March 2006

March 23, 2006
 
 

Note: I am very pleased to welcome back two guest contributors - Eddie The Collector from Waco, Texas and Christian Kohlhaas from Austin, Texas.   Eddie will be providing the main update this week while Christian will be doing the "Extra."  In both instances, the records and commentary are theirs - my only contribution was to transfer and digitalize the recordings.   You may read more about Eddie as well as view his photo and contact information by clicking here.   You may view similar information about Christian by clicking here. 
 
 
 

Eddie the Collector's father, on the left, walking east on Austin Ave between 6th & 7th streets in Waco, Texas in about 1933-34 when he was 35-36.  He's still wearing his hard brim straw hat from the 20's in preference to the soft brim fedoras being worn by that time.  Note the overhang above his left shoulder - that sheltered the entrance to the S. S. Kress store, long out of business, but the overhang is still in place 70-odd years later.  Under his right elbow can be seen the sign of the Waco Hippodrome, dating from the silent film/vaudeville era - long a movie theater and now once again a stage house.  The lady in the background presents a nice example of feminine attire of the era.  The picture was taken by one of Waco's sidewalk photographers who flourished from about the late 20's 'till early 50's - they'd hand you a coupon and you'd pick up the picture the next day for a small price

 

Sign Of The Rose
Ray Miller And His Orchestra               1926
(Brunswick 3132-B)

Ain't You Baby?
Ray Miller And His Orchestra
Dusty Roads, vocal                              1929
(Brunswick 4692)

Harlem Madness
Ray Miller And His Orchestra
Dusty Roads, vocal                              1929
(Brunswick 4692)
 
 
 

Ray Miller's recording career literally spanned the entire decade of the 1920's - 1920-1930.  He's right up there with Isham Jones and Bennie Krueger in the number of records he recorded - one of those orchestras that I speculate must have lived at the studio. 

For a superb picture of his 1923 orchestra, please see this thread on Dismuke's Message Board .  The personnel look just like the orchestra's music sounded - bright and cheerful.  You'll also notice amongst the personnel individuals who became famous in their own right in the later 20's and throughout the 30's, i.e. Miff Mole, Frank Trumbauer, Rube Bloom and Andy Sanella - no wonder Miller's records always sound so good! 

It's always been intriguing that in notes about Ray Miller's career, nothing seemed to have been known after 1930--until now.  In that same Message Board thread is a posting by a new member, "popmiller,"  who is almost 100% certain that her grandfather, J. Raymond Miller, was the Ray Miller who, as she said, "Made records a long time ago..."  If so, Ray Miller lived until 1974 when he would have been 78, making his age 24 in 1920, placing him exactly at the right time in life to have contributed so much musical beauty to the world over the ensuing decade.

"Sign Of The Rose" was recorded about halfway through Miller's recording career in May, 1926.  This is one of those records that I absolutely think of as an all-time favorite and wouldn't part with for anything.  It's a rather obscure song and was not, as far as I can determine, recorded on any other label.  It also served as Ray Miller's radio theme song according to my long-time collector friend Mr. Gottlieb.  There is also some mystery as to the composer as I've been fortunate in getting the sheet music for it.  The composer credit on the record is Edwards (Gus?), but the sheet music credits words by Sammy Lerner and Billy Rose, music by Buddy Fields and Richard Whiting--it's absolutely the same song.  I'm not a music major, but I think the style of the song is in what's called question/answer--one phrase will pose a "question", then the next will resolve it with an "answer" - and I may be all wet about that, too.  My favorite section has always been towards the end where the chorus is played by the soprano saxophones.  Mr. Gottlieb only had one copy of it, so it was not for sale--I had to come up with a really good trade to obtain it.  One day, I found a record by Tony Parenti's New Orleanians " In the Dungeon"/"When you and I were Pals."  One listen and Mr. Gottlieb traded it to me, but not before he kissed it good-bye!

"Ain't You Baby?" was recorded right at the end of Miller's career, in December, 1929 - he only made four more sides after this one, the last two in June, 1930.  I've got a couple of friends who would knock each other down for this record, except one of them likes the flip side "Harlem Madness" as his favorite.  It's not especially hot, not really fast, but just has the right combination of arrangement, melody, vocal and vitality to make it delightful.  It starts out good and just gets better.  This just shows that right up until the end, the 20's had a style of music that still resonates 75-80 years later, with Ray Miller being one of the best at playing it.

