Juan Garcia Esquivel was the King of Space Age Pop, that quirky brand of late 50's-early 60's bachelor pad music that was meant to be played at cocktail parties; basically- lounge music with elements of jazz and a Latin flair designed to get you laid.
When this album came out in 1958, it blew minds- even listening to it in now in stereo I'm amazed at how well Esquivel played the knobs in the studio, how voices, trumpet blasts, guitar bends, vibraphone runs, etc. all are bounced around back and forth between my various speakers (I'm listening on four). I read somewhere that listening to this in mono would be like looking at the Mona Lisa in black and white.
Other Worlds, Other Sounds opened up a whole new world of what can be done with stereophonic sound, as well as opened up a whole new set of listener's ears when Exotica (or Space Age Pop) underwent a renaissance in the early 90s.
1 comments:
I can't wait to play this at my next cocktail party!
Post a Comment