Arthur Lyman

This two-fer CD -- which is part of Collectors' Choice Music's overhaul of Arthur Lyman's HiFi Records catalog -- contains both the On Broadway (1959) and Colorful Percussions of Arthur Lyman (1962) long-players. The former boasts four extended medleys that offer a nod to the Great White Way. The latter is a comparatively typical gathering of the type of tiki-inspired exotica that Lyman and company had become renowned for. Speaking of, Lyman (vibes/marimba/guitar) can be heard along with his usual support crew of Alan Soares (piano/celeste), John Kramer (bass/bamboo flute), and Harold Chang (percussion). Using memorable Broadway melodies, On Broadway presents multi-song suites culled from +The King and I, +My Fair Lady, +Porgy and Bess, and +South Pacific. The whole endeavor is thoroughly enjoyably and standouts include classy interpretations of "Getting to Know You," "I Could Have Danced All Night," "Summertime," and the instinctively catchy "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair." The Colorful Percussions of Arthur Lyman is a fairly generic name for a collection as it could apply to practically any one of his albums. Continuing with show tunes, the silver screen epic "Exodus" is given a suitably regal rendering. On the opposite side of the spectrum is the nugget "I Talk to the Trees" -- lifted from Frederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner's Paint Your Wagon. The traditional "Carabunta,""Geisha Waltz," and "Tangi Tika" are pure tropical magic. While tethering Lyman and group back to the mainland are their fairly straightforward version of Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers' righteously be-bop informed "Moanin'" and the Academy Award Winning title song from the movie Never on Sunday (1960). ~ Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide