Hello Italy/Knees Up, Mother Brown

Editorial Reviews
Album Description
These two original albums from the Epic label, available here for the first time on CD, feature the Vic, Gene and Joe Ames performing a program of Italian songs on the first album -- and songs of "fun and nonsense" on the second.

Tracks:

Fontana Di Trevi
Corrin Corrina
Dammi Dammi Dammi
Fiamma D'Amor
Volare
Luna Malinconica
Ritorna A Me
Chi Sara
Natsu Rossi
Ciao Ciao Bambina
Tre Campane
Arrivederci Roma
In The Middle Of The House
I'll Lend You Everything I've Got Except My Wife
(If I Had My Life To Live Over) I'd Live Over A Grocery Store
Knees Up! Mother Brown
Take Your Fingers Out Of Your Mouth (I Want A Kiss From You)
When Banana Skins Are Falling (I'll Come Sliding Back To You)
Shut The Door (They're Coming In Through The Window)
Where Can I Find A Bookie? (The Daily Double Blues)
When It's Night Time In Italy It's Wednesday Over Here
That Old Red Undershirt My Daddy Wore
When Grandma Got Her Teeth In Upside Down
Two Ton Tessie

Album Description

These two original albums from the Epic label, available here for the first time on CD, feature the Vic, Gene and Joe Ames performing a program of Italian songs on the first album -- and songs of "fun and nonsense" on the second.

Customer Reviews:

Fun recordings from the Ames Brothers later years.......2006-07-05

I'm a huge Ames Brothers fan, so this review may be a little biased. The brothers as a group were never the same after Ed left to go solo permanently, but they still managed to put out these two albums for Epic as well as 3 singles (and of those 6 45rpm sides, only one appeared on the Knees Up! Mother Brown lp) and those non-lp sides would've made nice bonus tracks on this cd. Even though Ed is not on these recordings, they still have that Ames Brothers sound, but clearly with more of a country-ish type of background, as these songs were cut in Nashville with session musicians.

The first half of the cd, which is the Hello Italy! album, is pretty good, even if you can't understand a single word of Italian (and if you can, great). They do Italian versions of Three Coins In The Fountain, Blue Moon, Sway and The Three Bells, among others, and their harmonies are just wonderful.

The second half of the cd, the Knees Up! Mother Brown lp, is full of hilarious songs, and some of my favorites include In The Middle Of The House (which is a lot better than the Vaughan Monroe version), Shut The Door (They're Coming In Through The Window) (which sounds like a typical song that the brothers should've recorded during their Coral label days), and I'll Lend You Everything I've Got Except My Wife.

The first half of the cd will be a hit with fans and collectors of foreign/Italian music, and the second half will be a hit with fans of classic Country music, as well as comedic music. The sound on this cd is first rate, with wonderful stereo mixes that bring out a lot in the music, and the master tapes for these songs sound fantastic on this cd. My only disappointment is that Collectables and Sony BMG didn't work out something to add the additional 45 rpm-only Epic label sides that the brothers cut, but you can only ask for so much when issuing two albums on one cd.

Music:

Music

Music