After Shock comes Panic – the sequel to Creed Taylor's previous album for ABC, and like that one, a very weird mix of jazzy backings, odd sound effects, and cool production techniques! The record begins with a familiar core – jazzy instrumentals, of the sort that Taylor was already producing for other artists, and would go on to do even more famously for Verve. But here, the music's really played with too – changed up in the middle of a song, as the rhythms get weird, sound effects come in, and the whole thing gets turned into a batch of spooky little scenes that more than live up to the title of the record – and the titles of the songs, which include "Alpine Honeymoon", "Wreck Of Old 97", "A Shot In The Dark", "The Fastest Gun", "No Smoking", "The Operation", and "The Prison Break". (Jazz, Now Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

Way more than just a James Bond cash-in record – and instead an ultra-hip jazz session from the west coast scene of the 60s! The James Bond at the helm of the record is actually Jimmy Bond – the great bassist who worked on some key sessions of the late 50s and early 60s as a sideman, and who turns out to be a surprisingly great leader on this rare mid 60s date! The record is more jazz than anything else – played with a crime/spy bent, to be sure – but also flowing with really great solos and a fair bit of a bossa influence in the rhythms! The group here is more than hip enough to make the record work – with Harold Land on tenor sax, Bobby Bryant on trumpet, and Buddy Colette on flute and tenor – all working in a sextet led by Bond, with plenty of round, warm, almost modal lines on his bass – punctuated nicely by piano from Joe Parnello and drums by Joh Guarin. Arrangements are by Dick Groove – who keeps things very groovy – and many of the tracks here are actually original numbers written by Bond and Warren Baker, titled after Ian Fleming books that had not yet been made into movies at the time of this album! Titles include "Casino Royale", "Moonraker", "For Your Eyes Only", "007 Theme From Dr No", "Man With The Golden Gun", "Diamonds Are Forever", and "Live & Let Die". (Jazz, Now Sound) CD

One of the more masterful albums that Prado cut for RCA, and a thrilling set of tracks with a very haunting feel. The entirety of side one features the extended "Exotic Suite Of The Americas", which has a storming Latin sound, mixed with nice exotica touches. The flipside features shorter tracks, but also done in a manner that has a wide dynamic range, with some startling arrangements. Titles include "Son Of A Gun", "Mama Yo Quiero", and "El Relicario". (Latin, Now Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

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A pretty swinging batch of tracks that are very much in the same vein as Buddy Morrow's crime jazz LPs cut for RCA at the end of the 50s! The album features all TV themes from the time, most of them detective ones – like "Richard Diamond", "Perry Mason", "Naked City", "Sea Hunt", "Peter Gunn", and "Riff Blues" – plus a few others from westerns or other action shows. In all, the set's a very strong one in the style – with a blaring hard sound that must have been great to hear coming out of a tinny little speaker on an old black & white TV! LP, Vinyl record album

The Latin sound is a groovy sound too – thanks to some great arrangements from the legendary Henry Mancini! The album's less a straight Latin date than it is a new approach to the grooves Mancini was laying down on his 60s soundtracks – a mix of bossa and cha cha-inspired themes that sparkle wonderfully with warm jazzy touches from a host of LA players who include Dick Nash on trombone, Harry Klee on flute, Ted Nash on alto and tenor, Jimmy Rowles on piano, Laurindo Almeida on guitar, and Gene Garf on organ – all working beautifully under Mancini's direction, with a sound that's both tight and relaxed at the same time! Lots of tracks have some nice groovy organ, which gives the arrangements a cool lively sound – and titles include "Preciosa", "Baia", "Carnavalito", "Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars", "Tico Tico", and the nice "Senor Peter Gunn", a Latin remake of Mancini's big hit! LP, Vinyl record album

Themes from iconic shows "I Love Lucy", "Dragnet", "Peter Gunn", "77 Sunset Strip", "Batman", "Bewitched", "M*A*S*H", "Dallas", "Cheers", NYPD Blue", "Ally McBeal", "Alias", and more – 50 tracks total. (Soundtracks, Now Sound) CD

Jimmie's always been one of the overlooked greats of the arranging business – and he's got a hip style that we'd compare to that of Jack Nietzsche, another excellent LA arranger from the same generation. This set gives Jimmie some great material to work with – as it not only includes spy material like "From Russia With Love" and "The James Bond Theme", but plenty of other groovy tunes, like "Flipper", "Gunhawk", "Dime With A Halo", and "Love Is A Ticklish Affair", all put together with some very swinging whimsey! LP, Vinyl record album

