It's a twofer! Two classic albums are included on this CD of one of the great male quartets of the twentieth century! Their ability to maintain perfect intervals in vertical harmony is legendary. Fortunately the legend lives anew as almost every one of their tremendous discography has now been remastered for CD. Actually, it's amazing that "Stars In Our Eyes" and "The Swingers" haven't been released until now. The songs released originally on the album "Stars In Our Eyes" are the first twelve tunes. Each of them is a testimonial of regard for the other artists of their day who helped to create the cultural climate which saw the Four Freshmen rise to stardom. They sing songs made famous by The Four Coins, The Ames Brothers, The Four Lads, The Modernaires, The DeCastros, The Mills Brothers, The Hi-Los, The Brothers Four, The Andrews Sisters, and the King Sisters. There is even one of the rare a cappella tunes, "Tom Dooley," which was responsible for catapulting the Kingston Trio to instant acclaim. On the second half of this fabulous reissue, the music ranges from smoothly swinging Frosh-styled ballads to several tunes which used to be strictly big-band instrumentals like Duke Ellington's "Satin Doll," Count Basie's famous "Taps Miller," and "Dynaflow" which was a Stan Kenton/Art Pepper original. Those as well as the jazz 'national anthem,' "Lullaby of Birdland," are done as wordless vocals, utilizing syllables instead of lyrics. Among all the songs on this production is a complete purview of one of the great vocal jazz quartets of all times. |
