Breezy bossa nova – Hollywood 60s style! The album's one of the best cut for Capitol by guitarist Laurindo Almeida – and has a sweet groovy little style that features Laurindo's lovely guitar work over some lightly dancing small combo backings that include flute, harmonica, organ, percussion, and even a bit of whistling on a few tracks! The vibe's very much in the best Verve/Impulse takes on the bossa – done with a clear California influence, which keeps things cool and breezy – and which also pushes Almeida past his sometimes-staid style on guitar. Two cuts also feature some great vocals by Irene Kral – and titles include "Twilight In Rio", "Old Guitaron", "Sarah's Samba", "Izabella", "Winter Moon", "Girl From Ipanema", and "Choro For People In Love". CD

Breezy bossa nova – Hollywood 60s style! The album's one of the best cut for Capitol by guitarist Laurindo Almeida – and has a sweet groovy little style that features Laurindo's lovely guitar work over some lightly dancing small combo backings that include flute, harmonica, organ, percussion, and even a bit of whistling on a few tracks! The vibe's very much in the best Verve/Impulse takes on the bossa – done with a clear California influence, which keeps things cool and breezy – and which also pushes Almeida past his sometimes-staid style on guitar. Two cuts also feature some great vocals by Irene Kral – and titles include "Twilight In Rio", "Old Guitaron", "Sarah's Samba", "Izabella", "Winter Moon", "Girl From Ipanema", and "Choro For People In Love". CD

Breezy bossa nova – Hollywood 60s style! The album's one of the best cut for Capitol by guitarist Laurindo Almeida – and has a sweet groovy little style that features Laurindo's lovely guitar work over some lightly dancing small combo backings that include flute, harmonica, organ, percussion, and even a bit of whistling on a few tracks! The vibe's very much in the best Verve/Impulse takes on the bossa – done with a clear California influence, which keeps things cool and breezy – and which also pushes Almeida past his sometimes-staid style on guitar. Two cuts also feature some great vocals by Irene Kral – and titles include "Twilight In Rio", "Old Guitaron", "Sarah's Samba", "Izabella", "Winter Moon", "Girl From Ipanema", and "Choro For People In Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Breezy bossa nova – Hollywood 60s style! The album's one of the best cut for Capitol by guitarist Laurindo Almeida – and has a sweet groovy little style that features Laurindo's lovely guitar work over some lightly dancing small combo backings that include flute, harmonica, organ, percussion, and even a bit of whistling on a few tracks! The vibe's very much in the best Verve/Impulse takes on the bossa – done with a clear California influence, which keeps things cool and breezy – and which also pushes Almeida past his sometimes-staid style on guitar. Two cuts also feature some great vocals by Irene Kral – and titles include "Twilight In Rio", "Old Guitaron", "Sarah's Samba", "Izabella", "Winter Moon", "Girl From Ipanema", and "Choro For People In Love". CD

2 rare slices of exotica by Les Baxter – back to back on one CD! The first half of the set features material from the album Ports Of Pleasure – a dreamy exploration of south sea ideals that's got a more lightly drifting quality than some of Baxter's more percussive exotica albums, and which is awash in dreamy soundscapes penned by Les himself! The orchestrations are large and bold throughout – mixing strings and woodwinds almost in a soundtrack-y mode – but always with the light sense of interplay that makes Baxter's work so great. Titles include "Monkey Dance Of Bali", "Pearls Of Ceylon", "Tahiti A Summer Night At Sea", "Hong Kong Cable Car", "Tramp Steamer To Singapore", "Harem Silks From Bombay", and "Sidewalk Cafes Of Saigon". The Sacred Idol is a real standout set from the end of Les Baxter's run at Capitol Records – originally scored for a film that was never released, but a great set of tracks that more than stands strongly on its own! The theme here is a Mexican/Latin American one – explored by Baxter with his trademark blend of larger orchestrations and lighter exotica touches – often swirling around in an extremely evocative mode that makes us wish the film had been issued to the public, and at a few key moments even hinting at the funkier modes that would follow on some of Les' later work for other labels. Titles include "Aqueducts", "Gardens Of The Moon", "Pyramid Of The Sun", "Temple Of Gold", and "Procession Of The Princes". CD

No group's work was more adaptable to groovy orchestral arrangements than John, Paul, George & Ringo – and Chacksfield is well beyond being merely up to task, and this set is loads of groovy fun. Includes "Get Back", "Michelle", "Yesterday", "A Hard Day's Night", "Norwegian Wood", "Come Together" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest, moogiest records we've ever heard from Mort Garson – and that's saying a lot, given that the man gave us the Wozzard Of Iz and a host of moog-based astrological records too! The album's billed as "mood music especially composed to aid the growing of your plants" – and while we doubt that claim, it's more than groovy enough without any herbaceous activity at hand – these cool keyboard lines that are often sweetly tuneful, but nicely tripped-out too – played by one of the best cats to really grab hold of the moog right at the start of its great musical run! Titles include "A Mellow Mood For Maidenhair", "You Don't Have To Walk A Begonia", "Concerto For Philodendron & Pothos", "Ode To An African Violet", and "Plantasia". (Sound Library, Now Sound) CD

