Posts Tagged ‘Bunny Berigan’

ANOTHER BAKER’S DOZEN MORE FOUND VINYL RECORDS

Wednesday, June 14th, 2023

    Back in April, I wrote another of my found vinyl blahgs with the unique title of A BAKER’S DOZEN MORE FOUND VINYL RECORDS.  I featured 13 records I had purchased over the past year or so and I provided background information as well as selections from each album.  I decided to browse through my record collection and find 13 more.  Some I’ve had for a few years and others were recent purchases.  Some are more interesting than others while some have never seen any other releases than these vinyl representations.  It’s not a baker’s dozen of delicious doughnuts but I think there’s something in here to please almost anyone…except fans of modern music…but don’t get me started.

   I thought I would share some photos of my stereo setup as well as my record collection.  Here’s a shot of my main record shelf:

My Record Shelf

I don’t normally have a bag of yarn sitting in front of my shelf.  There are four rows to the unit with all Sinatra records on the top shelf and a mixture of Big Bands, Vocalists, Harry Chapin, Billy Joel, Hoagy Carmichael, Dixieland bands, and Christmas albums across the other shelves.  I also have an overflow section on the bottom of another book shelf:

additional records

These are records I have played but haven’t made their way to the main shelf.  I also have a stack of records next to my stereo setup:

My Stereo Setup

The stereo consists of a double cassette player, CD player, receiver, and my Yamaha turntable on top.  That’s a wedding picture of my wife and I on the right.  It was taken in 1987…but that’s another blahg.

   In the last Baker’s Dozen blahg I ended off with some tracks by Bunny Berigan from a recent addition to my collection with the dubious title of “The Greatest White Trumpeter of All Time Bunny Berigan.”  I had referenced three other Berigan albums I had in my collection which I owned because they had tracks by Frank Sinatra when Berigan and Sinatra were with Tommy Dorsey.  I began culling my vinyl stash and I found one more Bunny Berigan album but it had no connection to Sinatra or Dorsey.  The title of this one is “Take It, Bunny!” 

Take It Bunny Front

Take It Bunny Rear

Most of these tracks are from the mid to late 1930s and feature Berigan with his own and band and playing as a sideman with other bands.  The very first track is Bunny Berigan’s theme song, “I Can’t Get Started.”  It’s from 1936 and features Berigan’s trumpet talent and Berigan’s vocal. 

Although all of the other tracks feature Berigan with many talented musicians, I want to offer up the second track on this album because it’s Berigan performing with the famous Glenn Miller.  The track is “Solo Hop” recorded on April 25, 1935. 

  

   The “Solo Hop” track from Glenn Miller and Bunny Berigan had a real dixieland vibe to it and dixieland is going to be a theme in this blahg.  Within the past two months I picked up the 1960 album “That Happy Dixieland Jazz” by Jimmy McPartland And His Dixielanders. 

That Happy Dixieland Jazz Front

That Happy Dixieland Jazz Rear

   I’ll be honest that I love Dixieland and when I see an album in a thrift store bin that falls into that category then I’m going home with it.  I had never heard of Jimmy McPartland so this was a good introduction.  But where to start when this album is filled with nothing but Dixieland classics?  Why not start with a song that gives a nod to the alleged birthplace of Dixieland: New Orleans.  Here’s “Way Down Yonder in New Orleans” and it features McPartland doing a vocal. 

If you have to choose another Dixieland classic performed by so many other bands, why not go with the old chestnut, “When The Saints Go Marching In”?  I find McPartland’s version refreshingly different and we are treated to another vocal by McPartland.

   I didn’t want to just drop in Jimmy McPartland and then dash along to someone else.  Over two blahgs, I gave a nod to Bunny Berigan more than once so I thought I’d offer something else by McPartland.  I came across a reference to an album that McPartland did where he covered songs from the musical “The Music Man.” The 1958 album is aptly titled “The Music Man” Goes Dixieland.

Of course it’s probably weird to hear anyone cover “Ya Got Trouble” other than the great Robert Preston but if you want to hear what Jimmy McPartland can do on the vocal, give a listen. Oh yeah, the instrumental parts are pretty good, too!

Slowing it down a little, here’s McPartland’s treatment of “Goodnight My Someone.”  Strictly instrumental this one. 

I’m definitely going to have a look out for that album.

 

   The Dixieland theme continues with our next album but the songs are all vocals from a group called The Cheerleaders.  The album is from 1958 on the Carlton album and is “The Cheerleaders Sing Dixieland Jazz”. 

The Cheerleaders Sing Dixieland Jazz

The Cheerleaders Sing Dixieland Jazz (rear)

I could not find out much about The Cheerleaders.  Most of the information is from the back cover: 

What makes a “good group”? The answer is obviously a personal one and each of us would define it in his own terms. But there are certain things that must be common to both your definition and mine: The Cheerleaders sing in tune. Now there’s a gimmick in itself. Pat Pinney, Donna Manners, Tom Roddy, and Joe Pryor (as you listen from the top voice down) work as a unit – no one is flying off on an irresponsible tangent like a loose neutron which has just spotted a pretty female proton next door. There is cohesiveness in the way The Cheerleaders perform. A unity that can only verify their having been together since 1950, and digging it!

The shame of the music business is sometimes its lack of immediate recognition for deserving artists. There are many logical and illogical reasons for this which we needn’t burden ourselves with here. Suffice to say that The Cheerleaders, although perhaps new to your record player, have a large and loyal following thanks to appearances in such diverse media as New York’s “Blue Angel”, Palace Theatre, and T.V.’s Dave Garroway, Tennessee Ernie, Betty Hutton and Frank Sinatra shows.

I also found a site that posted this review of the album from Billboard Magazine on November 17, 1958:

“The bright, bouncy sound achieved by The Cheerleaders in this platter is more in the mood of the old Pied Pipers and Modernaires groups than anything that came out of New Orleans. About half of the songs are “semi-Dixie” treatments of oldies like “Copenhagen,” and the rest, like “Woodchoppers’ Ball,” are almost straight swing vocals. Nice stereo work, with singers “centred” before Side Robin’s ork. rather than confined to one channel. Group’s fans should like it.”

Let’s start then with selections from the album.  Since the Billboard article says that “Copenhagen” is “semi-Dixie” then let’s give it a listen: 

The next selection slows it down a bit on “Nocturne For The Blues”: 

   The Internet Movie Database page for The Cheerleaders, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1318579/ lists some appearances by The Cheerleaders in 1954 on The Red Skelton Show and The Nat King Cole Show.  I could not find videos for these but The Cheerleaders also appeared on Gary Crosby’s summer 1954 radio show and the audio is available for that appearance.  Gary Crosby was, of course, the son of Bing Crosby and duets with The Cheerleaders on one of the numbers.  Is it a duet if it’s Gary plus the four Cheerleaders?  Regardless, here’s that duet on a song called “Red Top:” 

The program aired on August 15, 1954 and also featured a guest appearance by Frank Sinatra.  Sinatra did not sing with The Cheerleaders but they did get to do a solo effort on a song called “This Must Be The Place:” 

As far as I can tell, this is the only album put out by The Cheerleaders.  Discogs, https://www.discogs.com/release/10925346-The-Cheerleaders-Dollar-Bill-Second-Hand-Rose/image/SW1hZ2U6MzA1NDY4ODU= also lists a promo 45rpm record featuring two songs, “Dollar Bill and “Second Hand Rose.”  No date is given for the release and I couldn’t find audio of those two songs.  Here, at least, are images of the two sides of the record: 

  

   Let’s move on to some more instrumental music before getting back into the vocal albums.  Here’s one I almost forgot to include.  I normally record the album and then take a picture of the front and rear covers so I can post them.  Well, I took the photo but forgot to record the LP.  The album is “Dixieland Left And Right” featuring Johnny Best And His All Stars & Dick Cathcart And His All Stars.  Here are the photos I took of the front and rear of the jacket: 

Johnny Best And His All Stars And Dick Cathcart And His All Stars – Dixieland Left And Right

Johnny Best And His All Stars And Dick Cathcart And His All Stars – Dixieland Left And Right Rear

Notice that the rear cover has nothing to add, information wise, than to provide the track listings.  It’s possible that the inner liner, which mine is missing, might have contained more information because there was a gatefold edition where the inside opened like a book to reveal more details.  Here’s a picture of what the gatefold version looked like: 

Johnny Best And His All Stars And Dick Cathcart And His All Stars – Dixieland Left And Right - Gatefold

I couldn’t find a larger or clearer image for the gatefold jacket but we can see it does contain more information than the front or rear covers combined. Here’s the introduction to the record:

About the Sounds…

This music is exhilarating, energized, effusive and ebullient Dixieland jazz.

It’s Two Bands – set in the most compelling and intriguing manner yet with both taste and tantalization.

Arranger Matty Matlock, trumpet leaders John Best and Dick Cathcart and Mercury Recording Director David Carroll present here, with artistry and artifice, something new, something fresh, something unique.

Instead of typing out all of the information for all of the recordings, I will only provide the relevant information to two of the tracks.  The first is “Little Sir Echo.”  Here’s what the gatefold information has to say: 

LITTLE SIR ECHO

This number is, of course, ideal for the two band “echo” answering idea.

