Showing posts with label Paul Whiteman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paul Whiteman. Show all posts
March 31, 2021
March 28, 2021
78 RPMs 9: Paul Whiteman ~ King of Jazz
~
It is the birthday of Paul Whiteman today. One of his hits was Together, a 1928 pop song with music by Ray Henderson and lyrics by Buddy G. DeSylva and Lew Brown. The most popular version of the tune was by Whiteman with Bix Beiderbecke on cornet.
12" 78 rpm record, side 1
photo by Styrous®
Together has a radically varying waltz tempo from traditional 1-2-3, with a vocal by Jack Fulto and an echoey vibraphone; then it goes into a 1920's jazzy dance beat with a muted trumpet arrangement played by Henry Busse. It swings back and forth for a delightfully enjoyable change of pace.
12" 78 rpm record label, side 1
photo by Styrous®
The song was included in the 1944 movie, Since You Went Away. This gave rise to a revival of the song, and it was recorded as a duet by Dick Haymes and Helen Forrest. Their recording was released by Decca Records as catalog number 23349. It first reached the Billboard magazine Best Seller chart on October 5, 1944 and lasted 10 weeks on the chart, peaking at #3. This recording was paired on a single with It Had to Be You, a #4 hit, producing a big two-sided hit.
Together became a Top Ten hit in the summer of 1961 with a recording by Connie Francis cut in New York City on 3 June 1961 with Cliff Parman arranging and conducting.
In 1930, Whiteman starred in the film King of Jazz with his orchestra. At the time the film was made, "jazz", to the general public, meant the
jazz-influenced syncopated dance music which was being heard everywhere
on phonograph records and through radio broadcasts. It was filmed entirely in the early two-color Technicolor process and was produced by Carl Laemmle Jr. for Universal Pictures. The film featured several songs sung on camera by the Rhythm Boys (Bing Crosby, Al Rinker and Harry Barris), as well as off-camera solo vocals by Crosby during the opening credits and, very briefly, during a cartoon sequence.
King of Jazz was the first feature-length film to use a pre-recorded soundtrack made independently of the actual filming. Whiteman insisted that musical numbers featuring his orchestra should be pre-recorded to obtain the best sound, avoiding the poor recording conditions and extraneous noises typical of a movie studio sound stage. Universal opposed the idea, but Whiteman prevailed over the reluctant studio executives. After the sound was recorded, it was played back through a loudspeaker while the scene was being filmed and the performers matched their actions to the recording. Later, the resulting film was synchronized with the soundtrack. This also allowed the scene to be shot in the same manner as a silent film, with the director free to shout out instructions during the filming and the camera unrestricted by any need to silence its noises with bulky soundproofing.
Delbert Cobain, one of the singers in the film, is notable as being the great-uncle of musician Kurt Cobain (the late vocalist and guitarist of Nirvana).In 2013, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"
My Heart Stood Still was composed by Richard Rodgers with lyrics by Lorenz Hart and recorded on January 24, 1928; it featured a vocal introduction by Jack Fulton and vibraphone with Charles Gaylord, Austin Young and Al Rinker joining in for a fantastic quartet start, then it goes into a bouncy dance beat with sax played by Jimmy Dorsey.
12" 78 rpm record, side 2
photos by Styrous®
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A - Together
Side 1:
A - Together
Side 2:
B - My Heart Stood Still, written by Lorenz Hart-Richard Rodgers*
Companies, etc.
Record Company – Victor Talking Machine Co.
Recorded At – Liederkranz Hall, New York – 35883A
Recorded At – Victor's Church Studio in Camden, New Jersey – 35883B
Credits:
Record Company – Victor Talking Machine Co.
