KAY WARMER - DANCE TO THE BEATLES (1976)

The German musician Kai Warner was the stage name of Werner Last, born in Bremen, on October 27, 1926 and died on July 9, 1982. He was the brother of conductor James Last and Robert Last (drummer).

Warner took piano lessons from Ernst Weelen and received theoretical instruction from Richard Bulling, a student of Max Reger and Engelbert Humperdinck.

After the war, Werner Last appeared as a trombonist together with his brothers Hans (bassist, later known as James Last) and Robert Last in the music halls of Bremen and in the American clubs in nearby Bremerhaven.

At this time he was discovered by composer and impresario Friedrich Meyer and hired into the newly formed dance orchestra of Radio Bremen. The Last Brothers became known as members of the Last-Becker Ensemble.

Werner Last found his first success as an arranger. After the dissolution of the Bremen dance orchestra in 1948, he played for a while in a 12-piece band, then went to seek his fortune in the USA.

In the US, Warner had to earn a living as a casual worker for several months before being admitted to the New York musicians' union. As a trombonist, he belonged to several renowned big bands. Additionally, he studied music theory at New York University with Schillinger professor Rudolf Schramm.

In 1958, Warner Last returned to Germany and arranged numerous film soundtracks. In 1966 he signed as a producer with Polydor; he discovered and produced Renate Kern.

As Kai Warner, he started his own orchestra, which included many musicians who had played with James Last (such as his brother Robert Last, who had previously played drums on James Last's early sessions).

In 1975, Kai Warner moved from Polydor to Philips. In addition to his LPs such as Pops For Minis, Happy Together, Goldtimer 1 and 2, his name is forever linked to the Go-In series, which later continued at Philips under the name Go-In Party.

Other albums: So In Love, Love Songs, Romantic Songs, Wer recht in Freuden tanzen will, Warner Plays Wagner, Golden Violins, Volkslieder Festival, On The Road To Philadelphia, Swingin' Johann, Salsoul Explosion, A Glass Of Champagne, Dance To The Beatles, Zum Tanz Marsch Marsch, Polka wie noch nie, Oriental Nights, It's Country Time and, of course, the Christmas album Christmas Party.

He also made several recordings with his Kai Warner Singers, a mixed choir made up of six women and six men often accompanied by just a rhythm section, as Ray Conniff often did on his 1970s albums. He died in Hamburg at the age of 55.

Below are the songs that make up the album selection in the post:

01. Can't buy me love:
02. Michelle;
03. Eight days a week;
04. Let it be;
05. Hey Jude;
06. Get back;
07. A hard days night;
08. Yesterday;
09. Lady Madonna;
10. We can work it out;
11. With a little help from my friends;
12. Penny Lane

Links:

KAY WARNER - DANCE TO THE BEATLES

PHILIPS - GERMANY 1976

NANA MOUSKOURI - SINGS THE BEATLES (2023)

Singer, political activist, Greek pacifist and UNICEF goodwill ambassador Nana Mouskouri was born in Chania, Crete Island, Greece, on October 13, 1934.

She was a Greek deputy in the European Parliament from 1994 to 1999, through the “New Democracy” party, the main center-right political party in her country.

Famous and renowned throughout the world, Nana became one of the best-selling singers in the history of music, with more than 350 million copies sold. Her musical genre flirted with different styles, such as: jazz, pop, folk, easy listening, world music and even classics.

Knowledgeable in several languages, she has recorded more than 1500 songs in more than 15 languages, including Greek, French, English, German, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Hebrew, Welsh, Mandarin (Chinese), Japanese, Corsican, Arabic and Turkish.

In a duet with the Brazilian singer and composer Martinho da Vila, Nana recorded the song Canta, canta, minha gente, one of the samba singer's greatest hits, which she had also performed in other languages.

She has worked for the record labels Fontana, Polydor, Mercury, Verve, Philips, Polygram and Universal Music.

In 2018, the year she turned 84, singer Nana released the album “Forever Young”. One of the standout tracks was the original version of Salma ya salama, in Arabic, recorded in honor of friend and Italian singer Dalida (1933-1987), who would have turned 85 years old if she were alive.

In this post, I present a compilation of songs recorded by the Beatles sung by Nana Mouskouri, listed below:

01. Let it be;

02. Yesterday;

03. Eleanor rigby;

04. Imagine;

05. Hey jude;

06. The long and winding road;

07. Till there was you.

 

Links:

NANA MOUSKOURI - SINGS THE BEATLES (Mp3)

POLYDOR / LPM - BRASIL 2023 (Flac)

OS ANOS DE BEATLEMANIA - VOLUMES 1 E 2 - VÁRIOS (1997) REPOST

I believe that Beatles songs are the most covered by other musicians and bands on the planet. Undoubtedly, in the 1960s and 1970s, they played a very important role in influencing the "Jovem Guarda" movement, as well as in Brazilian rock, which would soon emerge, having its peak in the 1980s.

