Search - Various Artists :: Wild Cool & Swingin: Ultra Lounge 5

Another 5-star collection from the Ultra-Lounge folks!

Brooke Pennington | Pocatello, ID USA | 12/12/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I suppose I will divide this review into two parts, one for the listener who is not familiar with the " Ultra Lounge" series and those (like myself) who wait anxiously for the next release in the series. If you are new to Ultra-Lounge, well, you can dive in about anywhere in the series and get an idea of the Ultra-Lounge outlook on life: life is good, relaxation is essential, and a good mixed drink should never be far away. If this is a philosophy you agree with, and you're tired of all the cookie-cutter pop music and bland jam-band rock, give lounge music a try to perk you up without sounding cliched (or perhaps by sounding so cliched you don't realize you're hearing a cliche!) These Ultra Lounge CDs give you a chance to sample some of lounge's many subgenres without committing to a CD by a sole artist.For those of us who have heard these collections before, this one is familiar territory. Be warned, however, that all tracks on this and "W,C, and S II" are vocal tracks, which may put off some who prefer their lounge music more Martin Denny-style, laid back and instrumental."

Vocals to Get Your Fingers Snappin'!

loungelizard7 | 05/07/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One of the strongest volumes in the series, and a great introduction for the beginning lounge aficionado, this one includes all the '60s Vegas lounge royalty, and it swings right out of the galaxy!Aside from a few tracks like "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone" by a young Sammy Davis, Jr., the sultry "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To" by Julie London, and the uber-classic "Fever" by Peggy Lee, this volume is commandingly owned by Louis Prima, Bobby Darin, and Dean Martin. Prima checks in with mega-hit "Jump Jive an' Wail" (recently played to death when the Brian Setzer Orchestra covered it), but his best entry is the uproarious "Closer to the Bone," a cute song about the singer's love for skinny women. Each verse gets more sidesplitting than the last, and if that last one doesn't have tears of laughter rolling down your cheeks, you probably need to listen more closely! (And makes sure to listen for sax player Sam Butera sampling from Glenn Miller's "Pennsylvania 6-5000" at the start of his solo!)Good ol' Dino is represented here with two of his greatest songs. Everybody loves the soaring "Volare." And the bottom line is, it just doesn't get any better than "Ain't That a Kick in the Head." Dean at his hard-swingin' best and Nelson Riddle's magnificent brassy arrangement made this the perfect tune to kick off the volume.Bobby Darin wins hands down, with THREE entries. "Sunday in New York" is a beautiful song, capturing Darin's laid-back manner better than any other song I've heard. And light, cool, breezy "More" is just one of the greatest songs ever. (I fell in love with it years ago when I heard it on a car commercial.)As of now, I've yet to hear the follow up, Volume 15, but if it's anything like this one, it'll be money well spent!"

Best CD ever made!

Mia Hall | 04/07/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Too bad you can't go more than 5 stars. This is the best selection of music. There are no weak tracks. Each song has great style. If you aren't dancing to it, you are probably singing along. I've purchased other Ultra-Lounge CD's. But so far, this is head and shoulders above the rest."