LPCDreissues: Looking forward to the past

"The Fruit Of Dreams" is a fantastic combination of Les Baxter's rarest, best and most pure exotica albums "Ports Of Pleasure" and "The Sacred Idol", both of these records are rightly internationally acclaimed as masterpieces, remarkably this is their first release anywhere on CD. Les Baxter was the founding father of exotica, a variation of easy listening that documented the sounds and styles of the South seas, India and South America. Exotica became a massively popular trend from the early fifties and with the onset of international jet travel, making it possible for middle-class Americans to simulate an authentic travelogue experience in the comfort of their suburban homes. The music of Les Baxter is never sad or gloomy-it is full of the adventure of life, the sounds of exotic lands and the free spirit of life close to nature. Because of the wild inventiveness of his music Les Baxter is a hero to contemporary independent artists as diverse as Jello Biafra and Beck. Les Baxter has scored many movies and he also scored music for theme parks and seaworlds. In the nineties Baxter was widely celebrated, alongside Martin Denny (for whom he had written the 1959 top ten hit "Quiet Village") and Arthur Lyman Group, as one of the progenitors of exotica
Track listing: Tahiti: A Summer Night at Sea Hong Kong Cable Car The Pearls of Ceylon Bangkok Cock Fight The Gates of Annam Shanghai Rickshaw Harem Silks from Bombay Sidewalk Cafes of Saigon Tramp Steamer to Singapore Spice Islands Sea Birds City of Veils Monkey Dance of Bali Procession of the Princes The Feathered Serpent Fruit of Dreams Pool of Love Aquaducts The Games Conquistadores Gardens of the Moon Temple of Gold Pyramid of the Sun The High Priest of the Aztecs Acapulco