The Joy of Easy Listening/ The Prince and the Composer, BBC Four | reviews, news & interviews
The Joy of Easy Listening/ The Prince and the Composer, BBC Four
The Joy of Easy Listening/ The Prince and the Composer, BBC Four
From rock to schlock, and a musical turn from HRH
Friday, 27 May 2011
James Last in the heyday of easy listening - don't worry, they don't make them like this any more
Once upon a time, "easy listening" was a term of abuse and contempt, intended to evoke everything uncool, unhip and musically middle-aged. It meant pipe, cardigan, golf and Bing Crosby, and it was the last thing you'd hear before you were felled by your thickened arteries and under-exercised heart.
Once upon a time, "easy listening" was a term of abuse and contempt, intended to evoke everything uncool, unhip and musically middle-aged. It meant pipe, cardigan, golf and Bing Crosby, and it was the last thing you'd hear before you were felled by your thickened arteries and under-exercised heart.
Richard Carpenter looked like a haggard Special Forces veteran, which goes to show there's nothing easy about easy listening
Explore topics
Share this article
The future of Arts Journalism
You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!
We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d
And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.
Subscribe to theartsdesk.com
Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.
To take a subscription now simply click here.
And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?
more TV
Strike: The Ink Black Heart, BBC One review - protracted, convoluted puzzler lifted by its leads
The army veteran and his partner are still trapped in a detective-genre script
Black Doves, Netflix review - Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw battle against the implausible
Can anyone be trusted in Joe Barton's twisty London drama?
Senna, Netflix review - the life and legend of Brazil's greatest driver
You saw the movie, now watch the TV series
Landman, Paramount+ review - once upon a time in the West
Billy Bob Thornton stars in Taylor Sheridan's Texas oil drama
Paris Has Fallen, Prime Video review - Afghan war veteran wreaks a terrible vengeance
Cynical politicians and amoral arms dealers feel the heat
Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, BBC One review - handsome finale for Hilary Mantel adaptation
Mark Rylance is on top form as his Thomas Cromwell re-emerges after nine years
The Day of the Jackal, Sky Atlantic review - Frederick Forsyth's assassin gets a modern-day makeover
Eddie Redmayne shoots to kill in lavish 10-part drama
Until I Kill You, ITV1 review - superb performances in a frustrating true-crime story
Anna Maxwell Martin and Shaun Evans are compelling, but the script needs more ballast
Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Disney+ review - the Boss grows older defiantly
Thom Zimny's film reels in 50 years of New Jersey's most famous export
Industry, BBC One review - bold, addictive saga about corporate culture now
Third season of the tale of investment bankers reaches a satisfying climax
Rivals, Disney+ review - adultery, skulduggery and political incorrectness
Back to the Eighties with Jilly Cooper's tales of the rich and infamous
Disclaimer, Apple TV+ review - a misfiring revenge saga from Alfonso Cuarón
Odd casting and weak scripting aren't a temptation to keep watching
Add comment