie Powers/Robert Conrad: Palm Springs Weekend ST; Warner Bros. WS-1519 (stereo); cutout E-/N- S $30 -- twist/crime/mod/golden throat/bossa/folk; rarest and best of the great WB ST series (Hawaiian Eye, Cricket, Poncie Ponce are others); it's very upbeat for the most part, with real twist and electric-guitar solos, like a great beach-movie ST or anything you'd want from the period should be (even the folk is good); Live Young, Hurricane Twist, Ox Driver, Shilly-Shally, What Will I Tell Him, Palm Canyon Bossa Nova, Hurricane Twist (2), Go Go Devil, Bye Bye Blackbird, Palm Springs Scramble, Prescription for Recovery, A Little Bit of Give, Live Young (closing)
[Jim Flora jacket:] The Nick Travis Quintet: The Panic is On; RCA Victor LJM-1010; 1954; gatefold 1st press, deep groove E/E- $50 -- great rare jazz LP with Al Cohn, but listed here as it will end up with a Jim Flora collector, no doubt; Flora's jacket art is very impressive, looks great--only flaw some very tiny white spots just in the black background
[Jim Flora jacket:] Toscanini/NBC: Till Eulenspiegel; RCA Victor LM-1891; Red Seal E/E $25 -- very nice jacket for the Jim Flora jacket collector and plays well too
The Fortune Tellers: Song of the Nairobi Trio; Kapp Medallion ML-7534; 1962; 1st press N-/N- $30 -- odd pop/celebrity/twist; harp superstar Robert Maxwell's legendary treat updates the 1961 single (which was the original theme from the Ernie Kovacs show) and adds much more (14 tunes in all!); truly a classic of first-rate, uptempo, exotic-twistin' odd pop (similar to the LPs by Ross Bagdasarian/David Seville, John Buzon Trio, etc.; Song of the Nairobi Trio, Ah Sweet Mystery of Life, Third Man Theme, Pagliacci Cha Cha Cha, Deep in the Heart of Texas, Jungle Twist (original exotica!), From the Land of the Sky Blue Water, Nairobi Moonlight, Spaghetti Twist, Rose Bud, Camel Train, Carioca, Bing Bang Boomerang, Home on the Range Twist
Claudio Gizzi: Andy Warhol's Dracula ST; Varese Sarabande STV-81156; 1982; sealed S $100 -- "Andy Warhol Presents Blood for Dracula--A Film by Paul Morrisey"; rare, uncut, unopened, and we're including a note from the designer of the jacket (our source for this last sealed copy); liners by Morrisey plus 9 b/w stills from the film; Gizzi's other scores include movies by Roman Polanski and Luchino Visconti
Benny Golson: Tune In Turn On to the Hippest Commercials of the Sixties; Verve V6-8710; 1st N-/V+ S $15 -- mod/commercials; great unique concept; clean disc but noise on some tracks so priced low (the famous jacket alone is worth it); with Philly jazz great Benny Golson (tho it's not jazz!), Art Farmer, Eric Gale, Bernard Purdie..; Music to Watch Girls Go By, Wink, The Dis-Advantages of You, No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In), Right Any Time of the Day, Music to Think By, The Swinger, The Magnificent Seven, Cool Whip, The Golden Glow, Fried Bananas, Happiness Is
Sven Gyldmark: "2" ST (I, a Woman, part II); MGM S1E-18-ST; 1968; cutout E/N- S $15 -- sex; from the foreign film adaptation of the novel "I, a Woman, part II" by Siv Holm; historical footnote at this point but good for the collector of such things; Sex Happening, Waltz Melancholic, Indian Bolero, Feeling in a Dive, Beguine Erotic, Petting Waltz, Strip-Tease Party, Lonesome & Scared, Forbidden Love
The Harmonicats: Olay (Ole) 10"; Mercury MG-25193; deep groove N-/V $20 -- rare!; priced for the sensational jacket only but Harmonicats fans will probably be excited about the early "South of the Border" theme, liner notes (with photo), and of course the rare jacket art; El Coco, Inspiration, Amampola, Maria Elena, Valencia, La Rosita, Mambo Jambo, Peanut Vendor
