EDEN AHBEZ - EDEN'S ISLAND (1960)

One of the goofiest efforts in the goofy exotica genre -- and brother, that's saying something, given the stiff competition.
ARTIST`````EDEN AHBEZ
ALBUM`````EDEN'S ISLAND
GENRE`````EXOTICA, KITSCH, OBSCURO
YEAR````````1960

I'M BACK
First, I want to thank everybody for their kind words of support for this blog of mine. I practically gave it up some months ago but then I checked my downloads which skyrocketed recently and started reading a shitload of positive comments. Obviously, people are diggin' my eclectic taste in everything that ends with .mp3. So -- I am back. Kachoing!

So, here's a great, great (one of the best) goofy odd 60's exotica albums of all times from one of the weirdest and unexplained composers ever. It's kitschy and almost child-like atmosphere, brilliance of arrangement with tasteful yet naive choruses of paradises lost and psychedelic roads of calmness, definitely lock-up the age of relaxed psy music makers into the 60's. It is very strange how far and "romantic" this record sounds. It's like we will never hear something this childish done with such an effort for detail.

WHO'S THE ODDBALL?
Ahbez boasted a resumé as colorful and mysterious as his music. Born Alexander Aberle in Brooklyn in the early 20th century, he changed his name in the 1940s shortly after moving to (where else?) California. A hippie a good 20 years before his time, he cultivated a Christ-like appearance with his shoulder-length hair and beard. He claimed to live on three dollars a week, sleeping outdoors with his family, eating vegetables, fruits, and nuts.

One of the genuinely strange characters of pre-rock American popular music, Eden Ahbez's main claim to fame was as the composer of "Nature Boy." The melodically and lyrically beguiling song was a huge pop hit for Nat King Cole; it would be covered by many other reputable performers, including Frank Sinatra, John Coltrane, Sarah Vaughan, and the Great Society (Grace Slick's pre-Jefferson Airplane band). But Ahbez's modern stature rests on a 1960 album that mixed exotica album and beatnik poetry. It rates as one of the goofiest efforts in the goofy exotica genre -- and brother, that's saying something, given the stiff competition.



ALBUM REVIEW:
Musically, Ahbez' 1960 outing was squarely in line with the exotica fad, utilizing then-unusual combinations of instruments (flutes, bongos, vibes) and sound effects like creaking boats to conjure up the aural equivalent of a tropical breeze. Unlike Martin Denny or Arthur Lyman, Ahbez often added his own spoken poetry, speaking of coves, paradise, and other idyllic subjects. Occasionally he even sang in a thin voice (he's no Nat King Cole). Even those who share Ahbez' yearning for heaven on earth must concede that his recorded effort to invoke these states is, to put it bluntly, sophomoric. Yes, it's good for some snickers from the exotica revival crowd, but that's almost definitely not what he had in mind when he was making this.

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