Recorded At – Liederkranz Hall, New York – 35883A
Recorded At – Victor's Church Studio in Camden, New Jersey – 35883B
Credits:
Alto Saxophone [Uncredited] – Chester Hazlett
Alto Saxophone [Uncredited], Baritone Saxophone [Uncredited] – Nye Mayhew
Alto Saxophone [Uncredited], Bassoon [Uncredited] – Rube Crozier
Alto Saxophone [Uncredited], Clarinet [Uncredited] – Hal McLean, Jack Mayhew, Jimmy Dorsey
Banjo [Uncredited] – Mike Pingitore
Baritone Saxophone [Uncredited], Clarinet [Uncredited] – Charles Strickfaden
Bass [Uncredited] – Steve Brown (2)
Cornet [Uncredited] – Bix Beiderbecke, Bob Mayhew
Drums [Uncredited] – Harold McDonald
Music Director – Paul Whiteman
Piano [Uncredited] – Harry Perella, Tom Satterfield
Saxophone [C-Melody Saxophone, Uncredited] – Frankie Trumbauer
Trombone [Uncredited] – Bill Rank, Boyce Cullen, Wilbur Hall
Trombone [Uncredited], Vocals [Uncredited] – Jack Fulton
Trumpet [Uncredited] – Charlie Margulis, Henry Busse
Tuba [Uncredited] – Mike Trafficante
Violin [Uncredited] – Charles Gaylord, Kurt Dieterle, Mario Perry, Matty Malneck, Mischa Russell
Alto Saxophone [Uncredited], Baritone Saxophone [Uncredited] – Nye Mayhew
Alto Saxophone [Uncredited], Bassoon [Uncredited] – Rube Crozier
Alto Saxophone [Uncredited], Clarinet [Uncredited] – Hal McLean, Jack Mayhew, Jimmy Dorsey
Banjo [Uncredited] – Mike Pingitore
Baritone Saxophone [Uncredited], Clarinet [Uncredited] – Charles Strickfaden
Bass [Uncredited] – Steve Brown (2)
Cornet [Uncredited] – Bix Beiderbecke, Bob Mayhew
Drums [Uncredited] – Harold McDonald
Music Director – Paul Whiteman
Piano [Uncredited] – Harry Perella, Tom Satterfield
Saxophone [C-Melody Saxophone, Uncredited] – Frankie Trumbauer
Trombone [Uncredited] – Bill Rank, Boyce Cullen, Wilbur Hall
Trombone [Uncredited], Vocals [Uncredited] – Jack Fulton
Trumpet [Uncredited] – Charlie Margulis, Henry Busse
Tuba [Uncredited] – Mike Trafficante
Violin [Uncredited] – Charles Gaylord, Kurt Dieterle, Mario Perry, Matty Malneck, Mischa Russell
Vocals by Jack Fulton, Charles Gaylord, Austin Young and Al Rinker on My Heart Stood Still
Notes:
A: take 3 recorded 1/21/1928 New York, New York. Liederkranz Hall
B: take 3 1/24/1928 Camden, New Jersey. Church Bldg.; (From "A Connecticut Yankee")
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side A runout): ᶻ35883A 4 (V.E.) 3
Matrix / Runout (Side B runout): ᴵ35883B (V.E.) 3
Paul Whiteman And His Concert Orchestra* – Together / My Heart Stood Still
Label: Victor – 35883
Format: Unknown, 12", 78 RPM
Country: US
Released: Apr 1928
Genre: Jazz
Label: Victor – 35883
Format: Unknown, 12", 78 RPM
Country: US
Released: Apr 1928
Genre: Jazz
Viewfinder links:
Paul Whiteman articles/mentions
~ mentions:
Ferde Grofé ~ Atlantic Crossing
Al Jarreau ~ Breakin' Away & scat
Stan Kenton ~ City of Glass
Lene Lovich ~ Flex & The Freeze
August 17, 2020
20,000 vinyl LPs 237: Mae West ~ The Fabulous Mae West: Queen of the Double Entendres
~
There is the classic torch song and jazz standard, All of Me, written by Gerald Marks and Seymour Simons in 1931. Believe it or not she does NOT let loose on it but sings it with an upbeat feeling as opposed to the classic original first introduced by Belle Baker when it was broadcast over the radio in 1931. Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra recorded the song on December 1 that year, with vocalist Mildred Bailey; this went to the top of the US pop charts.
Last, but certainly not least, is Criswell Predicts! It
is a blusey song with crazy lyrics based on the character; Jeron Criswell King (born Jeron Criswell Konig, August 7, 1907 – October 4,
1982), known by his stage-name The Amazing Criswell /ˈkrɪzwɛl/. He was an American psychic
known for wildly inaccurate predictions. In person, he went by Charles
Criswell King, and was sometimes credited as Jeron King Criswell. He appeared in
two films by Ed Wood, Plan 9 from Outer Space and Night of the Ghouls.
Side 2:
B1 Frankie And Johnny
B2 I Want You - I Need You
B3 Havana For A Night (Vereda Tropical)
B4 A Guy What Takes His Time
B5 If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)
B6 Criswell Predicts
Credits:
Directed By [Quartet And Orchestra] – Sy Oliver
Producer – Milt Gabler
Tito Coral
Styrous® ~ Monday, August 17, 2020
vinyl LP front cover detail
cover photo: Alembert Studio
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Today, August 17, is the birthday of actress, singer, playwrite, screenwriter and "Innuendo Queen", Mae West, who was born in 1893, in Brooklyn (either Greenpoint or Bushwick, before New York City was consolidated in 1898).