In this post, the rescue is due to the versions and reinterpretations of Beatles songs. At that time Renato Barros was the greatest versionist of Beatles songs. There were also others, such as: Leno (Gileno), Lilian (Lilian Knapp), Paulo César Barros, Lisma Dantas, Antony Middelton, Fernando Adour, Carlos Wallace, Regina Correa, among others.

In 1997, three volumes of compilations of some songs recorded at the time of Jovem Guarda were released in Brazil by the CBS label, now Sony, with the Columbia label. The selection of repertoire and production was made by the great researcher and producer Marcelo Fróes.

Also noteworthy are the beautiful covers illustrated by Frederico Mendes. So we took the opportunity and posted a "2 in 1" disc, containing the songs from volumes 1 and 2, so that friends of the blog can enjoy them.

Below is the list of songs that are part of this series compiled by the CBS label:

Volume 1:

01. Sou tão feliz (Love me do) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;

02. Do you want to know a secret - The Youngsters;

03. Ana (Anna) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;

04. O sol se põe no horizonte (I'll be on to him) - Leno & Lilian;

05. Feche os olhos (All my loving) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;

06. I want to hold your hand - The Youngsters;

07. Escreva logo (Please Mr. Postman) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;

08. A hard day's night - The Youngsters;

09. Menina linda (I should have know better) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;

10. Gente demais (Ticket to ride) - The Youngsters;

11. O que eu posso fazer (Baby's in black) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;

12. Meu bem (Girl) - Madrugada & Seu Conjunto;

Volume 2:

13. Feche os olhos (All my loving) - Lafayette;
14. Sou feliz dançando com você (I'm happy just to dance with you) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;
15. Vem (Help) - The Youngsters;
16. Eu sei (I'll be back) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;
17.  Yesterday - Lafayette;
18. Garota malvada (I call your name) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;
19. Day tripper - Lafayette;
20. Meu primeiro amor (You're going to lose that girl) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;
21. You won't see me - Lafayette;
22. Gosto de você (Tell me what you see) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps;
23. Michelle - Lafayette;
24. Dona do meu coração (Run for your love) - Renato & Seus Blue Caps. 

 

Links:

OS ANOS DE BEATLEMANIA - VOLUME 1 E 2

COLUMBIA / CBS - BRASIL 1997

MARY WELLS - LOVE SONGS TO THE BEATLES (1965)

In this post, I present the tribute to the Beatles released by the singer Mary Wells, in 1965, by 20th Century Fox Records, added by 2 bonuses.

American soul, R&B and pop singer Mary Esther Wells was born on May 13, 1943 and died on July 26, 1992.

She was the first singer to sign a contract with the Motown label, where she recorded her biggest hit, the song My Guy, in 1964. She also recorded a duet with singer Marvin Gaye, with whom she scored the hits Once upon a time and What's the matter with you baby?"

Upon turning 20, Wells decided to break his contract with Motown and signed with 20th Century Fox. In addition to music, there was the promise of a film career. But on the new label she didn't repeat the same success she had on Motown.

Despite relative success with her first three singles on Fox, her album failed commercially and her contract was terminated.

Then, the singer signed with a new label, ATCO, which was a subsidiary of Atlantic Records. Although their first single, Dear Love, peaked at number six on the Billboard R&B chart, subsequent ones flopped.

In 1968, she signed with Jubilee Records, but was again unsuccessful - and so would Reprise afterward.

Her career would be reborn in 1981, when she recorded the album "In And Out Of Love", released by Epic Records. The single Gigolo became a huge hit and reached number two on the Billboard charts.

Sadly, singer Mary Well died in 1992 from laryngeal cancer.

Below, the list of songs that are part of the album "Love Songs To The Beatles", posted here on the blog:

01. He loves you;

02. All my lovin';

03. Please, please me;

04. Do you want to know a secret;

05. Can't buy me love;

06. I should have known better;

07. Help;

08. Eight days a week;

09. And I love him;

10. Ticket to ride;

11. Yesterday;

12. I saw him standing there;

Bônus:

13. Come together;
14. Money 

Links:

MARY WELLS - LOVE SONGS OF THE BEATLES

20th CENTURY FOX RECORDS - USA 1965

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