George Paxton led a very good band from 1944 until about 1949. He got his start in the late 1930's as an arranger and saxophonist for George Hall's Orchestra. At that time, George Hall was turning over the reigns of his band to his popular vocalist, Dolly Dawn, and Paxton's excellent arrangements helped make the transition a success.
In the early 1940's, Paxton began arranging music for Bunny Berigan, Charlie Spivak, Vaughn Monroe and Sammy Kaye. His top shelf arrangements also played a large role in the comeback of bandleader Ina Ray Hutton.
In 1944, Paxton stepped out of the background and formed his own band. George Paxton and His Orchestra went on to enjoy a good level of success and popularity. The band toured the eastern part of the United States and reached a national audience via broadcasts from the Roseland Ballroom.
His band featured some pretty big names including Nick Fatool on drums, Doc Goldberg on bass and vocalists Alan Dale and Liza Morrow to name just a few.
George Paxton later went on to influence the music of the 1960's with a record label he co-founded called Coed Records.
Listen to: "I Begged Her" by George Paxton and His Orchestra from July of 1942
The Four Knights were a fantastic vocal group from Charlotte, North Carolina that enjoyed some national success in the late 1940's and throughout 1950's. The original lineup included: Gene Alford, Oscar Broadway, Clarence Dixon and John Wallace. They formed the group in 1943 under the name The Southland Jubilee Singers. By 1944, they were receiving regional exposure on a radio program called Carolina Hayride. They also appeared on a handful of transcription discs for Lang-Worth Records and at that point decided to change their name to The Four Knights.
In 1948, The Four Knights caught their big break as a regular appearing act on The Red Skelton Show (Raleigh Cigarettes Program). This gig gave them the national exposure they needed and they became a popular fixture on the show. They performed on the Red Skelton Show for over two years and many of the songs that you hear on Swing City Radio is from that library of music performances.
Listen to: "Sugarfoot Rag" by The Four Knights from April of 1950
Sadly, in late 1950 the Red Skelton Show parted ways with The Four Knights due to a contract dispute. The group then fired their manager because they now had lost their national exposure. A couple of years later, with new representation, the group renewed their contract with Skelton for his new TV Show.
The Four Knights eventually went on to have a major hit in 1954 called "I Get So Lonely When I Dream About You (Oh Baby Mine)" which awarded them a gold record for selling over a million copies worldwide. They recorded many songs that appeared on the charts throughout the 1950's, but as the 1960's rolled in, music styles were changing, and soon the Four Knights fizzled out. The group officially disbanded in 1966.
Their music has been compared to the Mills Brothers and Ink Spots by some. I feel they had a much fuller sound that could really swing at times. The songs they performed on The Red Skelton Show are a great example of that. The music really had a good groove to it. Especially the songs where the house orchestra led by David Rose provided accompaniment.
Skeets Tolbert played clarinet and saxophone, he was also a vocalist and bandleader. His nickname "Skeets" was short for "Mosquito." Not sure why. But it stuck with him throughout his life. He composed and arranged a great number of tunes that would become hits for others, including names like Nat King Cole, Count Basie and Louis Jordan.
Skeets joined "Taylor's Dixieland Serenaders" in 1929, where he had his first known recording in 1931, as a vocalist and on alto sax. In 1934, he moved on to play with Charlie Alexander before joining the house band at the New York night club, The Savoy Ballroom.
In 1936 he played alto sax along side the legendary Fats Waller. The time he spent with Waller ended up being highly influential on Tolbert's writing and arranging style.
Something I was surprised to learn was that in 1937, Skeets played in a band with famed Olympic Athlete, Jesse Owens. I had no idea Jesse Owens was a musician.
In 1939, Skeets formed his own band and recorded under the name "Tolbert's Gentlemen of Swing." Babe Hines and Yack Taylor were featured female vocalists. He rarely used a single male lead vocal in his music. He also used elements of vaudeville in many of his songs along with darker lyrics. None of his songs ever charted or became standards but were intended for dancing in nightclubs and living rooms. He recorded with this band on the Decca Records label.
