Zippy has twice removed (or lost?) parts 2 and 3 of "Various singles," so I've switched to Box.com. I received no message from Zippy, so I suspect it's a site glitch. No way to tell. Anyway, this is going to Box.com, as well, and please ignore the "We're sorry, this file type is not currently supported" message. The file will download, anyway. My best guess is that, because Box can't generate a player for a zip file, it tells us it's not "supported." Whatever. The file is fine.
Great stuff today, though I forgot to look in advance for the recording years on the sides pressed by RITE Records--I'll have to do that as I list them. I keep forgetting about the discographies at the wonderful RITE Records site. Anyway, the fabulous 1957 RCA re-version of Little Joe from Chicago by Andy Kirk starts things out. Not surprisingly, Kirk's 1938 version didn't rock like this one, so I suspect the track's near-rock and roll sound owes everything to the fact that, by the time of the re-do, rock and roll had arrived. Lots of people point to boogie-woogie as the primary source for rock and roll, and it's very tempting to go along with that. Two problems: most boogie-woogie lacked the strong, jazzy four-beat pulse of r&r (some of it sounded like a sister to ragtime). And much of the earliest rock and roll wasn't in the twelve-bar blues form. That's the point I make whenever the "rock=country plus blues" cliche is repeated. Assuming we even know what that means in real life, a good half of early rock sides sound nothing like country combined with blues. You can't assert a universal definition for something unless it accounts for at least most of the examples. Preferably, it would cover all. So, I say nonsense to that idea. Rolling Stone can sue me.
Good Tops label version of Hambone, and they're clearly covering the Frankie Laine-Jo Stafford cover of Red Saunders' recording (the old cover of a cover bit), though the Laine-Stafford recording was amazingly country in sound. I say "amazingly," because it was a Mitch Miller production. As I keep saying, people think they know Miller, but they don't. Next, the highly obscure, 1949-ish country cover of Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee on Western Magic Hit Parade Tunes, a label title that screams "obscure." Country guys covering an R&B hit, so it sounds like rock and roll, right? No, it sounds like country guys covering an R&B hit. Sorry. Fun side, though, and despite the awful background singing. They play much better than they sing. Got this from eBay, and it took a lot of cleaning up, because someone played it to death. But it merited the effort.
Bazoom! (I Need Your Lovin') made its way around the cheapo labels, but usually under the parenthetical I Need Your Lovin'. Not sure why--Bazoom! makes a great title. And it saves on ink, which the cheapies usually made a point of doing. Here it's on a real label, Columbia, and by Les Elgart and his Orchestra! And it's done quite well. Original was the Cheers on Capitol.
Two cover versions of the early rock hit, Gee--The Four Jacks on Top Tunes, and June Hutton on Capitol. The Four Jacks' version is very close to the original; June's version, predictably, isn't! But it works for me. I gave the wrong credit for Shake Rattle and Roll--it's Bill St. Claire. So says discogs. (Maybe my copy had a typo?) What's interesting is that it's a cover of the Big Joe Turner original, and not a cover of the Bill Haley cover. Our next number, I Forgot to Remember to Forget, is also a direct copy--this time, of Elvis. It was Elvis' first huge hit, and it is in all probability the first Elvis performance to receive the fake-hit treatment. That's All Right showed up on the cheapo labels, but as copies of Marty Robbin's version, which was a big hit. Elvis' version had no national impact.
"Jack Daniels" (yeah, right) doesn't do a very good Elvis, but Jimmy Lane does a killer imitation on the Top Hit Tunes (Waldorf) version of Wear My Ring Around Your Neck. A total change of tone with Lillian Brooks' gorgeous Peyton Place on MGM. Any connection to the novel? Dunno. The TV show didn't happen until 1964. I remember little about that show except that my brother and I made fun of it.
