(Give Me That) Business in F

This is another one that I had intended to post long ago, but on the other hand there is something to be said for not posting all the best stuff first. I really like the TOM series (am hoping to pick more up soon) because they have been issuing good quality releases of artists that are largely ignored by the larger producers. Check out Charlie Palloy, for a great example. I doubt anyone could do a complete Ben Selvin series, but what TOM included is still very entertaining. Many of these songs were covered by others, including Chick Bullock (gotta get my Bullock plug in!). If you read the post for Vol. 1, the liner notes suggest that these were throw-away tunes. However, the band performs them with gusto and I'm glad the recordings survive to this day. As did others in the era, Kardos recorded these under pseudonyms in an effort to record outside of his contract. From Amazon.com, "Gene Kardos led a popular dance band in New York in the early 1930s, but most of the records he recorded were released under a variety of names on different labels, which made it difficult for him to get proper credit for his accomplishments. The songs on this CD, for example, were released on the Crown label under the name of Joel Shaw and His Orchestra. Crown was a budget label that was started during the Depression--its slogan was "Two Hits for Two Bits"--and most artists who recorded for them used pseudonyms, particularly if they had recording contracts for other labels, as Kardos did. The Joel Shaw Orchestra, which was named for the band's piano player, had a propulsive rhythm. On tracks such as their cover of the Cab Calloway classic "Minnie the Moocher's Wedding Day" and on standards ("Dinah"), they were capable of playing some fine jazz. And selections like "Barnacle Bill (the Sailor)" and "Call of the Freaks" reveal a goofy sense of humor that only adds to the band's raucous, but good-natured sound. No matter whose name is on the label, the music of Gene Kardos and his band deserves to be heard." Enjoy. +


Tracks

1. Stop The Sun, Stop The Moon
2. Business In F
3. Barnacle Bill
4. Sweet Violets
5. Some Of These Days
6. Alexander's Ragtime Band
7. Sing A New Song
8. If It Ain't Love
9. Business In Q
10. My Extraordinary Gal
11. Oh! Monah
12. Goofus
13. Dinah
14. Mouthful O' Jam
15. Whistle And Blow Your Blues Away
16. Darktown Strutters' Ball
17. Call Of The Freaks
18. How'm I Doin'?
19. The Scat Song
20. Minnie The Moocher's Wedding Day
21. When You're Getting Along With Your Gal
22. Who's Your Little Who-Zis?
23. One More Kiss, Then Goodnight

Jig Time

This set includes the first recordings of Gene Kardos and His Orchestra. I have yet to pick up the next two volumes. The musicians are top-notch, but as for the songs there is this from the liner notes:
The tunes given Kardos to record were bright and bouncy, but rarely of lasting quality. Just as the band had become a favorite "try-out" group for publishers of stock arrangements, it now introduced several little-known tunes destined to stay that way. "A lot of the tunes we recorded weren't exactly popular," said Red Hymie. "I think Eli Oberstein, the A&R guy at Victor, was being 'paid off' to get these tunes recorded. .... We did 'em, but....." If some songs remain obscure, they're still rendered with enthusiasm by the Kardos crew, which now had Nat Brown on trombone instead of Jules Harrison, and saxophonist Pete Salemi replacing Milt Small. With its second session, the Kardos band had found its true sound and line-up, which would remain intact through the band's tenure at Victor. Enjoy. +

Tracks

1. Jig Time (2:47)
2. Left My Gal In the Mountains (3:13)
3. Georgia On My Mind (3:12)
4. Lazy River (2:50)
5. Waiting For the Moon (2:58)
6. Red-Headed Baby (2:46)
7. Mean Music (2:52)
8. China Boy (2:42)
9. A Hot Dog, a Blanket and You (3:03)
10. Peter and Paul (3:02)
11. What Are You Thinkin' About, Baby? (3:05)
12. You've Got to Sell It (3:27)
13. Freddy the Freshman (2:41)
14. Now's the Time to Fall in Love (2:52)
15. Down On the Farm (3:04)
16. Sweet Violets (3:17)
17. Tell Tales (3:06)
18. You're Foolin' Yourself (2:54)
19. Business in F (2:55)
20. Corn-Fed Cal (3:17)
21. Blue Danube Blues (3:02)
22. I Wouldn't Change You For the World (2:57)
23. Fate Introduced Me to You (3:26)