Dave Harris & the Powerhouse Five: Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals; Decca DL-4113; deep groove/1st press N-/E+ $90 -- very rare, excellent Raymond Scott Quintet tribute (all their greatest hits covered in modern, hi-fi style) led by the featured sax soloist of the original Quintet; the sensational jacket steals the show, however; very slight dishpan warp does not affect play
Mel Henke (La Dolce Henke & Dynamic Adventures in Sound) -- Beats/Beatnik
King Henry & the Showmen Volume VIII; King Henry Productions KHP-376; E-/E- S $20 -- lounge act/spy/disco/Moog-ondioline/CB/trucker; private press; one of the most enduring local true lounge acts of the PA-NJ-NY region (here based in Easton, PA and rec. at Virtue Studios), King Henry covers the entire '70s here; notable cuts are Goldfinger, Pinball Wizard, Who Put the Shark, More, and "Roger Dee & the CB Band" (one of the rarer CB-era raps)
Dick Hyman subpage (organ, Moog)
Maurice Jarre: Behold a Pale Horse ST; Colpix CP-519; 1964; white-label promo V+/V+ $15 -- rare Western ST, not bad at the price; Main Title, Paco Leaving Spain, Paco at the Frontier, Paco Arrives in Pav, Spanish Streets, Manuel's Decision, Manuel and Girl in Cafe, Manuel Crossing Pyrenees, Manuel in San Martin, Father Francisco in Hospital, Father Francisco's Conscience Struggle, Manuel Studies Map
Karns High School Bands: Marching Band/Studio Lab Band/Concert Band/Karns High School Choir; Director DR-8237; N/N- shrink S $15 -- stage/school (mod rather than funky); custom pressing; a rare find for the stage/school collector; dir. by Jack H. Thomas & Milton Nelson; the marching band is also called the "Academic Sinfonians"; Blue World--Phoenix, Stormy, Traces, The Horse, Festivo, Theme for Tomorros (sic), Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In, Waters Ripple & Flow, Three Songs of Parting, You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, Much Ado About Nothing
Mickey Katz: Mish Mosh; Capitol T-799; 1st press E+/N $25 -- packed with some of his best parodies and featuring the famous, original "butcher block" jacket (way yummier than the later, creepy Beatles "butcher cover"); 16 Tons, That's Morris, Roiselle from Texas, Tweedle Dee, You Belong to Me, Why Don't You Believe Me, I'm a Schlemiel of Fortune, A Schmo is a Schmo, Home on the Range, Patcha-Me, How Much is that Pickle in the Window?, Don't Let the Schmaltz Get in Your Eyes
Mickey Katz: Katz Puts on the Dog!; Capitol T-934; 2nd N/E+ $25 -- parody; a classic, with the great Jack Costanzo, Si Zentner, etc.; funny liners "There's a lot of entertainment in this thing."; hard to find (one his most-wanted titles, and this is in top shape!); Hey Jealous Lover, You're a Doity Dog (spoofs Hound Dog), Sweet and Gentle, Moscovitz Ramble, Tico Tico, Feet Up Pat him on the Pippick, Schleppin My Baby Back Home, Nature Bocher (Nature Boy), Sin, Schvitzburgh PA, Murietta Hot Springs
Mickey Katz: Katz Plays Music for Weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, & Brisses; Capitol T-1021; E+/E+ $20 -- instrumental; all the tunes from the rare early 10" LP "The Family Danced" (Capitol H-457) get a welcome update here in hi-fi plus you get four more tunes (50% more!) from the same session, apparently; Katz plays clarinet with Ziggy Elman, Mannie Klein, Si Zentner, Benny Gill, Nat Farber, Sam Weiss, Larry Breen, Lou Singer--great arrangements/playing--such a terrific musical record you won't miss the humor [of his other records]!!!