Tolbert also filmed his share of Soundies. In 1944, the band recorded four Soundies of the tunes "No No Baby", "'Tis You Babe", "Blitzkrieg Bombardier", and "Corn Pone." Skeets eventually left the music business by the late 40's to pursue a career of teaching and lived to be 91 years old.
Watch: "Blitzkrieg Bombardier" by Skeets Tolbert and His Gentlemen of Swing from 1944
You can hear "Skeets Tolbert and His Gentlemen of Swing" right here on Swing City Radio.
The song "Elmer's Tune", was hit record for both Glenn Miller and Dick Jurgens in the early 1940's. It's a bouncy little song that leaves the listener humming the melody hours later. (Well, that's how it works in my case. haha) I've included audio of the song so you can hear it for yourself, just in case you are unfamiliar with the song. So let's look at the story behind this song.
Listen to: "Elmer's Tune" by Glenn Miller And His Orchestra
Origins of Elmer's Tune
A gentleman by the name of Elmer Albrecht penned this song in the early 1920's. Elmer was working at a funeral parlor in Chicago as an embalmer. That is where he worked out the original tune and melody. Luckily, for fans of the song, there was a piano located in the back of this parlor.
Over the years, still working as an embalmer, Albrecht would play this song in small night clubs around the Chicago area. He even offered the song to Ted Weems at one point but was turned down. Then in 1941, he approached Dick Jurgens with the song. Dick Jurgens' band was in the middle of a stint at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom. At first, Jurgens also turned down the song, but Albrecht was persistent and Jurgens finally agreed to arrange the song for his orchestra.
After a short time, the band was set to perform the newly arranged song, but still didn't have a name for it. Band members bickered over what the name should be. Jurgen's finally suggested the generic "Elmer's Tune" and the name stuck.
Recordings of the Song
In April of 1941, Jurgens and his Orchestra recorded an instrumental version of "Elmer's Tune" for the Okeh Label and it reached #8 in the charts. This got the attention of Glenn Miller, who asked Jurgens if he could record a version of the song with lyrics. Sammy Gallop was hired to write the lyrics. (The credits for the song from that point forward include Albrecht, Gallop and Jurgens.) Miller recorded his version in August of '41 and by December of that year the song had reached #1 on the Billboard Charts.
Glenn Miller's recording of the song was the most popular. But many others recorded versions of the tune including Benny Goodman, The Andrews Sisters, Bob Crosby, Lawrence Welk, Blue Barron, Bert Ambrose and many more. It still amazes me what you can learn when you poke around to learn the origins of a particular song. I would have never imagined that this bouncy little ditty originated in the back room of a funeral parlor. 😀
You can hear different versions of 'Elmer's Tune" right here on Swing City Radio.
Hey there Hepcats! Can you believe Swing City Radio has been streaming for 5 years now? We've been through a worldwide pandemic together, as well as a host of natural disasters, wars across the globe, two U.S. Presidential Elections and so much more. Personally, I love the fact when the world goes crazy I'm able to sit down, take a deep breath, relax and listen to this great music. I hope you feel the same.
I'm not planning to make a big deal about the Anniversary on the air, just a couple of promo announcements here and there. Frankly, I've been so busy behind the scenes with personal stuff, it all kind of snuck up on me.
But, the main reason for this post, is to thank ALL of you. Thank you so much for tuning in day after day, year after year. Thank you for being so passionate about this music. And thank you for all of the support and valuable feedback.
One of the great byproducts of creating this station has been the fact that I've gotten to know many of you out there. I'm not the biggest fan of technology and always try to simplify my life as much as possible, but in this case I find it so cool that the online world has provided a way for all of us to enjoy this music from years past together.
Thank you and I'm looking forward to another 5 years with all of you.
Today's Soundie features Les Brown and His Band Renown along with a 16 year old Doris Day handling the vocals. "My Lost Horizon" was filmed in April of 1941. Les Brown also filmed two other Soundies that month: "Once Over Lightly" and "Is It Love or Conscription?".
As far as I know, this was Doris Day's first film appearance of any kind. About a decade later she would go to have a successful movie career.
Enjoy!
Watch: "My Lost Horizon" by Les Brown featuring Doris Day.
