Search - Xavier Cugat :: Cocktail Hour: Xavier Cugat

As jazz, this disc is a bit of an anomaly, as Xavier Cugat wasn't considered a jazz musician in the strict sense. His lively rumba- and xylophone-led ensembles do not, however, lack for pep or exoticism. They enhance the martini-tipping vibe of the Cocktail Hour series of budget-priced two-CD sets. When the band gets the full string and chorale thing going, underpinned by lively exotica rhythms on "Misirlou," "Night Must Fall," and particularly "Temptation," one can't help but imagine the movie Brazil. It's an escape into the music of nostalgia, when days were perhaps more innocent and evenings more romantic. Some of the music presented here falls dangerously close to camp by today's standards ("Walter Winchell Rumba"), and the material doesn't't quite have enough of a Latin feel to ride the current wave. But if you're out to create the mood of a carefree evening aboard a luxury liner, Xavier Cugat just might be the perfect band leader. --Wally Shoup