Exotica is a musical genre, named after the 1957 Martin Denny album of the same name that was popular during the 1950s to mid-1960s with Americans who came of age during World War II. The term was coined by Simon "Si" Waronker, Liberty Records co-founder board chairman. The musical colloquialism exotica means tropical ersatz, the non-native, pseudo experience of insular Oceania, Southeast Asia, Hawaii, the Amazon basin, the Andes, the Caribbean and tribal Africa. Denny described the musical style as "a combination of the South Pacific and the Orient...what a lot of people imagined the islands to be like...it's pure fantasy though." While the South Seas forms the core region, exotica reflects the "musical impressions" of every place from standard travel destinations to the mythical "shangri-las" dreamt of by armchair safari-ers.
"Unchained Melody" is a 1955 song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. North wrote the music as a theme for the prison film Unchained (1955), hence the song title. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack. It has since become a standard and one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, most notably by the Righteous Brothers in 1965. According to the song's publishing administrator, over 1,500 recordings of "Unchained Melody" have been made by more than 670 artists, in multiple languages.
"(There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays" is a popular song, commonly associated with the Christmas and holiday season. The lyrics detail the joys of being in your home community during the holidays and give examples of how some people will travel long distances to be with their loved ones. The music was composed by Robert Allen, with the lyrics written by Al Stillman. The song was published during 1954.
"¿Quién será?" is a bolero-mambo song written by Mexican composers Luis Demetrio and Pablo Beltrán Ruiz. Beltrán recorded the song for the first time with his orchestra in 1953. Pedro Infante, for whom the song was written, recorded it in 1954.
"The Breeze and I" is a popular song.
"Chances Are" is a popular song with music by Robert Allen and lyrics by Al Stillman. It was published in 1957.
"When I Fall in Love" is a popular song, written by Victor Young (music) and Edward Heyman (lyrics). It was introduced in the film One Minute to Zero as the instrumental titled "Theme from One Minute to Zero". Jeri Southern sang on the first vocal recording released in April 1952 with the song's composer, Victor Young, handling the arranging and conducting duties. The song has become a standard, with many artists recording it; the first hit version was sung by Doris Day released in July 1952.
McCartney II is the second solo album by English musician Paul McCartney, released on 16 May 1980. It was recorded by McCartney at his home studio in the summer of 1979, shortly before the dissolution of his band Wings in 1981. Like his first solo album, McCartney (1970), he performed all the instruments himself. It yielded three singles: "Coming Up", "Waterfalls", and "Temporary Secretary".
"And That Reminds Me", also known as "My Heart Reminds Me", is a popular song.
"Can't Fight the Moonlight" is a song written by Diane Warren and performed by American singer LeAnn Rimes. It is the theme song of the film Coyote Ugly. Released as a single on August 22, 2000, the song reached the top 10 in 19 European countries, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, topping the charts in 12 of these territories; it became Australia's best-selling single of 2001. In the United States, a different mix of the song peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2002.
Johnny's Greatest Hits is a compilation album by vocalist Johnny Mathis that was released by Columbia Records on March 17, 1958, and has been described as the "original greatest-hits package". The LP collected all but one of the songs from the first six singles he recorded, including eight A- and B-sides that made the singles charts in The Billboard as well as three B-sides that did not chart and one new track that was co-written by Mathis but not released as a single.
¡Ay, ay, ay!, subtitled Reminiscencias cuyanas, is a song composed in 1913 by the Chilean-born composer, pianist, singer and publisher Osmán Pérez Freire. Freire, who emigrated to Mendoza, Argentina in c.1886-1890, was a figure of some note in the evolution of Tango. This song, however, known worldwide, is his most famous composition, and has never fallen out of fashion. It is equally suited to intimate performance with guitar or piano accompaniment, or to large-scale concert delivery with orchestral accompaniment, and has been sung by almost everyone, and especially favoured by some of the most famous tenors, since it was first written.
Johnny Mathis in Person: Recorded Live at Las Vegas is a live album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was recorded at Caesars Palace and released on December 22, 1971, by Columbia Records. All but five of the 23 songs performed had appeared on his studio albums, while the five previously unrecorded songs have not appeared on a Mathis studio album since.
So Much in Love is an album by The Ray Conniff Singers. It was released in 1961 on the Columbia label.
Tamboo! is an album by Les Baxter, His Chorus and Orchestra. It was released in 1955 on the Capitol label.
Skins! Bongo Party with Les Baxter is an album by Les Baxter's Drums. It was released in 1957 on Capitol Records.
Les Baxter's African Jazz is an album by Les Baxter and His Orchestra. It was released in 1959 on Capitol Records The album consists of original music composed by Baxter. Upon its release, the album received a four-star rating from Billboard magazine. Billboard called it an "imaginative package" with "inventive treatments", excellent sound, and "lush, rich approaches."
'Round the World with Les Baxter is an album by Les Baxter, His Orchestra and Chorus. It was released in 1957 on Capitol Records. The album was recorded on August 8, 1956.
Calcutta! is an album by Lawrence Welk and His Orchestra. It was released in 1961 on the Dot label. The album featured Frank Scott at the harpsichord and included Welk's No. 1 hit single, "Calcutta".
Last Date is an album by Lawrence Welk and His Orchestra. It was released in 1960 on the Dot label.
