Quiet Village
The Exotic Sounds of Martin Denny
Martin Denny's music is becoming so famous it's a little pointless for me to tell you how wonderful it is. If you've already heard it you know, and if you haven't, stop reading this right . . . now put on the record and play it.Now after you've asked, "How long has this been going on . . . how did I miss it . . . has he recorded other stuff as terrific as this" (he sure has) you have become a full fledged member of his fan club. Welcome brother, and continue reading.
When you hit the road to "famesville" as Martin has, there's one big cross you have to bear -- the people who "knew you when." The people who predicted a smash success on the first listen and haunt your life with reminders of how right they were explanations of how you do it, how you thought of it and so on . . . an "I Was There" road company with a cast of thousands. There really was a horde of these Waikiki prophets, and I was one of them. We all talk about Martin at the drop of a hat, so what do you want to know?
Maybe you've wondered what-in-the-world kind of fellow is he to have cooked up these fantastic sounds. Maybe you have in mind a pale, aesthetic type who flutters his hands and uses mystic four-hundred-dollar words to describe what he is doing. Surprise . . . he's a great big husky guy who looks like he could make bow knots out of iron bars He is very shy, completely genuine and, first and foremost, a fine musician who plays piano like crazy.
Like many other great talents, he's not a talker but a doer. Having created a style and form of music that is unique and all his own, the next move was to surround himself with other musicians who "dug" what he was after and could play it.
I've given up trying to figure out how Martin thinks up this fabulous music, and I'm not so sure he knows himself. It sounds and feels the same every time, yet it is always brand new fresh and exciting as if you'd never heard it befure. And one last word from the Waikiki prophets: If you think this is good, hold your hats, there's a lot more to come.
- - John Sturges
- Stranger in Paradise
- Hawaiian War Chant
- Coronation
- Sake Rock
- Paradise Found
- Firecracker
- Martinique
- My Little Grass Shack in Kealakekua, Hawaii Cha Cha Cha
- Tune from Rangoon
- Happy Talk
- Pagan Love Song
- Laura
- Quiet Village
- Martin Denny: Arranger-Composer, Piano, Celeste
August Colon: Bongos, Congas, Bird Calls
Julius Wechter: Vibes, Marimbas, Percussion
Harvey Ragsdale: String Bass, Marimbula
Raymond Alexander: Percussion
Jose Bethancourt: Percussion
John Frigo: String Bass
Producer: Si Waronker
Cover Design: Pate/Francis & Associates
Color Photography: Ivan Nagy
Cover Posed By: Sandy Warner, "The Exotica Girl"
Liberty Records - Album LST 7122