Attack of The Robots (1966)

At first glance, a Smithereens rarities compilation might seem like an odd release. After all, the band was never had more than one gold album and none of their singles cracked the Top 30. That doesn't mean the band didn't have fans, however, nor does it mean that their music was undistinctive, as Attack of the Smithereens proves…

After recording the classic For Django and Catch Me sets for Pacific Jazz, guitarist Joe Pass got stuck recording commercial material for that label's subsidiary World Pacific. This LP finds Pass and a clearly bored Chet Baker (on flügelhorn) performing some of Bob Florence's duller arrangements for an orchestra and distracting background voices. The music consists of then-current and now mostly forgotten pop tunes (Eliot Tiegel in the liner notes raves about how great the songs are) including "It Was a Very Good Year," "What Now My Love," "The Phoenix Love Theme," and the one tune still remembered, "Dindi." Pass has a few worthwhile spots, but is often cut off by the singers or the overly tight charts. A historical curiosity at best.

After recording the classic For Django and Catch Me sets for Pacific Jazz, guitarist Joe Pass got stuck recording commercial material for that label's subsidiary World Pacific. This LP finds Pass and a clearly bored Chet Baker (on flügelhorn) performing some of Bob Florence's duller arrangements for an orchestra and distracting background voices. The music consists of then-current and now mostly forgotten pop tunes (Eliot Tiegel in the liner notes raves about how great the songs are) including "It Was a Very Good Year," "What Now My Love," "The Phoenix Love Theme," and the one tune still remembered, "Dindi." Pass has a few worthwhile spots, but is often cut off by the singers or the overly tight charts. A historical curiosity at best.