West was one of the most controversial movie stars of her day; she encountered many problems, especially censorship. She once quipped, "I believe in censorship. I made a fortune out of it." She bucked the system by making comedy out of conventional mores, and the Depression-era audience admired her for it. When her film career ended, she wrote books and plays, and continued to perform in Las Vegas and the United Kingdom, on radio and television, and recorded rock 'n roll albums. In 1999, the American Film Institute posthumously voted West the 15th greatest female screen legend of classic American cinema.
vinyl LP front cover
cover photo: Alembert Studio
photo of album cover by Styrous®
She was known for her lighthearted, bawdy double entendres and breezy sexual independence, and often used a husky contralto voice. She was active in vaudeville and on stage in New York City before moving to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the film industry.
vinyl LP front cover detail
cover photo: Alembert Studio
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
She
sings most of the songs "straight" but displays her aptitude for
naughty insinuation to great extent in most of them which have male
chorus backup.
vinyl LP back cover
back cover photo: Alembert Studio
photo of album cover by Styrous®
My favorite cuts on the album are Pecado (Sin) and Havana For A Night (Vereda Tropical) which are Latin flavored tunes with Tito Coral singing solo and West chiming in with not so soto voce asides that would be totally innocuous if it wasn't for the WAY she says them (links below). More on Coral in a future article.
vinyl LP back cover detail
back cover photo: Alembert Studio
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
There is the classic torch song and jazz standard, All of Me, written by Gerald Marks and Seymour Simons in 1931. Believe it or not she does NOT let loose on it but sings it with an upbeat feeling as opposed to the classic original first introduced by Belle Baker when it was broadcast over the radio in 1931. Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra recorded the song on December 1 that year, with vocalist Mildred Bailey; this went to the top of the US pop charts.
vinyl LP back cover detail
back cover photo: Alembert Studio
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
The Amazing Criswell - 1959
Criswell was flamboyant, with spit curled hair, a stentorian style of speaking, and a sequined tuxedo. He owned a coffin in which he claimed to sleep. He grew up in a troubled family in Indiana
with relatives who owned a funeral home, and said that he became
comfortable with sleeping in caskets in the storeroom. There's a video of the Criswell Predicts! song with images that match his crazyness (link below).
Tracklist:
Side 1:
Side 1:
A1 Love Is The Greatest Thing
A2 I'm In The Mood For Love
A3 Pecado (Sin)
A4 My Daddy Rocks Me (With One Steady Roll)
A5 All Of Me
A6 They Call Me Sister Honky Tonk
A2 I'm In The Mood For Love
A3 Pecado (Sin)
A4 My Daddy Rocks Me (With One Steady Roll)
A5 All Of Me
A6 They Call Me Sister Honky Tonk
Side 2:
B1 Frankie And Johnny
B2 I Want You - I Need You
B3 Havana For A Night (Vereda Tropical)
B4 A Guy What Takes His Time
B5 If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)
B6 Criswell Predicts
Credits:
Directed By [Quartet And Orchestra] – Sy Oliver
Producer – Milt Gabler
Viewfinder links:
Tito Coral
Net links:
ABC News ~ PBS invites you to come up sometime
American Heritage ~ The Immortality Of Mae West
Big Bands & Big Names ~ West, Hargitay & Tito Coral
Vanity Fair ~ Mae West: “When I’m Bad, I’m Better”
Big Bands & Big Names ~ West, Hargitay & Tito Coral
Biography ~ Mae West Facts
PBS ~ Mae West Biographical Timeline
Vogue ~ Mae West Ruled Fashion in 1933
YouTube links:
I'm In The Mood For Love
Pecado (Sin) with Tito Coral & Sy Oliver
My Daddy Rocks Me (With One Steady Roll)
All Of Me
Pecado (Sin) with Tito Coral & Sy Oliver
My Daddy Rocks Me (With One Steady Roll)
All Of Me
Frankie And Johnny
I Want You - I Need You
Havana For A Night (Vereda Tropical)
A Guy What Takes His Time
If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)
Criswell Predicts (song)
Criswell Predicts (Plan 9 From Outer Space Intro)
I Want You - I Need You
Havana For A Night (Vereda Tropical)
A Guy What Takes His Time
If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)
Criswell Predicts (song)
Criswell Predicts (Plan 9 From Outer Space Intro)
"If I asked for a cup of coffee,
someone would search for the double meaning."
~ Mae West
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