Search - Spike Jones :: Spike Jones in Hi-Fi (Spike Jones in Stereo)

Spike Jones
Spike Jones in Hi-Fi (Spike Jones in Stereo)
Genres: Jazz, Special Interest, Pop

Track Listings (13) - Disc #1
1. I Only Have Eyes For You
2. Poisen To Poisen
3. Teenage Brain Surgeon
4. (All Of A Sudden) My Heart Sings
5. Everything Happens To Me (Lament By Frankenstein)
6. The Fiendager
7. Cocoanut Grave
8. Monster Movie Ball
9. Tammy
10. My Old Flame
11. This Is Your Death
12. Two Heads Are Better Than One
13. Funeral Death March

CD Details

All Artists: Spike Jones
Title: Spike Jones in Hi-Fi (Spike Jones in Stereo)
Members Wishing: 2
Total Copies: 0
Label: Collector's Choice
Release Date: 3/9/2004
Genres: Jazz, Special Interest, Pop
Styles: Swing Jazz, Comedy & Spoken Word
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPCs: 617742041026, 081227856663

Synopsis

Album Description

Spike went for straight comedy on his 1959 album for the then-fledgling Warner Brothers label, but the results were anything but straight; subtitled "A Spooktacular in Screaming Sound," this affectionately lampooned the "Creature Feature" phenomenon that was then sweeping the nation, with longtime partners in musical crime Paul Frees, Loulie Jean Norman and George Rock the sickly sidemen. The album opener, 'I Only Have Eyes for You', invites us to "Shroud Nine" with our hosts Dracula (Frees) and Vampira (Norman), and then Frees (one of the all-time great voiceover artists) does double-duty as Alfred Hitchcock and Edward R. Murrow on 'Poisen to Poisen'. Thurl Ravenscroft?the voice of Tony the Tiger?is featured on 'Teenage Brain Surgeon', while Drac and Vampira return for ('All of a Sudden) My Heart Sings' and Frees does a masterful Boris Karloff impression on 'Everything Happens to Me (Lament by Frankentstein)'. "The Fiendager" (Ken Stevens to his friends) winds up Side One by inviting us to the "Cocoanut Grave" to see the 'Monster Movie Ball', setting up Side Two?s massacre of 'Tammy' and 'My Old Flame. This Is Your Death' parodies the old show 'This Is Your Life', while 'Two Heads Are Better Than One' features a two-headed beatnik?in stereo (hence the title). The entire cast troops by the mike for the glorious 'Funeral Death March', fittingly capping off the album. One of Spike?s last recordings, and definitely the product of a diseased mind?our kind of 'Collectors? Choice Music' exclusive!

CD Reviews

A Spooktacular Classic from my childhood FINALLY on CD!

Steve Stalzle | Denver, Colorado, USA | 12/04/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Ok, this is a silly Spike Jones album, but still a sentimental old favorite for me. My sister and I used to play this 1959 album to death in the 1970's, and we eventually wore it out.I did find a new LP copy in the 80's.It has a lot of 'spooky' stuff that we used to love.Yeah, The songs are goofy, but the writers came up with some creative stuff like my favorite 'I Was A Teenage Brain Surgeon', voiced by the GREAT Thurl Ravenscroft ('You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch', Tony The Tiger,etc.)Voice Over King Paul Frees is featured in a number of character roles and this album really showcases his ability to play multiple characters simultaneously, like when he is parodying Edward R. Murrow on 'Poisen To Poisen' and interviewing 'Alfred', a great send-up of Hitchcock. 'Monster Movie Ball' is another great song.I agree that the comedy is uneven in spots, but overall it holds up as typical Spike Jones material. They took full advantage of the 'new' technology of 'Stereophonic Sound' on this LP. It's kind of neat to hear what a big deal 'STEREO' was in 1959.If Spike could have only lived until the digital era!Spike Jones always used the best studio musicians/composers/arrangers in the business, and it shows!Thanks to Collectors Music for resurrecting this old favorite from the graveyard of musical history! I thought it'd NEVER see the light of day on CD!Groovy, Man!"

The Official Soundtrack of Halloween

J. Sol | oaktown | 08/25/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I initially heard this album as a small child. My father had a copy of the LP (not for retail sale for demonstration purposes only!) that he played for us, and transferred to tape. Every year the tape came out around October, to be played alternately with Bobby "Boris" pickett's "Monster Mash" album, A mix-tape of Halloween appropriate classical music (Dance Macabre, Symphonie Fantastique, etcetera) and Elvira's Haunted Hits (Screamin' Jay Hawkins anyone?).

In my inner Autumnal landscape, only the classical mix-tape can compete with Spike Jones Spooktacular. The variety of the characters, subject matter, and the quality of the band make this a quintessential element in the alchemy that evokes the spirit of Halloween."