Halloween returns to MY(P)WHAE! Merv, Batman, Jan and Dean

Where it had it gone, you ask? I'm not sure, but it's back, and it's ready to rock!

I've always wanted to type "ready to rock." Now, at last, my dream has been fulfilled.

So, we've got our usual unusual playlist here, starting with three shellac-based titles I didn't feature last time ("Sinister 78s"). They are a square dance version of The Thing, a cool (but somewhat scratchy) number by Charlie Spivak called Inner Sanctum featuring a Rosie Clooney sound-alike named Irene Daye, and a 1929 Carson Robison side called Peg-Leg Jack. Peg-Leg Jack isn't very Halloween, but, tune-wise, it sounds an awful lot like The Thing. I think you'll hear what I (boom-boom, BOOM!)... that you'll hear what I mean (CLUNK!).

The Thing (Charles Grean), The Sundowners, year unknown. From a Windsor label 78.

Inner Sanctum (Peter Tinturin), Charlie Spivak and His Orch. featuring Irene Daye, 1948. From RCA Victor 78.

Peg-Leg Jack, Carson Robison and His Pioneers, 1929.

And, since I have a thing for Danny Kaye's version of that first title, here's Kaye from 1950 with a rendition that, imo, bests Phil Harris':

The Thing (Charles R. Grean), Danny Kaye with Ken Darby Orchestra and Chorus, 1950. From Decca 45.

How to follow Danny Kaye? Hm. How about with Merv and Batman? Sound like a plan? A crazy, warped plan? Cool!

House of Horrors (Ruth Roberts-Bill Katz), Merv Griffin, w. orch. conducted by Charles Grean, 1962. From Mercury 45.

Uh-oh--here comes the Batmobile! If you have an evil-doers on your mailing list, you might want to let them know. Thanks.

Here Comes the Batmobile (written by Tony Eira), No artists credited. From Batman label 45.

Oops. Too late!

Look Out for the Batman (written by Tony Eira), No artists credited. From Batman label 45.

And Jan and Dean are on the scene to offer Bat-praises for BM:

Batman (J. Berry-D. Altfeld-F. Wieder), Jan and Dean, 1966. From Liberty label 45.

Not to be out-Bat-camped, Dickie Goodman signs on with what is possibly the silliest of all break-in records:

Batman and His Grandmother (Dickie Goodman-George Goldner), Dickie Goodman, 1966. From Red Bird 45.

What does the flip sound like, you wonder? Wonder no more--here it is. Who can guess the name and composer of the main musical theme?

Suspense (Goodman), Dickie Goodman, 1966. From Red Bird 45.

Boy, that was suspenseful. I almost went nuts trying to guess how that was going to turn out. Murder, chase, lock-up. My heart's still pounding....


Lee

Exotic sounds for Wednesday morning!

Everyone in the mood for exotica? Me, too. Forget about stereo and high-falutin' fidelity, though--these pre-"Bachelor Pad" recordings hail from the era of shellac and the earliest long-playing albums. The popular instrumental music of 1955-on owes quite a lot to these terrific sides. All have seen the light of blog before, but every last title more than deserves to be recycled:

Deep Night (Henderson-Vallee), Carmen Cavallaro and His Orchestra, 1951. From MCA LP.

Andalucia, Andre Kostelanetz and His Orchestra, 1954. From Lure of the Tropics EP.

Brazil (Barroso; Arr: Gould), Morton Gould and His Orch., 1946. From LP.

Cumana (Allen-Spillman-Spina), Freddy Martin and His Orch., featuring Barclay Allen, piano, 1947. From RCA Victor EP.

Babalu (M. Lecuona), Jan August, 1951. From Mercury LP.

Cuban nightingale (George Martinez), Mitch Miller and His Orch. and Chorus, w. Stan Freeman, harpsichord, 1952. From Mmmmitch LP.

Kamasutra (De Franco-Maltby), Buddy De Franco and His Orchestra, 1953. Arranged and cond. by Richard Maltby. From MGM 78.

Tabu (M. Lecuona), Rosa Linda, piano with group, 1953. From 78.

Temptation, Percy Faith and His Orchestra, 1947. From Royale EP.

Cumana (Allen-Spillman-Spina), Percy Faith and His Orchestra, 1949. From RCA Victor EP.

