"Music For A Bachelor's Den--Exotica"
Various Artists, 1995
The
hypnotic rhythms, bird calls, haunting chants, and all the usual elements
of exoitca are here to take you to that far-off landscape where the natives
are restless and the village princess is willing to make you her king.
Ahhhh, exotica--the wistful daydream of all bachelors. No lounge music
connoisseur worth their salt would be without a hearty collection of exotica.
This disc, part of the multi-volume Music For A Bachelor's Den,
features the usual suspects like the Arthur Lyman Group,
Les
Baxter, and Yma Sumac, and some surprises like numbers
by Duke Ellington and Sonny Lester. During
exotica's heyday, everyone was getting into the act, such as the afore
mentioned jazz composers. It gave these orchestras a chance to experiment
with different structures, instruments, and attitudes. The sounds were
based (loosely) on the South Pacific islands, China, India, or other far-off
lands, but homogenized for easy metropolitan consumption. It was all the
wildness of the jungle within the safety of your hi-fi listening room.
The exotica craze, like all of lounge music, was cut short by the advent
of rock and roll, but down deep in our bachelor and bachelorette heart's
we still hear the call of those mystical lands. (For more about exotica,
check out the review of Ultra-Lounge's
Mondo Exotica.)
Buy this album from
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