"Back to Romance" by Matt Catingub Orchestra of Hawai'i with various artists; Mountain Apple Co.

We direct this now to gentlemen readers.

Ladies, you may excuse yourselves.

Is she gone? Good. Let's get right to it: Have you got her present yet?

Vacuum cleaner? Right. Car wash gift certificates? Hmmm. Complete set of plastic food storage containers? Oh, for crying out loud!

Give us a minute to compose ourselves.

Sigh. OK. These are all very useful and we're sure she'll be very grateful but there's something missing: the "R" factor.

Pops conductor Matt Catingub and his Matt Catingub Orchestra of Hawai'i haven't forgotten. Their new CD, "Back to Romance," shrugs off practicality, feminist rhetoric and post-modern cynicism and transports listeners back to a time when we weren't embarrassed to, well, to feel something, go a little starry-eyed and dreamy, even to fall into each others' arms under the influence of the right piece of music.

Catingub's formula: Select 16 mellow love songs from different eras. Recruit a clutch of equally eclectic (and may we say 'ono-luscious) male musicians — Robert Cazimero, Jake Shimabukuro, Jimmy Borges, Barry Flanagan and Nathan Aweau of Hapa and Eric Gilliom among them. Back them with a 40-piece ensemble that moves easily between Big Band and symphony, with touches of jazz in Catingub's saxophone and Bruce Hamada's bass playing, of piano bars and showrooms spanning the '40s to '60s, of bright pop in Beatles tunes and oldies like "My Special Angel." Record it on stage at the Hawai'i Theatre for great acoustics and the right, vintage atmosphere.

Need convincing of the formula's effectiveness? It worked in 2006's "Return to Romance."

Or ask Maui chef Bev Gannon: "It brought back fun and romantic memories from a simpler time," she said of her favorite cut, "Till There was You," featuring vocalist and stand-up bass maestro Bruce Hamada.

TV personality Tess Baraquio: "Matt's swing and sax (are) a formula for a great love song." Her favorite cut, Fiji's "My Love": "A true artist with passion, funk, soul, attitude, versatility and an incredible set of pipes."

Designer Anne Namba liked the CD so well she made it the soundtrack for a fashion show. Her favorite cut: "Something (In the Way She Moves Me)" — "for me, they took it to the next level and made it uniquely theirs."

Carol Ai May, a vice president at City Mill, who, pushed to name a favorite, chose Catingub's tenor sax instrumental, "Wave," but said it was a hard decision; she loved 'em all.

Decorator Mary Philpotts McGrath listens to "Oh, Pretty Woman" as an uplifting way to start the day.

How's that vacuum cleaner looking about now?

And here's an idea: Package the CD with the promise of tickets to the first live performance of the "Back to Romance" songs in May at the Hawai'i Romance Festival (tickets are not yet on sale).

"Back to Romance" is available at music stores and online at www.mcooh.com.

Reach Wanda A. Adams at wadams@honoluluadvertiser.com.

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