Category Archives: äva

Categories: äva, California, Los Angeles

The Pace-Setters

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The äva label – Elmer Bernstein, Fred Astaire, Carol Lawrence, the Pete Jolly Trio – lots of movie themes and light pop music. It makes sense for a label distributed by MGM. Yet I’ve managed to find a couple great instrumental 45s on äva, Allyn Ferguson’s “Your Red Watermelon” and this one, a solid double-sided winner by the Pace-Setters.

Mustang has a nicely tremoloed guitar setting up riffs for a sax to finish off while engines rev in the background. Heads Up is a great r&b guitar workout originally done by Freddie King.

As for the Pace-Setters, they seem to have been a faceless group of studio musicians. Shows how much talent was around in LA in 1964 – two well-produced instrumentals like this get buried in obscurity.

Mustang was written by Gary Moulton, both sides were produced by Steve Benson.

Categories: äva, California, Los Angeles

Allyn Ferguson

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Here’s an oddity – not garage but a gonzo 60’s instrumental with horns, twangy guitar line and all.

“Your Red Watermelon” is catchy and funky, and was well received when I spun it at Shakey’s Night Owl Record Fair this past Tuesday.

Allyn Ferguson was best known as the band leader on the Andy Williams Show. In the late ’50s his Chamber Jazz Sextet had an LP on Cadence as well as backing Kenneth Patchen on his LP for the same label, and in the ’70s he co-wrote the theme to the Barney Miller TV show.

Update: I’m sorry to report that Allyn Ferguson passed away on June 23, 2010, he was 85 years old. A full obit is here

The äva label also released a fine 45 by the Pace-Setters that I’ve covered on this site.