Janet Klein Music

It's fun and funky. I'm more of a fan of the inter-war stuff, but this album just goes to show that pop music has always had that salacious edge.

Janet Klein and Her Parlor Boys put together a fun, naughty CD of mostly forgotten songs that our grandparents never wanted us to hear. How the older generation can tell us that it was an innocent time when songs such as "Sugar in my Bowl" were popular is beyond me. Janet is one of the few artists for whom I heard a few songs and went out immediately to buy her whole discography - her song choices and her skills are mesmerizing. In the style of Bessie Smith and with a twinkle that's infectious, she and her Parlor Boys set my toes to tapping.

Janet's sister Naomi Klein has written a book in which she exposes the real purpose behind Janet's attempt to "re-brand nostalgia" and dominate the market in retro-chic genre music via the corporate-controlled world media.

"Come into my parlor, said the spider to the fly..." If you start listening to this kind of music, next thing you know you'll be trapped into buying Hilary Duff calendars and Britney Spears videos, before finally being immobilized in the corporate web and having your liquified innards sucked out of your thorax. Watch out!

Anyone who enjoys the music of the 20's and 30's will fall in love with Janet Klein and her parlor boys. I have all of her 4 albums and am waiting for the 5th'

Janet Klein and her Parlour Boys have exquisitely reincarnated the charm and splendour of the music of the 1900's to 1930's. Janet's sweet dizzy charm is thoroughly genuine, absolutely true to the era, and yet all her own. This is no immitation--this is the genuine article.

Janet Klein puts love into every aspect of her releases, from the vintage art included in the packaging to the superior musicianship offered in the songs - every one is a gem and now that I own every CD she and her Parlor Boys have released, I am impatiently waiting for the next opportunity to hear a Janet Klein release for the first time. Great fun!

Eclectic music lovers, this is for you. Fun melodies and instrumentation. Janet's vocals are simple and pleasant. The lyrics are too fun. Silly really but delightful. Worth the wait, not available immediately.

Although somehow her records never capture her cuteness and charm, like her live shows. Her voice sounds different on record then in person, as strange as that may sound. That being said this is still a fine cd, and other than Banu Gibson, and Alex Pangman, Janet is one of the few female performers around singing 20's & 30's obscurities. Brad Kay's precise musicianship on the ivories is a plus(not to mention his Bubber Miley imitations on the horn). Also Janet plays some barely audiable ukulele(nothing too fancy or hot). Ian Whitcomb also provides some tacky accordian which makes the music sound a little hokey, and adds a little cheese to the otherwise exlellent mix of drums, stand up bass, violen, and Tom Marion on banjo, guitar and anything with strings on it(though watch out for him in person, he'll try and steal your gal, no matter what she looks like). Alao a real treat is Robert Armstrong on Hawaiian lap guitar, adding a twang to the recordings, making up for the overly used accordian(which sounds good on some tracks). Here we get a treat with Janet covering Annette Hanshaw's version of "It Was Only A Sunshower" taken at a much slower pace(though it's unfair to compare her to the great Hanshaw, Klein has more in common with Ruth Etting).

This cd is well worth acquiring, and Whitcomb's accordian will grow on you, and you'll start craving to hear more...

This CD is such a treat - so much fun to listen to, and I often play it in tandem with Janet Klein's Scandals (or Living in Sin) when I want to have a toe-tappin' jazzy good time. Yiddish Hula Boy is so much fun and if you want a real treat, check out the video of this song that Janet and her Parlor Boys have created.

Janet plays ukulele and sings in a high pitched 1920's voice, reminiscent of Ruth Etting. Her band is made up of trad jazz allstars as they recreate and create thier own 1920;s sounding music!!! Great music!!!

Janet and her Parlour Boys have exquisitely reincarnated the brilliant charm of the music of the 1900's to 1930's. This album is generously packed with some of the most wonderful recordings, from hot Dixie jazz to Vaudevillian music hall. Janet's sweet dizzy charm is thoroughly genuine, absolutely true to the era, and yet all her own. This is no immitation--this is the genuine article.

If you ever want to go back in time, and put a smile on your face, just put in a Janet Klein album and enjoy. We were lucky enough to have them play our wedding and they set the entire scene and created a truly magical evening under carnival lights and the stars. They are a delight on CD as well as live. Their on stage personas carry through their lives and you find they are geniune fun people who just love to play wonderful music.

janet klein sings like ruth etting and plays ukulele like cliff edwards, her band sound like squirrel nut zippers and fun hawaiian guitar playing thruout. these are obscure 20's 30's songs youl ove, i promise you. buy 1 for yourself and another for a friend. hot jazz you will love. i guarentee it

I have every CD that Janet Klein and her Parlor Boys have released, and this is perhaps my favorite, along with Put a Flavor to Love. The songs are fun and beautifully recorded, and I find myself dancing around and singing along whenever I play this superlative release. I wish I lived in Southern California so that I could see her perform live - it sounds like she's having so much fun and I want to be there in person.

