• Artist: Ted Heath
• Flags: Compilation (best of)
• Type: Compilation
• Styles: British Dance Bands, Swing, Dance Bands
• Track Picks: "Dragnet," "Roo, Roo, Kangaroo," "The Creep"

Review

British bandleader Ted Heath and his orchestra recorded for Decca Records for some 20 years beginning in the late '40s, applying a modernized big band swing approach to anything and everything that the ever-shifting pop music culture could toss up. In the process, Heath and his band became a comfortable institution on both sides of the Atlantic, particularly in the late '50s, when they recorded an astounding number of albums. Typically, Heath would tackle a pop number like the theme to the U.S. television show Dragnet (his version of the theme is included here) and swing it until it seemed there was nothing his outfit couldn't assimilate. This packed set, Decca Singles and Rarities, is the first in a series of releases that chronicle Heath's long association with Decca, and truthfully, it is probably most useful to collectors and archivists, while a more general collection would suffice for most listeners. It's not that Heath was a one-trick pony, but the swing approach to everything under the sun wears thin after awhile, and one starts to wish for something against the grain to pop up on occasion. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	iTunes	Composers	Performers	Time
Rag Mop		Johnnie Lee Wills, Deacon Anderson	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:38)
Saxophone Mambo			Ted Heath & His Music	(2:35)
El Abanico			Ted Heath & His Music	(2:41)
Trumpet Voluntary		Jeremiah Clarke	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:36)
Phantom Regiment	...	Leroy Anderson	Ted Heath & His Music	(3:17)
Plink, Plank, Plonk!	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:41)
Penny Whistle Song	...	Leroy Anderson	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:15)
Dragnet	...	Walter Schumann	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:15)
Sloppy Joe	...	Neal Hefti	Ted Heath & His Music	(3:00)
Seven Eleven	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:33)
Warsaw Concerto	...	Richard Addinsell	Ted Heath & His Music	(3:27)
The Velvet Glove	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:29)
The Creep	...	Andy Burton	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:37)
Slim Jim	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:39)
Skin Deep		Louie Bellson	Ted Heath & His Music	(3:03)
Roo, Roo, Kangaroo	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:42)
Stomp and Whistle	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:36)
Skokiaan	...	Tom Glazer	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:29)
The Touch	...	Marc Lanjean, Jean Wiéner	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:19)
Dig Deep [#]	...	Jimmy Coombes	Ted Heath & His Music	(2:33)
In the Mood for Mambo	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:38)
When a Bodgie Meets a Widgie [#]	...		Ted Heath & His Music	(2:57)
Scottish Rhapsody: Intro/The Keel Row/Comin' Thro' the Rye/Loch Lomond	...	Traditional	Ted Heath & His Music	(3:07)
Irish Fantasy: Intro/Irish Washerwoman/The Minstrel Boy	...	Traditional	Ted Heath & His Music	(3:15)

Credits

Ted Heath (Director), Jack Bentley (Trombone), Duncan Campbell (Trumpet), Jimmy Coombes (Trombone), Michael J. Dutton (Remastering), Les Gilbert (Sax (Alto)), Frank Horrox (Piano), Henry MacKenzie (Clarinet), Henry MacKenzie (Sax (Tenor)), Bobby Pratt (Trumpet), Bobby Pratt (Soloist), Maurice Pratt (Trombone), Stanley Roderick (Trumpet), Ronnie Verrell (Drums), Ronnie Verrell (Soloist), Tommy Whittle (Sax (Tenor)), Samuel Stokes (Bass), Ivor Mairants (Guitar), Jack Parnell (Drums), Tony Middleton (Liner Notes), Rex Owen (Arranger), Rex Owen (Sax (Alto)), Dave Shand (Sax (Baritone)), Jackie Armstrong (Trombone), Kenny Baker (Trumpet), Kenny Baker (Soloist), Leslie "Les" Gilbert (Sax (Alto)), Leslie "Les" Gilbert (Soloist)