''Broadway, Bongos and Mr. B'' is a 1961 studio album by the American singer

Billy Eckstine William Clarence Eckstine (July 8, 1914 – March 8, 1993) was an American jazz and pop singer and a bandleader during the swing and bebop eras. He was noted for his rich, almost operatic bass-baritone voice. In 2019, Eckstine was posthumously ...

. It was arranged by

Hal Mooney Hal Mooney, born Harold Mooney (February 4, 1911 – March 23, 1995), was an American composer and arranger. Early life and career Hal Mooney was born in Brooklyn, New York. As a young man, Mooney was a professional pianist. He attended Brookly ...

, and marked Eckstine's return to Roulette Records. The album features

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

tinged arrangements of popular Broadway show tunes, with a percussion section of

xylophone The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in the ...

marimba The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...

s and bongos. In their July 1961 review of ''Broadway, Bongos and Mr. B'', ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine wrote that "This is one of the best albums made by Billy Eckstine in many years", and that he was "singing with confidence again in his own style". The review concluded that it was "A strong new album that could help win back many of Mr. B's fans". This was the third of Eckstine's Mercury Records albums to use the same photograph of him. It had previously graced the covers of ''

Billy's Best! ''Billy's Best!'' is a 1958 studio album by American jazz and blues singer Billy Eckstine. The album was released by Mercury Records, his first for the label. Arranged and conducted by Henry Mancini and Pete Rugolo, the lush, romantic arrangeme ...

'' (1958) and ''

Billy Eckstine's Imagination ''Imagination'' is a 1958 album recorded by Billy Eckstine. It was released under the EmArcy label. Track listing # "It Was So Beautiful" (Arthur Freed, Harry Barris) # " I Got a Right to Sing the Blues" (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler) # "Love ...

'' (1958).

Track listing

# " From This Moment On" (

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

) – 2:19 # "

I Could Write a Book "I Could Write a Book" is a show tune from the 1940 Rodgers and Hart musical '' Pal Joey'', where it was introduced by Gene Kelly and Leila Ernst. It is considered a standard. Critical reception An uncredited critic reviewing "New Plays in Manh ...

" (

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...

Lorenz Hart Lorenz Milton Hart (May 2, 1895 – November 22, 1943) was an American lyricist and half of the Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart. Some of his more famous lyrics include " Blue Moon", " The Lady Is a Tramp", "Manhattan", "Bewitched, Both ...

) – 2:02 # " If Ever I Would Leave You" (

Alan Jay Lerner Alan Jay Lerner (August 31, 1918 – June 14, 1986) was an American lyricist and librettist. In collaboration with Frederick Loewe, and later Burton Lane, he created some of the world's most popular and enduring works of musical theatre bot ...

Frederick Loewe Frederick Loewe (, originally German Friedrich (Fritz) Löwe ; June 10, 1901 – February 14, 1988) was an Austrian-United States, American composer. He collaborated with lyricist Alan Jay Lerner on a series of Broadway musicals, including ''Br ...

) – 2:45 # " I've Got You Under My Skin" (Porter) – 2:52 # "

Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin' "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" is the opening song from the musical ''Oklahoma!'', which premiered on Broadway in 1943. It was written by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The leading male character in ''Oklah ...

" (Rodgers,

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years. He won eight Ton ...

) – 3:02 # "

Tonight Tonight may refer to: Television * ''Tonight'' (1957 TV programme), a 1957–1965 British current events television programme hosted by Cliff Michelmore that was broadcast on BBC * ''Tonight'' (1975 TV programme), a 1975–1979 British current ...

" (

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

) – 2:42 # " Stranger In Paradise" ( Robert Wright,

George Forrest George Forrest may refer to: *G. Topham Forrest (George Topham Forrest, 1872–1945), principal architect for the London County Council *George Forrest (author) (1915–1999), American author and musician *George Forrest (botanist) (1873–1932), S ...

Alexander Borodin Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin ( rus, link=no, Александр Порфирьевич Бородин, Aleksandr Porfir’yevich Borodin , p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr pɐrˈfʲi rʲjɪvʲɪtɕ bərɐˈdʲin, a=RU-Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin.ogg, ...

) – 2:20 # "

Get Out of Town "Get Out of Town" is a 1938 popular song written by Cole Porter, for his musical ''Leave It to Me!'', where it was introduced by Tamara Drasin. Notable recordings *Ginny Simms - recorded December 7, 1938 for Vocalion Records (catalog No. 4549). ...

" (Porter) – 2:12 # "

Old Devil Moon "Old Devil Moon" is a popular song composed by Burton Lane, with lyrics by Yip Harburg for the 1947 musical '' Finian's Rainbow''. It was introduced by Ella Logan and Donald Richards in the Broadway show. The song takes its title from a phrase in ...

" (

Burton Lane Burton Lane ( Levy; February 2, 1912 – January 5, 1997) was an American composer and lyricist primarily known for his theatre and film scores. His most popular and successful works include '' Finian's Rainbow'' in 1947 and ''On a Clear Day You ...

E.Y. Harburg Edgar Yipsel Harburg (born Isidore Hochberg; April 8, 1896 – March 5, 1981) was an American popular song lyricist and librettist who worked with many well-known composers. He wrote the lyrics to the standards "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" ( ...

) – 2:53 # "

On the Street Where You Live "On the Street Where You Live" is a song with music by Frederick Loewe and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner from the 1956 Broadway musical ''My Fair Lady''. It is sung in the musical by the character Freddy Eynsford-Hill, who was portrayed by John Mich ...

" (Lerner, Loewe) – 2:41 # " There's a Small Hotel" (Rodgers, Hart) – 2:40 # " Something I Dreamed Last Night" (

Sammy Fain Sammy Fain (born Samuel E. Feinberg; June 17, 1902 – December 6, 1989) was an American composer of popular music. In the 1920s and early 1930s, he contributed numerous songs that form part of The Great American Songbook, and to Broadway theatre. ...

, Herb Magidson,

Jack Yellen Jack Selig Yellen (Jacek Jeleń; July 6, 1892 – April 17, 1991) was an American lyricist and screenwriter. He is best remembered for writing the lyrics to the songs "Happy Days Are Here Again", which was used by Franklin Roosevelt as the theme ...

) – 3:04

Personnel

– vocals *

– arranger, conductor

References

{{Authority control 1962 albums Albums arranged by Hal Mooney Billy Eckstine albums Mercury Records albums