   The introduction has “A” band (L) and “B” band (R) supplying the “echoes.” At 0.52 the second chorus starts with a bass solo (Marty Corb) from “B” band in the right channel. Then comes an interlude with “A” band (L) answered by the “B” ensemble on the other side. The third chorus starts with a guitar solo from the “B” guitarist (Allan Reuss) on the right and after a further answering engagement, the arrangement finishes with both bands eventually together.

Give a listen to “Little Sir Echo:”

The next tune has always been a favourite when I’ve heard it by vocalists or bands.  The song is “Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone.”  Here’s what the liner notes say about this version. 

PLEASE DON’T TALK ABOUT ME WHEN I’M GONE

“Another trumpet player’s favorite,” asserts Matty Matlock.

   Trumpet-leader Best plays the first half of the charge – from his place in “A” based on the left. There are xylophone figures from both channels. The bridge is taken by the xylophone alone on the left (Gene Eaton). The last eight measures features vibraphone (Frank Flynn) on the right side.
The second chorus highlights the “B” band – on the right – with the banjo.
The last chorus brings in both bands. There’s an amazing break with tuba on the right channel in unison with xylophone on the left. The bridge has here drum breaks on the left (Jack Sperling) followed by drummer Nick Fatool in band “B” on the right. For the last eight bars the complete ensemble brings the number in a happy Dixieland close

Here’s “Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone:”

It’s an interesting concept to have two different bands playing in opposing speakers on the left and right.  To my knowledge and research, it does not appear that Johnny Best and His All Stars & Dick Cathcart and His All Stars ever recorded together again. 

   Johnny Best passed away in 2003.  His obituary from the San Diego Union Tribune newspaper provides us with a little more information about him:

September 28, 2003

His trumpet solos punctuated some of the most familiar tunes of the big-band era, helping to define and shape the sounds of such legends as Glenn Miller and Artie Shaw.

As he rose to prominence, Johnny Best exhibited a quality uncommon to musicians of his time: easily adapting to the varying arrangements, parameters and personalities of rival bands.

“It was quite a feat, being able to play in two of the most popular bands of the era,” said Dan Del Fiorentino, curator of the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad. “Johnny left a unique mark, and the big-band era wouldn’t have been the same without him.”

Mr. Best, whose trumpet solos were featured in such big-band hits as “Stardust” and “Frenesi,” died Sept. 19 at his La Jolla home. He was 89.

“He had a good sound on the instrument,” said Billy May, a former band leader and musical contemporary. “Playing the trumpet can be an endurance contest with your lip, and Johnny had command. He played on ‘Begin the Beguin,’ which put Artie Shaw in business.”

Although the popularity of big bands began to fade in the 1950s, Mr. Best’s talents remained in demand. After World War II, he performed with an array of notable band leaders, including May, Benny Goodman, Bob Crosby, Tommy Dorsey, Ray Conniff and Harry James.

He also worked steadily as a studio musician, often commuting to Hollywood in the late 1950s after buying an avocado ranch in Pauma Valley.

In recent years, which found him playing at San Diego venues, he had been working on an oral history of his career. At the urging of his family, he recorded his memories on tape, which his stepchildren hope to convert into a book.

“On top of everything, Johnny was a really nice guy,” Del Fiorentino said. “He got a lot of solo work because everybody liked him. Sitting and talking to him, I got the sense that he was more than just a little passionate about what he did.

“It was his life – and he loved it.”

John McClanian Best, a La Jolla resident since 1967, was born in Shelby, N.C. He formed his own orchestra in high school and played in bands at Duke University and Davidson College.

Before World War II, he played with the Les Brown, Charlie Barnet, Artie Shaw and Glenn Miller bands. He played for the Shaw hits “Frenesi,” “Traffic Jam” and “Old, Old Castle in Scotland.”

His trumpet solo on the 1940 Miller hit “Stardust” was among his most memorable and a personal favorite.

“He had this lilt – an unorthodox way of changing chords, of going from A to B, so to speak,” Del Fiorentino said, “A casual listener might say, ‘That’s interesting.’ But if you were a musician, your mouth dropped.” During the war, Mr. Best served in the Navy and played in Shaw’s Navy band, entertaining troops in Europe and the South Pacific. “He was part of a great trumpet section with Frank Beach and Conrad Gozzo,” May said.

In “Orchestra Wives,” a 1942 movie featuring the music of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Mr. Best’s trumpet solo on “At Last” was among three hit songs featured. Except in creating the music, actor John Payne took the part of Mr. Best on screen.

Mr. Best played on V-disc recordings, distributed during World War II by the U.S. government to military personnel overseas. “He felt he was serving his country in two ways, through the band and the V-discs that boosted morale,” Del Fiorentino said. “He was a real patriot who loved his country.”

Mr. Best’s postwar career included sessions with Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong and Nat “King” Cole.

After settling in California in the 1950s, he played in various combos in nightclubs in the San Diego and Los Angeles areas.

“When he wasn’t picking avocados in his orchard in Pauma Valley, he organized and managed frequent jazz concerts in the San Diego area as well as fronting for groups on extended overseas tours,” said stepdaughter Elizabeth Frazee.

In 1967, he married Mary Lou Janis, a La Jolla widow. He settled in La Jolla but often visited his avocado ranch, where in 1982 a fall from a tree broke his back and left him a paraplegic.

During two months of recovery at UCSD Medical Center, he entertained hospital staff and patients on his trumpet, Frazee said.

Using a wheelchair, Mr. Best continued to play and travel, performing until 2001. “He practiced every day until about six months ago,” said stepdaughter Marie Janis.

He often played the first notes of the song “Mary Lou” to beckon his wife from another room in their home, Janis said. Similar fanfares greeted other family members whose names corresponded to song titles or lyrics.

Mr. Best’s wife died in September 1996 during the couple’s trip to Hobart, Australia.

Survivors include a brother, Herman Best of Charlotte, N.C.; stepchildren, Leonard Janis of Chula Vista; Theil Shelton, Elizabeth Frazee and Louise Duchein, all of Santa Barbara; Paul Janis and Susan Edwards, both of San Diego; Barbara Kennedy of Palmdale; Robert Janis of St. Petersburg, Fla.; and Marie Janis of La Jolla; and 11 grandchildren.

Private services were scheduled.

Donations are suggested to San Diego Hospice or the John Best Memorial Book Fund Trust in care of San Diego National Bank. The fund was established to create a book of Mr. Best’s life story based on the oral history he recorded.

I don’t know if the book of Johnny Best’s memories was ever published but in 1998, Johnny Best did an extensive video interview with Monk Rowe for the Hamilton College Jazz Archive in San Diego.  The entire video, running well over an hour, is available on YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQWk99bSpWQ

   Dick Cathcart passed away in 1993.  He had a featured obituary in the New York Times on November 12, 1993:

Dick Cathcart Obit

There are some wonderful videos of Dick Cathcart performing on the Lawrence Welk Show but I particularly enjoyed the following one that featured Cathcart prominently on trumpet along with the Lennon Sisters, including his wife Peggy, on the Dixieland standard “Ja-Da”: 

 

 

   I’ll be honest that the following record from 1962 did not turn out to be one of my favourites.  The album cover was appealing and you’d think with the title “Red Hot & Peppy Fields” that it would be more appealing.  Have a look at the covers: 

Red Hot & Peppy Fields Album Front

Red Hot & Peppy Fields Album Rear

The take away is the word “belting” which is used a few times on the liner notes. 

“Red Hot & Peppy” is a collection of familiar Blues and Ballads and Ragtime Tunes belted with a bucketful of bright cheer.

Here is a singer, belting like they used to, selling like you liked them to. Remember? And all the belting and the selling so neatly tied up in this package will stir you right up to the top of your total recall.

That seems to be the problem with this album.  She’s belting them out but I find it too brassy for my tastes.  I like the band behind her but we don’t get any information who they were.  Still, listen for yourself and see what you think.  Give a listen to “Bye Bye Blackbird:” 

You would think that a Dixieland standard like “Bill Bailey, Won’t You Please Come Home” might stand up well but, again, the instruments work well but get drowned out by Peppy Fields: 

The rear cover mentions that Peppy’s brother was Irving Fields.  “Red Hot & Peppy Fields” does not feature her brother Irving but Peppy did release a single with the Irving Fields Trio featuring the songs “After You’ve Gone” and “Some Of These Days.”  Here’s the photo cover:

Peppy Fields with the Irving Fields Trio

I could not find anywhere to listen to those two songs online.  Peppy Fields passed away in 1998 at the age of 1993. 

The Irving Fields Trio were a little more popular and they even appeared in two Soundies.  I have mentioned Soundies in a few blahgs and this is usually the description I used:

“Soundies are three-minute American musical films, produced between 1940 and 1947, each containing a song, dance, and/or band or orchestral number. Produced professionally on 35mm black-and-white film, like theatrical motion pictures, they were printed in the more portable and economical 16mm gauge.

