The Manhattan Transfer

This 1981 album was a confident mix of mainstream and experimental styles and found a wide audience by offering everything from the rocking nostalgia of "Boy from New York City" (a Top-10 hit) to the frantic bop vocalese of "Confirmation" (a tribute to Charlie Parker). The expert vocal group's last major pop hit, though their career remains strong.

The Manhattan Transfer's repertoire has always consisted of a mixture of camp, smoothie
pop and jazz. But on Mecca for Moderns, the camp is conspicuously absent–unless you
count the camp-by-imitation in the group's remake of the Ad Libs' "Boy from New York
City"–and the pop and jazz have edged closer to each other. All of which still makes for
some pretty hip pop music: the tricky tempo in "On the Boulevard" is a lot faster... More >