Technicolor Paradise: Rhum Rhapsodies & Other Exotic Delights

by Technicolour Paradise: Rhum Rhapsodies & Other

Overview

Exotica defined a place in time, but only a handful of artists defined it. Martin Denny coined the term in 1957 when he called an album Exotica but at that point, the fad was well underway, kicked off at the dawn of the '50s by Les Baxter, who released his own groundbreaking album, Ritual of the Savage, in addition to producing and arranging Voice of the Xtabay, the 1950 debut by Yma Sumac. What all these records had in common was a fascination with the island culture of the Pacific Ocean -- specifically the island of Hawaii, which had yet to become an American state when exotica was all the rage in the '50s. Eventually, Hawaii entered the union and the South Pacific craze waned, but exotica lingered into the '60s, only to resurface during the '90s as the anchor of the lounge revival. Technicolor Paradise: Rhum Rhapsodies & Other Exotic Delights, Numero's deep dive into exotica, appeared in 2018, 20 years after the '90s lounge craze peaked, which means it could be seen as the revival or a revival, but that's not quite right. While Technicolor Paradise does contain its fair share of camp -- camp is baked into the genre -- Numero never winks at its audience with this triple-disc set. It's accompanied by a hefty hardcover book, tracing all of the highways and byways of exotica's history, while detailing the artists who feature on this 54-track box. None of the genre's heavy hitters are here, but that's the point of the whole enterprise: Technicolor Paradise is designed to show how deeply exotica spread in the '50s and earliest years of the '60s. The people behind the set -- chiefly Ken Shipley, who was assisted by Daniel Shiman on the research and compilation side and Rob Sevier on the production end -- achieve this goal by concentrating largely (but not entirely) on acts who recorded for obscure local labels. Often, these acts would cover exotica standards or interpolate themes to their own end, so all this music feels exceptionally familiar even if the recordings themselves are rare. Technicolor Paradise is divided into three themes -- Daiquiri Dirges, Rhum Rhapsodies, and Mai Tai Mambos -- which helps maintain the mood while drawing subtle distinctions, such as the very slight surf rock guitars that flow throughout Mai Tai Mambos. These little details are fun but, ultimately, Technicolor Paradise is about the big picture, serving as supporting evidence that the exotica craze was really as vast as it seemed on any number of '90s lounge reissues. Just as importantly, this music is every bit as frothy and fun as the music made by the well-known names of exotica, and that's the reason why any hep cat or kitten should get this set. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	11/05/2022
Label:	Imports
UPC:	0825764106504

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Gene Sikora   Primary Artist
Joan Joyce Trio   Primary Artist
Five Glow Tones   Primary Artist
The Palatons   Primary Artist
The Potted Palm   Primary Artist
Akim   Primary Artist
Aki Aleong   Primary Artist
The Slaves   Primary Artist
Lenny & The Thundertones   Primary Artist
The Castiles   Primary Artist
The Bluebells   Primary Artist
The Melody Mates   Primary Artist
Bill & Jean Bradway   Primary Artist
Pony Sherrell   Primary Artist
Red Harrison & His Zodiacs   Primary Artist
Ross Anderson Chorus & Orchestra   Primary Artist
Bruce Norman Quintet   Primary Artist
Clyde Derby   Primary Artist
Walter Bolen   Primary Artist
Chico Jose   Primary Artist
Baha'i Victory Chorus   Primary Artist
The Shelltones   Primary Artist
Jerry & the Catalinas   Primary Artist
Blue Jeans   Primary Artist
Biscaynes   Primary Artist
The Blazers   Primary Artist
The Jaguars   Primary Artist,Primary Artist
Bobby Christian   Primary Artist
Eddie Kochak   Primary Artist
The Wailers   Primary Artist,Primary Artist
Artie Barsamian   Primary Artist
Don Sargent & His Buddies   Primary Artist
Biscaynes & The Co-Encidentals   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
The Crew   Primary Artist
The Voodoos   Primary Artist
Valids   Primary Artist
Bobby Paris   Primary Artist
Arnie Derksen   Primary Artist
Modesto Duran   Primary Artist
Fred Darian   Primary Artist
Les Three Bars   Primary Artist
Andre Brummer   Primary Artist
The Monzas   Primary Artist
Soundbreakers   Primary Artist
Don Reed   Primary Artist,Primary Artist
Chise   Primary Artist
The Blue Bells   Primary Artist
Chuck "Big Guitar" Ernest   Primary Artist
Darla Hood   Primary Artist
Jerry Warren   Primary Artist
The Centuries   Primary Artist
Bailey's Nervous Kats   Primary Artist
Jimmy McGriff   Primary Artist
Chayns   Primary Artist
The Gems   Primary Artist
Carmen   Primary Artist
Robert Drasnin   Primary Artist
Martha Raye   Primary Artist
Hakki Obadia   Primary Artist
The Irrationals   Primary Artist
The Voice of Love   Featured Artist
James Mills with Bailey's Nervous Kats   Featured Artist
Bill Loose & His Orchestra   Featured Artist
Satellite Band   Featured Artist
Nicky Roberts   Featured Artist
Phil Moore   Featured Artist
Phil Moore's Orchestra   Featured Artist

Technical Credits

Bill Loomis   Composer
Don W. Meade   Composer
Dick Baker   Composer
Herb Kliebe   Composer
Bob Smith   Composer
Norman Bailey   Composer
Harry Blasingame, Jr   Composer
Roland L Buck   Composer
Tommy Falcone   Composer
Daniel Shiman   Research
Jerry Swede   Composer
Gene Toney   Composer
Joe Wagner   Composer
Myles Wells   Composer
Ali Najdi   Research
Mary Carver   Composer
Carmen Paterra   Composer
Halle Benjak   Composer
Jim Bachman   Composer
Morrie Duenow   Composer
Michael Graves   Mastering,Audio Restoration
Aki Aleong   Composer
Phil Moody   Composer
Barney Allen   Composer
Eddie Wasil   Composer
Rob Sevier   Producer
Russell Garcia   Composer
Rich Dangel   Composer
Nelson Miller   Composer
Mel Leven   Composer
Eddie Kochak   Composer
Eaton Magoon Jr.   Composer
Felix DeCola   Composer
Vern Acree   Composer
Ross Anderson   Composer
Bobby Paris   Composer
Arnie Derksen   Composer
Betty Moore   Composer
John Greek   Composer
Mark Bretz   Composer
Andre Brummer   Composer
John Farina   Composer
Ben Chlapek   Illustrations,Hand Lettering
Vern Duarte   Composer
Nicky Roberts   Composer
Darla Hood   Composer
Jack Bowman   Composer
James Testa   Composer
James Hughes   Editing
Eden Ahbez   Composer
Jimmy McGriff   Composer
Duke Ellington   Composer
Gene Howard   Cover Image
Ed Cobb   Composer
Santo Farina   Composer
Les Baxter   Composer
Robert Drasnin   Composer
Lincoln Mayorga   Composer
Juan Tizol   Composer
Jim Mills   Composer
Nacio Herb Brown   Composer
Mel Taylor   Composer
Ann Farina   Composer
Cyril Scott   Composer
Arthur Freed   Composer
George Wright   Composer
Ken Shipley   Producer,Research
Hakki Obadia   Composer
Dan Shea   Composer
Jaycee Rockhold   Research
Bill & Jean Bradway   Composer
Pony Sherrell   Composer
Bruce Norman Quintet   Composer
Clyde Derby   Composer
Walter Bolen   Composer
Gene Sikora   Composer
Alfred Newman   Composer
Frank Loesser   Composer
Garth Andrews   Composer
Daryl Bredeson   Composer