The films were shown in a coin-operated “movie jukebox” called the Panoram, manufactured by the Mills Novelty Company of Chicago. Each Panoram housed a 16mm RCA film projector, with eight Soundies films threaded in an endless-loop arrangement. A system of mirrors flashed the image from the lower half of the cabinet onto a front-facing screen in the top half. Each film cost 10 cents to play, and there was no choice of song; the patron saw whatever film was next in the queue. Panorams could be found in public amusement centers, nightclubs, taverns, restaurants, and factory lounges, and the films were changed weekly. The completed Soundies were generally made available within a few weeks of their filming, by the Soundies Distributing Corporation of

Here’s a nice Soundie of “I guess I Took Too Much For Granted” with Leona Fredericks doing the vocals with The Irving Fields Trio:

If you really want to hear The Irving Fields Trio swing then check out this Soundie of the trio doing “Mexican Hotfoot”:

Irving Fields died in 2016 at the age of 101.  He published an autobiography entitled “The Pianos I Have Known.” 

In 2015, at the age of 100, Irving Fields gave an interview about his tips for longevity: 

To me, that’s more interesting than his sister Peppy’s album. 

 

   Keeping with the vocal side but continuing with Dixieland, here’s an album I picked up that did not disappoint.  It’s the 1960 album, “Eydie in Dixieland” featuring Eydie Gormé.  I won’t quibble that the album title actually hyphenates “Dixie-land.” 

Eydie in Dixie-land Front

Eydie in Dixie-land Rear

If there is one drawback to this album it’s that we don’t get a list of the musicians backing Eydie.  We can see that Don Costa arranged and produced the album but there’s no information about the band playing on each number.  Oh well, we’ll have to just let the music speak for itself.  Where to begin when offering up tracks?  Most of the songs are well known in the Dixieland circles but the song “Limehouse Blues” struck me as one that isn’t really is well known on the vocal side.  Here’s Eydie’s version:

I thought the other track I would present would be a comparison piece.  I lamented how Peppy Fields’ version of “Bill Bailey, Won’t You Please Come Home” didn’t do anything for me.  Listen to what a singer like Eydie can do with the old chestnut:

I won’t talk further about Eydie Gormé.  I will mention, however, a personal note.  I was privileged to see Eydie Gormé with her husband Steven Lawrence perform along with Frank Sinatra as part of his Diamond Jubilee World Tour.  They came to Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto on November 12th, 1991. 

Sinatra Gorme Poster 1991

The Diamond Jubilee ticket stub

I found that Steve and Eydie were a bit schmaltzy by 1991 but I enjoyed them.  I taped the concert on a mini cassette-recorder.  I remember converting Steve & Eydie’s portion to a digital file but I’d have to go looking for it.

 

 

   Okay, so let’s move back to the instrumental but still keeping with the Dixieland theme.  This time it’s Kings of Dixieland Volume 2 from 1959:

Kings of Dixieland Volume 2 Front

Kings of Dixieland Volume 2 Rear

What is it about Dixieland bands with striped coats and straw hats posing on old cars?  Check out the cover of the one and only album put out by Canada’s own “Bridge City Dixieland Jazz Band”:

By the way, if you want to find out more about the “Bridge City Dixieland Jazz Band” then you check out two of my other blahgs, ZOEY, FRANK, JUNE & ALL THAT JAZZ and BRIDGE CITY AGAIN, PIRATES, AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO CANADA! 

   Getting back to Kings of Dixieland, you will note that this is Volume Two on the Crown Records label.  If you check out the band’s listing on Discogs, https://www.discogs.com/artist/2254890-Kings-Of-Dixieland you will notice that the listings for Kings of Dixieland on the Crown Record label run up to Volume 8 but there is no listing for Volume 1.  I guess that makes sense because you don’t call your first album Volume 1 unless you know you’re going to issue other Volume titled records.  The only album in the discography listing for Kings of Dixieland on Crown Records without “Volume” in the title is “The Fantabulous Kings Of Dixieland”:

The Fantabulous Kings Of Dixieland

Is this Volume 1?  Check out the musicians listed on “The Fantabulous Kings Of Dixieland”:

Bass – Marty Corb
Clarinet – Matty Matlock
Drums – Ben Pollack
Piano – Clyde Ridge
Saxophone – Jack Ordean
Trombone – Ray Conniff
Trumpet – Clyde Hurley, Dick Cathcart

Now check out the musicians listed for the Volume 2 LP: 

Bass, Horn [Bass] – Red Callender
Clarinet – Heinie Beau
Drums – Nick Fatool
Guitar – George Van Eps
Liner Notes – Frank Evans (3)
Piano – Ray Sherman
Saxophone – Eddie Miller (2)
Trombone – Moe Schneider
Trumpet – Dick Cathcart

Only Dick Cathcart repeats on Volume 2.  Yes, the same Dick Cathcart that I highlighted earlier in this blahg who played on “Dixieland Left And Right”.  For kicks, I checked out the musician ensemble for Volume Three and here’s what we learn:

Bass, Tuba [Bass Horn] – Red Callender
Clarinet – Matty Matlock
Drums – Milt Holland, Nick Fatool
Guitar – Allan Reuss
Liner Notes – John Marlo
Piano – Ray Sherman
Tenor Saxophone – Eddie Miller (2)
Trombone – Moe Schneider
Trumpet – Dick Cathcart

Many of the same musicians from Volume Two appear on Volume Three.  Matty Matlock who played clarinet on “The Fantabulous Kings Of Dixieland” is back on Volume Three.  Maybe it was a rotating group of musicians with some subbing for others based on their availability to record at the time.  Let’s just give up trying to figure it out and get on with presenting the music.  Here’s the very first track, “New Washington And Lee Swing”:

Here’s another from the album with a title I don’t usually associate with Dixieland.  This time it’s “Wait Till The Sun Shines Nellie” and it’s given a true Dixieland treatment:

 

   Now for a change of pace.  Next up is “AMF Presents Music For Swingers”…no not those kind of Swingers.  As the cover says, the record is “Dedicated to the millions of swingers in the United States and all over the world who regularly enjoy the fun of bowling.” 

Music For Swingers Front

Music For Swingers Rear

There is nothing from the rear cover that gives us any mention of the musicians who played on this album or even what the AMF stood for.  I thought the AMF might have something do with Bowling but couldn’t make the initials work.  I also thought the AMF might have be the American Music Federation or something like that.  The only real clue was the sentence that starts “One particular song, the “Swingers Theme,” originated as the music for a jingle used in a series of television commercials produced for AMF.”  The liner notes credit the song “Swingers Theme” to a Ben Allen.  When I tried researching the song title with the name “Ben Allen”, I came up with this listing from the “Catalog of Copyright Entries Third Series” from 1969:

Swingers Theme Copyright Entry

Here we learn not only is Swingers Theme attributed to Ben Allen but is associated with the American Machine & Foundry Co.  That is not at all what I thought AMF stood for.  So why is the American Machine & Foundry Co associated with Bowling?  Well, this comes from the Richland County, Ohio, History website, https://richlandcountyhistory.com/2021/09/26/how-shelby-launched-the-golden-age-of-bowling-1953/, and provides us with the connection:

How Shelby AMF Launched The Golden Age of Bowling : 1953

The Golden Age of Bowling in the United States took place in the 1950s and ‘60s, and the epicenter of all that fun was Shelby, Ohio. That was where AMF had its Bowling Division factory, and it was their job to produce every sort of innovative new aspect of the sport that eventually came to be the standard bowling experience across the nation.

The number of Bowling Alleys in the USA went from 6,000 in 1955 to 11,000 by 1963, and during this same period, the number of people in Bowling Leagues rose from just under 3 million to over 7 million. Without question, this explosion of popularity can be attributed to one single factor: the automatic pinsetter.

America’s pinsetter machines were manufactured in Shelby. In fact, within a year of locating their bowling operations to Shelby, AMF began calling it the Pinspotter Division.

Before that revolutionary concept of bowling was introduced, every alley required a team of pinsetter boys who ran up from behind to stand the bowling pins back up. When AMF invented the robotic system that could mechanically collect and re-set pins in the alley, the game moved much more quickly.

Frank Gilbert told me he was one of the pinsetters as a kid, and sometimes the bowling alley would let them bowl for free if they set their own pins.

It didn’t take bowlers long to get used to the idea that re-placing the pins could be so quick, and right away every bowling alley in America wanted them. That was when AMF bought the empty Shelby Cycle factory to set up shop producing pinsetter machines.

It was a complex operation in 1953 when the factory opened, and in the first few frames of its production it took 200 Shelby folks to turn out 200 pinsetter machines a month.

Within a year there were 500 people, and by the time Shelby had established itself as the most important bowling hub of the nation there were 950 employed in the game.

I haven’t been able to find the audio or even video for the jingle that featured “Swingers Theme.”  At least, I can present the version of that song from this album: 

Before I offer another song from the album, I want to post a video of a song called “Bowling Brings Out The Swinger In You” from 1967.  That phrase appears at the bottom of the front cover of “AMF Presents Music For Swingers.”  This video is the audio for the 45rpm record of The Twilights, an Australian group, singing “Bowling Brings Out The Swinger In You”: 

“Bowling Brings Out The Swinger In You” and “Swingers Theme” sound the same to me.  Check out the labels for the 45rpm single: 

At the bottom, in both label images, you can make out that the song is copyrighted by the American Machine & Foundry Co.  The 45rpm record was 1967 and was sold or given away in bowling alleys and so probably was the album ““AMF Presents Music For Swingers.” 

