By Richard Ginnell, All Music Guide
| Danke
Schoen Lyrics by Kurt Schwabach and Milt Gabler; Music by Bert Kaempfert |
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Bert Kaempfert By Richard Ginnell, All Music Guide |
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Bert
Kaempfert may only be known to modern audiences, if at all, as the fellow who
first recorded the Beatles in Hamburg, but he ought to be recognized for far
more than just that inadvertent milestone. A winning tunesmith and clever
arranger/conductor, Kaempfert also came up with an original, infectious,
durable, contemporary extension of the swing era in his easy listening albums of
the 1960s. He struck gold when he harnessed the appeal of a lead trumpet melody
line in "Wonderland By Night" (a number one hit in America), then discovered
what a thumping Fender bass allied with swinging brushed drums and rhythm guitar
could do to give an infectious lift to layers of voices, flutes, brass, and
strings. This double-LP set gives you a good deal of the story in one deluxe
package, complete with outrageously hyped-up liner notes and evocative photos of
the recording sessions. Along the way, you'll hear the superb original versions
of several Kaempfert-penned hits made ubiquitous by other artists, such as
"L-O-V-E" (Nat "King" Cole), "Strangers in the Night" and "The World We Knew"
(Frank Sinatra), "Danke Schoen" (Wayne Newton), and "Spanish Eyes" (Al Martino).
Then there are the catchy Kaempfert recordings that you might recognize from
'60s television shows. "A Swingin' Safari," a hit for Billy Vaughn in a copycat
arrangement, served as the opening music for The Match Game, and "That Happy
Feeling" was the theme song for Sandy Becker, the star of a popular New York
City children's show. Circulating throughout several of the tracks is the pithy,
jazzy trumpet of Fred Moch, and the photo of the unidentified session drummer
suggests that he might have been as hip a character as his playing sounds.)
Born
in 1942 in Roanoke, Virginia, Newton began singing professionally at the age of
six, and formed a rockabilly duo with his brother Jerry after the family moved
to Phoenix in the mid-'50s. The pair was featured on a local TV show while still
in their pre-teens, and moved to Las Vegas in the early '60s for a five-year
engagement (recording as well, for both Capitol and George Records). By 1963,
Jerry had dropped out of the act, and Wayne returned to Capitol to begin
recording as a solo act, under the tutelage of Bobby Darin. Newton's first three
singles charted well, led by 1963's Top 20 hit "Danke Schoen" (a staple of
Newton's act for the rest of his life)| Lyrics |
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