A Promenade LP featuring an overview of the 1950s, credited to bandleader Eddie Maynard, but with no Eddie Maynard to be heard--the usual cheap-label game. Well, unless that's Eddie on the cover, which I doubt. For once, we have a budget LP model holding, not major-label LPs, but albums from the very budget label itself--smart move. And that colorful dress--wow. If not for the input of blog friend Diane, I wouldn't have noticed the fish swimming through the pattern. (I hope they weren't the biting kind.)
So, my job was to figure out where these tracks, issued in 1957 or 1958, originally came from. And I knew the release year for this was 1957 or 1958 because the liner notes refer to the 50s as "not yet completed" and mention a "man made satellite" (Sputnik or Explorer?) as a new item. From the notes: "(The 50's) are the years that saw a Republican Administration replace a long-incumbent Democratic one. Progress in Atomic Research to such an extent that it might prevent us all from witnessing 'The Stupid Sixties.' Atomic Research devoted to the ways of peace could however change our out-look on this approaching era to such an extent that certainly the 60's will be called 'Stupendous.'" Lousy liner notes, but at least Promenade provided something in that area. With some social commentary, too. As we know, the cheapos usually used the back jackets to plug their catalog, so I can't be too hard on the essay.
Anyway, I figured these were all Prom/Promenade tracks (Homes-level deduction, there), and I was mostly correct. The big exception: Because of You, sung by the famous Perry-Como-soundalike vocalist Johnny Kay, best known for his SPC Christmas tracks. From the Internet Archive:
Finding this was pure luck. Since the singer sounded so much like Johnny Kay, I plugged "Johnny Kay" and "Because of You" into the IA, and up popped this. And it's the LP track! "Popular Records" is totally new to me (not to be confused with the "Popular" Extended Play Records series), and I figure it was either 1) a Synthetic Plastics Co. sublabel to begin with or 2) was bought up by SPC after it tanked. And it seems to have been related to a "Cameo" label, and not the well-known one, or I would have dispensed with the quotes. The Milton Herbert Orchestra--a pseudonym for Eddie Maynard? (Just kidding.)
I suspect that Cry also features the Milton Herbert Orch., but unfortunately that single isn't at IA, though it's available at eBay for $20 (the dealer offered me a special price). But I'm afraid the mystery isn't worth $20 to solve, so we'll just have to wonder who's doing the crying here. It's not Loren Becker--I found his version on YouTube, and it's a blatant (and very good) imitation of Johnny Ray, which this version isn't. But the others, I nailed. (UPDATE--9/16/20: This version of Cry is by Larry Foster, backed by the Preston Sandiford Orchestra on Cameo Records 323. Cameo seems to have been in the same label group as Popular Records.)
Why Promenade didn't use Loren Becker's version is a major mystery, and it should have us wondering whether maybe Columbia decided to threaten Prom over its deft copy of Johnny Ray and the Four Lads. Could that be? Columbia may have sent a nasty-gram threatening a day in civil court, and a lawsuit would certainly have sunk SPC's record division/laundry closet. ("Your sound-alikes are sounding too alike. Tread softly or we'll sink you. Yours sincerely, Columbia Records.") Hence, the non-Becker version included here. Or maybe someone just screwed up during the mastering of this. That's probably closer to what happened.
The others are Prom and Promenade label jobs, and I've given all the correct info in my mp3 tags and in the listing below. The only other one I'm not sure about (pretty sure, but not totally) is Young Love, which I suspect is Larry Star on Promenade HIT 7, which isn't in my collection, oddly enough. It's always the one you're looking for that you don't have. How does that work?
And I'm trying to remember--was the 60's "Stupid" or "Stupendous"? Did we blow ourselves up? Hm. I can't remember. Anyway, I recall we used words like "Mod," "Groovy," "Happening," "Socially Conscious," etc. to describe the deccenium.
Very good sound on this cheap-vinyl pressing. I guess they were too pressed for time to muck up the sound with tons of reverb or some other crime to audio.
DOWNLOAD: Eddie Maynard, His Orch. and Chorus--Fabulous 50's (Promenade 2084)
Here in My Heart--Loren Becker w. Enoch Light Orch. (Prom)
Because of You--Johnny Kay w. Milton Herbert Orch. (Popular Records)
Young Love--Larry Star (Promenade HIT 7)?