Today's Soundie is "Anvil Chorus" by Al Donahue and His Orchestra. This was filmed and released in 1943. Donahue and his boys do some nice work in this one and it features some pretty good solos. I'm not sure if Al got the memo that he was being filmed. Throughout the majority of the Soundie he is facing the band and rarely acknowledges or interacts with the camera.
Enjoy!
Watch the Soundie: "Anvil Chorus" by Al Donahue and His Orchestra from 1943
I hope everyone is doing well. Over the past week I've added some more songs to the Swing City Radio regular rotation. Here are some of the highlights:
Songs from The Carnation Contented Hour - Melody Hour (AFRS)
The Carnation Contented Hour was a radio music series that aired on various networks from 1931 to 1951 and was sponsored by the Carnation Milk Company. In the 1940's, it was also called The Melody Hour when it was distributed to the troops via the Armed Forces Radio Service. The show had many great hosts through the years and a boatload of talent performed on this show. I've only begun to scratch the surface. In this batch of additions I've added songs by Jo Stafford, Buddy Clark and Dick Haymes.
Listen to: Jo Stafford sing "I Got the Sun in the Morning" from September 1950
Benny Goodman Swing School
These tracks are from broadcasts that took place in July and August of 1937. They feature one of the most classic lineups that Goodman ever assembled. Some of the titles included are: "Sing, Sing, Sing (Part 2)", "Mother Goose Marches On", "Lullaby In Rhythm" and "Clarinet Marmalade". Great stuff!
Also added to the Playlist
Tracks by Bing Crosby from October of 1952 and selected songs from a July 1945 performance by Lucky Millinder on the show "One Night Stand". I had to really work with the audio quality but I got it sounding pretty good.
I can never get enough of old film footage that captures our favorite Big Bands in action. This is a clip of Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra jammin' out to Hawaiian War Chant. This clip is from the 1942 motion picture entitled "Ship Ahoy".
Take a look at a young Buddy Rich pounding away at the drums. It's so great to be able to watch him in action. The Youtuber that put this video together did a very good job restoring the footage and the overall sound. Check it out!
One last thing, I'm pretty sure that the "special effect" in the opening part of the film which makes it appear like Buddy Rich and his drum set are floating onto the set caused many of the 1940's audience to experience vertigo. But that's just my theory. 😁 Enjoy!
Watch - "Hawaiian War Chant" by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra
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Today's Soundie features Larry Clinton and His Orchestra along with Peggy Mann on vocals performing "My Reverie". This was originally filmed in 1941 and by the time of it's release to Panoram movie-jukeboxes in October of 1943, Clinton's Orchestra had disbanded.
The production itself is pretty straight forward and basic, but it seems to work well with this Soundie. I really enjoy the job that Peggy Mann does with the vocals. The original version of this Clinton classic from 1938 featured Bea Wain as the female lead, but Mann does a fantastic job. She's also featured in two other Larry Clinton Soundies: "Deep Purple" and "The Night We Met in Honomu".
Enjoy!
Watch: "My Reverie" by Larry Clinton and His Orchestra with Peggy Mann on vocals.
This weekend I added a few dozen more songs to the Swing City Radio rotation. I try to do this every month so the daily playlist remains fresh and more enjoying to listen to. Here's a quick breakdown of the "new" content added:
Artie Shaw and His Orchestra
I was very surprised I hadn't added these yet. I actually checked and rechecked to make sure they weren't already in the rotation. There's over a dozen songs from appearances Shaw made on Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands. These shows took place in September and October of 1945 and the sound quality is very good. The band sounds very sharp and Imogene Lynn was the female lead at the time.
Jan Garber and His Orchestra
Contains a handful of songs from a gig at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles sometime during the 1940's. I don't have an exact date on these.
Freddy Martin and His Orchestra
A half dozen songs from two different sources. Recordings he made for the Standard Library and a Dec 1943 performance on Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands. Good Stuff!
Also keep an ear out for songs by The Andrews Sisters, Boyd Raeburn, Sam Donahue, and some fusion of Hawaiian and Big Band by Harry Owens and His Royal Hawaiians.
Enjoy.
Listen to: "Can't Read Between The Lines" by Artie Shaw from 1945.