   So what other track do I post here from this album?  The first side is mostly swinging tracks but things slow down a bit with the strings for the “B” side.  Why not present a song that speaks to what you do after the bowling is over.  It’s all about “Headin’ Home:”

   I bet you didn’t think I could get so much out of an album dedicated to Bowling!  Watch those balls! 

  

   This blahg, which is supposed to present a baker’s dozen albums, is going to blow past that.  I’ve already done that when I presented tracks from the Jimmy McPartland album ” ‘The Music Man’ Goes Dixieland”; an album I don’t even own.  I even presented some soundies from the the Irving Fields Trio and a 45 about bowling by The Twilights!  So why not slip in two albums by the same artist that came to me from two different thrift stores?  The first one I purchased was the 1962 album “Dixieland (Live Performance In New Orleans)” featuring Pete Fountain. 

Dixieland- Pete Fountain Front

Dixieland- Pete Fountain Rear

At least this album provides us with a list of the musicians performing with Pete Fountain.  Here’s the line-up

Clarinet – Harry Shields, Pete Fountain
Piano – Roy Zimmerman
Tenor Saxophone – Lester Bouchon
Trombone – Jack Delaney
Trumpet – George Girard
Trumpet, Vocals – Tony Almerico

I guess if this is “Live Performance in New Orleans” then I’m probably obligated to present “Way Down Yonder In New Orleans.”  It’s a very short version and most of the track is taken up by introductions to the musicians listed above and including others such as Johnny Castang on drums. 

Before moving on to the next Pete Fountain album I’ll offer a second track from “Live Performance in New Orleans.”  With most Dixieland albums we find that all of the songs are similar classics such as “Bill Bailey”, “Tin Roof Blues”, and “When The Saints Go Marchin’ In.”  I decided to select the title that didn’t seem like something I’ve heard over and over again on every other Dixieland album.  Here’s “Ballin’ The Jack:” 

   A funny aside about the song “Ballin’ The Jack” or “Balling The Jack” concerns one of the first times I heard the song.  It was on the album “Jerry Colonna Entertains At Your Party.” 

Jerry Colonna Entertains At Your Party

I have a few Jerry Colonna albums but I like the cover on this one.  I would have loved to have gone to a party where Jerry Colonna was entertaining.  Have a listen to his version of “Balling The Jack” from YouTube:

   Sticking with Pete Fountain, I’ll insert here the other album I picked up when planning to do this second blahg of Baker’s Dozen.  I found that I was going to be short two albums for this blahg so I searched through a number of stacks at a thrift store in Kingston, Ontario and came up with a couple I thought would fit well into my narrative.  One of them was another Pete Fountain record with the title of “Standing Room Only” from 1965 on the Coral label. 

Pete Fountain Standing Room Only Front

Pete Fountain Standing Room Only Rear

The front cover has an actual photo of “Pete’s Place” at 800 Bourbon Street in New Orleans.  This live album is three years after “Live Performance in New Orleans” and features a different cast of musicians playing with Fountain: 

Clarinet – Pete Fountain
Piano – Earl Vuiovich
Drums – Nick Fatool
Tenor Saxophone – Eddie Miller
Trombone – Bob Havens
Trumpet – Charley Teagarden
Vibes – Godfrey Hirsch
Bass – Oliver Felix

From the rear cover there’s a nice write up for the first song I want to post.  Memories of You, Eubie Blake’s beautiful song, is a showcase for the lyrical talents of Eddie Miller and Pete. Although their instruments are of contrasting character, they exhibit a real rapport in their sympathetic, “singing” variations.  Here’s “Memories of You:” 

   Before I continue with another track from the 1965 album”Standing Room Only,” I want to show a video of what it was like inside “Pete’s Place” in 1965.  The same year as the release of this album there was a Universal short called “Pete’s Place” which highlighted a little bit of Mardis Gras and then cut to the interior of “Pete’s Place” to feature music by Pete Fountain and Godfrey Hirsch: vibes, Earl Vuiovich: piano, Paul Guma: guitar, Oliver “Sticks” Felix: bass, Paul Edwards: drums.  Here’s the poster for the short and below that is the video that is hosted in YouTube.

Pete's Place Poster

PBS also did a special on Pete Fountain in 1980.  Here’s a description of the special before it was re-aired in 2017 “A pre-reality TV era PBS takes a look at Pete’s rise as a musician, joins Pete and his band in their Winnebago as they cross the country to a well-paying gig, and stop in at a crawfish boil hosted by Pete. It also examines Pete’s rise to fame with the Lawrence Welk Show and has some great footage of Bourbon Street and The Half-Fast Walking Club on Mardi Gras.” 

Pete Fountain passed away on August 8, 2016 at the age of 86.  He did a lot of playing and a lot of rambling in his time.  From the “Standing Room Only” album here’s a “Ramblin’ Medley:” 

  

   Keeping with the ‘Pete’, here’s another album that’s allegedly by another Pete but I have my doubts.  This time it’s Pete Hurtz And His Dixiaires with their album “Midnight In New Orleans.” 

Pete Hurtz And His Dixiaires – Midnight In New Orleans Front

Pete Hurtz And His Dixiaires – Midnight In New Orleans Rear

This album is a Canadian release and surprisingly is the only album I can find by Pete Hurtz.  In fact, the only information I can find about Pete Hurtz comes from the rear of the album jacket: 

Pete Hurtz And His Dixiaires have marched and stomped the route from Memphis to New Orleans “many a time” and even did their type of Dixie stomping in towns above the Mason Dixon line…Pete Hurtz was born January 19th, 125 years after the date of birth of his hero, General Robert E. Lee, in Charleston, South Carolina not far from where the first shot was fired in the Civil War. Before going into the service he had drifted down to New Orleans and acquired a reputation of “sitting-in” and vowed that one day he would have a Dixieland band of his own, which he did upon his release from the Army.

It is also interesting to note that Pete Hurtz’ one year old son bears the first name of Grant–Please note that Hurtz married a girl from Concord, New Hampshire, a true northerner!

For the record, pardon the pun, General Robert E. Lee was born in 1807 so if Pete Hurtz was born 125 years later then that would have been in 1932.  Having his birth year and all the other biographical information, including the name of his son, from the jacket then you would think it would be easy to find out more online somewhere about Pete Hurtz.  That is not the case.  We don’t even know what instrument Pete Hurtz played.  I’m not even sure there really was a Pete Hurtz.  My doubts about him and the Dixiaires came after to listening to the song “Manhattan” from this album.  It twigged something in me when I heard the song.  First, listen to the alleged Pete Hurtz and the Dixiaires version: 

I realized I had heard this same version played on an album by the Bill Berry Quartet entitled “Jazz & Swinging Percussion.”  On the Bill Berry Quartet album, the song is called “Broadway By Night.”  Here’s a YouTube video of the song that actually shows a portion of the front cover.

Here’s the front cover of the Bill Berry Quartet album:

If you read the comments section to the above YouTube video for the Bill Berry Quartet, I posted eight years ago, under my scobeyfan name, the following comment: 

This is odd. I have the same album with the same songs on two different labels by two different bands. The first claims to be The Dixie Rebels (Palace Label) and the 2nd is by Pete Hurtz and his Dixiaires (Maple-Leaf Records). Your version by the Bill Berry Quartet is the exact same as my two. I suspect it was some studio band with this record released on different labels. Who knows who the real band was.

Here’s the front and rear covers to The Dixie Rebels album I reference on the Palace label: 

The Dixie Rebels Front

The Dixie Rebels Rear

There is nothing on the back cover to identify the musicians or even the release date of the album.  This is really the summary of what we have from the rear cover about the Dixie Rebels:

In this album were are proud to present the DIXIE REBELS, a group of outstanding young collegiates who are destined to become one of America’s foremost exponents of Dixieland music. Their renditions of “When The Saints Go Marching In” and “Down On Basin Street” are memorable true interpretations of Dixieland at its best.

The track on this album that matches “Manhattan”  from the Pete Hurtz album and “Broadway At Night” from the Bill Berry Quartet album is “Down On Basin Street.”  Listen closely and compare it to the tracks I posted above.

All three of the tracks have similar run times so I’m sure they’re all the same version.  As for the Dixie Rebels, there was a band by that name that released albums on the Command label.  I even wrote a blahg about them under the title AYE AYE ITUNES, THIS CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT.  The Dixie Rebels on the Command label actually featured Pee Wee Irwin playing under the name “Big Jeb Dooley.”  I don’t believe they are associated in any way with the Dixie Rebels from the Palace label.  I have compared all of the tracks on the Pete Hurtz “Dixieland” album and those on the Dixie Rebels “Dixieland” album and they are all the same.  The only difference is that the track titles on each is the same on the first side but different on the flip side although the instrumentals are the exact same. 

