Ugly Things # 29 — 2010
Posted by admin on January 7, 2010
“Relatively few people today appreciate the talents of the late Jan Berry, a gifted composer, producer, and arranger whose musical vision guided all of Jan & Dean’s 1959-66 recordings . . .
Rather than revisit Jan & Dean’s biggest hits, Parkes and Moore decided to dig deeper into the dynamic duo’s catalog as well as some of Berry’s outside productions . . .
Of particular interest is the inclusion of material Berry was working on in 1967 and 1968 (post-accident) for a projected LP for Warner Bros. to be called Carnival of Sound, including the lovely, sitar-laced pop-psych title track . . .
The bonus tracks include some priceless “Audio Montage” segments sourced from Jan’s personal archive, including hilarious extended studio chatter from sessions by Jan & Arnie (1958) and Jan & Dean (1964), and, best of all, excerpts from one of Berry’s KJAN “broadcasts” . . .
Packaged with copious track-by-track liners and lots of rare photos, Encomium In Memoriam Vol. 1 is a passionate, fan-fueled project of the most dedicated kind, and given the limited budget it is well executed . . .
The producers’ stated goal was to “inspire listeners to re-examine the original recordings” and to “inspire you to dig deeper into Jan & Dean’s eclectic catalog, and Jan Berry’s solo material.” In that case, mission accomplished.”
Ugly Things Magazine — #29
January 2010
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