October 2003

October 30, 2003
 
 

I'm Cuckoo Over You
Bennie Krueger's Orchestra                  1921
(Brunswick 2174-A)
 

Crazy Blues
Benny Krueger's Orchestra
Al Bernard, vocal                               1920
(Brunswick 2077-A)

Bennie Krueger led one of the early popular jazz dance bands.   Krueger also played saxophone with the Original Dixieland Jazz Band in the session which produced that band's hit recordings of "Margie" and "Palesteena."  By the early 1920s his was one of the more prominent bands on the newly formed Brunswick label.  Krueger was also one of the first bandleaders to sign with the Music Corporation of America band booking agency.  The band continued to make records into the 1930s and accompanied Bing Crosby in several recording sessions.

Vocalist Al Bernard was a comedy singer in vaudeville who was billed as "The Boy From Dixie."

Unfortunately, both of the recordings featured this week are in far from pristine condition.  In fact,  as you will hear, my copy of "Crazy Blues" is in such dreadful shape that I hesitated a bit over including it.  However, I have been fond of the recording ever since I acquired it several years back so I decided to go ahead with it. 

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October 23, 2003
 
 

 
 

One very common reaction people have when I introduce them to music from the 1920s and early 1930s is: "That sounds like something from an old cartoon or an old movie!"  Very often it is said enthusiastically, although sometimes it is said in a tone of derision. It is understandable why people who are too young to have remembered the music when it was popular might think of it in such terms.  It is only natural that the producers of cartoons and movies tend to feature the popular music of the day that audiences are familiar and comfortable with.  For all intents and purposes, 1920s and 1930s music has been all but forgotten in our popular culture and virtually non-existent on conventional radio stations for decades (Thank goodness for the Internet!)  Old movies and especially old cartoons, however, tended to fare better and continue to be shown on television - along with the music that they featured.   Sadly, for several generations, the only exposure many people have had  to 1920s and 1930s music has been through old films and cartoons.  And, since the music was subordinate to the story line, the old cartoons did not always present the music in the best possible light.  There were some exceptions, most notably the early Betty Boop cartoons which actually featured cameo appearances by jazz greats such as Don Redman and Cab Calloway.

For this week's update, I thought it would be fun to present  some "cartoon music."  None of the selections are actually from cartoon soundtracks - indeed a couple of them pre-date the advent of talking pictures.  But, to me, all of them have a certain cartoon soundtrack quality to them.  Listen and see if you agree.
 
 

The Woman In The Shoe
Hotel Pennsylvania Music                   1930
(Okeh 41355 mx 403552)

This song comes from the 1930 talking picture Lord Byron of Broadway.  "Hotel Pennsylvania Music" was a recording pseudonym used by the Jack Albin Orchestra.  Albin led a New York City society band during the early 1930s which had a long engagement at the Hotel Pennsylvania.    While I have never  really cared much for this song and consider it to be somewhat hokey, I love this particular recording and its rather lush arrangement.
 

Hi-Diddle-Diddle
George Olsen and His Music              1926
(Victor 20112-A)

This song was composed by Hal Keidel and bandleader Carlton Coon (of Coon-Sanders Nighthawks fame) and was recorded by a number of artists.   The only vocal credit given on this recording is "trio from the orchestra."
 

The Kinky Kids Parade
Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra      1925
(Victor 19753-A)

This is an early electric recording. The band sounds like it was still set up for an acoustical recording session.  As electrical recording became more commonplace, bands quickly adopted arrangements and recording session set ups that took better advantage of the improved technology.   I think this song by composers Gus Kahn and Walter Donaldson has a pretty tune.   Unfortunately, the song's title ties in to some of the then common racial stereotypes.  "Kinky Kids" (as in "kinky hair") refers to black children and the artwork on the original sheet music was not especially flattering in its portrayal of them. 
 

The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down
Eddy Duchin and His Orchestra
Lew Sherwood, vocal                             1937
(Victor 25585-A)

If this tune sounds familiar, it might be because it was also used as the theme song of Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes cartoon series.
 
 

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October 16, 2003
 
 

 
I'm Following You
The High Hatters 
Frank Luther, vocal                             1929
(Victor 22218-A)
 

Takes You
The High Hatters
Frank Luther, vocal                             1929
(Victor 22046-A)

The High Hatters was a recording pseudonym for an in-house Victor Talking Machine Company studio orchestra led by Leonard Joy that specialized in upbeat dance selections.  Unfortunately, my copy of "Takes You" is not in the best of shape and, as a result, you will hear a slight bit of distortion in certain of the louder passages.
 