Pete Hurtz – Dixieland                                       The Dixie Rebels – Dixieland
When The Saints Go Marching In                    When The Saints Go Marching In
Big Town Dixie                                                     Big Town Dixie
Broadway Blues                                                   Broadway Blues
Billboard March                                                    Billboard March
Swinging Dixie                                                     Swinging Dixie
Times Square                                                       Dixieland Blues
Dream Street                                                        New Orleans Blues
Manhattan                                                            Down On Basin Street
Dixieland Blues                                                  Way Down Yonder

The Bill Berry Quartet album has a slightly different track listing:

Dream Street
Almost Like Being In Love
Manhattan Blues
Times Square
Broadway And 10th
Schubert Alley
Old Devil Moon
June Is Busting Out All Over
Broadway By Night
How Do You Speak To An Angel
Blow Gabriel Blow
The Night Was Made For Love

Only the titles “Dream Street” and “Times Square” repeat from the The Dixie Rebels and Pete Hurtz albums.  “Dream Street” from the Bill Berry Quartet album matches “Broadway Blues” on the other two albums.  “Manhattan Blues” matches “Swinging Dixie”, “Times Square” matches “Big Town Dixie” while “Broadway and 10th” matches “Dixieland Blues”on the Pete Hurtz album and matches “Way Down Yonder” on the Dixie Rebels LP.  “Schubert Alley” matches “Dream Street” on the Hurtz album and “New Orleans Blues” on the Dixie Rebels album.  We already know that “Manhattan” from the Hurtz album matches “Broadway By Night” from the Bill Bailey Quartet which also matches “Down On Basin Street” from the Dixie Rebels.  The songs “Almost Like Being In Love”, “Broadway And 10th”, “Old Devil Moon”, “June Is Busting Out All Over”, “How Do You Speak To An Angel”, “Blow Gabriel Blow”, and “The Night Was Made For Love” are unique to just the Bill Berry Quartet album. 

   So, what have we learned?  Darned if I know!  The Pete Hurtz album is the same as the Dixie Rebels album and half of the tracks match the Bill Berry Quartet album.  There is more information available about the Bill Berry Quartet but if it really was the Bill Berry Quartet on all three albums then why are there some different tracks on the “Jazz & Swinging Percussion” record?  We may never know.  I say we just enjoy the music.  Here’s “Dream Street” from the Pete Hurtz “Dixieland” record which is in turn “New Orleans Blues” from the Dixie Rebels “Dixieland” album which in another turn matches “Schubert Alley” from the Bill Berry Quartet record, “Jazz & Swinging Percussion.”  Ah, skip it.  Just listen and enjoy.

 

 

   I have yet another dixieland album from a band for which I started out with next to no information.  The album is “The Sensational Barons of Dixieland Visit the Bowery” on the Kent label from 1959. 

The Barons of Dixieland front

The Barons of Dixieland rear

The rear cover offers no information about the Barons and I’m not sure that the front cover is accurate either unless you believe the Barons consisted solely of three trumpets and a saxophone.  The woman in the middle, however, looks amazingly like the late Juliet Prowse.  Compare her image on the cover from 1959 to this photo of her taken with Elvis in 1960: 

Juliet Prowse and Elvis

With that red hair and those legs, knowing Juliet was a dancer, it has to be her.  The only doubt about this album comes from the musicians and not knowing who they were.  I guess I’ll have to just let the music speak for itself.  Here’s “Sweet Sue” from the album but if you don’t mind I’ll think of it as Sweet Juliet. 

On further research I found that there were other albums featuring these tracks.  Discogs has a listing for an album with the title “Mardi Gras in Dixie” by The Mardi Gras Dixielanders, https://www.discogs.com/master/805632-The-Mardi-Gras-Dixielanders-Mardi-Gras-In-Dixie, and it has the same tracks as the Sensational Barons album and in the notes section for the album is the following:

These records have the same tracklist:
–Barons of Dixieland – The Sensational Barons of Dixieland Visit the Bowery
Pee Wee Russell, Bud Freeman And Buck Clayton With His All-Stars – Dixieland
Buck Clayton, Vic Dickenson, Lou Carter, Pee Wee Russell, Bud Freeman, Jo Jones – New Orleans Dixieland
therefore are possibly the same.

The “Buck Clayton, Vic Dickenson, Lou Carter, Pee Wee Russell, Bud Freeman, Jo Jones – New Orleans Dixieland” album lists the following musicians

Clarinet – Pee Wee Russell
Drums – Jo Jones
Piano – Lou Carter
Saxophone – Bud Freeman
Trombone – Vic Dickenson
Trumpet – Buck Clayton

Russell, Freeman, and Clayton are also listed on “Pee Wee Russell, Bud Freeman And Buck Clayton With His All-Stars – Dixieland.”  Add to that, I found another Discogs entry with the same tracks.  The album is “Dixieland U.S.A.” with the following musicians listed: 

Bass – Arnell Shaw
Clarinet – Pee Wee Russell
Drums – Jo Jones
Piano – Lou Carter
Tenor Saxophone – Bud Freeman
Trombone – Vic Dickenson
Trumpet – Buck Clayton

Note that the only addition is Arnell Shaw on Bass.  Here’s the cover that appears to show all of the musicians: 

Dixieland U.S.A

I think we finally learn who the Sensational Barons of Dixieland really were…well at least the individual musicians.  Who knows if they ever really called themselves the Sensational Barons of Dixieland?  Let’s hear from the ensemble one more time on a tune called “Billboard:” 

 

  Now for a band I had heard of but never heard.  Confused?  The band is the Preservation Hall Jazz Band and the album I found was “New Orleans, Volume 1” from 1977. 

Preservation Hall Jazz Band Front

Preservation Hall Jazz Band Rear

The majority of the band members were in their early to late 70s when this album was released.  Here’s a list of the musicians at that time.

Banjo – Narvin Henry Kimball
Clarinet – Willie Humphrey
Drums – Josiah “Cie” Frazier
Piano – James Edward “Sing” Miller
Trombone – Frank Demond
Trumpet – Percy G. Humphrey
Tuba – Allan P. Jaffe

Like I did with Pete Fountain, I’m going to expand the Baker’s Dozen of this blahg to include two albums by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band but I’m going to start first with this 1977 release.  From this album is the tune “Panama” which I will dedicate to a cat we once had named Panama.  You can read about Panama in my blahg, THE CHRISTMAS CAT.  I miss her and I think she’d have liked knowing there was a song title with her unique name.

“Panama” is the longest track on the album at almost ten minutes.  To balance it out, the next track is going to be “Over In Gloryland” with a run-time of 2:40. 

   After listening to this album, I wanted to hear more so I decided to track down and order the first album by this group but with a slightly different name.  The first album was from 1964 and had the same title as the name the band was using at that time, “New Orleans’ Sweet Emma And Her Preservation Hall Jazz Band.” 

SweetEmmaFront

SweetEmma Rear

The musicians from the first album

Banjo – Emanuel Sayles
Bass – Alcide (Slow Drag) Pavageau
Clarinet – Willie Humphrey
Drums – Josiah “Cie” Frazier
Piano – Sweet Emma Barrett
Trombone – Jim Robinson
Trumpet – Percy Humphrey

Three of the musicians from this first album in 1964 carried over to the 1977 album. Willie Humphrey, Josiah “Cie” Frazier, and Percy G. Humphrey.  If you look at the front cover, many of the musicians on this first album were already senior citizens.  There’s quite a different sound, I think, with this earlier album.  This is a live album and the band really plays to the audience.  Give a listen to the first track “Basin Street” which introduces the musicians:

The song was too short to even whet your appetite for this group.  Have a listen to them really swinging on “Little Liza Jane:” 

Before I move off from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, I want to offer up a short documentary about the group over the years.  There’s even some historical footage of the musicians and “Sweet Emma Barrett” who might not have been all that sweet. 

I’m going to throw in one more song by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.  In my first Baker’s Dozen blahg, A BAKER’S DOZEN MORE FOUND VINYL RECORDS, I posted three different versions of the song “Ice Cream” by the Omega Jazz Band, Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers, and The Climax Jazz Band.  This time the Ice Cream is being served up by Sweet Emma and Her Preservation Hall Jazz Band. 

  

   For Pete’s sake aren’t we done with this Baker’s Dozen yet?  Nope.  I have to present one more Pete.  The third, bust last Pete, is Pete Jolly and the album is “When The Lights Are Low” by the Pete Jolly Trio. 

Pete Jolly LP Front

Pete Jolly LP Rear

Earlier in this blahg, I wrote “I found that I was going to be short two albums for this blahg so I searched through a number of stacks at a thrift store in Kingston, Ontario and came up with a couple I thought would fit well into my narrative.”  The first was the Pete Fountain album “Standing Room Only” and the second was this Pete Jolly album.  This record is pretty far removed from the Dixieland presented by Pete Hurtz and Pete Fountain.  The trio consists of Pete Jolly on piano, Jules Bertaux on bass, and Robert Neal on drums.  The piano at times is front and centre and you really have to listen for the other two instruments.  A good example is the trio’s version of the song from “Snow White”, “Whistle While You Work.” 

I’ve always enjoyed the song “My Old Flame” so that’s my next selection. 

In another past blahg, SOME FORGOTTEN SONGBIRDS, I presented a version of “My Old Flame” by Helen Young and it bears repeating: 

  

   Well, that’s it for this Baker’s Dozen.  We’ve had some vocals and some instrumentals.  We’ve been to New Orleans and heard some live performances.  We’ve heard from three different Petes and two bands that might have been two other bands or three other bands…I’ve lost count.  I enjoy doing these blahgs featuring music from my record shelves.  I also like looking through old vinyl at thrift stores.  It’s almost like that quote from “Forrest Gump”:  My mom always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”  Substitute going through vinyl bins and it’s pretty much the same thing.

