THE CHARLIE CALELLO ORCHESTRA-CALELLO SERENADE.

dereksmusicblog ♦ December 13, 2012 ♦ Leave a comment

THE CHARLIE CALELLO ORCHESTRA-CALELLO SERENADE.

Back in 1958, Frankie Vali walked into a nightclub in Newark, New Jersey and immediately, was bowled over by the band that were playing. Straight away, Frankie knew this band were special and knew why. The secret to their success was the man who wrote and arranged their music. When he asked who this songwriter and arranger was, he discovered it was Charlie Calello. Soon, Frankie Vali and Charlie Calello started working together, and Frankie Vail and The Four Seasons were about to enjoy the most successful period of his career. So was Charlie Calello.

By 1966, needing a change, Charlie spent two years at Columbia as an arranger and producer. It was in 1966 that The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s debut album Direct Hits was released. Two years later,  Charlie decided it was time for another change. He became an independent songwriter, arranger and producer. What followed, was a career that spanned a further five decades. Charlie Calello went on to work with some of the names in music, working on over two-hundred albums. This includes everyone from Bruce Springsteen through Barbara Streisand, Odyssey, Frank SInatra and Laura Nyro. Eventually, Charlie became the most prolific arranger in musical history. Read Charlie’s extensive discography, and you’ll discover he’s worked on over one-hundred hits, sixteen of which sold over one-million copies, while fifteen were Grammy nominated. It seems that Charlie Calello has worked with an eclectic variety of artists and is capable of arranging and producing every musical genre, including disco, The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s 1979 sophomore album Calello Serendade, which I’ll now tell you about.

During the disco era, disco orchestra’s became big business. Obviously, The Salsoul Orchestra were the first and greatest disco orchestra. Soon other orchestras were formed, with the personnel often interchangeable. Many members of The Salsoul Orchestra also played on albums by John Davis Monster Orchestra. Often, classical musicians were drafted in, given the preference for lush strings and growling horns. Just about any type of track could be given the disco orchestra treatment. Whether it was new songs or old songs, they could be draped in strings, with horns and a pounding disco beat added. On The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s 1979 album Calello Serendade, Charlie chose seven classic track to give the disco treatment. 

For Calello Serendade, Charlie chose to cover classics that included Stardust, penned by Hoagy Carmichael and Mitchell Parish, who cowrote Moonlight Sernenade with Glenn Miller. Another track made famous by Glenn Miller was In the Mood, written by Joe Garland. These three tracks and four other tracks, including covers of Sy Oliver’s Opus One and Louis Prima’s Sing, Sing, Sing made up The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s 1979 debut album Calello Serendade, which was recorded at two studios, House of Music and the Hit Factory, with Charlie producing the album.

When recording of The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s 1979 album Calello Serendade began, it was with a lineup that included a full string and horn section. The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s lineup included a number of well known names. Michael Brecker played tenor saxophone, Barry Miles piano, David Spinozza guitar, Jimmy Maelen percussion and Steve Jones drums. Among the backing vocalists were four some huge names. Jocelyn Brown of Inner Life, Chic’s Alfonso Anderson and Luther Vandross, who knew Alfonso from singing backing vocals on Chic. This was one of several projects Luther Vandross was involved in, before he became a worldwide star. Then there was the legendary Cissy Houston. Such a talented quartet of backing vocals were literally the icing on this musical cake. Calello Serendade was released in 1979, which wasn’t exactly a good year for disco.

Disco by 1979, was waning in popularity. The Disco Sucks movement were at the forefront of the anti-disco movement. On 12th July 1979, at Comiskey Park, Chicago disco almost died at Disco Derby Demolition Night. Following that night, disco headed underground and no longer enjoyed the same commercial success. So it’s no surprise that when Calello Serendade was released, it wasn’t a commercial success. Since then, Calello Serendade has remained a favorite among connoisseurs of disco and is played by DJs in the know. Now thirty-three years later, disco is enjoying yet another Indian Summer and albums like Calello Serendade are being rediscovered. So, this seems like a good time to tell you about The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s 1979 album Calello Serendade.

Opening The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s Calello Serendade is a cover of Moonlight Serenade. The tempo is slow, but only temporarily. Horns that sound as if they’re from an old big band session, join a rhythm section and piano that provide a dramatic backdrop. Then just as you’re enjoying Charlie’s homage to Glenn Miller, when bang, it’s all change. Tight, elegant and soulful harmonies are almost an announcement that the tempo is about to increase. In comes the pounding disco beat. Now The Charlie Calello Orchestra take Moonlight Serenade to 127 Disco Heaven. This means lush strings, floaty, punchy harmonies, percussion and stabs of horns. What follows, is a compelling, captivating makeover of an old classic, with bags of style and panache.