Mickey Katz: The Most Mishige; Capitol T-1102; E+/E+ $25 (or E/E+ $20, specify) (or E-/E $15, specify) -- considered by many his most desirable LP (as pictured in Incredibly Strange Music), it's a time-tested asset to the FUN bar mitzvah but these days can be difficult to find; terrific spoofs of great pop and rock hits, and the liner notes more than live up to the promise of the title and jacket--GET IT!!!; The Barber of Schlemiel, The Poiple Kishke Eater, Yiddishe Mambo, Downtown Strutters' Ball, Holidays, Nudnick the Flying Schissel, Knish Doctor, K'nock Around the Clock, Where is My Pants?, Chinatown My Chinatown, It's a Michaye in Hawaii
Katie Lee (novelty folk singer) -- Beat/Beatnik
Enoch Light & the Light Brigade: The Best of the Movie Themes 1970; Command/Project 3 PR-5046SD; 1970; gatefold E+/N- S $15 -- pop; hard to find & much wanted for the great version of Mah-Na Mah-Na (best known from the Benny Hill Show & the Muppets); jacket of nude family w/popcorn in empty cinema ain't bad either; Ma-Na Ma-Na, Everybody's Talkin', Goodbye Columbus, Alice's Restaurant, True Grit, The Wild Bunch..
Henry Mancini -- Crime/Spy/Batman
Robert Maxwell: Spectacular Harps; MGM SE-3836; 1st/deep groove E+/N- S $30 -- pop harp; very scarce in top shape/stereo, it's also one of the best in the MGM "Spectacular" series & one of Maxwell's most enjoyable/essential; the multi-dubbed "Caravan" is fantastic as is "Hong Kong Holiday"; also Limehouse Blues, Ebb Tide, Alice Blue Gown, Little David Play on Your Harp..
Robert Maxwell: A Song for All Seasons; Decca DL-74609; cutout N-/N- shrink S $20 -- harp; our absolute fave if only for the spectacular "September in the Rain," which ROCKS (like "Tequila" & the Fortune Tellers LP only better!!!) w/guitar & plunking rain sounds!
Robert Maxwell: Let's Get Away from It All; Decca DL-74723; cutout E+/E+ S $15 -- harp; one of the essential Decca LPs every Robert Maxwell fan needs; essential for the update of his classic, signature contribution to Odd Pop: "Song of the Nairobi Trio"; plus, four tunes featuring the abstract, ethereal (exotic!) voice of Lois Winter; Canadian Sunset, Yellow Bird, Lisbon Antigua, Clair de Lune, Moonlight in Vermont, Song of the Nairobi Trio, Sequoia, Carioca, Fly Me to the Moon, Malaguena, Ebb Tide, Let's Get Away from It All
Claus Ogerman: Soul Searchin'; RCA Victor LPM-3366; 1965; deep groove Dynagroove N/N- shrink $60 (or N-/N- $50, specify) -- mod/soul/organ; scarce first title in a GREAT series of four LPs --all essential-- goes straight for the white go-go boots with its emphasis on hip soul boogaloo/mod soul jazz (many will find these versions more spinnable now than the jazz and soul originals); tho great and should have been a best-seller, it's far rarer than the two similar, mega-selling "More (Mondo Cane)" LPs he did with Kai Winding on Verve; others have priced it as high as $150; Soul Searchin', What I'd Say, House of the Risin' Sun, Comin' Home Baby, The End of the Line, Tell It As It Is, Green Onions, The Sidewinder, Fever, Memphis, Watermelon Man, Shindig
Claus Ogerman: Watusi Trumpets; RCA Victor LPM-3455 E-/E+ $20 -- mod; best-of-breed mod LP features THE sound of the swingin' high '60s, like Lalo Schifrin; absurd as the title sounds, it means the "watusi" and other '60s dances done with mod, mod brass (trumpet, etc.); decked out in groovy, hall-of-fame, Mondrian-esque jacket!; w/Dick Hyman's great Lowrey organ, it truly swings; El Watusi, The Joker (absolutely awesome!), Stingray (hip original), It's Not Unusual, Harlem Watusi, Land of 1000 Dances, Downtown, Right Now, La Bamba, Poinciana, One Step Above, Watusi Trumpets (original)
