Annie Doesn't Live Here Anymore

Here's the last cd of this set. What Have We Got To Lose? Stringing Along On A Shoestring, When My Ship Comes In and If I Had A Million Dollars all echo what a lot of people were thinking.  Our Penthouse On Third Avenue features one of my favorite singers, who to my ear just seems to sing perfectly. Almost as good as the Bea Wain vocal on Our Penthouse On Third Avenue is the photo of her (sorry, no scan). The editors chose Ramona's version of Raising The Rent because it includes the verse lyrics. Roy Bargy (p), Benny Bonacio (cl) and Bunny Berigan (tr) accompany here. Ramona also sings Now I'm A Lady, which is a tune Mae West sang in a film but never recorded. Gotta Go To Work Again from Ted Wallace is a tune that was used as instrumental background music in the film My Man Godfrey. This version features an unknown male vocal. Chick Bullock makes his appearance on the 3rd of 4 of these cds, so obviously the editors have good taste. Are You Making Any Money? (is all I want to know) was written by Herman Hupfield, of As Time Goes By fame. Even without Chick singing, it's a great tune and is the first song of his I'd ever heard (on another Depression collection found early in this blog). I'm not a big Disney fan, but Artie Shaw really made Whistle While You Work swing. Closing out the decade, the Mills Brothers and Louis Armstrong recorded WPA in 1940, and to close out the entire set is the extremely pollyanish, premature and rather insulting tune (considering it was recorded on February 3, 1930 just 3 months after Black Thursday) Happy Days Are Here Again. According to the liner notes, the song was taken to George Olsen, who was playing the Hotel Pennsylvania, who told his band to "play it to the corpses". It took a few choruses for the audience to warm to the tune. This version is by Ben Selvin and an all but anonymous studio orchestra. The book to this box set features a lot of great pictures of artists, sheet music, magazines, record sleeves, etc. It also has a selected bibliography for reading about the Great Depression, and an even bigger filmography. All in all, this set deserves its place as a resource for any study of the era. Very well done. Enjoy! +

Tracks

01 - Phil Harris Coconut Grove Orchestra - What Have We Got To Lose?
02 - Henry 'Red' Allen - Stringin' Along On A Shoe String
03 - Eddie Cantor - When My Ship Comes In
04 - The Boswell Sisters - If I Had A Million Dollars
05 - Gene Kardos Orchestra - Our Penthouse On Third Avenue
06 - Ramona & Roy Bargy - Raising The Rent
07 - Chick Bullock's Levee Loungers - Annie Doesn't Live Here Anymore
08 - Connie Boswell - The Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
09 - Paul Whiteman & His Orchestra - Now I'm A Lady
10 - Adrian Rollini & Orchestra - I Gotta Get Up And Go To Work
11 - Ted Wallace Orchestra - Gotta Go To Work Again
12 - Chick Bullock's Levee Loungers - Are You Making Any Money?
13 - Ozzie Nelson Orchestra - Got The Jitters
14 - Don Bestor Orchestra - Rain
15 - The Ink Spots - With Plenty Of Money And You
16 - Teddy Hill - I'm Feeling Like A Million
17 - Red Norvo Orchestra - Slummin' On Park Avenue
18 - Artie Shaw New Music - Whistle While You Work
19 - Louis-Mills Armstrong Brothers - WPA
20 - Kay Kyser & His Orchestra - Hey Pop! I Don't Wanna Go To Work
21 - Horace Heidt & Orchestra - Dawn Of A New Day
22 - Ben Selvin & His Orchestra - Happy Days Are Here Again

The Joint Is Jumping

This is a rather pedestrian collection of swing tunes, with the exception being that it does jump. Although suffering from commonitis (e.g., Woodchopper's Ball, In The Mood) it is saved by Stuff Smith, Artie Shaw, Harry James, Al Cooper's Savoy Sultans and Lucky Millinder. And though Drum Boogie shows up in several collections, I never get tired of hearing it. Cab Calloway shows that he, too, succumbed to the vocal chorus fever (reminding me of Tommy Dorsey's sides with the Pipers et al), but then there's Count Basie with a good one, as well as Harlan Leonard and His Rockets. Imo, the weakest tunes are Cleo Brown and Slim & Slam (I don't see how they are swing tunes), but that's just my two cents. All in all, a good listen. Enjoy. +

Tracks

1. Stompin' At The Savoy - Chick Webb and His Orchestra (1934)
2. Walking And Singing - Andy Kirk and His Clouds of Joy (1936)
3. Breakin' In A New Pair Of Shoes - Cleo Brown (1935)
4. Don't Be That Way - Benny Goodman and His Orchestra (1938)
5. T'ain't What You Do (It's The Way You Do It) Jimmy Lunceford and His Orchestra (1939)
6. The Joint Is Jumping - Fats Waller and His Rhythm (1937)
7. In The Mood - Glenn Miller and His Orchestra (1939)
8. At The Woodchopper's Ball - Woody Herman and His Orchestra (1939)
9. The Flat Foot Floogie - Slim and Slam (1938)
10. Tuxedo Junction - Erskine Hawkins and His Orchestra (1939)
11. Back Bay Shuffle - Artie Shaw and His Orchestra (1938)
12. After You've Gone - Stuff Smith and His Onyx Club Boys (1936)
13. Hairy Joe Jump - Harlan Leonard and His Rockets (1940)
14. Jumpin' At The Woodside - Count Basie and His Orchestra (1938)
15. Woo Woo - Harry James and The Boogie Woogie Trio (1938)
16. Drum Boogie - Gene Krupa and His Orchestra (1941)
17. Oh Boy, I'm In The Groove - Horace Henderson and His Orchestra (1940)
18. Just You, Just Me - Lester Young Quartet (1943)
19. Wham (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam) - Teddy Wilson and His Orchestra (1939)
20. Flying Home - Lionel Hampton and His Orchestra (1942)
21. Second Balcony Jump - Al Cooper's Savoy Sultans (1941)
22. Little John Special - Lucky Millinder and His orchestra (1942)
23. I Want To Rock - Cab Calloway and His Orchestra (1942)
24. Walk 'Em - Buddy Johnson and His Orchestra (1946)

