What's your favorite Exotica/Tiki album ? Mine's Bongoland from the Ultra Lounge series.

Hey, I remember that from the last time you posted this thread. Is your second favorite exotica album still "Quiet Village"?

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=4581&forum=1

:wink:

Right now, mines the "Exotic Moods of Lex Baxter" compilation.

[ Edited by: Suburban Hipster on 2003-07-15 12:05 ]

Hey, to which thread should I reply? I'm confused!! What the heck, here it goes:

"Eden's Island" by Eden Ahbez

Wowie! It's Hanford's all time fav too:

http://www.tikicentral.com/music/savage.htm

"mondo exotica"

NeVeR MiNd tHe BuLLoCkS !!!

Probably "Night on Exotic Island" by The Surfmen, also issued as "Tradewinds Romance From Hawaii To Tahiti" by the South Sea Serenaders (Same LP). I've never seen it issued completely on CD..too bad.

"Mondo Exotica" is it for me too.

Yea, I get jumped on a bit too when I accidentally duplicated a topic (though vets here should realize not EVERYONE currently posting is an old timer who is up to date on EVERY post EVER submitted, this forum is EPIC! Thor Heyerdahl couldn't navigate all this deep, dark space authoratatively, cut us newbies some slack!)

Anyway, my favorite of this subject is thisrather obscure (I believe) LP I have called 4:35 (4 Channel, 35mm Film) EXOTICA, by Ted Auletta and his Orchestra, from the Cameo label, circa (I guess) early '60s. It has a variety of standards like "Quiet Village" and "Taboo" but all the tracks are simply exquisite and exciting. If you see it in a bin, grab it.To my knowledge it's never been released on CD.

My second fave I guess is Robert Drasnin's "Voodoo" (which I have on vinyl and CD) and then, hm, pretty much any of Les Baxter's exotica albums, like "African Jazz" or "Tamboo."

Man, that's a tough one! The Ultra Lounge Mondo Exotica comp is superb as a primer, of course (that whole series is flawless). Lotta great stuff out there.

On this same note....I can't seem to find
"The Exotic Moods of Les Baxter" for less than about $75.00 or more.

What other Les Baxter CD's would ya'll recommend, to see if I would enjoy "Exotic Moods" enough to pay that kind of $$$?

Thanks,

Scott

It's fantastic, but don't get screwed by these opportunists. Keep watching the used bins and the garage sales. No reason in HELL these things should go for that much. (I'm looking for it too)

Too bad they're not releasing the Baxter albums on two-fer CDs like they're doing with the Martin Denny stuff.

On 2003-08-27 14:45, spy-tiki wrote:
Too bad they're not releasing the Baxter albums on two-fer CDs like they're doing with the Martin Denny stuff.

Some of Baxter's albums are actually available on two-fers:

http://www.oldies.com/product/view.cfm/id/27822.html

Thanks for the info....yeah, I actually saw one on eBay for $39.00 buy it now...but the bidding started at $10.00. Figured I'd wait a day or so...BIG mistake! It was snapped up in a hurry...and since then, it's gone for up to $100.00. Some genius has it on either Amazon.com (trusted seller or whatever) or Half.com for $279.00!!!!!! Granted, it's brand new, but give me a BREAK!!

Sooo..to my original Question....anything of Baxter's that's still in print I should get to try him out? I have Mondo Exotica, which has a few tracks, but I'd like to try some more first....

Thanks,

Scott

There's plenty of Baxter on CD. I just saw several new at Amoeba in SF.

Recommendations??

Ukulele Ladyland from the Duke of Uke. Anarchy in the UK & Search & Destroy played on the Uke? Ya gotta love it! And on his 1st tape he does Communication Breakdown! Bwahahahaha!

Go to http://www.duke-of-uke.com to see his Uke autographed by the Tiny Tim and listen to the man wail.

On 2003-08-28 10:46, new2tiki wrote:
Recommendations??

As mentioned above, try the Tamboo/Skins CD:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00004YNF1/qid=1062104992/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-8937332-9360941?v=glance&s=music

And the Colors of Brazil album might interest you as well:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000001OUN/qid=1062104992/sr=1-3/ref=sr_1_3/102-8937332-9360941?v=glance&s=music

True, much of the exotica side of his output is hard to come by. Look for the vinyl!

