1. Just A Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody
2. (Nothing's Too Good) For My Baby
3. The Lip
4. Body And Soul
5. Oh Marie
6. Basin Street Blues/When It's Sleepy Time Down South
7. Jump, Jive An' Wail
8. Buona Sera
9. Night Train
10. I'll Be Glad When You're Dead You Rascal You
Finally, the first of what will hopefully be a long line of albums with exclamation p
Hey guys! This album I'm reviewing today is one big ol' exuberant bastard. That's pretty much the best way to describe it. It's what happens when you give a Sicilian guy a big pile of Louis Armstrong records. And I wouldn't have it any other way! It was a lot of fun to listen to, especially after that maudlin pile of 19th century murder reports that was my last album. If you're ever at a party with a bunch of old Italian-Americans for some reason, you'd definitely want to put this album on, especially before the party gets gunned down by a rival mobster family.
There's a whole lotta swing classics on this album, beginning with the 'Just A Gigolo' medley, as famously covered by David Lee Roth in one of the most ridiculous music videos of all time (he hams it up so much that I'd advise any practicing Jewish or Muslim readers not to watch it). Louis' version is far better, though. Lots less spandex.
The main thing that defines this album is how truly kitschy it is. It's all swingin', up-tempo jazzy tunes, and Louis is acting perfectly ridiculous throughout. In one song ('The Lip') he gives us a recipe for something called "High Note Grease" that will enable you to be the best trumpet player ever. And it goes on from there. It's hard to hate an album with a song title like 'I'll Be Glad When You're Dead You Rascal You'. However, even with its inherent cheesiness, I still liked it better than Elvis. 7/10
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