That's Amore--Artie Malvin w. Bobby Byrne Orch. (Prom; 1952)
Make Love to Me--Betty Glenn w. Enoch Light Orch. (Prom)
Till Then--Brigadiers Vocal Quartet, w. Prom Orch. (Prom; 1954)
Cry--
Earth Angel--The Rockets, The Prom Orch. (Prom, 1955)
Outside of Heaven--Loren Becker, w. Enoch Light Orch. and Chorus (Prom)
Jamaica Farewell--Jim Galdys, w. the Promenade Orch. and Chorus (Promenade)
Heartbreak Hotel--Bill Marine, Maury Laws Orch. and Chorus (Prom)
Lee
18 comments:
It seems weird that the company would use Eddie Maynard's name when he doesn't appear on the record. It's not as though he was a big draw. Was he even a real person? He only seems to crop up on the cheap labels.
I'm guessing Synthetic Plastics Co. made him up. He was an alternative to listing all of the actual folks behind the tracks on any given Franken-effort like this one. Even those issues that appear to have a single band were probably cobbled together. SPC paved the way for Pickwick's worst practices.
Tops did the same bit, too, with its Lew Raymond credits, though Lew was a real person. Er, I think, anyway.
Right, makes sense.
I don't know how you keep track of all these "budget" label doings! But you are clearly an expert. So -- I was cleaning a bunch of records today with my Spin-Clean (love that setup!), and I noticed how the cleaner/rinse acted completely differently on different labels' records. I mean, how weird is that? I washed a Masterseal record, and the fluid got all foamy and white, instead of clear. Does that mean it's not "vinyl" but instead some kind of uranium-fueled-plastic instead? I was almost afraid to touch it. Help me, Lee!
Wow--I have no idea. If it was a 10" Masterseal, those used unbelievably thin vinyl (that inevitably splits during shipping), but I don't know if the thickness or thinness of the vinyl would be an issue here. Did anything happen to the surface? Did it change color? Or was it just the fluid acting weirdly?
I was sitting here working and Heartbreak Hotel started playing......I almost thought Stan Freberg was playing!!!! The fact that no jeans were ripped brought me back to normal but that is an incredible version if it was indeed intended to not be comedy.
Indeed the Spin-Clean is a great piece of equipment!!! I, however, have never had any of the thousand or so records I have cleaned with it create a foamy bath??? I am not entirely sure I have any Masterseal in the collection though.
Awesome Fake Stuff as always Lee!!!! Thank you!!!
My pleasure, Scott! And, yes, Heartbreak Hotel almost sounds like a parody--or a lark, to use an old term. I love Freberg's take-off. He turned his hatred of r&r into some hilarious send-ups.
Again Lee thanks for another bonus collection disc. Always love to listen to Loren, Artie, and Betty. Lee is it just me, as a mature person, these older singers are comfortable listening to artists. I guess this might have been behind the Waldorf Music Hall experience. Maybe, this is why I enjoy these treasures, for me that is. Larry Star, nice fake. I can not help thinking... What name should we use for you? Star, Larry Star. That sounds good because kid, you are going to be the next BIG star. Then later...Larry WHO??? Anyway, it is a nice track worth repeated listening. Bryan
Promenade got pretty silly with its names--Sugar Beat, Eli Whitney. Someone was having a good time. I guess the general consensus is that these were session musicians who didn't want their real names known, for staying-in-the-musician's-union reasons! And I definitely warmed up to "pre-rock" pop music as I got older--I think I was in my thirties when I decided to give my "parent's" music a chance (though my parents were actually jazz and Classical fans, and hence didn't listen to Mitch Miller-era pop). I found that, once I got used to the conventions of the day in question, postwar pop sounded just fine to me--and I came to love the big-name vocalists of the time, from Perry Como to Tony Bennett to the wonderful Guy Mitchell. And Rosemary Clooney, who I named my cat Rosie after. So, yes, it may be a matter of age--as we mellow out, we're more receptive to mellow pop. Something like that. But my big hurdle was getting used to pop conventions that were new to me--I remember how awful "Come On-a My House" initially sounded. It seemed absurd. (Thank goodness I didn't start wtih "Feet Up (Pat Him on the Po-Po.") Once I'd warmed up to the "legit" pop vocalists, I found folks like Loren Becker, Artie Malvin, and Betty Glenn easy to like. it took a conscious effort, though--one I'm glad I took. Glad you enjoyed!
Oh, and Prom/Promenade's biggest scam might have been using the name of the famous, payola-scandal promoter and DJ Alan Freed, only as "Allan Freed." That was low! I'm sure all SPC cared about was the name-recognition factor. Maybe they figured no one even bothered to look at the names. I often wonder if any real names were used. No way to know.