Over the past weekend I digitized about two dozen of the 78's that were newly added to my collection. Most of them came out sounding great. A couple of them were a little rough, but we're all used to some scratches and pops, right?
Look for songs by Glenn Miller, Les Brown, Benny Goodman, Vaughn Monroe and Tex Beneke. These will be released over the course of the next week on the YouTube Channel. Oh, and please don't forget to subscribe to the channel as well. I'm trying to reach 1000 subscribers by the end of the year. Just a silly personal goal I set for myself. :) Here's a direct link to the channel: Swing City Radio YouTube Channel
In this post I included a song called "Oklahoma City" by Tex Beneke. It was released on the RCA Victor label back in 1947. Tex sings about Oklahoma City, but it sounds more like he misses "making a bid for that freckled-face kid from Kalamazoo".
Enjoy!
Listen to: "Oklahoma City" by Tex Beneke from 1947
Yesterday I made some time to go out record hunting and got about fifty 78's. Spent most of last night cleaning a bunch of them up and I have to say, many of them cleaned up quite well. But, we'll see how they sound. It's weird how some of the cleaner ones in my collection can sound awful, while ones filled with scratches and faded label can sound beautiful. You just never know. I think that's what makes it so much fun.
I'll be posting the audio of these 78's to the YouTube Channel over the next few weeks so keep and eye out for that. I was able to rescue some Glenn Miller discs, a lot of Benny Goodman, Tex Beneke, Vaughn Monroe and many more.
In fact, I might digitize some of these tonight. Who knows, I'm sometimes easily distracted so we'll see if I get to it. 😜
So my wife and I were watching METV Toons last night and they just happened to air an episode of Buggy Bunny called "Hillbilly Hare" from 1950. It's an absolute classic, and the square dance scene is simply hilarious. One thing I hadn't noticed over the years it that the music for that square dance is provided by a Panoram. (Until Bugs Bunny unplugs it and starts to add his own lyrics.)
The Panoram in the cartoon is much more colorful than real machines were. Plus, the price to watch Soundies on these jukeboxes were usually a dime, not a nickel.
It was a proud night in the Ronnaldo household when my wife pointed to the TV screen and said, "Hey, isn't that the machine they played those Soundies on?"
After all these years, I think I'm finally rubbing off on her. The fact that she pointed out a Panoram almost brought a tear to my eye. 😀
I've included a brief clip of the cartoon and a couple of pictures of the "cartoon Panoram" and the "original Panoram". Sorry, because of copyright issues I can't post the complete cartoon. Also, it's not lost on me that this post is hard proof that I am indeed a complete nerd when it comes to this stuff. 😜 - Enjoy!
Clip of "Hillbilly Hare" starring Bugs Bunny from 1950.
Over the last month or so, I've added over a hundred "new" songs to The Swing City Radio rotation. Here are some of the highlights to listen for:
Charlie Barnet
These recordings were from two separate performances on One Night Stand. (Episodes 298 and 543) The raw audio of these recordings were pretty bad. I was able to clean them up and they sound much better than they did but still not the best. Kay Starr handles the vocals on many of these and Barnet and the Boys were on the top of their game. Great stuff.
Cab Calloway
These tracks were also sourced from a One Night Stand episode. The performance took place in Jan of 1945, and the beautiful Dotty Saulters takes care of the female lead on some of the tracks.
Jan Savitt
A great performance from Sep of 1945. Savitt always had a tight, disciplined band with a really good sound - but on this night, they took it up yet another notch.
Listen to: "Caprice XXIV" by Jan Savitt and His Orchestra from Sep of 1945.
Other Artists Added
This playlist addition also contained a wide range of artists including vintage tracks by: The Andrews Sisters, Billy Bishop, The Boswell Sisters, Dick Haymes, Harry Cool, Jesse Stone, Joe Reichman, Louis Prima and Tommy Dorsey.
Kay Starr started her singing career at an early age. When she was just 7 years old she won a bunch of talent contests held by a Dallas radio station. As a result, she was given a weekly 15-minute radio show where she sang country and pop tune accompanied by a piano.
At the age of 15, while living in Memphis, she was heard on the radio by Joe Venturi who needed a female vocalist for his Orchestra. While performing with his band, Starr's parents insisted to having a midnight curfew for their daughter.