Stop (Let Me off of This Bus) is Snooky Lanson and (I assume) Billy Vaughn doing a Rock Around the Clock copy, and it's pretty good, as those things go. What makes it amazing is the vocal interlude that sounds like it was lifted from Elvis' version of Hound Dog. Except Elvis' record was still a year away. The Platters' 1955 Bark, Battle and Ball is one Shake, Rattle and Roll rip that makes no attempt at all to hide the fact. Fun to hear the Platters so far off-key throughout. I gave up long ago trying to figure out the lyrics. Fun record, anyway. Then, from Waldorf, we have an astonishingly accurate copy of the Bacharach-David hit for Marty Robbins, 1957's The Story of My Life. I think someone (Mitch Miller?) must have instructed Burt and Hal to do something in a White Sport Coat mode, and they certainly came through. Rock 'Round the Old Corral by the household-name House Brothers Quartet (with the Keeklickers), year unknown, has a great guitar solo but is otherwise ridiculously lame. It almost sounds like a joke.
Next, two 1952 ngems by Hugo Winterhalter, including maybe my favorite Hugo side, Hesitation, written by him. The flip is Lou Singer's Tic-Tac-Toe, which is an amazing piece of musicianship from the orchestra. Maybe a tad close to Leroy Anderson's The Typewriter, (minus the typewriter), but it's so well written and scored, I'm not complaining.
I'm sure no one will agree, but I consider June Valli the RCA label's pre-Elvis Elvis. I swear. I can totally picture RCA playing some of her torchier tracks for him and Elvis going, "I like that." She has a similar type of exaggeration in her style--his emotionalism, minus the echo chamber. The writer of this bluesy torch side? The same guy who gave us Sparrow in the Tree Top and That Doggie in the Window--Bob Merrill. Then we have the incredibly charming The Valley of a Hundred Hills, with words by Hal David. Frankie Laine's singing is perfection, and my copy is a stereo 7-inch 33 1/3! See scan above, complete with sleeve. Sometimes a pop gem will go nowhere. And... two more Hugo Winterhalter winners, 1953 this time. Terry's Theme (the theme from Limelight) is of course by Charlie Chaplin, who couldn't read a note of music but who came up with some fine melodies. Note: If you're a Chaplin fan and unfamiliar with the type of person he was, don't read any of the expose pieces on him.
What'd He Say? is supposed to funny, I guess, but even things done for the sake of silliness need to have a point. And to not be so overdone. Totally stupid, but it does feature a sped-up voice in the Ross Bagdasarian fashion, and from the same year as Ross' Witch Doctor--1958. Then it's Merv Griffin, from his days as Freddy Martin's star vocalist, with piano by Murray Arnold and fabulous playing by this extremely underrated orchestra. Following Merv is a second go-round for Artie Malvin's excellent High Noon Frankie Laine copy, only with fuller sound and a different orchestra credit. This from a Promenade LP; the other was a Waldorf EP. How Enoch Light became Bruce Cabot, I don't know. Kaw-Liga is another excellent Malvin side, and he does a great Hank Williams. Fun, over the top arrangement, too. From the same LP, we have the spooky, lovely Billy Vaughn hit, The Shifting, Whispering Sands, credited here to The Texans. I have a seven-inch 78 single of the performance which credits the narrator, but I don't have it handy. No "Texans" credit on that label. The original was a two-sider, so we only get half the narration here, but I like the way it moves more quickly into the terrific choral section. As a pop number, it's an oddity, but a highly effective one.
CLICK HERE TO HEAR: Various singles, Part 4
Little Joe from Chicago--Andy Kirk and His Orch., 1957
Hambone--Bud Roman and Mimi Martel, the Hal Lomen Orch.
Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee (McGhee)--Western Playboys, vocal by Les Guthrie, 1949?
