Chet Atkins "Theme From Picnic"

[@beckywauer2291]

My absolute best and favorite rendition of this song, "Them From Picnic." Chet Atkins was the best! Thank you! It's also my favorite song of all time!

[@verningles4898]

Done as only the Master Chet ATKINS COULD DO It. Miss you Chet

[@MarkBlackburnWPG]

Yes, Vern Ingles: The Master. All of his myriad techniques he INVENTED. That's why finger-style giants like Doyle Dykes (who played at Chet's memorial service at the Ryman) and Australia's Tommy Emmanuel keep using Chet's licks -- they couldn't be improved upon. Just left a note on this (above). Thanks for posting.

[@MrCarlHaynes]

"Theme From a Dream" from Chets Hollywood Album About 1955-1960(?). Yes, it was also used in the Movie.

[@MarkBlackburnWPG]

Thanks for the informed note, Carl Haynes. Just posted one of my own (above).

[@MrJpartridge]

a beautiful arrangement of a beautiful timeless song thank you for sharing

[@MarkBlackburnWPG]

Yes, by Dennis Farnon with the cream of Hollywood musicians. Dennis' brother Robert arranged Sinatra's only studio recordings "Great Songs from Great Britain" London '62 -- and Robert is acknowledged by all the other great arrangers of this world, as their primary influence. But he no doubt told his younger brother Dennis what a good job he did with these orchestrations. Just posted a note (above) Thanks for sharing, Jim Partridge.

[@MrCarlHaynes]

I wish everything om that Hollywood Album was up on KZbin. That is undoubtedly The most Beautiful, and most Relaxing Guitar in Music History! Keep Up The GREAT WORK Daffy... And Thank you for posting these. May God Bless You For it!

[@MarkBlackburnWPG]

I second that emotion, and appreciate every word you said -- albeit seven years later. Just spotted it today, Carl Haynes after posting a note of my own (above). Thanks for sharing.

[@MarkBlackburnWPG]

