Summer Compilation Vol.3 (2009)

Happy First Day of Summer! Summer is my favorite season, and I don't care how hot it gets. I love the bright colors, the ice cold drinks, the lazy days, wearing shorts and flip-flops, and the wonderful memories it brings. So, in celebration of the First Day of Summer, I offer you my annual summer songs compilation - a compilation of songs that all have the word "summer" in the title. So, grab a cold drink and celebrate summer!

Track listing for Summer Compilation Vol.3 (2009):

1. Here Comes Summer - Cliff Richard
2. Gemini: Summer Song - Dick Jacobs and his Orchestra
3. Endless Summer Nights - Richard Marx
4. When Summer Turns to Snow - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66
5. Summer Side of Life - Gordon Lightfoot
6. Summertime in Venice - Mantovani and his Orchestra
7. Summer Wind - Michael Buble
8. Theme from "Summer of '42" (The Summer Knows) - Johnny Mathis
9. Summertime - Ricky Nelson
10. Summer Breeze - The Isley Brother
11. Summertime Blues - The Stray Cats
12. Some Kind of Summer - David Cassidy
13. Theme from "A Summer Place" - Santo and Johnny
14. The Things We Did Last Summer - Shelley Fabares
15. I Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer - Stevie Wonder
16. The Green Leaves of Summer - Herb Alpert's Tijuana Brass
17. Summer Means Fun - The Fantastic Baggys
18. Summer in the City - Buddy Morrow
19. Last Days of Summer - The Blue Hawaiians
20. Summertime USA - The Pixies Three
21. Summertime's Calling Me - The Catalinas
22. The Sweet Sounds of Summer - The Shangri-Las
23. Keep An Eye on Summer - The Beach Boys

If you haven't downloaded the first two volumes of my Summer compilations, click on the "summer" label to take you directly to those posts. Happy Summer!

Fred Astaire Dance Studio Orchestra - Merengues and Mambos (1959)

This is another of the records I bought when I began ballroom dancing. I know I bought it because it was the Fred Astaire Dance Studio Orchestra, and the first studio I danced at was a Fred Astaire Dance Studio here in Dallas! Unfortunately, there aren't any more Fred Astaire Dance Studios in Dallas - they all closed (although I think there are some in the Houston area). Anyway, I especially liked the latin dances, and mambo is my very favorite. I bought this at my favorite place (Half-Price Books), and the free dance instruction booklet was long gone. Oh, well. Anyway, if you like to mambo or merengue, then you need this album!

Track listing for Fred Astaire Dance Studio Orchestra - Merengues and Mambos:

Side 1:
1. The Ingenue Mambo
2. Timbales Mambo
3. El Guapo
4. The Panther Mambo
5. Top Hat Mambo
6. Mambo Loco

Side 2:
1. Merengue Merengue
2. Haitian Merengue
3. Pineapple Merengue
4. Hop Skip Merengue
5. Sliding Merengue
6. Si Si Merengue

Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra - The King Plays Some Aces (1958)

This is one of the early additions to my record collection. Before 1987, the records I bought were the rock, soft rock, and pop that was popular at the time. Sure, I had grown up listening to my mom's big band and easy listening records, but I certainly didn't buy that kind of music. Until 1987, that is. In 1987, I accidentally discovered a local radio station that played "big bands and great singers". At first, I was angry that someone had messed with my radio at work, but as I heard the songs, I realized how cool it was. Then I entered a radio contest and won some free ballroom dance lessons. The world of music just opened up to me and I started working on my current record collection. (Needless to say, my mother was very happy that I now liked "real" music - like the kind she liked.) So, my early purchases were mostly big band or the kind of music that we danced to at the dance studio. The latin dances became my forte, so I started buying a lot of records of latin dance music. Of course, I had to buy some Xavier Cugat records! Again, before this the only thing I knew about Xavier Cugat was that Charo was married to him, because she would often comment about him, and that he was much older than she was. Oh, and something about him carrying around a little Chihuahua dog. When I finally bought one of his records (at HPB, of course!), it was this one, and I was hooked. I do love me some Cugat!

Track listing for Xavier Cugat - The King Plays Some Aces:

Side 1:
1. Oye Negra
2. Danse des Mirlitons
3. Carioca
4. Night Must Fall
5. Linda Mujer
6. Cuban Mambo

Side 2:
1. Green Eyes
2. Chiu Chiu
3. Danse Arabe
4. Baia
5. Mambo No. 5
6. Adios

Nat King Cole and The Trio - After Midnight (1956)

Yet another gem I rescued from the HPB bargain bin - and what a gem it is! This is an absolutely awesome record. I mean, how can you go wrong with Nat King Cole? And I really liked it when he performed with the Trio. Superb. I think I've said it all. If you don't already have this album, get it now!

Track listing for Nat King Cole and The Trio - After Midnight:

Side 1:
1. Just You, Just Me
2. Sweet Lorraine
3. Sometimes I'm Happy
4. Caravan
5. It's Only A Paper Moon
6. You're Looking At Me

Side 2:
1. Lonely One
2. Don't Let It Go To Your Head
3. I Know That You Know
4. Blame It On My Youth
5. When I Grow Too Old To Dream
6. Route 66

Here's a video clip of Nat and the Trio singing "Route 66":

The Ray Charles Singers - Songs For Latin Lovers (1965)

Here's another of the treasures I found in the HPB bargain bin, and it was the album artwork that prompted me to buy it. Of course, after listening to it, I loved it! I like this type of music - very smooth, melodic, and rhythmic. I am transported back to the mid-1960s when I listen to this - love it! This is a great album to play at your next cocktail party. And, it's the perfect album to listen to on a lazy Sunday afternoon such as today!

Track listing for The Ray Charles Singers - Songs For Latin Lovers:

Side 1:
1. Song of the Jet (Samba Do Aviao)
2. My Love, Forgive Me (Amore, Scusami)
3. Maria Elena
4. No More Blues (Chega De Saudade)
5. To You
6. Adios

Side 2:
1. Desafinado (Slightly Out of Tune)
2. You're Mine (I Ricordi Della Sera)
3. Amo, Amas, Amamus
4. Carnival (Manha De Carnaval)
5. My Guitar and My Song
6. Vaya Con Dios (May God Be With You)

Pat Boone - Pat (1956)

Okay, I'm guilty. I love Pat Boone records. I love his smooth voice - and his white shoes! I think I first heard of Pat Boone when I was a little girl and he and his family did a TV commercial for juice or milk or something (I don't remember what exactly - I didn't really pay attention). But when I first really saw and heard Pat Boone, it was on a late night movie called "Bernadine" (even as a kid, I was hooked on "old" movies). I immediately liked him - his clean-cut looks and his singing (this was way before I became a punk rocker). Of course, Pat Boone was the last thing on my mind as I entered my teenage years, and I definitely thought he was a major "square". But then as a young adult when I bought my first Sony Walkman, I got a free cassette (courtesy of Reader's Digest) that had various artists on it. One of those artists was Pat Boone and the song was "Friendly Persuasion". I liked Pat again. And as time has gone by, I've liked his records more and more. And I really like this record - it's pretty rockin'!

Track listing for Pat Boone - Pat:

Side 1:
1. Flip, Flop and Fly
2. Pledging My Love
3. Money Honey
4. Tomorrow Night
5. Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens
6. Shake A Hand

Side 2:
1. Honey Hush
2. Please Send Me Someone To Love
3. I'm In Love Again
4. Rock Around The Clock
5. Shot Gun Boogie
6. Five, Ten, Fifteen Hours