 

 

 

A BAKER’S DOZEN MORE FOUND VINYL RECORDS

Monday, April 24th, 2023

    Little did I know that when I published my first False Ducks blahg, THE BLAHG & THE MOST HAPPY SOUND in October of 2011 that I’d not only be writing new blahgs almost twelve years later but also be continuing to reintroduce forgotten music.  In that first blahg I posted about an album by Margaret Ann & The Ja-Da Quartet with the title “The Most Happy Sound.”  I offered tracks from the album and some 45 rpm singles by the group.  In previous other blahgs such as 12 MONTHS -12 RECORDS – 12 SONGS12 MONTHS – 12 MORE RECORDS – 12 MORE SONGS, and my most recent blahg, MORE VINYL & THE GHOST OF THE TURNING POINT I offered up songs from records I had purchased at thrift stores or in used record shops. That most recent blahg also quoted me as saying “I’m only going to post about 7 right now but I’ll look through the stack near my stereo and see if I can do a part two for this blahg.”   Well this is that part two…sort of. 

   I did go through all of the records stacked up around my stereo and I did find some more records that I hadn’t posted about.  I found 10 records that have never received a mention in any of my blahgs and I purchased three more records over the weekend.  Here’s the rundown with the first ten being previous thrift store purchases and the last three being my most recent acquisitions:

  • –Les Brown Jr. – Wildest Drums Yet!
  • –Omega Jazz Band
  • –Beverly Kenney – Born To Be Blue
  • –Pete Daily’s Dixieland Band
  • –Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers
  • –Climax Jazz Band Volume 1 Stereo
  • –Lester Lanin and His Orchestra – The Madison Avenue Beat
  • –Willis Jackson Quintet – Please Mr. Jackson
  • –Drumsticks – Trumpets – And Dixieland
  • –Golden Era of Dixieland Jazz
  • –Dukes of Dixieland – Come To The Cabaret
  • –Tony Pastor Meets Ike Carpenter
  • –The Greatest White Trumpeter of All Time Bunny Berigan

I love vinyl records.  Some of these old Orchestra and Dixieland Band albums have never seen reissues on CDs or more likely some of the songs appeared in huge volume sets that cost a lot more than the $2.99 a piece I paid for the above records.  That price has gone up over the years.  Value Village, a big thrift store here in Canada, used to charge $1.99 but $2.99 seems to be their new norm.  I can still find some records for $1 at smaller thrift stores but sometimes the records are not in great shape.  I try not to purchase anything that skips or if the jacket is split all around.  In this blahg, you’re in for some treats.  There may be some scratchy sounds or pops and clicks but that’s the allure of vinyl.   Enjoy! 

   First up is Les Brown Jr. with his album, “Wildest Drums Yet!”  This is on the Crescendo label. 

Les Brown Jr. – Wildest Drums Yet! (Crescendo GNPS 79)

In researching Les Brown Jr., I discovered that he passed away on January 9th of this year, 2023.  Here’s the Variety obituary for him:

Les Brown Jr., a musician whose entertainment career also included acting, writing, directing and producing, died of cancer Jan. 9 at his home in Branson, Mo, his family announced. He was 82.

Brown Jr. was the son of composer and band leader Les Brown Sr., who led Les Brown and His Band of Renown. After the death of his father in 2001, Brown became the full-time leader of his father’s band, continuing to perform throughout the world and in a regular big band show in Branson, Mo.

In his youth, Brown Jr. also worked as an actor on many TV shows and films, including “Gunsmoke,” “Lassie,” “General Hospital,” “F-Troop,” “The Lucy Show,” “Green Acres,” “Gilligan’s Island,” “Wild, Wild Winter” and “The Baileys of Balboa,” the latter in which he had a co-starring role as Jim Bailey.

His extensive music career began with the solo album “Wildest Drums Yet!” and included being the drummer and vocalist for his band the Rockin’ Foo, performing with the likes of Carlos Santana during his touring days. He was also a concert promoter and record producer for jazz and country music artists including Merle Haggard, Shirley Jones, Doris Day, Mickey Gilley, The Lettermen and Loretta Lynn.

He later hosted a national radio show on the “Music of Your Life” network, and most recently a show titled after the Band of Renown on SiriusXM’s 40s Junction.

Brown Jr. was born in New York City in 1940 to Les and Claire Brown. He will be remembered for his love of horseback riding, sports cars and his dog, Romeo.

Brown Jr. is survived by his wife of 21 years, Alexa Brown, daughter Emily Cabral, son Christopher Brown, grandchildren McCoy, Winden and Soleil Brown, stepson Blake Worrell, stepdaughters Kelli and Erin Ellis, sister Denise Marsh-Jordan, nephews Jeff Marsh and Michael Lyons, cousins Teri Brown and Bruce Brown and uncle Clyde Brow.

Now, if you spotted the reference to Gilligan’s Island in the obituary then you’re probably wondering about that.  Les Brown Jr. appeared as the drummer Bingo for the musical band “The Mosquitoes.”  Remember Bingo, Bango, Bongo, and Irviving?  Here’s a clip of that fictional band performing “Don’t Bug Me” & “He’s A Loser” from that Gilligan’s Island episode: 

From the album “Wildest Drums Yet!” here is “One Mint Julep”: 

And the title track, “Wildest Drums Yet”:

 

   Moving on down the list, we come to the Omega Jazzband.  I don’t know much about this band so I’d normally direct anyone to the rear cover of the album to learn more.  Here are the front and rear covers:

 

Omega Jazzband front

Omega Jazzband rear cover

 

Yes, you probably have noticed that the rear cover liner notes are in German.  Here’s the Google translation:

This LP was created in March 1973. Recording time: 3 days. Tape consumption: 3800m. Consumption of drinks: 5 crates of beer. 3 bottles of whiskey. 2 bottles of vodka. 10 liters apple schnapps. Contributors to the Recordings: Omega Jazz Band. Sound engineer: Peter Wagner. Production: James Fruchtnicht. Peter Wagner. Omega jazz band.

John Hendrik from Rias Berlin had written a query looking for the most popular Berlin jazz band. Result: No. 1: Omega jazz band. This result will not surprise connoisseurs and fans, because the happy jazz, which the group has been playing for 12 years, inspires every listener anew.

The band has been playing together for 6 years with Michael (Mike) Littbarski trumpet, Wolfgang Banaskiwitz clarinet, sax, vocals, Cordes Hauer trombone, vocals, Karsten Krempien banjo, vocals, Manfred (Duddi) Duttkowski bass and Hagen Kauffman drums, percussion .

Many titles are from the so-called 20s and 30s. The arrangements are clear and concise, but very modern and cheerfully packaged. “Being there” is everything for the group as well as for the listener. Fixed venues in Berlin are the Eiershell, the Leierkasten, the Quasimodo, the Latin Quarter and Shop Pop. Apart from guest appearances in Sweden and France, the band plays in almost all German cities.

Band leader is Hagen Kauffmann. He collects and smokes pipes, is usually always in a good mood, knows all the bars in Berlin and drums with a beard.

Mike Littbarski is the musical leader of the group. He plays about 500 pieces, loves vodka, coca, pizza, women, needs little sleep and adores Louis Armstrong.

Wolfgang Banaskiwitz, on the other hand, needs a lot of sleep. He likes to eat well, loves France in addition to his music and plays with a beard.

The only pedestrian is Cordes Hauer. He collects wire-rimmed glasses and antique dolls, adores Eddie Condon jazz and sings with a beard.

Karsten Krempien is a wild car driver. Besides dents, he also collects banjos. He likes to eat, but drinks even more and makes sure the group is in good spirits. He also sings with a beard.

Manfred Duttkowski is the bass man -a hobbyist of stature. He always has his tool box with him.

When listening to this record, something of the good mood and the cheerful music will surely stick in the listener.

So, what have we learned?  This is a German band and a number of the musicians have beards.  Oh, and they had been playing for 12 years.  There is a CD that compiles tracks from four of their albums with the title “30 Years of Music.”  Unfortunately I don’t know if the 30 years is from 1973 or when they first started playing together 12 years before that.

Omega Jazzband 30 Years

I did find an image for a music festival poster in 1970 that mentions the Omega Jazzband:

Berliner Pop Festival

So what about their music?  I found it reminiscent of an album I discussed in a previous blahg, ZOEY, FRANK, JUNE & ALL THAT JAZZ.  The album was “Radio” by Borgy’s Banjo Reunion.  That album actually came out in 1974 so maybe it was inspired by the Omega Jazzband.  It’s pleasant enough but I find it a little heavy on the banjo and kazoo in spots.  Here are a couple of samples.  First up is “Everybody Loves Saturday Night” with a vocal.

I’m also going to offer up “Ice Cream” which I find myself singing lately but not the version by Omega Jazzband.  That song will be included later in this blahg but performed by a different band.

