Jose Marcello Orchestra - Big Hits 1

Dutch orchestra leader Jose Marcello (b. 1935) began his performing career in 1954 at the Place Pigalle in Amsterdam. In the 1960s, after playing with various orchestras and small groups, Marcello formed a group of his own with his wife, Joke Copier, as vocalist. One of the songs they recorded was a Dutch version of the Four Seasons hit Big Girls Don't Cry.

Marcello put together a big dance band in the '70s that released seven or eight LPs and a few singles over the next decade.

The Jose Marcello Orchestra, from the cover of a 1981 single.

Big Hits 1 (or Vol. 1 on some LP covers) was released in 1976 at the height of the disco era. So your enjoyment level may depend on your tolerance for that thumping beat. If you can get past that you'll find that this is a fine dance (as opposed to swing) band with some exciting arrangements. Here's Marcello's take on the Theme from S.W.A.T.

Theme from S.W.A.T.



Big Hits 1 was released in several European countries besides Marcello's home base in the Netherlands. My copy is from Portugal. It must have done fairly well because there was a Big Hits 2 within a year or so. I can't find evidence that any of the output of the Jose Marcello Orchestra has received a digital release.

Some of Marcello's albums were of the strict tempo dance variety, like this one from 1980.