Bazoom! (I Need Your Lovin')--Les Elgart and his Orch., 1954
Gee--The Four Jacks, 1954
Gee-June Hutton and Axel Stordahl with the Boys Next Door, 1954
Shake Rattle and Roll--Bill St. Claire, 1954
I Forgot to Remember to Forget--Jack Daniels w. The Country All-Stars
Wear my Ring Around Your Neck--Jimmy Lane
Peyton Place--Lillian Brooks, 1958
Stop (Let Me Off of This Bus)--Snooky Lanson, 1955
Back, Battle and Ball--The Platters, 1955
The Story of My Life (Bacharach-David)--Jim Richards, prob. 1957
Rock 'Round the Old Corral--House Brothers Quartet with the Keellickers
Tic-Tac-Toe (Lou Singer)--Hugo Winterhalter and his Orch., 1952
Hesitation (Winterhalter)--Same
Tell Me, Tell Me (Bob Merrill)--June Valli, w. Henri Rene's Orch. and Cho., 1954
The Valley of a Hundred Hills--Frankie Laine, 1959.
The Terry Theme (Chaplin)--Hugo Winterhalter and his Orch., 1953
Symphony of a Starry Night--Same
What'd He Say?--Joe Reisman Orch. and Cho., 1958
Down Yonder--Merv Griffin and the Band, w. Freddy Martin Orch., Piano: Murray Arnold, 1951
High Noon--Artie Malvin w.Bruce Cabot and his Orch.
Kaw-Liga--Artie Malvin w. Bruce Cabot and his Orch.
The Shifting, Whispering Sands--The Texans w. Bruce Cabot and his Orch.
Lee
12 comments:
This all looks like great fun. Thanks!
Lots of interesting stuff here!
Peyton Place was also a movie in 1957. I found the soundtrack recently, perhaps in California. Don't remember what was on it though.
I like the box service much better than Zippyshare. Too much jumping through hoops with all of the other stuff they try to get you to download before you get to the actual file. Then when I try to download the files you post it gets cancelled due to "Malicious Website" alerts. Box just doesn`t have any of that. Love the things you post and keep up the great work.
Thanks Lee. I hope you're feeling better and that your 'puter issues will be resolved soon.
I had one of those Stereo Seven records somewhere, but can't remember what it was. It's pretty cool. I've also got one of the original 1958 stereo 7" records from RCA from before they decided the 7" market didn't care about stereo. I think that one is a western song from The Melachrino Orchestra. The cover is a Mozelle Thompson picture.
Did Marty Robbins steal from Jim Richards or vice versa? I'm going to assume Marty got there first. But it's always fun to hear polished plagiarism. Ray Coniff's arrangement is more glitzy and the whistling slicker. By the way, back in the days when you were pioneering Burt Bacharach archeology (discology?), you posted a fabulous mono version of Joe Williams singing "That Kind of Woman." I know B. hates the song, but I love it and obviously Joe did also--enough to name the album on which the song is found after it. As I remember, your mono was vastly superior to the stereo. Could you re-post? Indeed, would you consider a Bacharach bonanza? Certainly, more of his early stuff has come your way and you probably have second thoughts about those transfers. By the way, I love your melanges and I cite you to friends as why Spotify and its algorithmic ilk will never replace human taste and judgment.
I have one of those Stereo Sevens myself, but I too can't recall the artist.
I looked on the Peyton Place soundtrack LP, and there is no vocal version as far as I can tell. However, Frank De Vol put out an LP of movie and TV themes in the 60s that included a Peyton Place theme and that album indicates that there was a vocal version called "For Those Who Are Young" with lyrics by Paul Francis Webster. That seems to be different from the song that Lillian Brooks sings. It could be the version De Vol plays was written for the TV show, but the composer is the same - Franz Waxman. I'll play the LPs and see if I can figure it out.
I'm with David - I would love to have another Bacharach comp.
There are a number of real gems here!
Little Joe from Chicago is Night Train. If the 1938 version sounds like this, that would make it earlier than Ellington's Happy-Go-Lucky Local, which is usually cited as the source of Night Train.
Drinkin' Wine - great version, what a find! Fiddle sounds like it was recorded over the telephone.
Bill St. Claire is great - I love his flub at the tenor break. I have an LP with him doing Sinatra-type material, IIRC. It's remarkable how well he handles Shake, Rattle and Roll.