  

   Beverly Kenney was not someone with whom I was familiar.  The album cover for “Born To Be Blue” struck me as seductive and sultry and I’m a sucker for vocals by singers that were previously unknown to me.

Beverly Kenney - Born To Be Blue

Born To Be Blue - Rear Cover

In researching Beverly Kenney, I discovered that her life was short and sad.  Here are some excerpts from her Wikipedia entry: 

Beverly Kenney (January 29, 1932, Harrison, New Jersey – April 13, 1960, Greenwich Village, New York City) was an American jazz singer.

Kenney’s career began as a birthday singer for Western Union. After moving to New York City, she recorded a demo tape in 1954 with Tony Tamburello (the demo was released in its entirety in 2006 under the title Snuggled on Your Shoulder).

By the end of the year, she moved to Miami and worked regularly at the Black Magic Room. For several months she toured with Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey’s Dorsey Brothers Orchestra before returning to New York. Kenney said “Tommy and Jimmy liked me, but they thought I was too much of a stylist for the band. After a few months on the road, I left, and returned to New York,” where she sang in clubs with George Shearing, Don Elliott, and Kai Winding.

Between 1956 and 1960, Kenney recorded three albums for Royal Roost and three for Decca. Her first release, Beverly Kenney Sings for Johnny Smith (1956), was recorded when she was 24 and backed by a quartet led by jazz guitarist Johnny Smith. She then began a residency at Birdland accompanied by the Lester Young Quintet. Her TV exposure consisted of one appearance on The Steve Allen Show on May 18, 1958, performing a song she wrote, “I Hate Rock ‘n’ Roll” and one appearance on Playboy’s Penthouse, where Kenney coaxed host Hugh Hefner into joining her to sing “Makin’ Whoopee”.

Kenney attempted suicide twice and succeeded the third time ingesting a combination of alcohol and Seconal on April 12, 1960, in a one room apartment in the University Residence Hotel located at 45 East 11th Street in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York.

Very tragic indeed.  A beautiful voice who obviously struggled with mental health and possibly addictions.  Here’s a video of her during happier times on “Playboy’s Penthouse” and yes you do get to view the duet she did with Hugh Hefner.

Fresh Sound Records have issued many of her albums on CDs with bonus tracks.  You can check out her artist page at  https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/search?controller=search&orderby=position&orderway=desc&search_query=beverly+kenney&submit_search=

I think I’ll let her music now speak for itself.  Most of the tracks on “Born To Be Blue” are very lush and Beverly’s voice evokes a sadness that was probably representative of her life.  Give a listen to the title track “Born To Be Blue”:

I like the whole album but there are moments of tenderness that are not as depressing and Beverly herself mentions on the liner notes she really wanted to do “Beyond The Next Hill” which is a more hopeful tune.

 

   Okay, let’s move on with something more upbeat.  It’s back to Dixieland with Pete Daily’s Dixieland Band

Pete Dailey's Dixieland

Pete Daily's Dixieland Band

I noticed from the liner notes on the back cover that the musicians varied on some of the tracks.  This album was released in 1950 and might have been a compilation but no other details are available.  Let’s get back to swinging with the old chestnut, “When The Saints Go Marching In”: 

I’ll slow it down ever so slightly with a song titled “I Want To Linger.”  And yes wouldn’t we all like to linger longer with this band on a sunny day?

  

   Keeping with the Jazz but travelling back around the world, we’re going to draw on Australia and hear from Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers with their self-titled 1967 album. 

Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers

Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers

Here’s a little bit of information about Frank Traynor from his Wikipedia entry:

Frank Traynor (8 August 1927 – 22 February 1985) was an Australian jazz musician, trombonist and entrepreneur based in Melbourne. He led Australia’s longest continuously running jazz band, the Jazz Preachers, from 1956 until his death in 1985. He founded the Melbourne Jazz Club in 1958. He founded and ran Frank Traynor’s Folk and Jazz Club (1963–75), which played a central role in the Australian folk revival.

The album I’m presenting was only issued in Australia and Canada in 1967.  Lucky then, I’m in Canada and found this copy.  Here are a couple other finds regarding Frank Traynor.  YouTube has a couple of videos of Judith Durham singing with Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers.  The first is “Trombone Frankie” from 1963:

Next up is Judith Durham and Traynor’s Preachers performing “Jelly Bean Blues”:

Judith Durham passed away in August of 2022 at the age of 79 but from the 1967 album “Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers” I’m going to start off with a song that I posted earlier in this blahg by the Omega Jazzband.  The song is Ice Cream but this time it’s all Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers:

I guess you can see that a lot of the records in this blahg fall into the Jazz or Dixieland Jazz category.  I’m crazy about Jazz that way so why not post a song that reflects that?  So here’s “The World’s Jazz Crazy, Lord” with a vocal by Helen Violaris:

  

   I’m going to fly back home again to Canada and post the next album from a strictly Canadian jazz band.  This time it’s The Climax Jazz Band:

Climax Jazz Band Cover

Climax Jazz Band Volume 1 Stereo Rear cover

I hope you noticed that the front cover has signatures from some of the band members.  There’s Bob Erwig, Bruce Bakewell, Juergen Hesse, Jack Vincken, and Chris Daniels.  There are other signatures by Joseph “Corn Bread” Thomas, someone known only as Stephen, and one I can’t make out.  Click on the image for a larger version to see the signatures.  This album like the Omega Jazzband is also from 1973.  There’s a video on YouTube with photos and music by The Climax Jazzband performing “Bloor Street Breakdown.”  Here’s part of the description for that video that includes a little bit of history of the band: 

It all started on Bloor Street West in Toronto. In 1971 Albert Nightingale, the owner of the Olde Brunswick House placed an ad for a dixieland band for 6 nights a week. Bassist Chris Daniels and trombonist Geoff Holmes applied and The Climax Jazz Band was born. We replaced an act of wrestling dwarfs. A jazzband obviously sounded to be able to become more popular in the general student neighbourhood of the University of Toronto. For about 5 years we played there 6 nights a week in Albert’s Hall. The Canadian Talent Library decided to issue a LP and we all went in the Toronto RCA studios to record. In this clip I play the only tune from this album that I composed. With Albert’s Hall being our basis our band took off in many directions, more recordings, several trips to New Orleans and the start of being part of the international jazz festival circuit. We met many famous musicians and we became the band to record the pilot shows for the TV jazz programs hosted by Peter Appleyard. The permanent personnel in the band at that time consisted of Chris Daniels bass, Geoff Holmes trombone, Bob Erwig cornet, Bruce Bakewell clarinet, Juergen Hesse banjo and Graig Barrett drums.

Here’s the video for “Bloor Street Breakdown”:

In 2000, the CD “The Climax Jazz Band – The Early Years 1973-1975” was released on the Tormax label.  It included selections from their first three recordings:  “Climax Jazz Band Volume One Stereo”, “The Climax Jazz Band, The Entertainers”, and “I Can’t Escape From You, The Climax Jazz Band Featuring Ken Colyer.” It reproduced the iconic cover from their first album and the liner notes included a little more about the history of the band.  The images below are from that CD and you click on them to view a larger image.

The Climax Jazz Band The Early Years 1973-1975 front cover

The Climax Jazz Band The Early Years 1973-1975 liner notes

I’m going to work a little backwards with tracks from this album because the final track is “Introductory Blues” and they introduce the members of the band.  In my mind, that should have been the first track of the album. 

The introductory track on side one is a song called “Tight Like That” which seems in keeping with a band with the word “Climax” in their name. 

I’m going to sneak in one more track by this Canadian group, not because they are Canadian and I’m showing any sense of national pride, but because it’s “Ice Cream” and why not offer up a third version of this song from yet a third country?  We had a version from Germany with the Omega Jazzband, a version from Australia by Frank Traynor’s Jazz Preachers and finally The Climax Jazz Band from Canada with their rendition. 

  

   And now for something really novel.  Here’s the album “The Madison Avenue Beat” by Lester Lanin and His Orchestra. 

Lester Lanin and His Orchestra – The Madison Avenue Beat

Lester Lanin and His Orchestra – The Madison Avenue Beat Rear

From the back:  “Have Fun Listening and Dancing to 58 Radio and TV Commercial Favorites.”  There are 16 tracks on this album with the Orchestra swinging the music from jingles for companies such as Pillsbury, Kelloggs, Gillette, Colgate, and the Ford Motor Company just to name a few.  I’m not sure if you can dance to the tunes but it’s fun listening.    There’s some strange product pairings here.  Take this for example for “Chiquita Banana & Beechnut Coffee”.  Those two as a combined flavour don’t appeal to me but the music sure does bounce. 

Or how about a combination of “Post; Dutch Masters; Mott’s; Tetley”?  Cereal, Cigars, Apple Sauce and Tea?  Yum!

 

   The next album is showing its manners by including “Please” in the title.  Here we have the Willis Jackson Quintet with “Please Mr. Jackson.”  “Please Mr. Jackson” is the debut album by saxophonist Willis Jackson. It featured Willis Jackson on saxophone, organist Jack McDuff and guitarist Bill Jennings, as well as Alvin Johnson on drums and Tommy Porter on bass.  It was recorded and released in 1959 on the Prestige label.

