Getting
Started
New Member Registration
Registered Member Login
Expanded Search
Catalogs
FAQs
Site Map
New
Release Pages
Alternative/Indie
Blues
Children's Music
Classical
Comedy
Early Music
Folk Music
Home Schooling
Jazz
Nature
New Age
Opera/Vocals
Pop & Jazz Vocals
Show Music
Storytelling for Kids
Super Audio CDs (SACDs)
World Music
Video and DVD
Exclusively From Allegro
18th & Vine
Alacazam!
American Legends
Arte Nova
Big Blue Dog Records
Cocktail Hour
Columbia River Entertainment
Colors of the World
Endeavour Classics
Moscow Studio Archives
Opera d'Oro
Special Interest DVD & VHS
Customer Service
Shipping & Handling
Payment Methods & Returns
Track Your Order
View Shopping Cart
Contact Us
Links
and Tours
Label Links
Artist and Other Links
Tour Itinerary
Allegro
About Allegro
Listening Displays
Label Submissions
Retailer Information
Employment
Internships
Pink Martini: Hey Eugene!
Pink Martini—the genre-bending, best-selling, supremely talented, and raucously fun twelve-piece ensemble that the New Yorker calls simply “beautiful,” “sophisticated,” and “breathtaking”—returns with Hey Eugene!, a twelve-track sonic journey anchored by deft songwriting and a no-holds-barred dose of cabaret showmanship. “We’re kind of like musical archaeologists, bringing melodies and rhythms from different parts of the world together to create something that is modern,” explains bandleader, artistic director, and founder Thomas Lauderdale.
Somewhere between a 1930s Cuban dance orchestra, a classical chamber music ensemble, a Brazilian marching street band and Japanese film noir is the 12-piece Pink Martini.
Part language lesson, part Hollywood musical, the Portland, Oregon-based "little orchestra" was originally created in 1994 by Harvard graduate Thomas M. Lauderdale to play at political fundraisers for progressive causes such as public broadcasting, clean water, libraries, civil rights and affordable housing. In the years following, Pink Martini has gone on to perform its multilingual repertoire on concert stages, in smoky clubs and with symphony orchestras throughout Europe, Greece, Turkey, Taiwan, Lebanon and the U.S.
Pink Martini's debut album, Sympathique, released on the band's own label, Heinz Records, has sold over 600,000 copies worldwide. Nominated for "Song Of The Year" and "Best New Artist" at France's Victoires De La Musique awards, Sympathique has gone Double Gold in France and Gold in Greece. To date, it has sold over 275,000 copies in North America alone.
Hang On Little Tomato, Pink Martini's much-anticipated second album, features a collection of original songs written by the band and its extended family, as well as a few undiscovered gems reinterpreted in high style. Drawing on themes articulated on Sympathique, Hang On Little Tomato is the rich result of the group's diverse collaborations and inspirations. From an advertisement for Hunt's Ketchup in a 1964 issue of Life magazine to a dance sequence in the 1950 Italian film Anna, Hang On Little Tomato includes songs in French, Italian, Japanese, Croatian, Spanish and English. "Una Notte A Napoli," for example, was written with Alba Clemente—an Italian stage and television star in the 1970s—and DJ Johnny Dynell of the legendary New York-based nightclub Jackie 60. In a reworking of the Japanese song "Kikuchiyo To Mohshimasu," Pink Martini collaborated with Hiroshi Wada, the slide guitarist whose group originally recorded and released the song 40 years ago.
Originally released in 1997, Sympathique met with rave reviews worldwide, finding a place within the hearts of many and selling well over a half million copies. Building its legacy through unstoppable word of mouth, select high profile symphony dates, prominent placement in film & television and fashionable private appearances, Pink Martini has returned with their highly-anticipated follow up. Hang On Little Tomato is every bit the new album Pink Martini fans have been longing for. Lush string arrangements, soaring vocals and cosmopolitan rhythms unfurl from the brilliant international hemisphere that is Pink Martini.
Also
available:
Press
Quotes
"Everyone's hankering for Pink Martini. Not the drink, the band—the
Portland-based ensemble that's become a darling of the fashion and entertainment
crowds. Even Nina Griscom and Alba Clemente were moved to shake their
booties at the group's recent gig at Joe's Pub in New York. Pink Martini's
repertoire includes everything from Latin jazz and Afro Cuban rumba to
sultry cabaret. 'Whether they're playing around a pool or at Joe's Pub'
says Andre Balazs, 'they really have a groove.'" - W
"From the West Coast to the Riviera in the South of France, Pink Martini is less a drink than a stirring sound…and every bit as intoxicating. In only seven years, the Portland ensemble has emerged as one of the hottest commodities on what we could try to describe as the stylish, eclectic jazz fusion scene." - Tennessean
"Pink Martini's debut album incorporates an impressive variety of influences; traces of Cuban music, cabaret and film soundtracks are all discernible on Sympathetique, an intriguing blend of contemporary pop painted with brass, strings and percussion." - All Music Guide
"No matter how Pink Martini gets described, there's always an element being overlooked, a reliance on phrases such as lounge, cosmopolitan rumba or neo-classical that only tells part of this rich story. Impressive at every musician's station, the ensemble produces music that's charming and elegant, a tribute to leader Thomas Lauderdale's adept handling of Cuban rumba and Parisian cafe tunes and his ability to balance them with a bit of Carnival disco, a quickie from composer Heitor Villa-Lobos and 'Que Sera Sera.'" - Variety
"This 10-piece Portland combo has become a regular attraction on the symphony pops circuit nationwide, playing recently at the Hollywood Bowl, among other places. Their first (and so far, only) album, 1997's Sympathique, was a staple at the Starbucks counter for years. The attraction is not hard to explain. Pink Martini begins with a solid base of classical expertise. To that base, the group adds a mix of Latin jazz, French art songs, swing and the occasional Carmen Miranda tune." - Spokesman-Review