- Eddie The Collector
 

 

EXTRA

This section will  present 78 rpm recordings that do not fall within the range of the vintage pop and jazz  fare that I usually  present.  Here I will feature recordings from a wide variety of eras, musical genres and nationalities as well as occasional spoken word recordings.
 
 

Keep Your Head Down Fritzie Boy
American Quartet                                     1918
(Victor 18467-B)

What Are You Going To Do To Help The Boys?
Charles Hart - Shannon Four                    1918
(Victor 18467-A)
 

The two World War One-era recordings included as part of this week’s “extra” selections are a continuation of the selections originally included as part of the November 11, 2005 update.  If you enjoy these songs you would probably enjoy going back and listening to the songs included in that update as well.

"Keep Your Head Down Fritzie Boy" is a rather light-hearted song considering the subject matter, something which I have found common among WW1 American songs.  Make sure to pay attention to the lyrics as they are quite funny. 

The American Quartet was one of Victor’s premier groups at the time this recording was made, with one of its members, Billy Murray, being a very popular artist having an exclusive contract with Victor.  The late ‘teens marked a sort of high-water mark for this type of group however, as changing consumer tastes after the war would lead to the eventual disintegration of the Quartet.

I really like the Charles Hart vocal on "What Are You Going To Do To Help The Boys."  Hart was a relative newcomer to the record industry at the time this record was made; his first recordings with Victor were in 1917 although he had recorded a few things with smaller labels previously.  Interestingly Hart was of German decent, his parents both being  Germans who immigrated to the United States during the late 19th century.  A lot of wartime propaganda of the period played on the debt immigrants owed the United States for giving them freedom and a new beginning.  Perhaps such feelings led Hart to record this song. 

- Christian Kohlhaas

March 16, 2006
 
 

The Donkey Serenade
Artie Shaw And His Orchestra               1939
(Bluebird B-10125-A)

My Heart Stood Still
Artie Shaw And His Orchestra               1939
(Bluebird B-10125-B)

Go Fly A Kite
Artie Shaw And His Orchestra
Tony Pastor, vocal                               1939
(Bluebird B-10347-A)

Comin' On
Artie Shaw And His Orchestra               1938
(Bluebird B-7772-B)

I Can't Believe That 
You're In Love With Me
Artie Shaw And His Orchestra               1938
(Bluebird B-7772-A)
 

A few weeks ago, I came across the Bluebird disc featuring this week's selections "The Donkey Serenade" and "My Heart Stood Still."  It was the first time I had heard either recording and both of them reminded me why I have always regarded Artie Shaw's 1930s band as being one of the very best of the swing era. 

I think this version of "The Donkey Serenade" is especially impressive.  The song comes from the 1937 Jeanette MacDonald - Allan Jones movie adaptation of the 1912 Rudolf Friml operetta The Firefly.   "The Donkey Serenade" was not part of the original stage production of the operetta.  Friml composed the tune in 1923 under the title "Chansonette" a recording of which became a very big 1924 hit for the Paul Whiteman Orchestra.   For the film version of The Firefly, the song was given new lyrics and revived as "The Donkey Serenade" and once again became a hit song. 

"My Heart Stood Still" is a Lorenz Hart - Richard Rodgers tune which dates back to the 1927 Broadway musical Connecticut Yankee.   I featured a different version of this song by the Artie Shaw band from a 1940 Burns And Allen radio broadcast in my January 13, 2005 update. 

"Comin' On" is one of Artie Shaw's own compositions. 

Happily, Artie Shaw's Bluebird records sold well and are not especially difficult or expensive to come by - and almost all of them make for excellent listening. 

 

EXTRA

This section will  present 78 rpm recordings that do not fall within the range of the vintage pop and jazz  fare that I usually  present.  Here I will feature recordings from a wide variety of eras, musical genres and nationalities as well as occasional spoken word recordings.
 
 

Destiny Waltz
Edith Lorand Orchestra                   circa 1932
(Columbia G-2657-D mx 128096)

Poem
Edith Lorand Orchestra                   circa 1932
(Columbia G 2657 D - mx 133100)
 

Here are two selections by Edith Lorand, the Hungarian born violinist and salon orchestra leader who was extremely popular in Germany and Europe until the rise of the National Socialist Party resulted in the loss of her recording contracts and theatrical bookings and forced her to flee Germany and, eventually, Europe.   I have become a big fan of her recordings and plan to feature more from time to time.