Indulging my fondness for music of days gone by, I took a chance on Ms Klein's "Living in Sin". I'm ever so glad I did. The collection captures the sense and sound of the 20's and 30's, and yet is as immediate as a clean shave. Wonderful and playful, and packaged in beautiful artwork that invokes the yesteryear of the source material. Every track is a gem, and I was particularly delighted to find Ms Klein had covered "Everyone Says, I Love You", which I knew from Horsefeathers, the Marx Bros movie.

If you're tempted, get it.

(Confidential to Miss Klein: Please cover Ada Jones's "The Yama Yama Man", circa 1907, soon!)

Another great selection of songs from an era yet untouched by excessive sampling and covers. Refreshing to hear fresh music....ironic it is 80-90 years back. The players are obviously into the genre for real...well worth a listen...it grows on you.

Janet Klein provides an important archive of songs, most of which have been passed over. The CD design is brilliant. The unfortunate part is that she cannot carry a tune. I am a singer and director of musical events, and a great lover of music of all kinds. Never have I heard or purchased a CD on which the artist had such poor pitch. (And I don't include Florence Foster Jenkins.)

Yes! You will dance round the kitchen floor in wild abandon when you play this one! This is a truly great showcase for pure joy, energy and enthusiastic musicality. The best I've heard of its type, and I listen to as much as I can. Janet Klein's lilting vocals can reduce one to tears in an instance, whether from laughter or sentimentality. And what can be written about Ian Whitcomb (Janet's No 1 Parlor Boy) that hasn't already been written? He is the jewel in Queen Janet's crown. Don't miss this one or you'll deprive yourself of a little piece of Happiness Heaven.

This is my personal favorite cd of Janet Klein's since her all ukulele debut(Come Into My Parlor). The song selection is perfect, the musicianship exellent, and Miss Klein's vocals are superb. Klein sounds as though she has transformed herself back to the late 20's/early 30's for a cover of Annette Hanshaw's obscure "When The World Is At rest ." She sounds every bit as bright as Cleo Brown on "When" and I don't think anyone has ever covered "That's Love" in the last 50 years other then The Boswell Sisters or Elsie Carlile. Another gem Klein covers is OH! written by obscure but great Florida based composer of the 20's/30's Robert Cloud. Overall great and enjoyable cd of art deco songs and vocals. Also worth mentioning is a great version of "Sweet Man" which is a delightful paino duet with stride pianist Brad Kay. And there are several Django Reinhardt covers including "Undecided" originally sing by Beryl Davis with Reinhardt. Just buy this one, you won't regret it, one only wishes there were more ukulele solos by miss Klein, however if that is waht you want pick up her 1st album(Come Into My Parlor). Let's hope for another ukulele solo album soon. This is her VERY best album so far wih her exellent parlor boys.

It is impossible for me to listening to this album without smiling, without tapping my toes, without dancing. Janet Klein and her Parlor Boys are so much fun to listen to, and they seem to be having as good a time playing the music as I have listening to it. More Janet, please!

Janet Klein 's renditions of these fun, somewhat racy songs from the 1920's will get stuck in your head with no way out. The world will turn into a Betty Boop cartoon, where everything comes to life, swaying and bouncing to the rhythm. Infectuous!

Janet Klein and her parlor boys create her best album yet. Every song on this album is absolutely wonderful, and it is skillfully produced and recorded - exceptional sound quality. This is an album that will make you smile and laugh, and rediscover a forgotten era but with crisp digital sound. A must have for any music lover.

If I could give it more that a five, I would! If you aren't the type that likes for your toes to start tapping without you and are not given to pulling up a total stranger in a somber three-piece at your office to cut the rug while singing cheerful tunes making everyone's day a little brighter then this is definitely NOT for you! From the first play I was in such a happy mood that I had to listen the whole day through. I had the tunes memorized before too long! The music of this era was known for its upbeat, catchy lyrics. Ms. Klein is the perfect chanteuse and her Boys play and sing a great accompaniment to give the whole a youthful maturity. I recommend it and all of her cds highly!

For all of you Janet Kleinaholics this is the best album yet. Her voice is more assured, and the musicianship and song choices are tops. I can't wait for her next endeavor.

Playing through this collection is the next best thing to finding a trunkful of pristine condition 78s featuring the likes of Annette Hanshaw, Helen Kane, and Ruth Etting. Janet Klein and her Parlor Boys have at it with nineteen saucy songs from the mid-teens through the mid-thirties and fill them with new life and crackling mischief.

Ms. Klein vocalizes these sultry, suggestive gems as though to the manner born, even raising some heat out of thin numbers like "Lookie Lookie Here Comes Cookie." Best of all are numbers like "My Canary Has Circles Under His Eyes" that mesh sauciness with an arch sense of humor. The Parlor Boys are a wonderful ensemble, fully in-tune with a Jazz Age sensibility, but not hostage to it.

There isn't much in the way of liner notes, just a detailed list of the songs, the personnel for each number, and some fun novelty photos of the gang in an amusement pier setting. Which is wholly appropriate for a collection that plays like a hot and jazzy day at a carnival from yesteryear.