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Johnny Mercer & The Pied Pipers - Dream Team
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Johnny Mercer & The Pied Pipers - Dream Team

Facts

Dream Team
Music Price: $15.98
As of Nov 19 12:07 EST (details)

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Artist(s)Johnny Mercer & The Pied Pipers
StudioSepia Recordings
Release DateJune 13, 2005
Buy this item$15.98 at Amazon.com
As of Nov 19 12:07 EST (details)
1 Audio CD, Usually ships in 10 to 13 days, Original recording remastered
 

Tracks

  1. Dixieland Band - Johnny Mercer, Hanighen
  2. Duration Blues - Johnny Mercer, Mercer
  3. Sam's Got Him - Johnny Mercer, Kahn
  4. St. Louis Blues - Johnny Mercer, Handy, W.C.
  5. Memphis Blues - Johnny Mercer, Handy
  6. Embraceable You - Johnny Mercer, Gershwin
  7. If I Knew Then - Johnny Mercer, Jurgens
  8. I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan - Johnny Mercer, Dietz
  9. Ugly Chile (You're Some Pretty Doll) - Johnny Mercer, Williams
  10. Movie Tonight - Johnny Mercer, Gannoway
  11. I Do Do Do Like You - Johnny Mercer, Wrubel
  12. It's the Same Old Dream - Johnny Mercer, Cahn, Sammy
  13. The Riddle Song - Johnny Mercer, Hopper
  14. I Wanna Be a Friend of Yours - Johnny Mercer,
  15. Louisville You (That Vampin' Lady) - Johnny Mercer, Ager
  16. Love That Boy - Johnny Mercer, Raye
  17. I'll See You in My Dreams - Johnny Mercer, Jones, Isham
  18. Goodbye Romance - Johnny Mercer, Elliott
  19. The Hills of California - Johnny Mercer, Hayward
  20. Let's Fly - Johnny Mercer, Ball
  21. Yes, We Have No Bananas - Johnny Mercer, Silver
  22. I've Been Floating Down the Old Green River - Johnny Mercer, Cooper, Joe
  23. At the Jazz Band Ball - Johnny Mercer, LaRocca
  24. You Are My Love - Johnny Mercer, Lehman
  25. I Had a Little Too Much to Dream Last Night - Johnny Mercer, Tepper
  26. You Say You're Sorry - Johnny Mercer, Stuart
  27. Too Little Time - Johnny Mercer, Raye
  28. Gee - Johnny Mercer, Watkins

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Dreams from the Sunny Side of the StreetCapitol Collectors SeriesMy Huckleberry Friend: Johnny Mercer Sings the Songs of Johnny MercerDream with the Pied PipersTwo of a Kind

 

User Reviews

Average user review: 4.0 (2 reviews)

rating: 4 QuoteA good collection but a painful mistep or two along the way...3 and 1/2 starsQuote
Johnny Mercer and The Pied Pipers put out some great songs between 1943 and 1954 and this CD is an solid compilation of those songs. The transfer from the original 78 acetates to the digital format was very well done with minimal noise at the very most. The songs in general are entertaining and have a good rhythm to them. I particularly liked "St. Louis Blues" and "Embraceable You." The Pied Pipers, made up for June Hutton and three men, harmonize so well that they really were a treat to listen to!

There are liner notes by Tony Middleton, too. Tony provides us with a nice two page essay about Johnny Mercer and the group calling themselves The Pied Pipers. There are a couple of great black and white photos of Johnny Mercer and additional liner notes tell exactly when and where each song was recorded.

Now for the other side of the coin. If you're sensitive to certain racial issues, proceed with caution. I was offended in particular by some of the lyrics to the song entitled "Louisville Lou." These lyrics describe a typical African-American person as not knowing the definition of the word "encyclopedia" and they call one young man who is almost ready for college a "boy." I did not like that at all and for that alone I have to take off 1 and 1/2 stars. Yes, I know, at the time these songs were written these lyrics were considered "OK;" but these days we know better and I just didn't like it. Moreover, another song called "Ugly Chile" has more lyrics that are disdainful toward African-Americans. Not good.

However, to be fair, there are other songs on the CD that inject some harmless humor into the song set. I liked the dating game played out in the song called "Goodbye Romance" and the updated version of the 1920's song called "Yes, We Have No Bananas." There is a bittersweet and sarcastic type of humor in "Duration Blues" which is a song about life in America during World War Two.

In all, Johnny Mercer and The Pied Pipers display true talent and this CD is a very good collection of their work. You get a whopping 28 songs on a single CD which makes it a good value, too. However, for some people some of the lyrics will be unpleasant and so I add that as a cautionary note.

This CD would be of interest not just to fans of Johnny Mercer and/or The Pied Pipers but to fans of pop vocals from the 1940's and 1950's as well.
May 1, 2006

rating: 4 QuoteSeveral gems, much commonQuote
The album has three of my favorite performers, Johnny Mercer, The
Pied Pipers and June Hutton. 40% of the songs were worth having, a few were nowhere. I am glad I bought it and was pleasantly surprised by
THE HILLS OF CALIFORNIA, August 28, 2005

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