Tony Mottola - Romantic Guitars (box set)

Guitarist Tony Mottola (1918-2004) is best known for his association with producer Enoch Light's Command and Project 3 labels in the 1960s and 70s. Mottola recorded dozens of albums for Light, both under his own name and that of the producer.

He and Al Caiola were the top session guitarists in New York, with Mottola also playing with Doc Severinsen's Tonight Show Orchestra and later in his career recording and touring with Frank Sinatra.

Light was a pioneer in the art of stereo recording and Mottola figured prominently in those groundbreaking sessions. The five-LP box set Romantic Guitars, issued by Longines Symphonette, probably in the early 70s, is a fine collection of Mottola's Command recordings. The recording quality is excellent as well -- very close to that of the original Command albums. Included is the Latin standard Vaya Con Dios, which first appeared on Mottola's 1966 LP Amor Mexico/S.A.

Vaya Con Dios



A number of Tony Mottola's recordings have been available on CD from time to time. Several are still in the active catalogue, although there have been quality complaints about a couple of recent Command reissues. They may have been sourced from vinyl. The best bet is probably a 2002 release, Heart and Soul Guitar, a compilation of Command selections issued by Varese Sarabande. In any case you can peruse what's available at Amazon.

A large selection of Mottola downloads is also available. I suspect the quality varies widely, so listen before buying.

Here, via YouTube, is another selection from the Amor Mexico/S.A. album.

Enoch Light - April in Portugal (track)

There were no less than five hit versions of April in Portugal in 1953, including orchestral recordings by Les Baxter (the most popular), Richard Hayman and Freddy Martin and vocal renditions by Vic Damone and Tony Martin.

The song had begun life in 1947 as a Portuguese song called Coimbra, to which songwriter Jimmy Kennedy later added English lyrics.

Enoch Light recorded April in Portugal for his 1961 Command album Provocative Percussion, Vol. III and again in 1966 for the first release on his Project 3 label, Patterns in Sound, Vol. 1. (For more on Light and his labels Command and Project 3, click HERE and HERE.) Both versions turned up on several Light compilations over the years, with the Project 3 recording included on The Many Moods of Enoch Light, a vinyl box set from the direct mail company Longines Symphonette.

The audio for the track below is sourced from the Longines box.

April in Portugal



Both the Command and Project 3 versions of April in Portugal are available in the U.K. as downloads from iTunes on a compilation called Patterns in Sound. This collection apparently isn't available in North America. However, downloaders in the U.S. and Canada can choose from a wide range of Light's recordings, but not including either version of April in Portugal.

And for those of you who like pretty pictures with your Enoch Light, here's Charlie Barnet's hit Cherokee, taken from Light's 1971 Project 3 LP Big Band Hits of the 30s and 40s.