Tony Osborne, His Piano & Orchestra – Let's Dance With Tony

Tony Osborne, His Piano & Orchestra – Let's Dance With Tony

Originally released in 1962 on His Master's Voice, Let's Dance With Tony is a sophisticated collection of romantic standards and dance-floor favourites arranged and performed by British bandleader, pianist and arranger Tony Osborne. The original UK release appeared as HMV CLP 1513, with the stereo edition issued as CSD 1409, placing it firmly in the golden age of early-1960s British easy listening and orchestral pop.

Osborne was an experienced musical director and arranger whose work extended across recordings, radio and popular entertainment, and this album demonstrates his talent for creating polished orchestral arrangements from familiar songs. A contemporary 1962 review praised his “lush arrangements” and described the album as an invitation to the dance floor, while another contemporary review highlighted the imaginative scoring for brass and strings and noted that the record was equally rewarding simply as a listening album.

The repertoire draws heavily on the Great American Songbook and traditional pop, opening with “Where Or When,” “What's New?” and “Close Your Eyes” before moving through “Moonlight Becomes You,” “That Old Black Magic” and Cole Porter's “So In Love.” Osborne's piano sits at the heart of the arrangements, surrounded by an orchestra designed to give these familiar melodies a smooth, romantic and distinctly early-1960s sound.

Side Two continues with “Cocktails For Two,” “C'est Si Bon,” “Joe's Place” and “Harbour Lights,” followed by the wistful “I'll Never Smile Again” and “The Very Thought Of You.” The closing “Rooftops Of Rome” provides an appropriately atmospheric finale to an album that moves effortlessly between ballroom, cocktail-lounge and sophisticated orchestral pop styles.

For collectors of 1960s easy listening, British orchestral pop, mood music, vintage dance records and HMV releases, Let's Dance With Tony is an excellent example of the period's polished studio-orchestra sound. It also makes an appealing companion to the many British instrumental and dance-orchestra albums of the era, with Osborne's arrangements giving well-loved standards a refined, distinctly British easy-listening character.

Side A

1. Where Or When
2. What's New?
3. Close Your Eyes
4. Moonlight Becomes You
5. That Old Black Magic
6. So In Love
7. Romance In Rio

Side B

1. Cocktails For Two
2. C'est Si Bon
3. Joe's Place
4. Harbour Lights
5. I'll Never Smile Again
6. The Very Thought Of You
7. Rooftops Of Rome