CD REVIEW – GUILD GLCD 5212 – BRIGHT LIGHTS

If you're a regular purchaser of "The Golden Age of Light Music" CDs, you may already have GLCD 5212 in your collection. However, if not get yourself down to the nearest music shop* and place an order immediately – it’s a good’un !

It begins in fine style with the title track, Bright Lights by Den Berry and Stuart Crombie – writing under the pseudonym Frank Sterling – a  typical showtime number played by the Brussels New concert Orchestra conducted by F.G.Terby.

Next comes an old favourite by Clive Richardson, Beachcomber from the Boosey and Hawkes Library played by The New Concert Orchestra conducted by Jack Leon. 

Other mood music composers on the disc include Len Stevens with Hurly Burly, Cecil Milner's Trysting Place and a cracking piece by Hubert Clifford - writing as Michael Sarsfield -  Main Event, played by the Danish State Radio Orchestra conducted by Robert Farnon. Ronald Hanmer makes an appearance with Pastorale which became a firm favourite in Australia, as the the theme music to a long running radio serial "Blue Hills", whilst the composer who began my interest in mood music and light music in general – Charles Williams – takes centre stage with his majestic opening of Hydro Project, a mixture of industrial, mechanical orchestration and scenic grandeur.

Another favourite composer, but a mystery man to me is Walter Collins conducting The London Promenade Orchestra in his own composition March Heroique from the Paxton Library. I know he was the Musical Director of the De La Warr Pavilion at Bexhill-on-Sea and he wrote a lot of light music and mood music for Paxtons, but that's about as much as I can find out. Ernest Tomlinson, Cyril Watters, Roger Roger, Vivian Ellis, Jack Beaver all make guest appearances as does Frederic Curzon with his Prelude to a Play and King Palmer & Richard Mullan – writing as Peter Kane – with an extremely catchy number Rhythm Of The Clock played by The London Promenade Orchestra, conducted by the aforementioned Walter Collins, with the added attraction of what I call the 'Levy Sound'. To me Levy’s Sound Studios had a unique sound and it seemed to come out particularly well on the majority of Paxton 78's and to a slightly lesser extent on Chappell and Boosey & Hawkes discs.

Anyway that's my story, sit back and enjoy Bright Lights!!

Ken Wilkins

*All Guild CDs may be purchased from Priory Recordings.  For further details click here