Just like surfers are always looking for the perfect wave, bloggers are always looking for the perfect rip. This happens to be my friend flyingfinger's favorite Abbe Lane LP, and in search of the finest sound he previously has run through the mono CD edition (mono? odd, that) and his own refurbishment of a mp3 version from somewhere in the vast internet. Maybe this will be his perfect wave - or rip.
Instead of the vast internet, this particular version comes from my vast basement, and is sourced from a near-mint first edition of the Living Stereo LP. I ripped it at 24/96 and from that prepared this 16/44 FLAC edition. There are good sounds here, with just a few thumps to remind you of its vinyl source and that even RCA Victor in its heyday didn't produce perfect pressings.
At the time of this recording, Lane was married to (and the vocalist for) Spanish bandleader Xavier Cugat. Not that Lane was Hispanic - she actually was a Jewish girl from Brooklyn. They were quite a fine act until they split in 1964. Cugie went on to Charo - and all I've got to say about that is coochie-coochie. Abbe and Charo are still around, but Cugie and his chihuahua are long gone.
These are all teasing or rueful songs about men - with the exception of Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep, where Cugie makes an incognito appearance in a dreadful novelty item.
The recording is an excellent example of what RCA was achieving in Webster Hall in the early stereo era. It is a multimiked affair, but is beautifully balanced by engineer Bob Simpson and truthful. I'd say it is one of the best recordings they produced - but honestly, there are dozens and dozens more that are just as good. Then and now, the Living Stereo banner was and is a sign of very high fidelity. The arrangements are by Sid Ramin, a graduate of the Esquivel school of odd sonic effects. The results are well suited to Abbe's light-hearted singing.
