There’s
a lot of fun to be found listening to The Finer Things, The Songs of Herb Ohta
and Jim Beloff.Ohta, the ‘ukulele virtuoso and Beloff, a songwriter-music
publisher, collaborated on this project to create a new generation of “standards”-songs
in the tradition of Johnny Mercer and Sammy Cahn. The kind of tunes that made
Sinatra famous and that every lounge singer still memorizes. Ohta
wrote the melodies, Beloff the lyrics. “Ohta-san has made 70 albums, but people
might not realize what a tunesmith he is because he has recorded covers of the
standards so often,” says Beloff. “As a melody writer, he grew up in the 1950s
and ’60s and was really influenced by that golden age of pop.” Many talents
add to the mix, including University of Hawai’i music professor and jazz bassist
Bruce Hamada and famed L.A. session man Lyle Ritz. The CD even includes the recording
debut of actor William H. Macy, of Fargo and Seabiscuit fame. “He’s a huge fan
of ‘ukulele music and has a sweet character voice,” says Beloff. Macy brings a
kind of period Irish tenor sound perfectly matched to the whimsy of the song “At
the Magic Laundromat.” Flea Market Music, $16.95. In stores or www.fleamarketmusic.com.
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