Enoch Jasper

Stereo sound innovator and early godfather of the lounge music revolution, Enoch Light's Persuasive Percussion albums set the tone for an entire era of sophisticated partying, and also employed recording techniques that were groundbreaking in their time and would still sound fresh decades later. Following the success of those albums came volume upon volume of the Provocative Percussion spin-off series, and Provocative Percussion Vols. 3 & 4 collects 24 loungy instrumental tracks somewhere between the big-band sound and the increasingly groovy living stereo sound that Light pioneered, including takes on standard hits like "The Look of Love" and "On the Street Where You Live."

This collection merges two of groovy easy listening pioneer Enoch Light's 1961 albums, the show tunes-centric Stereo 35MM and Far Away Places, a foray into the beginnings of exotica. Coming off of the enormous success of his Persuasive Percussion album series, Light's orchestra utilizes stereo field recording techniques that were pretty mind-blowing for the early '60s on both albums. Stereo 35MM is the stronger half of the collection, offering fully orchestrated instrumental versions of schmaltzy movie songs like "My Romance" and "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart" recorded at Carnegie Hall. Far Away Places tends more toward the tiki torch environments of Martin Denny's Quiet Village-era exotica with less interesting results, marinated in vaguely Hawaiian influences with plenty of harpsichord and beatniky bongos.

Here is another winning combination of two best-selling easy listening albums from music conductor Enoch Light, who produced a long string of hit stereo percussion albums in the 1960s. Stereo 35 MM Volume 2 was a Top Ten album in 1962 and with the coupling of "Far Away Places" Volume 2, are both on CD for the first time and re-mastered in glorious stereo.

Enoch Light (1905-1978) has long been recognized as one of the great innovators and musical masters in the use of Latin rhythms. With this adventurous spirit, Light was one of the first to explore the American potential of Latin rhythms. When the cha-cha came along, he had the background and the imagination to know how to give it the typically American presentation that was required to take it beyond the stiff, static treatment it was receiving at the time. Enoch Lights bossa nova treatment builds new fires in these familiar American tunes. At the same time, he gives the Brazilian pieces a volatile power that had never been exploited so imaginatively until this master, with the rhythm of his pulsating big band, brought his exciting, magic touch to them.

Innovative record producer and orchestra leader Enoch Light produced a string of hit stereo percussion albums including Persuasive Percussion, Provocative Percussion and Stereo 35/MM, all of which reached the Top 3 in the US best-selling albums chart. Big Bold and Brassy (1960) & Vibrations (1962) follow the series of thrilling albums that cover the whole spectrum of percussive sound resulting in a kaleidoscope of rich contrasts that gives the tunes here a new sheen of excitement.
Personnel in the Light Brigade include Doc Severinsen on trumpet and Tony Mottola on guitar, solo stars in their own right. First time on CD and re-mastered in glorious Stereo.

Enoch Light has become synonymous with the space-age bachelor pad scene of the mid- to late-'50s, owing heavily to long players such as this. However, the reality is that the former Light Brigade leader produced and directed Terry Snyder's loose aggregate of instrumentalists known as the Command All-Stars. What sets the numerous volumes of Provocative Percussion (1958) and Persuasive Percussion (1959) – as well as countless spin-offs – apart from the plethora of other easy listening combos was Light's innovative use of technology…