No Regrets

Good grief! April is nearly over and I am just getting to a new post. From Allmusic.com, "After playing in a few bands in the late '20s and early '30s, clarinetist Artie Shaw formed the first of his several big bands in 1936. This initial group was unique, to say the least: Along with a core jazz band, Shaw also included a string section and a Dixieland-style contingent. In spite of the odd instrumentation, though, Shaw's first band cut many fine sides.This roundup on the Hep label brings together 24 of them, including such highlights as "Japanese Sandman," "Copenhagen," and "Sobbin' Blues." The band might not have been up to the standards of later Shaw groups, but still produced enough in the way of tight ensemble work and topnotch solos (tenor saxophonist Tony Pastor, drummer George Wettling, and pianist/arranger Joe Lipman deserve special mention)." The review continues by suggesting this earliest of Shaw bands is best-suited for core Shaw fans, however I think this music stands well alongside most other bands playing popular music at the time. Shaw could have turned out another pedestrian version of Frost On The Moon, for example, but his clarinet and the ensemble work make it enjoyable (though I'll take Chick Webb's version any day). Vocalists include Peg La Centra and Tony Pastor. The 24 tracks (recorded between June and December, 1936) finish with My Blue Heaven, which is one of the all-time great tunes regardless of who records it. After the original, Shaw's version has to be number two or three. All in all, Shaw delivers a mix of styles that makes one wonder what he was trying to accomplish. Please everyone, lack of focus, be 'that' different, or something else? Whatever the reason, Shaw disbanded the group the following year, returning with a new band in 1938 and his biggest hit Begin The Beguine. Enjoy. +

Tracks

01. Japanese Sandman
02. A Pretty Girl Is Like A Melody
03. I Used To Be Above Love
04. No Regrets
05. South Sea Island Magic
06. It Ain't Right
07. Sugar Foot Stomp
08. Thou Swell
09. You're Giving Me A Song And Dance
10. Darling, Not Without You
11. One, Two, Button Your Shoe
12. Let's Call A Heart A Heart
13. The Skeleton In The Closet
14. There's Something In The Air
15. Take Another Guess
16. There's Frost On The Moon
17. Love And Learn
18. Moon Face
19. The Same Old Line
20. You Can Tell She Comes From Dixie
21. Sobbin' Blues
22. Copenhagen
23. Cream Puff
24. My Blue Heaven

How To Eat In A Cafeteria

Happy New Year, everyone! This record combines three of my favorites - Artie Shaw's music, the comedy of Robert Benchley, and old time radio. Two shows are presented here, the Old Gold "Melody & Madness" episodes from January 22nd and April 2, 1939. There are also some extra live band remotes from 1938-1939. Benchley was a member of the infamous Algonquin Round Table, wrote several books, and of course worked in film and radio. The Melody & Madness show resulted of his popularity, however he was not involved in the writing of it, and predictably the show was cancelled in 1939. Although I like Shaw's music, there is nothing out of the ordinary here except to hear that Shaw's band sounds just as good live. Enjoy. +

Tracks

1. Introduction / Comedy By Benchley
2. Rose Room
3. Benchley
4. My Reverie
5. Downbeat Award
6. Softly as in a Morning Sunrise
7. Comedy (Bounding Broomstick)
8. Oh! Lady Be Good
9. Introduction / Comedy By Benchley
10. One Foot in the Groove
11. Comedy (How to Eat in a Cafeteria)
12. Nightmare
13. I'm in Love With the Honorable Mr. So and So
14. Comedy (Bounding Broomstick)
15. I'm Coming Virginia
16. Introduction / Out Of Nowhere
17. Two Blind Loves
18. Serenade to a Savage
19. I Surrender Dear
20. Hold Your Hats

My Blue Heaven

Today marks one year since I began this blog. I meant to post some WWI tunes for Remembrance Day but my audio software is on my other computer somewhere at sea. Instead, this post was published on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. This is another series that I like. Often these collections are routine retreads of everything that has already been published on 45 different cds or LPs (think of all those "anthologies" that are little more than a couple of tracks by Woody Herman, Glenn Miller, Count Basie, Ellington, etc.). I like this cd because it doesn't include either Frenesi or Begin the Beguine. One of my favorite tunes of all time is My Blue Heaven, and I think Shaw gives it a pretty good treatment. At the time I purchased this, I was familiar with only a couple of titles. For me, that is the best time to pick up some music. It is an opportunity for discovery. Enjoy. +

Tracks

1. Love and Learn
2. Moon Face
3. The Same Old Line
4. You Can Tell She Comes from Dixie
5. Sobbin' Blues
6. Copenhagen
7. Cream Puff
8. My Blue Heaven
9. Streamline
10. Sweet Lorraine
11. Love Is Good for Anything That Ails You
12. No More Tears
13. Moonlight and Shadows
14. Was It Rain?
15. All Alone
16. All God's Chillun Got Rhythm
17. It Goes to Your Feet
18. Because I Love You