ISN'T THIS A LOVELY DAY  -  ROY CASTLE

YEAR:  1966
LABEL:  Columbia/Capitol/EMI Gold
TRACK LISTING:  Singin' In the Rain,  April Showers,  Pennies From Heaven,  Isn't This A Lovely Day,  Stormy Weather,  Soon It's Going To Rain,  Here's That Rainy Day,  Gentle Rain,  Everytime It Rains,  Where Do You Go,  February Brings the Rain,  Rain Rain (Don't Go Away)
IMPRESSIONS:  Biff Bailey strikes again!  Here we have Roy Castle's concept album; an album of songs about rain.  I just love the cover photo of a vaguely overcast day with Roy gazing wistfully upward and the earth-toned colour scheme of greens and browns.  The original title of the album was "SONGS FOR A RAINY DAY" (which I kinda prefer) and right there you know it's gotta hit a chord with me.  The song stylings are gentle jazz arrangements with Roy singing in a comfortable, breezy, laid-back style that would make Dean Martin proud.  There is even a nice variety of song styles from ballads to big, jazzy belters and swingin' sixties lounge music (and even a couple bossa novas).  This also isn't just some album of fluff; Castle is accompanied by some of the best British jazzmen of the era.  So if it's your day off and the rain is coming down all afternoon, put this album on (if you can FIND it, that is) as you settle down with a hot cup of coffee (or tea) and I guarantee a wonderful way to pass a rainy half hour.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Pennies From Heaven,  Isn't This A Lovely Day,  Stormy Weather,  Soon It's Going To Rain,  Here's That Rainy Day,  Gentle Rain,  Everytime It Rains,  February Brings the Rain,  Rain Rain (Don't Go Away)
FACT SHEET:  I believe ISN'T THIS A LOVELY DAY is Roy Castle's third album.  The album is arranged by Victor Graham and features Gordon Beck on piano, Jeff Clyne on bass, Leon Calvert on flugelhorn, Al Newman on saxophone, Ike Isaacs on guitar and Ray Swinfield on flute.  The album was originally released in 1966 as "SONGS FOR A RAINY DAY". 

CASTLEWISE  -  ROY CASTLE

YEAR:  1961
LABEL:  Philips
TRACK LISTING:  One Two Button Your Shoe,  How High the Moon,  Blue Moon,  Softly As In A Morning Sunrise,  So Would I,  Breezin' Along with the Breeze,  Top Hat White Tie and Tails,  I'm Old Fashioned,  If I Can Help Somebody,  Dancing on the Ceiling,  A Brown Bird Singing,  Happy Ending
IMPRESSIONS:  Roy Castle OBE will always be Biff Bailey to me.  In me youth, my cousin and I dearly loved the Amicus flick "DR. TERROR'S HOUSE OF HORRORS" which featured a bumbling Biff Bailey stealing an "ancient voodoo tune" to use for his next big hit -- against the wishing of the great god Damballah!  In this film, Roy Castle even managed to toot his trumpet along with the Tubby Hayes Quintet; and Roy wasn't faking it -- he was an accomplished jazz trumpet player.  Besides this, Castle had debuted on the silver screen as an assistant to Peter Cushing in "DR. WHO AND THE DALEKS".  So how could I not love a Roy Castle record like this?  All "ring-a-ding-ding" early 60s finger-snapping goodness, CASTLEWISE maintains the light and breezy touch that seems integral to Roy Castle's personality.  Ably accompanied by "THE GOON SHOW" musical director Wally Stott (soon to become Angela Morley) and his Orchestra, Roy Castle gives us a delightful album.  A prime example is the easy swinging he brings to the vocals of "How High the Moon" as well as some friendly/comical band introductions and some respectable scat-singing as well.  Castle was truly multi-talented:  a pleasing singer, accomplished trumpet player, likeable TV host, comedian and actor and, at the end of his life, a public-spirited activist with his anti-smoking cancer fund.  Castle died of lung cancer despite not having been a smoker; he attributed it to all the second-hand smoke he passively absorbed while performing in countless jazz clubs.  Little known over here in the States, Roy Castle was a beloved and respected performer and public figure in the UK who deserves to be better-known here in the US.  Take this post as a small step towards that goal.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  One Two Button Your Show,  How High the Moon,   
GUEST ARTISTS:  Wally Stott & His Orchestra
FACT SHEET:  CASTLEWISE is Roy Castle's first album . . . or his second album . . . the internet is its usual useless self and cannot seem to provide me with an answer.  I know that Castle recorded assorted singles and three albums between the years 1958 and 1969 and this is one of them.  Oddly enough, the internet also tells me that, of the three albums, the only one available on cd is "ISN'T THIS A LOVELY DAY" when in reality THAT cd is almost impossible to get (except at exorbitant prices) while "CASTLEWISE" is easily available from itunes (from whence I gotted it).  Sad because "ISN'T THIS A LOVELY DAY" (retitled for cd from the original 1966 album "SONGS FOR A RAINY DAY") I would kill to get; all the songs are about rain, don'tcha know and I love rain songs.  Be that as it may, that's a lot of stuff NOT about "CASTLEWISE".  But since there seems to be no extraneous info on "CASTLEWISE" on the useless internet (other than what I've already told you) -- well, that's your lot then!