Claus Ogerman: Saxes Mexicanos; RCA Victor LSP-3640; 1966; E/E- S $20 -- mod; "Guaranteed Danceable"; great series of 4 LPs, all essential!; THE sound of the swingin' high '60s (and it really swings!); often overlooked bc of the title, it's strictly mod--and a very valuable sequel to the heralded Watusi Trumpets! (rather than anything to do with Mexican saxophones); with Dick Hyman's great Lowrey organ; King of the Road, Dardanella (terrific!!!--best cut), St. James Infirmary, Bewitched, My Honey's Lovin' Arms, Apples and Bananas, Nightmare, Nancy's Theme, Always, You and I (Voce e eu), Come Thursday, Just Friends
Claus Ogerman: Latin Rock; RCA Victor LPM-3813; 1967; cutout N-/N- $40 (specify) -- Latin soul/mod Latin; last but far from least in the terrific series of four LPs; often overlooked bc of its misleading title--it's really mod Latin soul, as you can see from the titles; liner notes by the best in the business, Mort Goode: "It's the latest, freshest, spiciest rhythm yet concocted for hot-blooded hombres and modern-day maidens."; Tequila, San Juan, Bang Bang! (Joe Cuba's), Nao se acabou (It Didn't End), La Peregrina, Un Poco Rio, Yambo, Tres Hermanas, Cuchy Frito Man (rare Latin soul by Ray Rivera!), Paradiso, Mas Que Nada
Claus Ogerman: Latin Rock; RCA Victor LSP-3813; 1967; E+/E S $40 (specify) -- Latin soul/mod Latin; last but far from least in the terrific series of four LPs; often overlooked bc of its misleading title--it's really mod Latin soul, as you can see from the titles; liner notes by the best in the business, Mort Goode: "It's the latest, freshest, spiciest rhythm yet concocted for hot-blooded hombres and modern-day maidens."; Tequila, San Juan, Bang Bang! (Joe Cuba's), Nao se acabou (It Didn't End), La Peregrina, Un Poco Rio, Yambo, Tres Hermanas, Cuchy Frito Man (rare Latin soul by Ray Rivera!), Paradiso, Mas Que Nada
The Dave Pell Singers: Mah-Na-Mah-Na; Liberty LST-7631; promo E/N- S $30 -- mod/vocal; "You will remember them! You will enjoy them! Listen to them!!"; we've hoped for ages to have this rarity for sale, and here it is at last; wanted chiefly for the juicy cover of the famous "Ma Na Ma Na" hit (Benny Hill, Sesame Street) but you also get covers of other hits: Oh Calcutta, Crystal Blue Persuasion, Sugar Sugar, Ruby Don't Take Your Love to Town, Put a Little Love in Your Heart, Keem-O-Sabe, Mah-Na-Mah-Na, Laughing (The Guess Who!), Thank God the War is Over, Get Together, Honky Tonk Women, Sweet Caroline
[Andre Popp/Pierre Fatosme as] Elsa Popping & her Pixieland Band: Delirium in Hi-Fi; Columbia Adventures in Sound WL-106; 1958; 1st/gold/deep groove N-/N- $30 -- experimental pop/avant garde madness made weirder by tape manipulation and much more (somewhat a primer for Perrey and Magne!); it's still wild after all these years and part of the essential odd-pop canon; someone once compared finding this original to winning the lottery--we just say we're glad to offer it clean and cheap (which elsewhere may really be like winning the lottery); Perles de Cristal, Java, La Paloma, Beer Barrel Polka, Java du diable, Jalousie, La Polka du roi, Java des bombes atomiques, Adios Muchachos, La Polka du colonel, Java Martienne, La cumparsita
Andre Popp: Popppppp!; Columbia Adventures in Sound WL-130; deep groove N-/N- $25 (or E/N- $20, specify) -- acclaimed experimental/avant garde pop in the "Delirium in Hi-Fi" vein (something of a sequel), including the original "Washerwomen of Portugal"; Andre Popp later recorded with Ohta-San and has much to his credit, the most inspired of which you can discover easily in this and the previous LP; La Bardinette, Sexy Sax, La Pendule, Ma Nounou du Tanganyika, Musique Mecanique, Les Lavandieres du Portugal, Du vent dans les voiles, Melodie du Sud, French Dondon, Tunisia Waltz, Danse de l'ours, Tango militaire
