Alex Mendham and His Orchestra - Fascinatin' Rhythm

Styles: Big Band
File: MP3@128K/s
Time: 49:33
Size: 47,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:35) 1. Fascinating Rhythm
(2:56) 2. Limehouse Blues
(3:16) 3. The Charleston
(3:14) 4. You're All The World To Me
(3:48) 5. The Mooche
(2:44) 6. Runnin' Wild
(3:02) 7. From Monday On
(2:39) 8. Pop Goes Your Heart
(2:57) 9. Jealousy
(3:04) 10. Better Think Twice
(3:17) 11. I Wouldn't Change You For The World
(3:18) 12. Doin' The New Lowdown
(2:58) 13. There's Nothing Too Good For My Baby
(3:08) 14. Won't You Stay For Tea?
(2:46) 15. When Day Is Done
(2:45) 16. I'll See You In My Dreams

Mesmerised from a young age by the music of a forgotten time, Essex-born musician, singer, and lyricist Alex Mendham made a name for himself, having burst onto the scene by forming his own orchestra at the tender age of just 20 (and refusing to slow down ever since!).

Alex Mendham spent his youth studying the saxophone and meeting the last surviving dance band musicians from the golden era, living links to the past, including the virtuoso Al Gallodoro, a star of 1920s Paul Whiteman fame. He also spent several years as protégé to Bob Wilber, himself a student of Sidney Bechet.

After the initial performances with his Orchestra, Alex soon realised what was needed was an authentic vocalist and frontman. He exchanged the saxophone for a conductor's baton and the rest as they say is history. https://www.alexmendham.com/alex-biography

Fascinatin' Rhythm

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Alex Mendham and His Orchestra - Puttin' On The Ritz

Styles: Big Band
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:39
Size: 96,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:41) 1. Puttin' On The Ritz
(3:27) 2. Midnight, the Stars and You
(2:57) 3. Baby
(3:01) 4. Please
(3:29) 5. Not So Hard, Sam!
(3:16) 6. I Only Have Eyes For You
(2:29) 7. Some Of These Days
(3:13) 8. I Guess I'll Have To Change My Plan
(2:15) 9. Let's Fly Away
(3:50) 10. Never In A Million Years
(2:54) 11. Shake That Thing
(2:48) 12. Heartaches
(4:15) 13. Happy Feet

Quite simply, Puttin' On The Ritz is very special - In their brand new album, Alex Mendham and His Orchestra celebrates the Jazz Age in a roaring tribute to the wonderful music of the 1920s and 30s. With 15 dazzling tracks, this is the ultimate CD soundtrack as we enter a new decade of the twenties! Recorded in stunning 24-bit clarity, the Orchestra displays it's virtuosity across a huge range of material from hot rhumbas to faithful recreations of the gorgeous movie musical sound of the 30s. Join Alex Mendham as he leads his famed 11-piece orchestra in Puttin' On The Ritz, croons well-loved classics and unveils a few hidden gems in an album guaranteed to kick-start your 2020s! https://www.alexmendham.com/product-page/puttin-on-the-ritz-new-album

Quite simply, Puttin' On The Ritz is very special. In their brand new album, Alex Mendham and His Orchestra celebrates the Jazz Age in a roaring tribute to the wonderful music of the 1920s and 30s. With 15 dazzling tracks, this is the ultimate CD soundtrack as we enter a new decade of the twenties! Recorded in stunning 24-bit clarity, the Orchestra displays it's virtuosity across a huge range of material from hot rhumbas to faithful recreations of the gorgeous movie musical sound of the 30s. Join Alex Mendham as he leads his famed 11-piece orchestra in Puttin' On The Ritz, croons well-loved classics and unveils a few hidden gems in an album guaranteed to kick-start your 2020s! Opiniones Editoriales https://www.amazon.com/Puttin-Ritz-Alex-Mendham-Orchestra/dp/B08J5CSYT8

Puttin' On The Ritz

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Alex Mendham and His Orchestra - On With the Show

Styles: Big Band
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:48
Size: 99,0 MB
Art: Front

(2:50) 1. Shall We Dance
(2:25) 2. Let Yourself Go
(3:44) 3. Cheek to Cheek
(2:44) 4. Night and Day
(2:30) 5. Caravan
(2:58) 6. I'm No Angel
(2:32) 7. Jeepers Creepers
(3:20) 8. What Is This Thing Called Love?
(2:54) 9. Anything Goes
(2:54) 10. Nobody Cares If I'm Blue
(3:06) 11. Broken Record
(2:23) 12. Hot Lips
(2:39) 13. The Way You Look Tonight
(3:09) 14. Blue Moments
(2:33) 15. Prelude in C# Minor

Mesmerised from a young age by the music of a forgotten time, Essex-born musician, singer, and lyricist Alex Mendham made a name for himself, having burst onto the scene by forming his own orchestra at the tender age of just 20 (and refusing to slow down ever since!). Alex Mendham spent his youth studying the saxophone and meeting the last surviving dance band musicians from the golden era, living links to the past, including the virtuoso Al Gallodoro, a star of 1920s Paul Whiteman fame. He also spent several years as protégé to Bob Wilber, himself a student of Sidney Bechet. After the initial performances with his Orchestra, Alex soon realised what was needed was an authentic vocalist and frontman. He exchanged the saxophone for a conductor's baton and the rest as they say is history.