One of the coolest, moogiest records we've ever heard from Mort Garson – and that's saying a lot, given that the man gave us the Wozzard Of Iz and a host of moog-based astrological records too! The album's billed as "mood music especially composed to aid the growing of your plants" – and while we doubt that claim, it's more than groovy enough without any herbaceous activity at hand – these cool keyboard lines that are often sweetly tuneful, but nicely tripped-out too – played by one of the best cats to really grab hold of the moog right at the start of its great musical run! Titles include "A Mellow Mood For Maidenhair", "You Don't Have To Walk A Begonia", "Concerto For Philodendron & Pothos", "Ode To An African Violet", and "Plantasia". (Sound Library, Now Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest, moogiest records we've ever heard from Mort Garson – and that's saying a lot, given that the man gave us the Wozzard Of Iz and a host of moog-based astrological records too! The album's billed as "mood music especially composed to aid the growing of your plants" – and while we doubt that claim, it's more than groovy enough without any herbaceous activity at hand – these cool keyboard lines that are often sweetly tuneful, but nicely tripped-out too – played by one of the best cats to really grab hold of the moog right at the start of its great musical run! Titles include "A Mellow Mood For Maidenhair", "You Don't Have To Walk A Begonia", "Concerto For Philodendron & Pothos", "Ode To An African Violet", and "Plantasia". (Sound Library, Now Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

Beatles Back & Bacharach presents the Ted Heath group in some very groovy territory – playing a fair bit of the first and third "B" in the title, plus a little bit of the second! Heath's instrumentation is quite far from the brassier horns used on his earlier records – and Johnny Keating's sensitive arrangements for the date bring in a fair bit of groovier elements – electric bass, guitar, flute, and even some electric harpsichord! In a way, the record's much more of a Keating album than a Heath one – right down to the subtle dose of funk that Johnny was bringing to his music at this time – and titles include "This Guy's In Love With You", "Norwegian Wood", "B B & B", "Air On The G String", "Let It Be", "You'll Never Get To Heaven", and "I'll Never Fall In Love Again". (Jazz, Now Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe not the first album of electronics to come out of the European scene – but a set that definitely marked that standout moment when moogy pop found a great way forward! Dan Lacksman had plenty of studio experience before cutting this gem of a record – and he brings that all to bear strongly here, working through both rock and easy modes – and using guitars and more conventional instrumentation alongside all the weird analog instrumental sounds, to give the tunes a catchy, playful sort of vibe – a bit like the territory that Perry & Kingsley explored, but more song-based overall. Titles include the slow funk classic "Sky Lab" – plus "Funky Kouly", "Spider", "In The Woods", "Hey Hey", and "Stay With Me" – plus the clunky cover of "Tchip Tchip" that starts off the record (you might skip that and begin on track 2!) (Rock, Now Sound) CD

Quite possibly the grooviest album ever from Enoch Light – a trippy blend of many 60s styles, all put together with sublime Project 3 Sound! The album's billed as featuring "exploratory trips through the music of Bach, Bacharach, the Beatles – Integrating the Moog, the Guitar Scene, Electronic Harpsichord, Flugelhorns, etc" – and it definitely lives up to that bill, given the range of songs included! Rhythms are strong, and the use of sweetly compressed horn parts is very much in an A&M mode – as is the backing vocals, which are light and wonderful – a bit like Free Design, but more towards the territory of Singers Unlimited, although even groovier. The Beatles and Bacharach material is especially great – but even the Bach tunes come out wonderfully, given that most are re-arranged with a hip 60s soundtrack sort of groove – classical roots, but contemporary execution – especially when there's a bit of moog or electric harpsichord. Titles include "Walk On By", "Norweigan Wood", "What The World Needs Now", "Get Back", "Bond Street", "Petite Paulette", "My Silent Song", and "Lover's Concerto". LP, Vinyl record album

Pre-moog work from Hugo Montenegro – but a set that's still pretty darn groovy! The Beach Boys reference in the title is very well put, as Hugo's using some cool harmony vocals for the record – a chorus that definitely takes some of its inspiration from Brian Wilson, singing here both with lyrics, and some wordless modes – not on every track, but used enough to give the record a really Sunshine Pop sort of appeal! Other instrumentation is great too – electric bass underneath fuller strings, offbeat woodwinds, fuzzy guitar, and even a bit of whistling – which has a cool sort of electronic feel. The blend of sounds is amazing – very unique, and already showing that Montenegro's one of the hippest talents of the 60s. Titles include "Classical Gas", "Rosemary's Baby", "Night Rider", "Lady in Cement", "A Future Left Behind", "Tony's Theme", and "Good Vibrations". LP, Vinyl record album

A crazy album of funky tracks from Lalo Schifrin – very different than most of his other jazz and bossa work! This set's got some very tripped out styles that mix together funky backings, jazzy riffing, and even some nice electronics – a sweet little groove that's even more wild and hip than even the best of Schifrin's soundtrack work from the 60s! Some tunes certainly show the deft talent for arranging woodwinds and rhythms that first caught the ears of so many listeners on famous soundtracks – but in the setting of this record, away from any directorial needs, Lalo's also free to explore some groovier music ideas – and he really lets loose tremendously as the set rolls on! The titles alone should tell you the feel of the record – with names like "Secret Code", "Dissolving", "Vaccinated Mushrooms", "Wheat Germ Landscapes", and "How To Open at Will The Most Beautiful Window". (Jazz, Now Sound) LP, Vinyl record album