Word got around about Starr's talent and by 1939 she had recorded some sides with Bob Crosby and Glenn Miller. She didn't really fit into Miller's band well. She was hired as a "fill-in" for Marion Hutton who was dealing with some health issues at the time. Starr can be heard on the Miller tunes "Baby Me" and "Love with a Capital You". Overall, the key that Miller's band played in, didn't mesh well with Kay's vocal range.
Starr went on to finish high school and joined Wingy Manone's band in 1943. Later in 1943, Kay moved on to Charlie Barnet's Orchestra where, in my opinion, she did some of her best work. Barnet's music and style were a perfect match for her voice. She also began to record as a soloist at that time as well. Starr would go on to record with some of the bigger names of the 1940's and 50's.
Listen to: Kay Starr sing "The Best Things In Life Are Free" from Dec of 1947.
Kay had a fantastic solo career! She had many hits and appeared on the Pop, Country and Jazz top selling charts. She remained active in music all the way up to 2016.
Hey there everyone. Just wanted to let you know that I will no longer be posting episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast on this website. It's become a bit of a hassle. I checked the stats and most listeners are accessing new episodes through their podcast provider, through The Big Band and Swing Podcast Website or on my Patreon Page.
In fact, if you sign up for my Patreon, new episodes will be emailed to you every week similar to the old newsletter. (In case you didn't know, I have a "Join For Free" option on my Patreon.)
Let me know if you have any issues with this or if you would like know of additional methods on how to listen to the podcast.
Today's video focuses on Jan Savitt and His Orchestra. This fantastic short film was filmed in October of 1945 and released to the general public in March of 1946 by Warner Bros.
It focuses on some of the highlights of Jan Savitt's career up to that point, describes Savitt's jump from classical music into swing, and contains some great music by Savitt and his band. You can definitely tell this was filmed by a major studio like Warner Bros. by the very good camera work and use of sets. A big improvement over the Soundies we are used to watching here.
Today's Soundie stars Noble Sissle and His Orchestra performing "Everybody's Jumpin' Now". This was released to Panoram in December of 1946, which was near the end of the road for Soundies themselves. Noble's band only had seven members, and at the time, that was considered small for an orchestra. (That would soon change as the era came to a close.) The director compensated for this by spreading out the members over a wide range of space to make the band look bigger.
Also featured as a dancer is Mabel Lee. Mabel Lee first appeared in Soundies as an extra in Louis Jordan's "Old Man Mose". She eventually received more attention and soon became Soundies' own musical star. Mabel Lee ended up appearing in over a dozen Soundies, many of which, she herself, was the featured singer or dancer.
In this particular Soundie, both Sissle and Lee team up to provide so much energy. Such a great performance.
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - Plenty of Dance Time - Show 215 -
Features vintage music by Raymond Scott, The Dinning Sisters and Billy May. We learn a little bit about the show Dance Time U.S.A. and Ronnaldo reads some listener mail.
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: Plenty of Dance Time (Show 215)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
I've recently cleaned up and posted some great tracks from an AFRS show called "The Melody Hour" to the station. I've included a brief history of show below. Some of the artist you'll hear are Buddy Clark, Jo Stafford, Dick Haymes, The Dinning Sisters and the Mullen Sisters. The majority of the music was supplied by Percy Faith and His Orchestra.
Listen to Swing City Radio for Buddy Clark's upbeat versions of "On A Slow Boat To China" and "Fun And Fancy Free". Also keep an ear out for Jo Stafford and Dick Haymes teaming up on "Darn It Baby, That's Love" and "The Old Piano Roll Blues" along with a fantastic version of "Sooner Or Later" by The Dinning Sisters.
Listen to: Buddy Clark singing "On A Slow Boat To China" from 1948
"The Melody Hour" was the retitled name of NBC radio's long running series "The Carnation Contented Hour". The AFRS obtained rights to rebroadcast the program to military personnel during and after World War II. It was a 30 minute musical show re-recorded by the Armed Forces Radio Service without commercials or sponsorship messages. During the mid 1940's until the early 1950's, this program was distributed and broadcast throughout the AFRS Network by means of radio transcription discs.