A lost chapter in the career of cellist Fred Katz – an album recorded after his small combo work with Chico Hamilton, and sort of a larger group take on the whimsical sound of the classic Hamilton Quintet! The tracks are all older folk tunes, adapted by Katz to fit a chamber jazz mode – and featuring shifting instrumentation from track to track, in order to fit the African, American, or Jewish origins of the tunes. Although the concept may sound a bit gimmicky, the record's actually pretty darn great from a jazz perspective – and is one of the few to show the real depth of Katz as a leader! Players include Billy Bean on guitar, Gene Estes on vibes, Jack Costanzo on percussion, Pete Candoli on trumpet, and Paul Horn on flute and alto – all great talents for this sort of work, especially Horn, whose reed lines help keep things lively. Titles include "Mate'ka", "Chili'lo", "Mathni-ki", "Old Paint", "Foggy Foggy Dew", and "Rav's Nigun". (Jazz, Now Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

Geoff Love galore – two instrumental albums from the 70s – back to back on a single CD! War Movie Themes features Love's recasting of famous themes from military films – including some classics from the 50s and 60s, given a slightly lighter reading here as a great device that still lets you enjoy the famous themes – yet without all the heavy drama of the original soundtrack! Titles include "Is Paris Burning", "Colonel Bogey", "Lawrence Of Arabia", "The Guns Of Navarone", "The Longest Day", and "Where Eagles Dare". Concerto Movie Themes features famous concerto moments from older soundtracks – brought back to life in stunning sound by Geoff Love, whose recordings here really make the best of 70s studio technology! Most numbers are from classical sources, but re-arranged for a famous film appearance – then recast here by Love – usually with a piano in the lead. Titles include "Warsaw Concerto", "The Way To The Stars", "Theme From Grieg's Piano Concerto", "Cornish Rhapsody", "Theme From Concerto In B Flat Minor", and "Spellbound Concerto". CD

The super-sound of Henry Mancini, served up here in a special SACD set! The first half of the package features cuts from two different RCA albums that collect together some of the best of Mancini's music from the 60s – key soundtrack numbers and other instrumentals – in a lineup of tracks that includes "Charade", "Hatari", "Peter Gunn", "Lujon", "Breakfast At Tiffany's", "The Brothers Go To Mothers", "Pink Panther", "Dear Heart", "Cheers", and "Baby Elephant Walk". Concert Sound has Mancini working with larger orchestrations than usual, in an expansion of his usual 60s groove! The tracks here are all somewhat long – suite-type numbers made up from smaller songs wrapped together in new Mancini arrangements that have a really cool feel in this setting! The orchestra is somewhat large, with strings and woodwinds – but in true Mancini fashion, there's also key solos from players who include Pete Candoli and Conrad Gozzo on trumpet, Dick Nash on trombone, Ted Nash on alto sax, and Jimmy Rowles on piano. Titles include "Peter Gunn Meets Mr Lucky", "The Music Of David Rose", "Academy Award Selections", and "A Tribute To Victor Young". Mancini Salutes Sousa is a very weird one – as Henry Mancini pays tribute to the work of John Philip Sousa! As you'd expect from Sousa's marches, most of the work has a parade band military sound – and Mancini, despite his grooviness, hardly breaks format to change the style of the work. The approach has touches of some of Mancini's more military soundtrack work – and the recording quality definitely has a classic Hollywood approach – but overall, it's still Sousa. Titles include "The Gladiator", "Washington Post", "National Fencibles", "The Thunderer", and "Drum Corps". CD set also features the rare bonus track "Man Of The World" – originally only on a 7" single! CD

A pair of early 70s easy listening gems – back to back on an SACD! First up is Tony & Strings – on which the sweet guitar of Tony Mottola mixes with some well-arranged strings – all given the lean presentation of Enoch Light in the 70s, which makes for music that's a great change from the way such sounds would have been handled a decade before! Titles include "It's Going To Take Some Time", "Nature Boy", "The Candy Man", "Song Sung Blue", "Street Of Dreams", "Theme From The Godfather", and the originals "Marcello's Mazurka" and "Bossa La La La". Close To You is a sweet set that's billed as "guitar for lovers", and which has the lean sound of Tony Mottola updated nicely with some Project 3 touches for the 70s! The record's got an unusual mix of tracks – some 70s, some older, and even a Christmas tune too – and Bucky Pizzarelli and Dick Hyman make guest appearances too! Tites include "Wave", "Didn't We", "Close To You", "Moon River/What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life", "Yesterday When I Was Young", "We've Only Just Begun", and "The Christmas Song". CD