Wax of the Week #40...Arthur Lyman: Taboo Vol. 2 (1960)

Another good Lyman exotica record. Eye-catching cover, to say the least.

Wax of the Week #39...Astrud Gilberto: Beach Samba (1967)

Gilberto’s fifth solo album only has three songs I like but they’re all delightful bossa nuggets. “Stay” was written by original New Christy Minstrel Gayle Caldwell (famous for Sinatra’s “Cycles,” which also appears on Caldwell’s 1969 LP for A&M); “Oba Oba” is a Luiz Bonfá tune, while the title track was co-written by Pery Ribeiro.

Wax of the Week #38...Arthur Lyman: Bahia (1959)

Another solid Lyman LP, nuff said.

Wax of the Week #37...Arthur Lyman: Leis of Jazz (1959)

More of a straight easy jazz record than exotica, but still has its moments. Has an earlier catalog number than Taboo, but conventional wisdom says it came later.

Wax of the Week #36...Arthur Lyman: Taboo (1958)

Pound for pound, I reckon Lyman’s discography is at least as good as that of his former boss, Martin Denny. Maybe better. He was actually born of Hawaiian heritage on Kauai, and learned to play on toy marimbas. He was the one who added bird calls to Denny’s groundbreaking exotica hit “Quiet Village” (or was it Augie Colón?). Lyman was still playing weekend gigs in Honolulu right into the ’90s. Taboo was his debut LP.

Wax of the Week #35...Æthenor: Betimes Black Cloudmass (2008)

Meditative atmospheres from a pretty underrated label, VHF (home of Pelt and Sunroof). Features Stephen O’Malley of SunnO))), Daniel O'Sullivan of Guapo, and Kristoffer Rygg of Ulver.

Wax of the Week #34...Armando Trovaioli: Seven Golden Men (1969)

Soundtrack to a 1965 Italian crime/comedy soundtrack. Rome-born Trovaioli (1917–2013) was a prolific composer for his native cinema (THE GIANT OF METROPOLIS, BOCACCIO ’70, and THE LIBERTINE stand out). I haven’t seen this film yet; the only actor I recognize is Gabriele Tinti, a.k.a. Mr. Laura Gemser. This is mostly short cues in the vein of Italian crime jazz.