"The Carnation Contented Hour" (the original version of the series) began January 4, 1932, on the Blue Network and was broadcast for two decades until its final broadcast via CBS on December 30, 1951.
Today's Soundie is called "Jumpin' At The Jukebox" by Al Donahue and His Orchestra. This catchy little song was released on December 6, 1943 to be played in Panorams all across the United States, but this was originally filmed in 1941 by a company called Phonovue Productions. Phonovue Productions was later purchased by Soundies in 1943 and their clips were rebranded with the Soundies logo overlay to start off the film.
The vocalist is named Ellen Connor. Connor was also the featured vocalist in another Soundie by Al Donahue called "Java Jive".
I just love the fact that the producers decided to stick Ellen into a hollowed out Panoram cabinet to sing her song. The song is a little bit silly, but then again, most catchy songs are. Enjoy!
Watch: Al Donahue & His Orchestra - "Jumpin' At The Jukebox" from 1943
I just recently added the following to the Swing City Radio Playlist:
Songs from The Raymond Scott Show:
Various tracks from "The Raymond Scott Show" that were featured on an Voice of America Transcription series called "Music From America". These contain some fantastic tracks by Raymond. Listen for gems like "Mash Pash", "Mohawk Special", "Tired Little Teddy Bear" and a unique version of "Begin the Beguine". Dorothy Collins provides the vocals on many other tracks as well.
Listen to: "Mash Pash" by Raymond Scott
Music from Dance Time U.S.A:
Dance Time U.S.A. aired over Voice Of America during the 1950's and showcased some of the biggest names in hot and sweet Jazz dance music of that time. Keep an ear out for songs by icons like Guy Lombardo and Ray Anthony, as well as some lesser known names like Larry Faith, Henry Jerome and Oscar Dumont. Good quality recordings of some better Swing from the 1950's.
Also added this month are some various tracks by Jack Teagarden, The Dinning Sisters, Buddy Clark and Nan Wynn.
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - Bouncy Music and Biological Warfare - Show 212 -
Features vintage recordings by Harry James, Ralph Flanagan and Andy Kirk. We also listen to select clips from a short film released in 1952 called "What You Should Know About Biological Warfare".
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: Bouncy Music and Biological Warfare (Show 212)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - Spinach and Camels - Show 211 -
Features vintage music by Skinnay Ennis, The Crew Chiefs and Louis Prima. We also listen to a couple of Camel Cigarette Radio Ads and Ronnaldo reads some listener mail.
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: Spinach and Camels (Show 211)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
This month I've added many songs to the Swing City Radio rotation from a show called "Let's Go To Town". "Let's Go To Town" was a variety show sponsored by the U.S. National Guard, and it was used as a public relations and recruitment tool. The show had a few hosts while on the air, but the most notable was Mason Adams, who appears in the persona of "Corporal Eddie Carter" of the National Guard. Let's just say he was a very energetic fellow.
The broadcasts took place at The Armory and also included information about veterans' benefits and the advantages of joining the National Guard. It was distributed to radio stations via transcription discs and aired on radio stations in the early to mid 1950's.
Listen to: "Lean Baby" by Billy May and His Orchestra from the show "Let's Go To Town".
The show featured some great music by some of the most popular Big Band artists of the early 50's. I was able to extract songs by Billy May, The Fabulous Dorsey Brothers, Johnny Long, Les Elgart, Ralph Flanagan, Tony Pastor and many more. The music has been "cleaned up" and has already been added to Swing City Radio. So keep an ear out for these fantastic performances. I also plan on featuring some of this music on the podcast in early June.
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - One Mint Julip at the Séance - Show 210 -
Features vintage recordings by Nan Wynn, Art Mooney and Art Kassel. We also listen to a Soundie by Connie Haines and a Public Service Announcement by Groucho Marx.
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: One Mint Julip at the Séance (Show 210)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - Big Band On A Budget - Show 209 -
Features vintage music by Benny Goodman, Lionel Hampton and Will Osborne. We also listen to select clips from an Educational Film released in 1950 called "Why Budget?".
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: Big Band On A Budget (Show 209)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
Today's Soundie features the beautiful and multi-talented Gloria Parker. This gem is called "Here Comes the Fattest Man in Town" and was filmed in 1946. It also includes an appearance by the legendary Mel Blanc.