Misirlou, Freddy Martin and His Orchestra, with Stuart Wade, vocal, and Barclay Allen, piano; 1948. From RCA LP. (Hmm--didn't we just hear this one a few posts back?)

Don't forget--to save, right-click and choose "Save as...." If you simply want to hear them without downloading, then regular-click. You'll be transported to Box.net, where the file will play for you, automatic-like.

And I'm about to fall asleep on the keybjgkekkwooooaz;l;skgkjjjjdjjjjjjjjfksktpeosoo89555f

Lee

What the heck?

Blogger seems to be rolling along at a crawl. I switched to my foster mom's Dell, since mine can't seem to get the Blogger.com posting box to come up. Things are a bit faster on this machine, though not extraordinarily so. We have DSL, and Bev's computer goes faster--maybe the router likes her Dell better than mine. Or maybe the speed issue has something to do with all the programs I have piled up on my hard drive. Dunno.

These things are a mystery to me. Me, Lee. Lee, me.

More Halloween sounds are on the way, I promise--including two more 78s. You know, those old, thick discs that spin really fast and have lots of scratch and that break in two if you look at them too intently. We're moving the house around at the moment, so things are busy, busy. Dust mites hate it when stuff gets moved around. "Whoa! What the...?"--Dust mites.

I also plan, at some point, to return to parlor organ piece transcribing. I don't remember what happened to supplant that plan--I think that was about the time I started my latest sound-restore-athon. I go where the wind blows, you know. I'm a rambling blogger.

"I'm a rammmmm-blin' blogger. I could have been a logger. But I chose the cyber life. Less danger, and far less strife. I'm a ram-a-a-a-a-m-blin' blogger, etc."

Anyway, it'll be fun to get back to the parlor stuff. Yet another portal to the past, those pieces. You know, if time travel ever becomes a reality, the past will lose all of its mystique. Ever think about that? We'll be like, "Oh, the past. Been there." One thing that's hard to predict, though--once it has become possible to zip back in time and buy antiques new, will the price of collectibles go up or go down? Common sense says they'd go down, because antiques, as such, would effectively cease to be antiques. On the other hand, there's the question of supply and demand. That is to say, there aren't an infinite number of collectibles, past or present, to be had. I can picture myself stepping into my time machine and punching in the year 1924, ready and eager to buy King Oliver 78s by the score. Except that, when I arrive in 1924, all the Oliver 78s will have been grabbed up by other time-traveling collectors. Collectors who got there before me. D'oh!!

Shop owner: "There were 30 other guys here today, all dressed like you. I don't have a 78 left in the shop. Gramophones are all gone, too. In all the excitement, I didn't even notice they were paying me in fake money. Look at these bills (holds up 21st-century notes)--counterfeit, all of them."

In other news, Neil Armstrong has been vindicated--he really DID say "One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind"! He didn't flub his brilliant remark, after all. We know this now thanks to an Australian computer programmer who used software with a MAGIX-style sound wave display. I'd say "How cool is that?" but I hate that phrase. Too many HughesNet commercials with that spooky-looking 98-lb. lady who doesn't have any eyebrows.

"How Kee-ool is that?"--HughesNet lady. Missed calls are a thing of the past. You're done with waiting. All you need is a clear view of the southern sky. Make it stop, please, make it stop.

A very nice fellow left this comment at the same Beware of the Blog crank entry I ridiculed yesterday. I'm sure BOTB will read this and be moved by it:

"You know, I'm not sure how to put this, but that second to last paragraph, that hurts.
It hurts for me, a Christian, to be defined by you as being somehow aligned with people who are clearly hatemongers. I wish you would try to be a little more open minded in this regard. All I can do is ask you to understand that we, Christians, are NOT that. Nor do we consider those people Christians."

Problem is, BOTB already knows that they're slandering us. They're doing it for ratings, and to conform to fashion--they haven't the guts to find their own voice. But that's a whole other issue. All that's significant here is that Christians are a safe target--i.e., one that doesn't fight back. I.e., the only kind of target FMU has the balls to attack.


Lee

"Halloween Stomp" comp

Be sure to check out the Halloween Stomp compilation posted at Erick's Wonderful Wonderblog!

Tracks include Rudy Vallee's 1937 With Her Head Tucked Under Her Arm. I've listened to six or seven titles so far, and Spike Jones doesn't sound so original anymore....

More than worth downloading--get it while it's there!

Lee