Louis Prima with Keely Smith: Breaking it Up!; Columbia CL-1206; 1958/1951-3; black 6-eye deep groove E/E+ $25 -- pop vocal duet; one of their very best (recorded some years before it was released on hi-fi LP, it's a lot livelier than most of the Capitol work that the duo recorded more or less when this LP hit the stores) and rarest; this is the second jacket (the extremely rare first jacket, by the same artist, was quickly revised to include Keely) and as the more common version it's a bargain for the exciting music and sound, meaning both judicious sound effects and sound quality; Barnacle Bill the Sailor, Luigi, Chop Suey, Paul Revere (with horse clops!), Eleanor, The Bigger the Figure, Shepherd Boyd, One Mint Julep, Basta, Chili Sauce, It's Good as New, Oh Marie
Production (sound library, misc. idioms) -- Avant-Garde/Production
Raymond Scott subpage (under jazz)
William Shatner: The Transformed Man; Decca DL-75043; 1969; E+/E+ S $90 (or cutout V+/E- S $40, specify) -- golden throat; very hard to find in top shape (even clean/unworn discs have slight noise--inevitable with spoken/quiet passages); what a triumph to be able to play the legendary "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" exactly as did people catching Star Trek in its original run (budding Trekkies who foolishly did not run out and buy this LP in the great numbers they would if they could today!); music by the great Don Ralke; not-quite-modest liners by the unstoppable William Shatner himself; HEAR...OWN...BEHOLD his AWESOME POWER!!!
Frank Sinatra/Dean Martin/Sammy Davis, Jr.: Souvenir from Robin & the Seven Hoods; unpublished promo deep groove E-/E $300 (or offer) -- live recording of comedy and songs produced by Bill Rodstein of the Sinatrama Room in the Latimer Cafe in Philadelphia ("A shrine dedicated to the life & works of Frank Sinatra"-Earl Wilson); "May We Be the First to Wish You A Merry Christmas-1964"; jacket (just 1 face, pasted over old LP jacket) of the three in Santa suits in front of a stage; "Non Published Album Not Available Anywhere Else COLLECTORS ITEM"; rarest of the 3 versions of "Summit Meeting at the 500, Atlantic City, NJ"
Frank Sinatra/Dean Martin/Sammy Davis, Jr.: Souvenir from Sinatrama Latimer Cafe; unpublished promo deep groove E-/E- $30 (book value $250-350) -- live; more common versions of "Summit Meeting at the 500, Atlantic City, NJ" (the Christmas version is by far the rarest)
The Singing Doctors Keep You in Stitches; American Artists Custom Records AAS-1052; E/E S $20 -- novelty/humor; just what it seems: licensed Missouri croakers (sorry, "professional healers") in a wounding and not particularly infectious live performance, but it is the classic doctors-at-play LP (for something better look to Katie Lee's Songs of Couch and Consultation on the beatnik page); "Featuring: The Four Suppositories, Trichomonas Trigger & Bashful Boy Emmett, LaCaruso Lockhart"
Roy Smeck, Arthur Smith -- [Steel] Guitar/Uke
Irving Taylor: Terribly Sophisticated Songs--A Collection of Unpopular Songs for Popular People; Warner Bros. B-1254; 1958; deep groove N-/N $45 (or deep groove E/E $30, specify) -- novelty; scarce, terrific Spike Jones/Mickey Katz-worthy spoofs of LA music and employment by the man behind Kookie Byrnes and other WB greats!; crazy gags in high style cowritten in many cases with Henry Mancini (DJs can slip in with "serious" songs of the same style); nice jacket art too; When the Crab Grass Blooms Again, In a Cafeteria with You, I'm Filled with that Empty Feeling, Myrtle, All of the Time, I'll Never Forget Those Unforgettable Never to Be Forgotten Memories, Pachalafaka (Pronounced Pachalafaka), Anywhere on Earth (The Geography Song), Just My Sol, I'll Write a Symphony, We Did the Samba in Shamokin, Brooklyn Beguine