 

EXTRA

Here are some files I added to this website's 1920s & 1930s Popular Music section over the past week as part of my ongoing effort to replace all of the older audio files on this site with ones that have been restored using the Souvenir VSP in conjunction with my DC-art audio restoration software.
 
 

From October 1998 Update (Volume IV)

I've Got You On My Mind
Leo Reisman and His Orchestra;   Fred Astaire, vocal                    1932

Sweet Georgia Brown
Isham Jones' Orchestra;  Bing Crosby, vocal                                1932

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra                                              1937

Wrappin' It Up
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra                                          1934

Take It Easy
Orville Knapp and His Orchestra; Edith Caldwell, vocal               1935

Where The Shy Little Violets Grow
Campus Boys;   Ralph Haines, vocal                                        1928

Rhumbola
Abe Lyman and His California Orchestra                                  1935

Old Playmate
Ted Lewis and His Band;  Ted Lewis, vocal                             1931

Jungle Fever
Glen Gray and The Casa Loma Orchestra                                   1934
 

I'm An Old Cowhand
Charlie Barnett and His Glen Island Casino Orchestra                  1936

We Can't Use Each Other Any More
Lew Bray, vocal
Sunny Clapp & His Band O' Sunshine                                       1929

If I Could Be With You
Hotel Pennsylvania Music; Billy Coty, vocal                                   1930

The Lonesome Road
Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra                                                   1931

Shine
Ella Fitzgerald and Her Savoy Eight                                               1936

Send For Me
Fred Rich and His Orchestra                                                          1930

Mixed Salad
The New Orleans Bootblacks                                                        1926

Keep A Song In Your Soul
Fletcher Henderson & His Orchestra                                        1930

London Rhythm
Mills Brothers, vocal                                                                   1936

On The Sunny Side Of The Street           1937
Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra 

What Do We Do On A Dew-Dew-Dewy Day
Nat Shilkret and The Victor Orchestra 
Johnny Marvin, vocal                                                                 1927

Following The Sun Around
Carl Fenton's Orchestra                                                                1927

Butch The Beach Boy
Frankie Masters and His Orchestra                                         1939 
 
 

Below are selections that I had updated with new audio files made before I acquired my Souvenir VSP with just my audio restoration software.  The results with the Souvenir VSP are so much superior that I have decided to update them as well
 
 

From October 1998 (Volume IV)

I'm Needing You
Ben Hammond and His Orchestra                                                  1937
 
 

From June 1998 (Volume III)

Caution:  In Volumes I though Volume III, audio files in one volume can have identical file names as audio files in other volumes.  Therefore, if you plan on downloading a lot of the files, it is advised that you either change the file name or download the selections into a separate folder for each volume so that you do not accidentally overwrite another file.

These Foolish Things Remind Me Of You
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra;  Helen Ward, vocal               1936

A Year From Today
Leo Reisman and His Orchestra 
 

 
Riffin At The Ritz
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra                                  1936

Happy Days Are Here Again
Leo Reisman and His Orchestra                                          1929

Goodnight My Love
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra; Ella Fitzgerald, vocal     1936

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October 9, 2003
 
 

 

(Click on each image for larger view)

You Went Away Too Far And
Stayed Away Too Long
Jacques Renard and His Orchestra 
Johnny Marvin, vocal and ukulele            1927
(Victor 20487-A)
 

Lonely
Jacques Renard and His Orchestra           1927
(Victor 20487-B)

Jacques Renard (née Jacob Stavinski) was born in Kiev, Russia and raised in Chelsea, Massachusetts where he received training as a classical violinist.  By the late 1920s he was one of Boston's top bandleaders.  Broadcasts over local Boston radio stations attracted the attention of the national networks and during the 1930s he fronted the house band on a number of network radio programs including  Burns  & Allen and the Eddy Cantor show.

Many of Jacques Renard's recordings from the late 1920s are billed as "Jacques Renard and His Cocoanut Grove Orchestra."   The Cocoanut Grove was a top Boston nightclub which, on November 28, 1942, became the scene of what is still one of the nation's most deadly fires.  492 of the 1,000 or so people who were in the club when the fire broke out lost their lives. The above circa 1930s advertisement for the club  comes (ironically) from a matchbook cover I picked up in an auction a while back.

