Post #543207 by woofmutt on Sun, Jul 18, 2010 12:11 AM

Some summer lounge tracks I dig...

Lazy Days Of Summer.....Nat "King" Cole. Obvious, yes. It doesn't remind me of summers I've known, it makes me think of summers in another era.

In The Cool Cool Cool Of The Evening.....Rosemary Clooney. (Many others have done it as well.) Another obvious summer tune but like Lazy Days... it makes me think of summer in some other time. I like the song's promise of a cool summer evening gathering of friends.

Calcutta.....Lawrence Welk And His Sparkling Strings. Maybe this was supposed to be an attempt at Exotica but it doesn't make me think of India in any way. The cut feels like the soundtrack for an insanely Technicolor hued summer day (or night) in the city.

Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White.....Pérez Prado Orchestra. The songs title implies spring, but it's so brash and in your face it sounds more like the big hot days of summer.

Fifi.....101 Strings Orchestra. This piece is like an almost ridiculous soundtrack to a perfect summer day in the city. An upbeat jaunt down the street that leads to an intimate moment in a cool, dark cafe and then explodes back out on the sidewalk.

Barbarella.....Ferrante & Teicher. A warm city night full of lights and reflections.

Theme From "The Apartment".....Tito Rodríguez. This piece sounds the way I would want an evening rooftop summer party to feel. You can almost hear the tinkling of ice in cocktails, murmur of gossip and small talk, and bursts of laughter.

Moon River Cha Cha......Henry Mancini. A little later in the evening at that roof top party. It's quieter, the talk is less boisterous, the guests have paired up and are talking softly or are just staring out over the city.

Wonderland By Night......Burt Bert Kaempfert. The walk home at the end of a long night and the city still feels magical and its possibilities seem endless.

Maria Elena......Los Indios Tabajaras. This piece feels painted across a summer night with wine, candlelight, and stars.

Wave.....Frank Sinatra. More wine flows through the summer night, maybe even to the edge of dawn. One of Frank's sexiest songs.

(Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66's version of Wave is a hotter, daylight splash of seduction, Antônio Carlos Jobim's Wave is another warm evening toned version of the song, though it also feels like a drive along a country road, in and out of tree shadows and sun.)