[First a big thank you to DaffyDoug for posting and the evocative 'picnic' pictures] The winter of 1959 RCA Victor released an LP by Chet Atkins - my life-long finger-style guitar hero. My older sister Andrea was lent a copy by her guitarist boyfriend. I couldn't stop playing it. To this day it is my favorite of Chet's more than 50 albums. Recorded in October of '58 when “Theme from Picnic” was still new to our ears. Apart from the tasteful content of his soloing, listen to the sound of an electric guitar that no other guitarist has ever been able to capture. You can play Chet's signature model Gretsch Country Gentleman through a Fender tube amp (I have one from 1960, the “Tremolux”) and you can never replicate this sound. Ask any of today's finger style giants, including Australia's Tommy Emmanuel and Doyle Dykes (I helped arrange both of their recent visits to Winnipeg) and they will agree: “How did Chet get this sound?" Warmth, bell-like clarity, and absolutely flawless techniques - every single tradmark phrase, he invented. And they're so good today's finger-style guitar giants are still using his techniques. They couldn't be improved upon. Listen to this! kzbin.info/www/bejne/jKu9i6atocafr9E More than a decade ago I wrote an Amazon review for “Chet Atkins in Hollywood,” arranged by Dennis Farnon younger brother of Robert Farnon ("Great Songs from Great Britain" arranger for Sinatra in London, 1962. [They had one other brother who was musical director for Nat King Cole during his Vegas days; can't recall his name, but at last report he was the family's lone survivor and living in The Netherlands. I know, more info than you need. “You've got to stop writing,” says my Irene. “Go take a nap.!" Oh yes, my all-time favorite album cover, Chet's then brand-new "Country Gentleman" with gold Grover Imperial tuners, suspended above a night time Hollywood sky. I look at it and suddenly it's summer of '59 again. www.amazon.com/Chet-Atkins-Hollywood-plus-Other/dp/B00EYXTXSY/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1550848944&sr=1-1&keywords=Chet+Atkins+in+Hollywood+CD Alas my review of 17 years ago (February 2002) is gone -- along with previous editions of “In Hollywood.” Ah well. Here's what I wrote: ---- The previous reviewer will be pleased to learn that the version he enjoyed so much when he was young is the other one ("limited availability") here at Amazon.com--- produced by Classic Records (24 K gold) with the original album cover, featuring not the gorgeous woman shown here, but the best-looking Chet Atkins Gretsch Country Gentleman guitar ever made, superimposed over a night time Hollywood skyline. And the information source at JVC mentioned in the previous review, is confused about which recording came first. As a fan who first treasured this album on its release more than 40 years ago (it was recorded October 23, 1958) I can assure any would-be purchasers that the Classic Records version (which costs a bit less I see) is far-and-away the best of the two. I've been listening to the samples offered for the JVC version and sure enough it's the later recording released in 1961. Chet took the tapes of the Hollywood studio orchestra (arranged by Dennis Farnon) back to his home studio in Nashville and three years later re-did his guitar work---not at all successfully in my opinion, and I believe my view would be shared by most musicians who compare the two versions. Now this is odd: Previously, whenever Chet re-recorded something, the subsequent version had better sound quality and---more importantly---featured better 'licks.' A prime example is his own composition "Country Gentleman." The original recording featured Jethro Burns on mandolin, and wasn't bad, but the next version (he did three, the last with the Boston Pops orchestra) his second rendering for the terrific "Mr. Guitar" album was both better recorded and featured much more sophisticated picking---intelligent, humorous, simply wonderful. So what happened in the case of this, my favorite of his albums "In Hollywood"? On the second recording (offered here on JVC) the guitar track was much less inspired, thin sounding, lackluster---downright insipid in many spots. On the original, 1958 recording (again the one offered by Classic Records) the picking is, I think, the most beautiful work Chet ever accomplished. He used techniques the likes of which I've not heard since (and I have virtually every record he ever produced). For those who have both versions: Listen to the meaty, sweeping sound of his chords near the middle of "Meet Mr. Callaghan" or the sprightly inventiveness to the original improvisations and the ending on "Armen's Theme" (written incidentally by Ross Bagdasarian of "The Chipmunks" fame). Or notice the galloping triple-note picking that ends the earlier version of "Let It Be Me"---joyful, sparkling, brilliant! To paraphrase the wonderful liner notes by George Barker, then of the Nashville Tennessean, great music never dies; it just keeps on producing goose pimples. A guitar expert friend of mine at Funky Junk in Georgia informed me that Chet switched to a lighter guage of strings for the 1961 re-recording. Which would explain at least why the "masculine" meaty sound of the original went missing in the follow-up version. Make no mistake: If you never heard the original, you would cherish 'version B' I'm sure. But then, you'd never know what you'd missed. If you want to hear an electric guitar laugh, weep, and transport you to world that's gone with the wind----listen to what Chet accomplished that October day in 1958 with an all-star orchestra. In fairness to the JVC version, they probably provided the names of all the musicians, which I saw this week for the first time ever--listed at another Internet site. These talented musicians all went on to record with a 'Who's Who' of America's greatest artists, everyone from Frank Sinatra and Ella, to Bill Evans, (and even Frank Zappa!) If it turns out JVC is responsible for making that musicians' list available, I'll wind up purchasing their version of this album, if only as a 'thank you.' The original vinyl album also listed the composers of each song, including Fats Waller (Jitterbug Waltz), Charlie Chaplin (Limelight Theme, also called Eternally) and the great South American Manuel Ponce (Estrellita). Regrettably the Classic records version did not have that listing----a disservice to composers and lyric writers who wrote these great songs. Or these days does no one care enough any more to ask "Who wrote that Song?" Mark Blackburn Winnipeg Canada FLASH FORWARD to present moment: (November 15, 2015) You can now obtain the desirable version in the recent "Chet Atkins 8 Classic Albums" box set. Superb value and great sound!