Johnny Marvin was one of the early crooners and was  popular on records both in the United States and Britain. 

I think the second selection, "Lonely" has a certain haunting quality about it.  I am particularly fond of the passage  about a minute and twenty seconds into the recording that features a musical duel of sorts.
 
 

EXTRA

Here are some files I added to this website's 1920s & 1930s Popular Music section over the past week as part of my ongoing effort to replace all of the older audio files on this site with ones that have been restored using the Souvenir VSP in conjunction with my DC-art audio restoration software.
 
 

From August 1999 Update (Volume V)

It Makes My Love Come Down
Bessie Smith, vocal - James P. Johnson, piano                                  1929

No Trouble But You
Ben Bernie & His Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra;  Ben Bernie, vocal       1926

Is There A Place Up There For Me
Paul Tremaine and His Orchestra                                              circa 1931(A

Nobody Cares If I'm Blue
Annette Hanshaw                                                                            1930
 

Let's Say Good Night Till The Morning
Jack Buchanan and Elsie Randolph, vocals                                       1926
 

Until Today
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra                                              1936
 

'Deed I Do
Al Lentz's Dance Orchestra; Al Lentz, vocal                                   1927

Humming Your Glum Times Away
Donald Peers, vocal                                                                     1934

Runnin' Wild
Joe Daniels and His Hot Shots In "Drumnasticks"                           1937

Betty Co-Ed
Phil Spitalny's Music                                                                  1930
 

Dust On The Moon
The Castillian Troubadours                                                           1934

Highways Are Happy Ways
Harry Reser's Rounders                                                                1928

Sing, Brothers!
Jay Wilbur and His Band                                                              1932
 

The St. Louis Blues
Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians                                     1930
 

My Own
George Hall and His Orchestra;  Dolly Dawn, vocal                          1938
 

It Goes Like This
Cliff "Ukulele Ike" Edwards, vocal                                                  1928
 

Spanish Doll
B.A. Rolf and His Lucky Strike Dance Orchestra                              1929

Some Day You'll Realize You're Wrong
California Ramblers                                                                        1929
 

I'm In The Market For You
George Olsen and His Music; Fred MacMurray, vocal                     1930
 

He, She, And Me
Ben Selvin and His Orchestra                                                        1929
 
 

From October 1998 Update (Volume IV)

Freeze Out
Clarence Williams and His Jazz Kings                                   1929
 

Lucky Strike Presents: I Love To Whistle
Kay Kyser & His Orchestra;  Sully Mason, vocal                   1938
 

I Know Why
Roy Collins' Dance Orchestra                                                  1927
 

Left My Gal In The Mountains
Gene Kardos and his Orchestra                                               1933

Something To Remember You By
Sam Lanin's Dance Ensemble;  Paul Small, vocal                  1931
 
 

From March 1998 Update (Volume I)

Little White Lies
Annette Hanshaw, vocal                                                      1930
 
 
 

Below are selections that I had updated with new audio files made before I acquired my Souvenir VSP with just my audio restoration software.  The results with the Souvenir VSP are so much superior that I have decided to update them as well
 
 

From August 1999 (Volume V)

No Trouble But You
Ben Bernie & His Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra;  Ben Bernie, vocal       1926
 

I Adore You
Leo Reisman and His Orchestra; Harry Maxfield, vocal                   1927
 

Big Chief De Soto
"Fats" Waller and His Rhythm                                                       1936

A Jazz Holiday
Ted Lewis and His Band;  Ted Lewis, vocal                                  1928

My Baby Knows How
California Ramblers                                                                       1926
 

Out Of The Dawn
Nat Shilkret and the Victor Orchestra                                             1928
 

My Suppressed Desire
Paul Whiteman's Rhythm Boys                                                     1928
 

That's What Puts The 
"Sweet" In Home Sweet Home
Jean Goldkette's Orchestra;  Harold Stokes, vocal                           1929
 
 

From October 1998 (Volume IV)

Top Hat
Ray Noble and His Orchestra;
Al Bowlly and The Freshmen, vocals                                   1935

Sunday
Jean Goldkette and His Orchestra
The Keller Sisters and Lynch, vocals                                          1926

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October 2, 2003
 
 

 
This week's update is going to be a little different in that I am featuring recordings that do not fit the vintage popular music fare that is usually presented here.  One of the pleasures of making a bulk purchase of 78 rpm records is that it often includes recordings from artists, musical genres and styles outside of the primary focus of one's collecting interests - and the process of listening to such records can often result in some unexpected but enjoyable discoveries.   Therefore, every so often, I will present a "musical odds and ends" update featuring such recordings I have come across in my collection. 
 
