All time classic instrumentals plus unreleased tracks
G. Howie | Aberdeen, Scotland | 11/29/1998
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I leapt with joy when I realised that all the Piltdown Men tracks were to feature on a CD issue. Back in the early sixties, I bought what I thought was the entire PM catalogue (on vinyl, of course). Tracks such as Brontosoarus Stomp, Gargantua, Fossil Rock and, for me, the best version ever of Irving Berlin's A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody (great for striptease parties). Also included is the track which was to be the original Gargantua but was shelved and later appeared as Be A Party, the B side of Mad Goose which appeared in Britain on the Pye International label by the Sons of the Piltdown Men. The unissued (in Britain) single of Night Surfing is a bit of a disappointment as it doesn't have the same oomph as the other 'originals' by the classic line up. If the style sounds familiar, the sax is by the guy from the Champs and indeed the other side was a bossa nova version of Tequila. In addition to the Piltdown Men tracks (which I would gladly have paid the price for alone), the CD is filled up with some other instrumentals from Capitol's catalogue making this CD a must for any serious instrumental collector. Congratulations to Mayorga, Adleman and Cobb for creating these timeless masterpieces."
They Must Be Kidding
G. Howie | 08/08/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I rate Ace Records of London right at the top when it comes to oldies compilations, led by their excellent instrumental series Teen Beat and their Golden Age Of American Rock & Roll volumes. They have also released many of the best individual artist CDs you are ever going to find anywhere, from the standpoint of content, sound quality, AND liner notes.
But every now and then they come up with something where, at first glance, your reaction is "you have to be kidding." This one goes beyond that. I mean, we can't seem to find all the hits of groups like The Applejacks [who had three in the late 1950s] and The Four Coins [who had seven from 1956 to 1959], but we do get a 29-track compilation, 15 of which represent an instrumental group who barely made the one-hit wonder club.
Strange. I can only conclude that they were somewhat more successful in the U.K. because here in North America their one lonely hit single, Brontosaurus Stomp, levelled off at a mediocre # 75 Billboard Hot 100 in September 1960 b/w McDonald's Cave. Nothing else worked for the L.A. band that included Lincoln Mayorga (who had more success with his orchestra backing The Four Preps on many of their big hits) and Eddie Cobb who, a year later, would have a # 28 R&B instrumental with Big Mr. C [b/w The Man With The Golden Arm] as The Link-Eddy Combo. Had they included that instead of some of the other obscure selections I might have added 1 star.
Probably the best part of this CD are those tracks covering Ernie Fields who, with his orchestra, covered some of the biggest 1940s hits in the late 1950s/early 1960s, led by Glenn Miller's # 1 In The Mood from 1940 which he took to # 4 in late 1959. Here again, however, it would have rated higher had they also included Chattanooga Choo Choo [# 54 early in 1960] and The Charlston [# 47 in summer 1961]."
Now we 60 yr olds can ride again !!!
Charles M. Stutz | Chattanooga,Tn. | 12/25/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"when the piltdown men originally recorded we had to listen to their wonderful music on a car radio or a tin can recordplayer, and it sounded great !!!! so imagine how good it is now on our modern cd playing equipment. LET ME TELL YOU IT IS GREAT !!!! EVERY TRACK !!! EVEN THE ERNIE FIELDS JAZZ BAND CUTS ARE GOOD, but I usually go back to the beginning several times before I let that part play through..."
Track Listings (29) - Disc #1