Poor Poor Louis
10/27/1998
(1 out of 5 stars)
"I don't know who was in charge of Dot Records at the time, but "Wonderland By Night" (one of Prima's biggest hits at Dot in 1961) suffers greatly. Though it has some pretty solos in it, and the music is all well put together, it lacks the luster that Sam Butera and The Witnesses add to Prima's appeal. Why anyone would strip Prima of his main boys in their prime is beyond me, but if you're looking for the usual Prima, don't look here. Unlike Prima's usual stuff, the songs follow exactly to standard written arrangements, with some crooners in the background, but there are no vocals (The title song itself seems awfully simililar to the Bert Kaempfurt recording released around the same time). There are 2 other albums similar to this that Prima also released under the guise of "Louis Prima and his Orchestra" titles "Pretty Music-Prima Style" and "Blue Moon." None of these albums contain the original joy that is Prima's music. Whether you're a collector or not, this album is just plain bad news."