Sea of Dreams was Nelson Riddle’s fifth studio album, released in March 1958.

[1] The inspiration for Nelson Riddle’s conception of the theme of Sea of Dreams was the setting of his California home on the shoreline of the Pacific Ocean.

A departure from his previous albums that were composed of arrangements characterized as bright and danceable, Sea of Dreams consists of music said to be “especially moving and romantic,” performed by a large string orchestra.

[2] Sea of Dreams was Riddle's first stereophonic recording.

[3] Cash Box said Riddle takes “the listener on a slow mood excursion,” with “a lush string treatment to a dozen romantic selections.” [4] One reviewer observed that Sea of Dreams fell on “the romantic side of the Exotica genre.” “Instead of interweaving exotic percussion with the surroundings, Riddle concentrates exclusively on the strings, leaving a small niche for mallet instruments and bells of all kinds.”[5]