Here's a tribute to the arranger-conductor Neal Hefti, who died last month. Hefti was best known for his charts for the Basie band and for his TV and movie work, perhaps the most notorious being the Batman theme from TV.
This 10-inch record from circa 1953 is like none of those pieces. Instead, it is in a semi-easy listening mode that Hefti also adopted for several albums in the 1950s. In these, he used wordless vocals as an instrumental choir, a little like Ray Conniff or even Esquivel. Here, he applies the concept to the operetta tunes of Rudolf Friml. The result is not as cloying as you might think - and I am someone who lunges for the off switch when they start with the "doo-doo-doody-doo-doo" business.
On the bright side, the sound is good and the record is rare.
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