 

(Click on image for larger view)

Unknown Japanese Recording
Artists Unknown                      circa mid-1930s?
(Columbia (Japan) A 199 mx 2209930)

I know absolutely nothing about this recording other than the fact that it was issued on the Japanese Columbia label.  My guess from the label design is that it is from sometime in the 1930s - but  I have no way of knowing for sure.  What I find interesting about this recording is that it features a military band playing a very pretty tune that sounds Western, not Japanese.  The words, however, are in Japanese and, to me, sound like they are sung by a group of children.  The flip side of the record features the same song only played slightly more up tempo and without the vocal.  If anyone knows how to read Japanese and understands what is written on the above image of the record label, I would love to know.  Click on the image to see a larger and easier to read version.  If  someone does provide me with an answer, I will post it in either next week's update or the archived version of this week's update.

Update: a couple of visitors were kind enough to inform me that the title of this recording translates to "For A New Day" and that  the artist is Masako Kawada .
 
 
 
 
 

Here I Come
International Novelty Orchestra               1927
(Victor  20884-B)

Here is an upbeat Cuban dance song that is more commonly known as Ay Que Me Vengo Cayendo.  The record's label does not provide the usual composer credits and a search about the song on the Internet did not turn up any - which makes me speculate that the song is old enough to be considered "traditional."  Again, if anyone has information about it, I would be interested in knowing.

The International Novelty Orchestra was a Victor Talking Machine Company house band led by music director Nat Shilkret.
 
 

El Jacalito
Pilar Arcos, vocal 
Fortunio Bonanova, vocal            circa late 1920s
(Okeh 16253 mx 400056)

The record  label describes this selection as  a canción Mexicana or "Mexican song."  I don't have any information in my dating guides on the Okeh 16000 Spanish language series - but the label design indicates that it is from the mid - late 1920s. 

One of the benefits of doing these updates every week is they always inspire me to research more about the recordings that I probably would otherwise.   Apparently  Ms. Arcos and Mr. Bonanova were both well regarded as vocalists and as actors.  Here  is a photograph I found online of Pilar Arcos. 

Fortunio Bonanova seems to have been a rather accomplished individual - at one time or another, he was an opera singer, a film director, an actor on film, television and Broadway as well as an author of books, plays and short stories.  He was friends with Orson Welles and played the role of the singing teacher Signor Matisti in Welles' film Citizen Kane.

Interestingly enough, Arcos and Bonanova were both reunited in 1954 when they appeared  in an episode of the popular American television series I Love Lucy entitled "Lucy's Mother In-Law." (This was the episode in which Lucy used a hidden microphone to pretend to speak Spanish to Ricky's mother who was visiting from Cuba)  Bonanova was cast as "Professor Bonanova" and Arcos played a party guest.   I actually remember the episode quite well having seen it several times when I was a kid.  Somehow, had I not chosen this record for this week's update, I seriously doubt I would have ever made the connection. 
 
 

Who Dead Caanan
King Radio, vocal                        circa mid 1930s
(Kiskedee 5001-A mx 12079)
 

Here is an example of calypso music - an Afro-Carribbean style of music that originated in the early 20th century.  This recording was issued on a British specialty label called Kiskedee which was apparently devoted to Calypso music.  According to the label information, it was recorded in Trinidad at Sa Gomes Studios.  This is the only example of a Kiskedee record I have ever come across - and its label design is interesting enough that I decided to include an image of it.

I don't have much biographical information about King Radio, but he was one of the top names in Calypso music during the 1930s as well as the composer of this selection. 

I have a CD reissue of a number of '30s era Calypso selections and, for the most part, enjoy the music itself which is often upbeat and sometimes has certain touches of Cuban rumba and American jazz mixed in.   But I find the lyrics on many Calypso recordings to be a bit too dismal for my taste.  Most Calypso recordings are sung in English, but I sometimes have trouble understanding the heavy accent.