Long time visitors to this site might recall that, awhile back,  I was helping do research trying to identify recording information on some copies of vintage records made by a deceased collector.  I actually offered a reward for confirmation that this recording of "Destiny Waltz" was, indeed, by Edith Lorand and Her Orchestra.  It was this recording that made me aware of Lorand in the first place and I have since acquired my own copy of the record.   My copy is an American pressing on Columbia pressed in Royal Blue shellac - a blue colored and supposedly higher quality record that Columbia issued for a while during the Depression in an attempt to appeal to wealthy people who could still afford to purchase phonograph records.   A friend of mine, however, has a slightly earlier Columbia pressing on the standard black shellac.

"Destiny Waltz" was composed in 1912 by British composer Sydney Baynes and was one of the selections  performed by the band on the ill fated maiden voyage of the Titanic.

"Poem" was composed by 19th century Czech composer Zdenek Fibich. 

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March 9, 2006
 
 

 
Note - I am very please to welcome back guest contributor Matt From College Station  as he shares some more recordings from his excellent collection of 1920s and 1930s jazz and dance band 78 rpm records. 

All recordings and commentary in this update, both the regular and the "Extra" sections, are from Matt.  My only contribution was to transfer and digitalize the recordings. 

You can learn more about Matt and find his contact information by clicking here. 
 

Strike Me Pink Medley Parts 1 & 2
Anson Weeks And His Orchestra
Art Wilson, Harriet Lee, vocals               1933
(Brunswick 20120  mx BX 13112-A, BX 13113-A)

Marching Along Together
Anson Weeks And His Orchestra
Bob Crosby, vocal                                 1933
(Brunswick 6619)

Blue Roses
Anson Weeks And His Orchestra
Carl Ravazza, vocal                               1933
(Brunswick 6619)
 

Although you can no longer dance to Anson live, I’m sure you’ll dance the carpet right off the floor with these tunes. 

Anson Weeks led a very successful west coast dance band that had its most prosperous years during the great depression.  The band formed in 1924 as a “hotel band” and made its first commercially issued recording for Columbia in 1927.  Their tenure at the famed Peacock Court at the Hotel Mark Hopkins gave the band a radio gig and all the fame that went with it. 

A long line of famous vocalists passed through the band including Bob Crosby, Tony Martin and Carl Ravazza.  Weeks even recorded with Bing Crosby on his hit record ‘Please’. 

The band  was known for its sweet yet upbeat sound and always featured excellent arrangements. Such music was extremely danceable so rightly the band's tagline became “Come Dancin’ With Anson”.  After a brief hiatus in the early 40’s due to a car accident, Anson resumed the band until 1946.

The "Strike Me Pink Medley" comes from the Broadway show  Strike  Me Pink  which opened at New York’s Majestic Theatre in 1933. It ran for 122 performances and contained songs by Lew Brown and Ray Henderson.  The songs on this 12’’ disc include "Strike Me Pink" – "I’d Hate To Think That You’d Grow Old, Baby" – "Ooh I’m Thinking" – "Let’s Call It A Day" – "It’s Great To be Alive" – "Home To Harlem."  Featured vocalists are Art Wilson and Harriet Lee. I love these upbeat tunes!  Anson sure does a great job on this medley and blends the tunes together perfectly.

"Marching Along Together" was written in 1932 by E. Pola & F. Steininger.  The band performs the song in typical march fashion except for a couple of bars near the end. Look out for them ! We are also treated to a Bob Crosby vocal.

"Blue Roses" (Ahlert / Leslie) is smooth and well arranged. Carl Ravazza delivers a capable vocal. Listen for that super smooth sax solo near the end.

- Matt From College Station

 

EXTRA

This section will  present 78 rpm recordings that do not fall within the range of the vintage pop and jazz  fare that I usually  present.  Here I will feature recordings from a wide variety of eras, musical genres and nationalities as well as occasional spoken word recordings.
 
