Ted Malone - Intimacy (LP, 1955)

Ted Malone / Lee Sullivan / Joe Leahy Orchestra
Intimacy
RKO Unique LP-101, mono, 1955

Some of you might already be familiar with Ted Malone, renowned radio personality of the '30s, '40s and '50s. He captivated audiences with his unique poetic style, which garnered decades of public respect and admiration, as well as countless business opportunities. Malone was also widely-acknowledged as one of the only broadcast "interpretationists."

This album is extremely scarce. Again, we find that doing a basic Google search yields hardly any information. Even someone as popular as Ted Malone was (in his heyday at least), this album seems to have fallen through the cracks of his repertoire. Yes, Unique label recordings tend to be kind of rare in general, but many of them are also excellent. Intimacy is certainly no exception. This LP, from 1955, is a "sentimental journey," so to speak, through love and heartache, soul-searching and soul-giving. It's incredibly heartfelt and I find that my emotional response to this album is significantly greater than most, if not all, of the music I usually find myself listening to. There's just something about this record that touches me, and I can't help but "feel it."

Something else worthy of note, taking into account Malone's reputation as broadcast "interpretationist," I can definitely hear how this manifests, at least throughout this LP. He appears to have lucid, well-articulated insights into the real-life emotional characteristics and consequences of the selected songs. He expands upon the lyrics in a way that's easy to understand and easy for anyone, being human, to relate to. He has a keen sense of human nature.

All in all, this is a truly one-of-a-kind listening experience, albeit one that's difficult to come by. Luckily for you, I've made the entire album available for download. The sounds are as good as yours. :)

Link will be in the comments, and, as always, feedback about my ripping/remastering job is much appreciated. :)

Now, here's a sample track: #6, I've Got You Under My Skin