Irving Taylor: The Garbage Collector in Beverly Hills [& other work songs for the odd-job holder]; Warner Bros. B-1254; 1959; deep groove white-label promo E/E $25 (or deep groove E-/E+ $25, specify) -- novelty; terrific Spike Jones/Mickey Katz-worthy spoofs of LA music and employment by the man behind Kookie Byrnes and other WB greats!; first-rate, smartly planned, well-produced, crazy gags in high style (DJs can slip in with "serious" songs of the same idiom): The Garbage Collector in Beverly Hills, Hawaiian Worm Raiser, Marriage Counselor in a Turkish Harem, Russian TV Performer, Cab Driver in Venice, Prison Interior Decorator, Honest John Henry, Postman in Paree, Rock & Roll Vocal Coach, Department Store Santa Claus, Cop in a Nudist Colony, German Car Designers
Bob Thompson, his Orchestra & Chorus: Just for Kicks; RCA Victor LSP-2027; 1959/1958; 1st press N-/N S $40 (or 1st E/E- S $20, specify) -- wordless chorus/mod chorus/space-age bachelor pad; "Swinging New Sounds"; titled by the wife and nominated for a Grammy in 1959, it's the best of the three very essential LPs by "the poor man's Esquivel" (although most Esquivel LPs on RCA are far more common and cheaper); strong bongos, voices, brass; On the Street Where You Live, A Foggy Day, Just for Kicks, Makin' Whoopee, Look for the Silver Lining, Mad About the Boy, Angel Eyes, Peek-a-Boo, It Might as Well Be Spring, All of You, It's All Right With Me, Diga Diga Doo, Bye Bye Blackbird, Why Do Love You, Just for Kicks
Bob Thompson, his Chorus & Orchestra: On the Rocks; RCA Victor LSP-2145; 1960/1959; promo (jacket stamp) 3s press E/E+ S $40 -- wordless chorus/mod pop/space-age; "For Sophisticated Swingers"; last and most sought-after (by jacket collectors as well as those hip to BT) of the three essential LPs by the talented but not well-known, Esquivellian, mod arranger (please do not confuse him with the jazz musician of the same name); top "space-age-bachelor-pad" music and coveted hall-of-fame jacket, all in great shape, and rarer stereo no less, so how can you miss?; There's a Small Hotel, June is Bustin' Out All Over, Happy Talk, Breezin' Along With the Breeze, Just You--Just Me, Almost Like Being in Love, On the Rocks, Jersey Bounce, I'll See You Again, The Little Black Box, Always, All the Things You Are
The Three Suns: Movin' & Groovin'; RCA Victor LSA-2532; 1962; deluxe die-cut N-/N S $30 (or die-cut E/E+ S $25, specify) (or non-die-cut reissue E-/E+ shrink S $20, specify) -- in "Stereo Action--the sound your eyes can follow"; their most prized LP in a DIZZYING exploration of channel separation (one of the very best Stereo Action LPs); chockablock enough with wacky instruments (jaw harp is one), ideas, and creativity doubtless to appall even longtime Three Suns fan Mamie Eisenhower; YOU NEED THIS!!!; a few cuts have achieved latterday fame thanks to CD comps--but here you can get them all, the way they were meant to be heard!: Stumbling, Caravan, Jungle Drums, Danny's Inferno, Movin' & Groovin', April Showers, Autumn Leaves, Dancing with Tears in My Eyes, Anniversary Song, Beyond the Sea, Some of These Days, The Vagabond King Waltz
The Three Suns: Movin' & Groovin'; RCA Victor LPM-2532; 1962; deep groove N-/E+ $20 -- "Now! for the first time--RCA Victor's 'ACTION' series in brilliant monaural Hi-Fi" (or, as we like to say, "the sound your glass eye can follow"); reissued way back when in non-die-cut, seriously rare mono -- finally, you can go ahead and be a total weirdo: get it without the intense channel separation--see if the music holds up minus the gimmick!