Rolls of pounding drums open Sing, Sing, Sing, while chiming guitars, booming bass and percussion combine. Soon, this familiar track is deconstructed and reconstructed disco style. Punchy, jazzy horns join lush, dancing strings and the drama and power provided by the rhythm section. Together, they dance joyously across the arrangement. Hooks are certainly not rationed and keeping still isn’t an option. You want, and indeed long to throw yourself headlong into this track and celebrate the genius of Louis Prima who penned this track and of course, Charlie Calello who produced it.

From the get-go, power and drama combine on Temptation. Thunderous drums, flourishes of string, growling horns, percussion aplenty and a funky bass unite, mixing disco, jazz, funk and classical music. In some ways, it’s quite different in sound from other tracks, given the dramatic classical stylings and its occasional funky side. There’s a grandiose sound, with layers of strings and bursts of energetic horns uniting. The thunderous drums are ever-present and play their part in the track’s disco sound. Together, genres unite as Side One of Calello Serendade reaches a dramatic high.

Stadust opens Side Two of Calello Serendade. Just a flourish of guitar and piano give way to a rasping alto-saxophone before the lushest of strings sweep in. Then, a burst of the rhythm section signals the arrangement to reveal its secrets. Light harmonies, growling horns, dancing strings and a pounding disco beat combine. Punchy, dramatic harmonies drift in and out, while a piano adds flamboyant touch. Soon, the heartfelt harmonies grown in power and drama. They unite adding a soulful, elegant sound while horns kick, strings sweep and swirl as pounding drums provide a pulsating heartbeat to this joyous, hook-laden take on an old classic.

Percussion, hissing hi-hats and finger clicks join doo-wop style harmonies and pounding bass as In the Mood is given a makeover. Soon, horns recreate the Glenn Miller sound, but with a thunderous, disco beat. Tight, cascading harmonies join the bass line as The Charlie Calello Orchestra lick loose. Horns rasp and growl, staying true to the original, while the harmonies are given a twist. They veer between tender, breathy and sassy. Always, they’re delivered with a swing. Where things get very different is the backbeat. It’s fast, pounding and dance-floor friendly, mixing jazz, disco and soul seamlessly

Opus One explodes into life. A powerhouse of a driving rhythm section are joined by punchy, high-kicking horns. Breathy backing vocals are like the starter in musical race at breakneck speed. With a standup bass helping power the arrangement along, horns bray and blaze, string sweep and swirl frantically. Throughout the track, the rhythm section provide the a pounding, pulsating beat. Resistance is impossible. Michael Brecker unleashes a peerless saxophone solo that. Even after that, things get better. The drama builds and builds, with grizzled horns, searing guitars, dancing strings and that constant pounding disco beat playing their part in one of the real highlights of Calello Serenade.

Calello Serenade closes with Skyliner, which has a real jazzy sound, albeit set to a disco beat. Hissing hi-hats, thunderous drums, blazing horns and jazzy piano combine to make the arrangement swings. Horns with vintage, muted sound are added, giving the arrangement a sound that’s reminiscent of the big band era. Piano, chiming guitars and standup bass add to the authentic sound, as do the rasping horns and swathes of lush strings. Where things differ, is the drums, which are disco through and through. When they unite, with jazz and disco becoming one, the result is a delicious reminder of another era, but with a disco twist.

The Charlie Calello Orchestra sophomore album Calello Serenade was released thirteen long years after their debut album Direct Hits in 1966. This was the second of a trio of albums The Charlie Calello Orchestra released between 1966 and 1980. Their final release was 1980s Sing, Sing, Sing, which like Calello Serenade, was released on Midsong International Records. Sadly, Calello Serenade was released too late in the disco era. 1979 saw disco’s popularity wane and if Calello Serenade had been released earlier, say in 1977 or 1978, might have been a much bigger success. Commercial success didn’t come The Charlie Calello Orchestra’s way when Calello Serenade was released. There was nothing whatsoever wrong with music on Calello Serenade, Instead, musical fashions had changed. Now thirty-three years later, looking back at Calello Serenade, the fusion of disco, jazz, soul, funk and classic music has stood the test of time. New life and meaning was breathed into seven classic tracks, by The Charlie Calello Orchestra on Calello Serenade. The result is another example of disco orchestra’s at their very best. Standout Tracks: Moonlight Serenade, Sing, Sing, Sing, Stadust and In the Mood.

THE CHARLIE CALELLO ORCHESTRA-CALELLO SERENADE.