 

Bill
Helen Morgan, vocal
Victor Young And The Brunswick Orchestra       1932
(Brunswick 20115)

Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man
Helen Morgan, vocal
Victor Young And The Brunswick Orchestra       1932
(Brunswick 20115)
 

I would like to introduce two selections by the world’s first torch singer Helen Morgan.  During her short life (1900-1941) she touched many with her singing and made a lasting impact on the entertainment world. In 1927 she starred in Oscar Hammerstein II and Jerome Kern’s Broadway production of  Showboat. The role of Julie La Verne would define her career, as she played it in some capacity for 11 years.  Universal made Showboat into a picture for the second time in 1936. Although it is a remake, it is considered the best version because it stars Helen Morgan as Julie as well as Irene Dunne, Paul Robeson and Hattie McDaniels. I highly recommend this movie, in my opinion it is one of the greatest films of the 20th century.

Both of today’s selections are from Showboat. Victor Young and the Brunswick Concert Orchestra use their talents to complement Helen Morgan’s clear voice.  These 12’’ recordings were made in 1932 and were part of a set commemorating Kern’s work. 

- Matt From College Station

---

 

Note - I am very please to welcome back guest contributor Matt From College Station  as he shares some more recordings from his excellent collection of 1920s and 1930s jazz and dance band 78 rpm records. 

All recordings and commentary in this update, both the regular and the "Extra" sections, are from Matt.  My only contribution was to transfer and digitalize the recordings. 

You can learn more about Matt and find his contact information by clicking here. 
 

Loveless Love
Noble Sissle And His Orchestra
Noble Sissle, vocal                             1931
(Brunswick 6073)
 

Got The Bench - Got The Park
Noble Sissle And His Orchestra
Noble Sissle, vocal                             1931
(Brunswick 6073)
 

These great recordings from 1931 are by Noble Sissle's hot jazz band.
Noble Sissle was part of the early ragtime scene and even played with Jim Europe’s Hell Fighters during and after World War I. After the war, he teamed up with Eubie Blake and wrote a number of songs. Throughout the 1920’s and 1930’s,  Sissle had a successful dance band that recorded and played at various night spots in New York, Paris and London. His New York dance band was especially successful. He was active in the music business throughout the 40’s and 50’s and remained linked to publishing until his death in 1975.

"Loveless Love" is a W.C. Handy composition that was recorded by many dance bands throughout the Jazz Age. In 1931 it was recorded by Noble Sissle, Blanche Calloway and Fred Gardner among others. This version by Sissle is extremely upbeat with great jazz solos throughout. This recording also foreshadows to later swing music with the riffs in the last half and is a prime example of “Harlem Jazz” of the early 1930’s. Watch for the bass.

"Got the Bench – Got The Park" is a 1931 popular tune written by Al Sherman, Al Lewis & Fred Phillips. Although it usually gets a sweet treatment from the various bands that recorded it, Sissle gives it a rare hot treatment, at least toward the end. The band starts out sweet and then, after the vocal, the band lets loose with trumpet and sax.  It is a great recording and one of my favorites.

- Matt From College Station
 

 

EXTRA

This section will  present 78 rpm recordings that do not fall within the range of the vintage pop and jazz  fare that I usually  present.  Here I will feature recordings from a wide variety of eras, musical genres and nationalities as well as occasional spoken word recordings.
 
 

Fraulein Pardon
Saxophon Orchester Dobbri
Max Mensing, vocal                              1929
(Beka B 6733 I mx 37248)

In einer kleinen Konditorei
Saxophon Orchester Dobbri
Max Mensing, vocal                              1929
(Beka B 6733 II mx 37087)
 

Saxophon Orchester Dobbri was a recording pseudonym for Otto Dobrindt and His Orchestra,  a German dance band that recorded 
very prolifically throughout the 1920s and 1930s. 

Tangos were extremely popular in late 1920s and early 1930s Germany.   I really enjoy these selections, especially "Fraulein Pardon" which begins with a prolonged introduction…a charming element found in these tango recordings.  Next we hear a smooth tango rhythm and a capable vocalist. 

"In einer kleinen Konditorei," a tango written by operetta composer Fred Raymond, was a big hit in 1929 Germany.   In 1930 a German movie, also called  In einer kleinen Konditorei, was released with Raymond writing the musical score. 

I think it can be said here that sometimes the lyrics don't matter; the message is conveyed by the vocal and musical tone. Sometimes I enjoy these tango recordings as much as hot jazz from the same era.

- Matt From College Station