How can this album be so good and the follow-up be so, so terrible? -- Garbo

 In the post-war period when swing and jazz were easing out of the room and had not yet been replaced by rock-and-roll, there was a kind of pop music that -- well, it was the kind of music my father's parents liked. I used to think I hated all the music of the early 50s, but over time I've realized it's very sortable. 

Into the "I like it" pile  includes The Four Freshmen, one of those vocal groups, like The Swingle Singers, that you either enjoy or you don't. I really enjoy the album "Four Freshmen and 5 Trombones."  Since it's so easy to pull up the histories of the musicians on Google so I'd rather not do that here. Instead I will share a couple of my favorite tracks.

The first song on the B side of "Four Freshmen and 5 Trombones" is "You Stepped Out of a Dream," and I think it's lovely.

I also love the spritely arrangement of the fun tune "Love Is Just Around the Corner."

 

Those are my favorite tracks, but I find the whole album very listenable and would happily have it play through at home while I was doing stuff.  If you want to try that, you can hear the whole thing on YouTube:

Here's where it all goes wrong. There was a follow-up record. You'll never believe it but the title was "More Four Freshmen and 5 Trombones." And it's awful. Just terrible. It makes me want to -- okay, nothing drastic but it makes me  want to say "Why, why why??" in a whiny voice.

 We start out with "Hello, Dolly" in a style much more Mitch Miller than Louis Armstrong. A few tracks in, not only is "The Girl from Ipanema" ruined with doo-doo-doo's, but the lack of syncopation means the whole bossa nova movement takes a hit.  All the lyrics in "More" are there, but none of the feeling. "A Taste of Honey" went for so much percussion to spice up the vocals that the "more cowbell" SNL skit came to mind. And how could any group of skilled harmony singers mess up "Call Me Irresponsible"? Don't ask me how, but it happened. 

 

 

In order to enjoy my life, I'm going to pretend that the second Four Freshmen / 5 Trombones album never happened. I'll just hang onto the first one.  That's plenty in itself.

Next week:  Not sure yet, but it will be less anguished, I imagine.