Les Baxter had decided at a very early age that he was to make music his life’s work. His family had moved from Texas to Detroit, Michigan in the late twenties, crossing the country with his father in a Ford Model T. He learned to play the piano at the early age of 5 years old and studied at the Detroit Conservatory of Music. He also took up the clarinet and played in the Local Youth Symphony. Furthering his musical education he went on to study composition at Pepperdine College in Los Angeles, California. Early in his career, he worked as a tenor sax player with Freddie Slack’s band and Barney Bigard, a traditional jazz clarinetist who had played with Duke Ellington. Eventually Les tired of playing the tenor sax and decided to use his vocal talents as a member of the Mel-Tones, a harmony group formed by Mel Torme in 1945. Eventually Baxter quit to work for NBC Radio as one of a vocal quartet that sang on Pepsodent commercials on the Bob Hope radio show. He liked getting paid an incredible amount of money for doing very little amount of work. This was also his early introduction of how unfair the entertainment industry was.

He began arranging and ended up as musical director for Bob Hope and, later, Abbott and Costello. He continued his occasional vocal work as late as 1952 but he had higher aspirations. It is interesting to note that during this period Les Baxter had recorded a ’45 EP for the Discovery label as the "Les Baxter Trio."

Kennet Saari comments:

Les joined the staff of Capitol Records in the late forties as a conductor and arranger. He wrote arrangements and conducted the orchestra on recording sessions for such singers as Frank Sinatra and Bob Eberle. He was involved in a historic session with Nat King Cole that included "Mona Lisa", "Nature Boy" and "Too Young" although the arrangements for the latter were actually done by Nelson Riddle, not Baxter as some (including himself) later claimed. Like a number of Capitol’s house arrangers, Baxter was able to record his own arrangements and compositions. Baxter had full Carte Blanche at Capitol and utilized to the fullest extent the power that was given him for his own creative ideas and experimented with a variety of themes, musical devices, and genres.

Music Out of the Moon was originally recorded and released in 1948 as a boxed set of three ‘78’s. It was the first to sport a four color cover and the first to offer what would become known as the cheesecake cover. Themes were by Harry Revel with orchestra arranged and conducted by Leslie Baxter. Les has said

"I was happy to get an arranging credit but a lot of the music was mine".

Upon repeated listening, I would say he was right.

The album featured a choir, one cello, one French horn, a rhythm section and a theremin. This was also the first popular record to feature this electronic instrument. It was played by waving your hands around an electronic field.

The theremin on this session was played by Dr. Samuel Hoffman. It sold a lot of copies but was it the compositions, the theremin or the girl on the cover?

The first Exotica album "Le Sacre Du Sauvage" or "Ritual of the Savage" was a concept album of the modern South Seas. The song titles alone provoking images of forbidden knowledge; "Busy Port," "Jungle River Boat", "Love Dance" and "The Ritual" The cover emblazoned several different size tiki gods, enough to scare the hell out of any kid. This was a pure unadulterated pleasure music. Music to take you to far away lands of savage beauty.

The liner notes asked…."Do the mysteries of native rituals intrigue you?

This was also the first appearance of a little song called "Quiet Village".

The Exotica theme song for all things dark and mysterious. It also gave Martin Denny a number #1 hit in 1959 and simultaneously launched the entire modern Exotica movement that changed the character of all the current music that followed.

A lot of people including myself have often wondered what were Baxter’s early influences during this time period. I posed this question to one of Les’s friends Skip Heller to which he replied…….

The Exotic records unto themselves constitutes a major, unappreciated body of American music. The best way to know Les is to listen to his best music.

The following are required listening……… "Music out of the Moon", "The Ritual of the Savage", "The Passions", "Tamboo", "Skins", "Space Escapade", "Ports of Pleasure", "African Jazz", "Jungle Jazz", "The Sacred Idol" (did I leave any out) Oh yeah………… "Teen Drums", "Jewels of the Sea", "The Primitive and the Passionate", "The Soul of the Drums", "Moog Rock" and "Que Mango".

Les Baxter passed away on January 15th 1996 in Newport Beach, California. But up until the very end Les’s mind was constantly fixed on his music. His last live performance was in California on July 24^th, 1994 at the LACM, Bing Theater. It was part of the "Sunday’s At Four " series with the Los Angeles Composers Guild Chamber Orchestra. David Goodman was the Musical Director for the evening.

Les performed two original compositions, "Movement" and "Poem." "Poem" was actually Les Baxter’s original song "Rio" from the "Tamboo!" album. Talk about going full circle.

Oh, by the way, did I mention that he scored over a 120 motion pictures……….!