And it's fun to watch names switch across labels. For instance, the same (rather crummy) fake "Rock Around the Clock" master was used on Gateway Top Tune and Tops Records, as (respectively) Dick Warren and Fred Gibson. We'll never know who the real person was...
I think that many of these recordings were done with good studio musicians who could knock out copies quickly and accurately. the playing is too good and the singing is too in tune (usually) to be second raters. Anything associated with Enoch Light was well done.
Well, more than a few of these are post-Enoch Light--he left SPC in 1954, and I don't think he was involved with he Prom/Promenade fake hits. Dunno about Johnny Kay on Popular Records, either. That could have been an SPC label that croaked early, and maybe Enoch was involved with it--or maybe not. I still can't believe I lucked out with my Johnny Kay search. I let my ears do the leading, and I actually scored. So often, that's not how it works.
I agree that competent musicians were involved in the fakes, though come 1964 or so, some dreadful singing (and playing) was happening on the fakes. I blame all that on Pickwick's domination of the fake market come the '60s. Pickwick's goal was to save money at (no pun intended) any cost. And, even at the more competent Hit Records/Modern Sound label(s), where there were talented engineers and singers, the 60s vocal harmonies could be very tough to get down on short notice. Hit Records was especially awful at mimicking the Beach Boys. However, in the 50s, there was still some kind of quality control in place, so...
I liked the set, thanks for posting this, I appreciate it.
Sure! Glad you enjoyed, and this made for some fun detective work, tracking down the source recordings.
Went to an out-of-town Goodwill store today and picked up several records, mostly major label stuff like Tony Martin, Engelbert Humperdinck, Johnny Mathis, 45s from Ink Spots (Decca, not a Brand "X" issue), Paul Davis, Sarah Vaughan, Bobby Vinton, Guy Mitchell ("Sweet Stuff"), etc.
However, I did pick up one notable Brand "X" issue 45 today for 65 Cents (Sale Color): the second EP of a Promenade Eddie Maynard Plays A Tribute to Glenn Miller ("Blue Champagne", "When Johnny Comes Marching Home", "Piano Concerto", "Bugle Call Rag", "I Dream of Jeannie" and "Volga Boatman." Except for the piano concerto which is better known in the Pop market as "Tonight We Love", all of these tunes (including the PD cuts) were recorded by Glenn once upon a time (and I have the albums from him to prove it!)
Also represented in my thrifting today was a Design Andre Previn (using some of the songs from him that are probably on your 'Stars In Stereo Volume 3' set) in cover only; inside was a Coral LP called "Open House" from someone who was not Les Brown. I also saw a SEALED Design Mono LP of songs from "Hello, Dolly!" and "She Loves Me", yet I decided to let someone else have it. Also noticed a '60's Andre Kostelanetz LP, "The Shadow of Your Smile", plus some unique Gospel 45 EP's complete with sleeves. '
https://www.ebay.com/itm/134235479859?hash=item1f410edf33:g:swoAAOSwNzRen3m7&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAsGg4hU9G0gSAl9LLRU2YagLIT0WXnhwHwNXgd8aFNp8TDc%2FjYaUOvwm%2Bke%2BwTKj7zxiiXQz3i82CEkGo4qCdKJf8SctJUuPQ6%2F%2FPviEc34Uixf1%2F1S4fq5bjQfBNo81yrGT4TSneT%2FOWJmWWLO5APd6YACKwZQjjXcv75lombVmwaJU0pPd7kRZIZTUvRn%2FKJoTglRBi29wx%2Bn5RstVC%2BU0V9pemsiHOpxpvB87GjzUh%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR4r6gLb4YA
Great haul! I really need to get to a flea market myself--it's been so long, I've forgotten what they're like. (Well, maybe not THAT long.)
Thanks for sharing! And a sealed Design LP? Wow.
You are very welcome. The Eddie Maynard EP features several of the same Big Band cuts that Pickwick used on its Bobby Krane and Stanley Applewaite albums; Exhibit A was "Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair." in edited form. However, their version of "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" is really swingin' and is better than Glenn Miller's own version of the tune; one of the last songs he recorded before he joined the Army Air Force. "Bugle Call Rag" is senasational as well. All in all, typical Rack-job tomfoolery here, but still a great find.
I forgot to sign my comment here yesterday--my mistake!
I figured it was you! You have a distinctive style!
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