This is just one of a handful of great Soundies that showcases Miss Parker's many talents. She also stars in "Broadway and Main", "Four Letters", "Penthouse Party" and "Wise Men Say". Unlike many other Soundies, these were well produced and Parker herself composed the music and wrote the lyrics. Her backup musicians in this performance include members of the house band from the Edison Hotel in New York.
Gloria Parker was much more than a pretty face that looked good on film. She worked as a songwriter, bandleader, musician and actress. A complete entertainer. She performed with her orchestras playing the marimba, piano, organ, violin, viola, vibraphone, xylophone, guitar, drums, all types of Latin percussion instruments and, of course, glass harp or what many people call "musical glasses". Now for the record, I've seen many people "play" musical glasses in the past, but Gloria's performances are simply amazing.
Her radio program "The Gloria Parker Show", which aired from 1950 to 1957, featured her all-female "Swingphony", the largest big band led by a woman. During her career, she also led "Gloria Parker and the Coquettes" and "Glorious Gloria Parker and Her All-Girl Rumba Orchestra."
Enjoy!
Watch: "Here Comes the Fattest Man in Town" by Gloria Parker
Consider supporting Swing City Radio by becoming a Hepcat. Learn more at: SupportSwing.com.
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - The Sun In The Morning - Show 208 -
Features vintage recordings by Mal Hallett, George Olsen and The Boswell Sisters. We also listen to a Soundie by Larry Clinton and Ronnaldo answers Listener Mail.
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: The Sun In The Morning (Show 208)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
Sy Oliver led a very good orchestra of his own but is most known for his work with the bands of Jimmie Lunceford and Tommy Dorsey. He was a very skilled trumpeter, arranger and composer, as well as a decent singer.
Oliver got his start with the famed "territory band", Zack Whyte and his Chocolate Beau Brummels, at the age of 17. He quickly made a name for himself with his trumpet but also gain a lot of arranging experience with them.
In 1933, Oliver joined Jimmie Lunceford's band and recorded with them for over six years. His arrangements for Lunceford were top shelf and really helped that band become such an influence on the era.
In 1939, Tommy Dorsey lured Oliver away from Lunceford by offering him a very nice salary at the time. Oliver's influence helped lead the transition of Dorsey's band from a Dixieland flavor to a more popular swinging sound. His arrangements of "On the Sunny Side of the Street", "Yes, Indeed!", "Opus One" and "Well, Git It" are great examples of what Oliver added to Dorsey's rise in popularity in the 1940's.
Listen to: "Opus One" by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra
written and arranged Sy Oliver from 1943.
Sy Oliver stayed with Dorsey for about seven years and then moved on to work as a freelance arranger and eventually led his own band full time.
You can hear the music of Sy Oliver right here on Swing City Radio.
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - Why? - Show 207 -
Features vintage music by Jan Savitt, Sister Rosetta Sharpe and Artie Shaw. We listen to clips from a 1951 Educational Film called "Answering The Child's Why" and we also hear a Soundie by The Four Ginger Snaps.
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: Why? (Show 207)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
The Big Band and Swing Podcast - Louise The Chatterbox - Show 206 -
Features vintage recordings by Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington and Red Norvo. We also learn a little about Oscar DuMont's Orchestra and Ronnaldo answers Listener Mail.
* The musical performances and recordings featured in this podcast are in the Public Domain. Artists are credited within the podcast.
Listen to: Louise The Chatterbox (Show 206)
Listen to more episodes of The Big Band and Swing Podcast at: BigBandPodcast.com
Today's Soundie features trumpeter Henry "Red" Allen joined by J.C Higginbotham (trombone) performing "Count Me Out". This was released to Panoram viewers in June of 1946. Other notable names in this Soundie are bassist Benny Moten and Alvin Burroughs on drums.
Prior to leading this talented band, Henry "Red" Allen had played in the orchestras of Fletcher Henderson, Benny Goodman and Eddie Condon. This clip really captures the energy he brought to his performances and it also showcases some terrific dancing.
Enjoy!
Watch: "Count Me Out" by Henry "Red" Allen from 1946
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