(And please go through Hanford's Amazon link if you buy it online. Help Hanford make a buck or two!)

Yes, the "Colors of Brazil-African Blue" CD is great although not that exotica

Thanks Klas. Now I feel stupid. I actually have that one. I just meant a whole series so we wouldn't have to mortgage the house to get "The Exotic Moods of Les Baxter". I have a few of the LPs, but would like some nice remastered CDs.

It's a damn shame more of Baxter's stuff isn't available the way Denny and Lyman albums are. I have quite a few of his lps, but they have the usual pops and clicks (or worse). I found my Ultra-Lounge Baxter set at Borders books for something like $28 last year. Keep looking. It's worth the effort.

I really don't have a favorite album. I keep discovering more and more cool stuff from the 50's that I like. Lately, I've been jamming to Tito Puente and Perez Prado. Not exactly exotica, but I do dig that crazy percussion.

I'm a Martin Denny gal, but do also like Don Tiki and also the Tiki Tones. Overstock.com gets cd's by all of these guys once in awhile for short scratch and I pick them up when I can. My current breakfast cd is Skinny Dip with Don Tiki - perfect for that pre-run 4:00 am breakfast atmosphere!

http://www.tikitaky.com
Tiki Rules!

[ Edited by: scigirl on 2003-08-29 18:26 ]

The "Exotic Moods of Les Baxter" is a must have item but since it is OOP and the people at Capitol think the Exotica/Lounge movement is over, it is highly doubtful that this CD will get reissued. Even the folks at Collectors Choice have said it is a dying fad. The sales of the new Martin Denny CD "Baked Alaska" they said have been poor. People have to start buying this stuff in order to see a reason to reissue like-minded titles. Speaking of Collector's Choice, they do have a mismatched CD two-fer available by Les Baxter with "The Academy Award Winners" and "Soul of the Drums". Look at http://www.oldies.com for ordering info. Pretty soon I imagine the Scamp reissues will be fetching big bucks as well because of their "out of print" status. Vinyl is the only way to go until someone of this caliber can reissue the classic exotica music of the past.

Don't know if this qualifies as exotica but I've been listening to a disc titled "Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim" alot lately. It has a great version of The Girl From Ipanema on it. Its a real mellow record with 10 tracks. Also was wondering if Les Baxter records feature alot of the terrific organ music I've heard on the Baxter tracks from compilations? Has anyone heard the record "Cocktails for Two...Romance with a Twist"? If so what do you think?!

Ahoy mates...I think it's unanimous...Les Baxter is the reigning king of exotica.

[ Edited by: Shipwreckjoey on 2003-08-31 00:47 ]

I'm getting some great ideas here. I've heard quite a bit of what's been mentioned, but don't know or have enough exotica to name a favorite album just yet. However, the best SONG I've heard so far is Les Baxter's "Jungalero." It just simply one of the coolest, most hypnotic songs I've ever heard. I listen to it over and over. LOVE IT!

~Tex

i seem to reach for , martin denny , "quiet village " alot....on vinyl , of course.

Hey...I found a copy of Martin Denny's 'Exotica' (stereo LP) for $1. Cover is in mint condition. Vinyl is a little rag tag but plays pretty good. I'd say that's probably my fave Exotica album. I also have Arthur Lyman 'Yellow Bird' which is pretty cool too. He does an exotica version of 'Hava Nagela'. How can you beat that?? Bar Mitzvah or Jewish wedding at the Mai Kai anybody?

I scored a bunch of Hawaiian/Exotica LPs all in mint condition for a dollar each at the Salvation Army in Northport, Long Island earlier in the summer. Somebody must have really dug this kind of music, because there was like 5 lps in all. The best one so far was 'The Exotic Sounds of Hawaii' by the Milt Raskin Group. Although the cover of the record wasn't as interesting as the others, it was probably the most Martin Denny/Exotica-esque of the bunch, complete with birdcalls and all the other weird ambience. At some point I'll have to photograph my collection and post it here. I also scored Billy Vaughn-'Blue Hawaii' for a buck. Cool cover, but some real corny versions of Hawaiian type standards.