I think I prefer Jimmy Lane to Elvis, but I am not much of a fan of El.
Stop (Let Me Off the Bus) is good. They must have had Snooky do the up-tempo stuff on Hit Parade.
Re: the Platters - so now you expect vocal groups to sing in tune? (I admit some of this is especially awful.)
Jim Richards is pretty good, but I am a great admirer of Marty Robbins.
I disagree about Rock 'Round the Old Corral - it is fantastic and I think it must be tongue in cheek. So weird - don't listen to this one while stoned.
Tic-Tac-Toe just needs the carriage returns to be Leroy Anderson. (No one under 30 knows what a carriage return is. The Typewriter must mystify them.)
June Valli was one of the more overwright singers of the pop era. Both her and Elvis were unconvincing and you can convince me they weren't.
I like Winterhalter, but I think he loses the thread on the Limelight theme. The Symphony of a Starry Night rather seems to be a Piano Concerto of a Starry Night, but I suppose that title wouldn't sound as euphonious.
That Joe Reisman item is very odd.
Down Yonder was one of my favorite songs as a very young young-un. Glad to hear from Ephram and Sammy again.
Artie Malvin was a man of parts, but he doesn't seem convinced by High Noon. I didn't expect him to handle Hank Williams material very well, but he does OK excepting the leaps into falsetto.
The success of Shifting, Whispering Sands has always mystified me. The narrator sounds a little like Gabby Hayes.
Buster,
I just wrote a long, long reply to you, and it's gone. I was sure I posted it. It's time for me to get up, go downstairs, get some electrolytes in my body--a body still recovering from that awful flu, which after the fact I realize is the worst I've ever been through, despite the lack of any fever past 99.2. Which is high for me, but not much, flu-wise. I seriously do not know what happened to my comment. I swear to everything I posted it.
I have officially flipped. Woo-hoo! May as well make it a fun time!!
I'll answer again when I'm rational.
team464,
Thanks. One problem with Box is its limited download bandwidth. During high-posting periods like Christmas, it shuts down when that limit has been reached, and it doesn't renew until the next month. Other than that, I agreee that it's vastly superior to Zippy. (Sorry, Zippy!)
Rev. B.,
Thanks. My PC is behaving and Avast seems to have resolved its internal issues. As far as I can tell, it simply needed to be updated, but it was giving me odd messages and took forever to do what should have taken just a few minutes....
David,
I appreciate the kind words. Yes, I can re-up the mono Joe Williams. If I do a Bacharach comp, I'll focus on obscure stuff, because since I did my "Early Burt" posts, a number of early-Burt CDs have appeared--mostly from other countries. My Burt posing might have played some tiny part in that, though I'm skeptical, as there was already tons of interest in Burt. I'd started tracking down his stuff before I learned of the Burt cult. I came across an on-line discography that's been since beefed up. At least one of the tracks--Burt's appearance as conductor on an early Bell 45--was likely found first by me, but no one credited me. That's life in cyberspace. I was a little annoyed. I'm almost surely the detective who spotted that one. I may (or may not) have been the person who brought attention to the Bachararach-Stone "The Desperate Hours," which got lost in the Burt discography because of Burt's "These Desperate Hours," recorded by Mel Torme. I'll never know.
If it's any consolation, one of my Xmas mixes made for Buster, "A Pre-Climate Change Christmas," has already been stolen and posted by some of the Russian sights. I'm both honored and pissed. However, there is no substitute for the original. Listening to your immaculate transfer of "Tic-Tac-Toe" yesterday, coupled with "Hesitation," gave me some thrills and pangs only blogs like this can give. I never thought I would ever remember--with pride--buying Hugo Winterhalter 45's when I was kid. Thirty years ago, the prospect of dreading up such memories would have been a valid cause for psychotherapy. Now those memories are part of the founding musical plenitude of my life. Time is a wonderful revisionist.
Post a Comment