Our Way The Rat Pack Collection
Ska and swing have enjoyed a close relationship ever since Jamaica opened its first recording studios. They were the toast of Hollywood, a group of actors who came together at the Los Angeles home of silver-screen stars Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. But their effect on the popular culture would make them international stars.
The Rat Pack was a supergroup of entertainment and comedy who often appeared together in concerts, on TV or in movies. They sang, they told jokes, they did comedy sketches — most of all, they had a blast. The official roster was Joey Bishop, Peter Lawford, Sammy Davis, Jr., Dean Martin, and of course, Frank Sinatra. All five stars appeared in Ocean’s Eleven, which was filmed in Las Vegas, and frequently performed together at The Sands, also in Las Vegas.
Our Way The Rat Pack Collection will be a collection of the music popularised by The Rat Pack and will include many of the Jazz standards of the times. It will include material by other performers who were frequent guests at The Sands Club including Nat King Cole, Judy Garland, Buddy Greco, Shirley MacLaine, Tony Bennett, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Doris Day, Dean Martin, Frankie Laine, Lena Horne, Tony Bennett, Vic Damone, Peggy Lee, Nancy Wilson, Jack Jones, Rita Reys, Steve Lawrence, Liza Minnelli and Cleo Laine.
Confirmed Songs
Disc One
Inspecter 7 – Sway
Project Blackbird – Mr. Bojangles
Special Brew – Mona Lisa
Crazy Baldhead ft. Jesse Wagner – Houston
The Infatables – Promise Her Anything (But Give Her Love)
Eastern Standard Time – A Foggy Day (in London Town)
Intergalactic Brasstronauts – I’m a Brass Band
Rebelation – Jeepers Creepers
Stereotype – Aint Misbehavin’
Detroit Riddim Crew – Pennies from Heaven
King Django – Cherry Pink & Apple Blossom White
Trambeat – The Lady is a Tramp
Zen Baseballbat – Zinga Zinga Zing Boom
The Spammed – Ain’t That a Kick in the Head
King Hammond – Send Me the Pillow You Dream On
Disc Two
Rude Girl Revue – My Way
Hub City Stompers – I Like the Way You Dance
Mr Kingpin – All Of Me
Jah Bass and Avatar – I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter
Ego and the Appropriators – Comin’ Home
Instincts Take Over – Sunny
Rudbeard – I Got Plenty O’ Nuttin’
Chango Munks – That’s Amore
Malambo Ska – Quizas Quizas Perhaps
The Scotch Bonnets – Nature Boy
One in Ten – Summer Wind
New Lion Ska – Everybody Loves Somebody
The Skluttz – The Candy Man Can
The Decatonics – Somewhere Over the Rainbow
The Pressure Tenants – Summertime
Disc Three
Nic Evennett – Strangers in the Night
The Jojo Man Band – Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered
Jazz Colossus Big Band (ft. Florence Pearce) – It Don’t Mean a Thing
The Happy Somethings – Second Time Around
The Lockdown Allstars (ft Chris Foreman & Big Jim Paterson) – Buona Sera
Dunia and Aram – Twisted
Sarah McQuaid – My Funny Valentine
Christo Mac ft. Tommy Two Tone – Sweet Gingerbread Man
The Sign – It Ain’t Necessarily So
Rude Scholar – How High the Moon
Skylon – You Are My Sunshine
Sam Huber – How Insensitive
Uncle Kid – What A Wonderful World
Tomas Doncker – They Say It’s Wonderful
Nature of Wires + Machina X – Feeling Good
Disc Four
The Skapones – Volare
Operation Offbeat – I’ve Got You Under My Skin
Big Fat Panda – Mack the Knife
Vic Godard et Le Documents – One For The Road
Wotka Trawolta – The Continental
The Resignators – Night and Day
Peaceful Easy – Ain’t Misbehavin
Ska-per – (Get Your Kicks on) Route 66
Pannonia Allstars Ska Orchestra – Let It Snow
Soul Vetters with The Smoke & Mirrors Horns – The Glory of Love
Suspense Heroes Syndicate – That’s Life
Glyn Wilcox – Fly Me to the Moon
Monkey – Burnt Toast and Black Coffee
Bulky Matron – Little Old Wine Drinker Me
Dev – Everybody Dub
Frank Sinatra: The Chairman Of The Board
Known for his class, charm, and sophistication, Sinatra was the main attraction at Caesar’s Palace during his years with the Rat Pack.
Sinatra is very well-known for his highly successful career as an actor, and the smooth, mellow voice that made him a most beloved singer. All you have to hear is “Ol’ Blue Eyes” and images of a tux-wearing Sinatra with a cigarette in one hand and microphone in the other immediately pop into your head.
From his youth, Sinatra displayed sympathy for African Americans and worked both publicly and privately all his life to help them win equal rights. Sinatra played a major role in the desegregation of Nevada hotels and casinos in the 1950s and 1960s, often stepping in to demand apologies for a racist incident and abolishing of Jim Crow policies before he would fulfill his show contract.
Sammy Davis, Jr.: Mr. Show Business
Sammy Davis Jr. overcame prevailing racism to establish himself as an entertainment legend, becoming a successful comedian, actor, dancer and singer. As part of the Rat Pack, with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, Davis was known for films like Ocean’s 11 and Sergeants 3 along with his partying ways. As his fame grew, his refusal to appear in any clubs that practiced racial segregation led to the integration of several venues in Miami Beach and Las Vegas. A Tony-nominated performer, Davis was also associated with popular recordings like “I’ve Gotta Be Me” and the No. 1 hit “The Candy Man. Born on December 8, 1925, in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City he went to live with his father, who was working as an entertainer in a dance troupe. When his father and adopted uncle went on tour, Davis was brought along, and after learning to tap the three began performing together. They would eventually be dubbed the Will Mastin Trio. By 1960, Davis was a star in his own right. Davis appeared with members of the pack in the films Ocean’s 11 (1960), Sergeants 3 (1962) and Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964). Davis was also a featured player in films outside of the pack, including A Man Called Adam (1966), having the titular role opposite Louis Armstrong. And he was unforgettable in Bob Fosse’s Sweet Charity (1969, with Shirley MacLaine), in which Davis appeared as the charismatic, singing and strutting guru Big Daddy
Dean Martin: The King Of Cool
Dean Martin falls into the same class as Sinatra, with his onstage antics as a boozing and gambling playboy. Although he played up his image as a cocktail-drinking and woman-loving comedian, later in life he claimed it was all about his public presence. He was immensely popular not only as an actor and singer but also as a comedian. His early autobiography is as gritty as that of any rock star. He delivered bootleg liquor, served as a speakeasy croupier and blackjack dealer, worked in a steel mill and briefly ruled the ring as boxing phenom Kid Crochet. Winning his share of bouts earned him little apart from a broken nose, but Dino’s speakeasy experience put him in contact with club owners, resulting in his first singing gigs. Even at the height of Beatlemania with the group topping the charts, Martin reasserted himself with typical aplomb knocking the Fab Four from their perch with the buttery anthem “Everybody Loves Somebody.” Several other hits, including “The Door Is Still Open to My Heart,” “I Will,” “Houston” and “Send Me the Pillow You Dream On,” followed during his years at Reprise Records.
