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During the era when the 12” long-playing album was becoming an increasingly widespread and popular medium, especially after the introduction of stereo recording as a norm in the late 1950s, record companies were seeking out styles and concepts of easy-listening music specifically designed to take advantage of the burgeoning market. Tommy “Snuff” Garrett was a DJ from Texas, who became a producer at Liberty Records in Los Angeles in 1959 at the age of 21, producing acts like Bobby Vee and Johnny Burnette, and became A&R director after a few years He alighted on an approach that he called “The 50 Guitars Of Tommy Garrett”, with a lesser-used adjunct of “The 25 Pianos Of Tommy Garrett”, and with arranger Ernie Freeman, whose hits included “Jivin’ Around” and “Raunchy”, he created a guitar-based sound using notable west coast session guitarists like Laurindo Almeida, Al Caiola, Barney Kessel and others, including himself, and the series of concept albums carried on through into the 1970s. This 60-track 2-CD set features albums from the beginning of that series, comprising the titles from the albums “50 Guitars Go South of The Border Vols. 1 & 2”, “50 Guitars Visit Hawaii” and “50 Guitars Go Country”, plus the Tommy Garrett album “25 Pianos Play Evergreens Of Broadway”. It was one of those masterstrokes of concept creation, production and marketing, and this collection offers an atmospheric introduction to a highly distinctive brand of easy listening music, which was very much of its era, but remains absolutely timeless.
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