Gordon Jenkins and His Orchestra • Soul of A People [1961] Time Records Series 2000 S/2050

 

If music is the universal language, there is no better proof of this than the music of the Jewish people.  Unlike most so-called national music, Jewish music is not confined to any one place, or for that matter, to any one people.  It is beloved throughout the world, its popularity crosses borders, frontiers, "curtains" of all possible political descriptions with more ease than a jet.

Gordon Jenkins and His Orchestra • In The Still of The Night [1954] Decca Records DL 8077

 

Gordon Jenkins Complete Manhattan Tower [1956] Capitol Records T766

 

The original suite of this musical narrative which served as a love story between the narrator Steven and Julie, and the parallel romance between Steven and Manhattan (comprised of "The Magical City," "The Party," "New York's My Home," and "Love In A Tower") was first released in 1946 on two 78 rpm platters where it slowly gained momentum and became a best seller. By 1956, with “microgroove” and “high fidelity” the buzzwords of the day, Manhattan Tower seemed a natural choice for an overhaul and re-recording on an LP. This new recording was expanded with the addition of side trips to a bar, a dance floor, Central Park and Greenwich Village. The glories of the expanded suite are apparent at first hearing, and could easily be appreciated by anyone who has journeyed to New York, and anyone who's ever been in love - or wants to be.

Gordon Jenkins Conducts "26 Years of Academy Award Winning Songs" [1960]

CG Records CGS 3002

On this ambitious effort, conductor/arranger Gordon Jenkins manages to squeeze all of the Oscar-winning songs dating back to the first, 1934's "The Continental" from The Gay Divorcee, and up to 1959's "High Hopes" from A Hole in the Head, on one LP. To do so, not surprisingly, he abbreviates them, providing versions that run only a minute or two each. But even at medley length, his arrangements quickly bring out the salient characteristics of each tune. Some are lively and playful, such as "Zip a Dee Doo Dah" from 1947's Song of the South and "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" from 1951's Here Comes the Groom, and are handled with a zesty swing. Others are powerful ballads, their melodies emphasized with strings, such as "Over the Rainbow" from 1939's The Wizard of Oz. On occasion, such as with "White Christmas" from 1942's Holiday Inn and "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing" from the 1955 film of the same name, a vocal chorus emphasizes the song's memorable lyrics. Jenkins does not convince listeners that these are the best movie songs of their years, a highly debatable issue, but he does demonstrate that they always have something to recommend them.