Now if my copy of 'Quiet Village' would get here already, I'd be happy. I've been waiting at least a month for some nerd on Ebay to mail this thing to me once and for all. :drink:

[ Edited by: donhonyc on 2003-09-02 19:41 ]

Just recently came across the Lyman LP "Aloha Amigos" - haven't gotten a chance to listen to it yet, kinda nervous about what it might sound like...good cover though.

Just got Yma Sumac 'The Voice of the Extabay' today. Totally ROCKS!!!!! My new fave Exotica. Definitely gonna get a few more by her!

Okay, here's what I would consider the "canon" [truncated] of Exotica albums:

1. Le Sacre du Savauge - Les Baxter
2. Primativa - Martin Denny
3. Exotica - Ted Auletta
4. Voodoo - Robert Drasnin
5. Taboo - Arthur Lyman
6. Rain in the Tropics - Gene Rains
7. Hypnotique - Martin Denny
8. White Goddess - Frank Hunter
9. Tropical Fantasy - Michel Magne
   10 tie) Eden's Island - Eden Ahbez
   10 tie) Mganga! - Tak Shindo

I'd say 1 and 2 are in the correct order, and you could jumble 3-7, all of which are truly enjoyable Exotica albums, with the remainder (8-10) being good and of particular interest to collectors. Unfortunately only a few of them are available on (legitimate) CD. But hey, you can always hear tracks from all of these you know where....

It would seem the Exotic Moods of Les Baxter is out of print on CD and fetching up to $159 used at amazon... I've looked under every online rock... no dice. So I was wondering if anyone on this forum would be interested in burning me a copy, which I would gladly pay fair market price for. Just call me: 203-227-2065 It's a must for the Tiki night we're going to be doing:
http://www.tikimoon.com
I'm getting a real kick out of listening to Vegas Vic's Tiki Lounge right now:
http://www.live365.com/stations/brianeh?play
what a find!!!
I wish there was a computer in the bar, I'd just run a live line into the deck! :)

On 2004-09-12 15:34, RemyC wrote:
I wish there was a computer in the bar, I'd just run a live line into the deck! :)

Do you have a stereo in your bar? I use one of these set-ups:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00004Z4HP/103-9086651-0781433?v=glance

It sends my computer audio to my home stereo so I can blast Live 365 (Vegas Vic's, Swank Pad and others) throughout my home.

[ Edited by: Kono on 2004-09-12 17:39 ]

VegasVic,
Love your net radio station on Live365!!! In fact, I'm listening to it right now!! Keep up the great exotica tunes!!!!

As far as Exotica on LP is concerned, a real find for me was "s'Pacifica" by Johnny Spencer and the Kona Koasters. An unsung masterpiece that rarely gets much lip service or write up but well worth grabbing should you be fortunate enough to come across a copy.

I am a big Yma fan, so Mambo is probably favorite, followed closely by Lyman.s Taboo and Leis of jazz

Arthur Lyman was The Man. I was lucky enough to meet and see him perform live and have him sign my CD's, on a few occasions. In my mind "Hawaiian Sunset" is his magnum opus. I actually feel drunk while I'm listening to it.

[ Edited by: WheelerIsland on 2004-09-14 10:20 ]

i enjoy most of the vintage exotica artists
and the retro dudes like Don Tiki...but
get a hold of Mambo Sinuendo by Ry Cooder
and Manuel Galban...it's worth it just
for the opening track "Drume Negrita."
Congatiki would never lead you astray.

On 2004-09-13 21:57, WheelerIsland wrote:
As far as Exotica on LP is concerned, a real find for me was "s'Pacifica" by Johnny Spencer and the Kona Koasters.

I tracked down a copy in a record store in Australia. I waited with baited breath for a few weeks for it to arrive. Opened up the package and found the record in three pieces. The horror....

I like Exotica as much as anything else tiki related. Great list Vegas, but this one is new to me!
6) Rain in the Tropics - Gene Rains
What is it like?

For Me White Goddess is tops, Strange Echoes alone would have lept that to the fore of any list, but the rest of the album is really solid too.

For Martin Denny, I really like Hypnotique & Primitiva with Afrodesia close behind.

Yma Sumac's Mambo is tops as is Perez Prado's voodoo suite

For Hawaiian I like Johnny Pineapple a lot, though only know of 2 records by him.

shiverbones,
I can highly recommend Rains in the Tropics!!! It is one of my top favorites and you can usually find that one used!