The Three Suns: Fever & Smoke; RCA Victor LSP-2310; 1961; deep groove E/E S $20 -- "Exotic 'Percussion' Swing"; one of their Big Three LPs (the other two are A Ding Dong Dandy Xmas & Movin' & Groovin'); essential at least for the famously nutty, gong-break-in version of "Tequila," which is comparable to their version of "Caravan" on Movin' & Groovin' and makes this LP totally necessary--this means you!; Fever, Like Young, Theme from A Summer Place, Tequila, Beyond the Sun, Petite Fleur, Colonel Bogey March, Sleep Walk, Chanson d'mour, Volare, Misty, Smoke
The United States Air Force Presents Two Sides of Christmas; USAF sealed S $15 -- military/Xmas/pop/country; "It's Christmas" side: USAF Academy Falconaires, Rosemary Clooney, Jack Halloran Choir; "Christmas at Opryland" side: Archie Campbell, Dottie West, Charlie McCoy, Jordnaires
Li'l Wally: Polka A Go-Go; Jay Jay HI-FI-1110; N/N shrink $90 (or E/V+ $50, specify) -- polka/cheesecake/television/celebrity; "Be Happy & Gay with JAY JAY...featuring 'Mr. HAPPY MUSIC'"; rare!; hall-of-fame cheesecake jacket features spectacular, tassled, leopard-bikini go-go talent including...ready for this?...young Barbara Feldon (dancer at left), known to most as Agent 99 of the "Get Smart" TV show, and whom one can see yukking it up and even drumming with The Electric Prunes on an eleven-minute segment of the Mike Douglas Show on YouTube!!! (so posing for a polka album wasn't her least-likely or grooviest moment, after all); what an age, when you can enjoy both owning this fine, rare record and seeing Mike Douglas mix Babs with Prunes!
Kai Winding: Mondo Cane #2; Verve V6-8573; N-/N S $20 -- mod/ondioline; rarer than but at least as vital as the 1st "Mondo Cane" (aka "Soul Surfin'") LP (each an essential classic of both mod & the Moog-like electronic instrument, the ondioline); prod. by Claus Ogerman/Creed Taylor, so it's really of a piece with the great four LPs Ogerman did for RCA at the time (early-mid-'60s); Simian Theme (FANTASTIC!), Python, Theme from Nowhere, Blue Star/Medic Theme, Warm..
Various: Spectacular is the Sound for It; deep groove N-/N S $25 -- wow!; thick-vinyl, first (probably only) press, rarer (and probably better, given the disc in clean stereo) than the great records it comps, and truly comprehensive one-stop shop with all the essential, most happening, reason-to-love-it tracks from this series (instrumentals in a stereo showcase similar to RCA's Stereo Action or Command/Time): South of the Border, Small World, I Got Rhythm, The Bells of St. Mary's (Roger King Mozian), Caravan, Hong Kong Holiday (Robert Maxwell--FANTASTIC multidubbing), Jungle Fantasy, The Hot Canary (Charles Camilleri--unique accordion exotica), Skipping Along, Sabre Dance (harmonica)
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