Alex Mendham and His Orchestra was founded by the debonair, white-tie-and-tails wearing bandleader, to sweep audiences away with the high style and musical glory of the 20’s and 30’s. He and his Orchestra have turned the music of a golden age into a worldwide concert touring show. Initially, Alex Mendham pitched his wild idea to the owners of London's Savoy Hotel, and the Orchestra embarked a long-standing residency in the hotel's hallowed ballroom. Request performances soon followed at many iconic venues around the capital, including the world-famous Ritz Hotel. This vital early period allowed the Orchestra to hone it’s signature style and sound, playing together each night. Soon, the allure of taking their music to the world-stage became too great for Alex and His Orchestra to resist. Beginning with the now legendary sell out show at the Kursaal Concert Hall in Belgium, Alex Mendham has taken his orchestra to new heights internationally performing everywhere from the lush art-deco Cicada Club of Downtown L.A to open-air concerts in the gothic palaces of Russia, via grand scale events upon the romantic canals of Venice. Outside of their live performances, the Orchestra is a mainstay of BBC Radio, and has lent it's talents to productions for film and television. https://www.alexmendham.com/biography

On With the Show

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Alex Mendham and His Orchestra - Whistling in the Dark

Styles: Vocal, Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:54
Size: 156,1 MB
Art: Front

(2:56) 1. Choo Choo
(2:29) 2. Let's Fly Away
(4:35) 3. Home
(2:40) 4. Red Lips, Kiss My Blues Away
(3:17) 5. Treat Me Like a Baby
(3:23) 6. Tain't No Sin (To Dance Around in Your Bones)
(2:41) 7. Bend Down, Sister
(4:42) 8. Lullaby of the Leaves
(2:44) 9. Roll On, Mississippi, Roll On
(2:53) 10. Keep Your Undershirt On
(2:28) 11. South American Joe
(4:03) 12. Our Big Love Scene
(1:58) 13. Going Hollywood
(2:50) 14. Little Girl
(3:19) 15. I'll Never Have to Dream Again
(2:22) 16. I Heard
(4:14) 17. Weep No More My Baby
(3:37) 18. Love Thy Neighbor
(2:35) 19. Bugle Call Rag
(5:59) 20. Whistling in the Dark

Can a recreation of an original replicate it? The short, quick answer is NO!, especially for popular and improvised music. However, the longer, more thoughtful, answer is YES!, especially this music from the twenties and thirties as performed by leader Alex Mendham and his Orchestra. Whistling In The Dark is that rare creation where everyone involved has taken extraordinary measures, from recording techniques used, to the use of original arrangements to bring to the listener something approaching the feeling of being in a dance hall in 1929 (or so). Yes, there are issues: the performers and the music in some sense cannot be separated from the time. Jazz, hot or not, was in extraordinary ferment in the years of 1920 through 1940. One can hear it change almost month to month, as players were experimenting, listening to each other and gaining experience in improvising, while at the same time entertaining the paying audience. The usual lens through which this music is discovered is CD reissues of 78 rpm, three-minute-per-side recordings, and, to tell the truth, part of the charm is to hear the music through the pops and crackle and the primitive acoustical (and early electrical) recording techniques. There was no post-processing either the performance was accepted or rejected (and to possibly try again). What you hear is what happened then and there, with any chances taken exposed for everyone to hear.

It is in this feeling that Mendham and his Orchestra (NOT a band!) shine. The use of but two microphones in a live space allow each note to come alive with a thrust and forward momentum that carries their energy directly to the soul. Every player obviously loves this music and has gotten inside of it, to the extent that anyone who didn't live through the period can. The pace of the show is wonderful, using mostly lesser-known tunes, each of which has its own charms, as do the interspersed announcements. Two achingly beautiful tunes, "Home," and "Lullaby of the Leaves" are standouts and ought to become better known. There are light-hearted tunes like "'Tain't No Sin (To Dance Around in Your Bones)" as well as hot tunes like the driving opener, "Choo Choo," and "Bugle Call Rag." The arrangements give room for improvising here and there, all of which is quite admirable. Get out from in front of your TV, put on your tuxedo, get into your ballroom gown, place Whistling In The Dark in your player, and fox trot around the floor, smiling all the while.~ Budd Kopman https://www.allaboutjazz.com/whistling-in-the-dark-alex-mendham-and-his-orchestra-rivermont-records-review-by-budd-kopman

Personnel: Alex Mendham (leader, vocals, alto saxophone); Angus Moncrieff (trumpet); Geoff Bartholomew (trumpet); Chris Lowe (trombone); Nick Charles (soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, clarinet); Simon Marsh (tenor saxophone, clarinet); Orpheus Papafilippou (violin); Matt Redman (banjo, guitar); Tevor Wensley (piano); Marc Easener (tuba, string bass); Nicholas D. Ball (percussion); Mark Phillimore (Announcer).

Whistling in the Dark

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