Please Mr. Jackson

Please Mr. Jackson rear cover

This is what I call cool jazz.  There are only six track on the album and they range from 4 minutes to 8 and a half.  Give a listen to “Cool Grits” being the longest track on the album:

We don’t have any Ice Cream but we do have this great Quintet and if asked nicely “Please Mr. Jackson” they will kindly play the title track. 

  

   “Drumsticks – Trumpets – And Dixieland.”  How’s that for a title?  Unfortunately that’s about all you get with this album.  Take a look at the front cover:

Drumsticks – Trumpets – And Dixieland

The front cover lists songs performed but also an ensemble of artists such as Buster Bailey, Vic Dickenson, Marty Napoleon, Arvell Shaw, Rex Stewart, George Wettling, “Pee Wee” Irwin, Claude Hopkins, Milt Hinton.  The rear cover only lists other albums that appeared on the International Award Series label.  We don’t get a date for this album nor any other information than the musicians and the track listing.  Did they perform together or as one collective band?  I don’t know.  All I know is that there’s Drum Sticks, Trumpets, and it’s Dixieland.  I guess I’ll have to settle for that.  From the album here is  “High Society”: 

All of the other songs on this album are Dixieland classics so I’ll offer up the only song I didn’t recognize by title, “Late Date”: 

  

   Here’s another album with very few details.  Here is “Golden Era of Dixieland Jazz”: 

Golden Era of Dixieland Jazz

Golden Era of Dixieland Jazz

The group doesn’t seem to have a name but there are some familiar names among the musicians.  Claude Hopkins, Pee Wee Erwin, Vic Dickenson, Buster Bailey, Milt Hinton, George Wettling all performed on the “Drumsticks – Trumpets – And Dixieland” album mentioned above.  The only other thing I know is that the album was released in 1957.  It covers songs from 1887 to 1937 and then is released 20 years later in 1957.  I think my math is right.  Who cares, I was an English major.

   When comparing “Golden Era of Dixieland Jazz” against “Drumsticks – Trumpets – And Dixieland” I found that both albums had six songs all the same with the same running time.  When I listened to them, they were exactly the same.  The only two songs on “Golden Era of Dixieland Jazz” that do not appear on “Drumsticks – Trumpets – And Dixieland” are the last two songs on Side B, “I Would Do Anything For You” and “Birth Of The Blues.”  I guess I know which two songs I’m offering.  Here’s “I Would Do Anything For You”:

And finally “Birth Of The Blues”:

  

   And now we come to the three albums I purchased last weekend.  The first is the Dukes of Dixieland with “Come To The Cabaret”.

The Dukes of Dixieland - Come To The Cabaret

The Dukes of Dixieland Cabaret Rear

Here’s a little history about “The Dukes of Dixieland”:

The Dukes of Dixieland was an American, New Orleans “Dixieland”-style revival band, originally formed in 1948 by brothers Frank Assunto, trumpet; Fred Assunto, trombone; and their father Papa Jac Assunto, trombone and banjo. Their first records featured Jack Maheu, clarinet; Stanley Mendelsohn, piano; Tommy Rundell, drums; and Barney Mallon, tuba and string bass.

Fred and Frank Assunto both died young, and the original Dukes of Dixieland disbanded in the early 1970s. In April 1974, producer/manager John Shoup restarted the Dukes of Dixieland with Connie Jones as leader, leased Louis Prima’s nightclub atop the Monteleone Hotel in the French Quarter and renamed it “Duke’s Place”. The Dukes of Dixieland have not been affiliated with the Assunto family since 1974. The Assunto family has denied giving away permission to use the band name with the new line-ups, none of which have included any of the original musicians.

Luckily, this album was released in 1967 so the musicians should mostly be the original members. As far as I know, this album has never been released on CD but there are a lot of fun tracks on this album.  I’m going to start first with the last track, “Hellzapoppin'”:

Here’s a recommendation for everybody from the first track,”Don’t Sleep In The Subway”:

 

   This next album is not even an album at all.  It was not recorded as an album and despite the title, “Tony Pastor Meets Ike Carpenter”, the two do not perform together.

Tony Pastor Meets Ike Carpenter

The rear cover only mentions other albums on the Camay label.  I became a fan of Tony Pastor when I was researching Linda Keene’s stint with Pastor which I detailed in TRACING LINDA KEENE, PART 2: THE MOMENT IN MY LIFE.  I have since purchased a couple of CDs of his released on the Circle label and the Collectors’ Choice Music label featuring live performances with a young Rosemary Clooney.  I highly recommend them.  So, when I saw this album, I thought I’d pick it up.  I didn’t know who Ike Carpenter was but it didn’t matter because he doesn’t perform with Pastor.  The curio here is that all of these performances are taken from Snader Telescriptions.  These were short films of musical performances intended as television filler in the early days of television. Dozens of artists were presented and hundreds of films were made.  From Wikipedia: 

Snader Telescriptions, produced for television from 1950 to 1952, were film versions of popular and classical music performances. Singers, dancers, orchestras, and novelty acts appeared in the Snader musicals. They were produced by Louis D. Snader, a Southern California theater owner who branched out into television and then real estate.

I found a much more detailed information source for the Snader Telescriptions from a website dedicated to the discography of Peggy Lee.  It’s very extensive and informative and you can check it out here:  https://peggyleediscography.com/p/LeeResearchSnader.php.  It even details the release of Telescription audio on the Camay lable.

    Here is one of the Tony Pastor songs that appears on the album but is actually the Telescription as posted on YouTube:

Here’s the actual track from the album by comparison:

Here’s another of Tony Pastor’s telescriptions that is represented on the album.  This time it’s “Margie”:

And here’s the audio track from the album: 

 

I’ll present one more song from the album by Tony Pastor with an unknown female singer.  I could not find any more information nor could I find the telescription video.  The song is “Kiss Me” 

To be fair to Ike Carpenter, I’ll present a couple of tracks by his Orchestra.  I could not find the telescription video for either of these but I had found references to the fact that Carpenter was indeed filmed for the Snader Telescriptions.  The first is “It’s The Talk Of The Town” with an unknown male singer:

And here’s Ike Carpenter and his Orchestra with an unknown female singer and backup voices on “Love That Boy”: 

 

 

   Finally we come to the last album in my baker’s dozen.  This is a compilation album of old Bunny Berigan tracks that was put out on the Sandy Hook label in 1982.  It has the dubious title of “The Greatest White Trumpeter of All Time.”

Bunny Berigan Greatest White Trumpeter

Bunny Berigan rear cover

I don’t know if the claim of “Greatest White Trumpeter” still holds but I’d have to nominate Billy Butterfield, Ruby Braff, and Bob Scobey.  I featured a Butterfield track in my second blahg about multiple found records, 12 MONTHS & 12 MORE RECORDS & 12 MORE SONGS and did a whole blahg about Bob Scobey in  WHAT ON EARTH IS SCOBEYFAN?  I haven’t discussed Ruby Braff but I recently purchased a double Ruby Braff CD, “The Canadian Sessions” so maybe I’ll talk about Ruby Braff in the future.

Ruby Braff The Canadian Sessions

   This Bunny Berigan album is not the only Berigan LP in my collection.  I’m a huge collector of Frank Sinatra and I have quite a number of records of Sinatra and Tommy Dorsey and Bunny Berigan was part of Dorsey’s Orchestra during some of the time Sinatra was with Dorsey.  Here are a couple of albums from my Sinatra collection that not only feature Berigan but feature Berigan specifically in the tracks and in the record title. The first is on the Fanfare Records label and includes live broadcast tracks.

Tommy Dorsey featuring Bunny Berigan

Tommy Dorsey featuring Bunny Berigan rear

The second is on the Jazz Archives label with the title of “Through The Years:”

Through The Years Front

Through The Years rear

   I won’t post about Berigan’s tragically short life, he was only 33 when he died, but I will let the music speak for itself.  I found a couple of old short films on YouTube with Berigan that show him playing the trumpet as well as singing.  The first is taken from a Vitaphone short called “Mirrors” from 1934 featuring Freddie Rich and his Orchestra.  At the 45 second mark you can see Berigan playing his trumpet. 

The clip above is taken from the full Vitaphone short and if you want to see the full version, which for no great reason has been colourized, then you can check it out here:

The second video I found is also of Freddie Rich and His Orchestra from a 1936 short titled “Song Hits On Parade”.  It’s a medley of three songs, “You Can’t Pull The Wool Over My  Eyes”, “Until Today”, and “Tiger Rag.”  Berigan is featured prominently on “Until Today” playing his trumpet and lending his pleasing vocal to the song. 

   Okay, now some tracks from the Sandy Hook album, “The Greatest White Trumpeter of All Time.”  First up is “Running Wild.”  This is a song that became associated with Marilyn Monroe when she performed it in the film, “Some Like It Hot.”  From October 22, 1936, here’s Berigan’s version:

Although there are no vocals by Berigan on the album, we do have vocals on a couple of songs by Gail Reese and one with Dick Wharton doing the singing.  Here’s Gail Reese and Bunny Berigan on “It’s Wonderful”: 

The last track I’ll feature from this album is the one with Dick Wharton singing Hoagy Carmichael’s “Stardust.”  Listen to Berigan’s horn on this one.  What a thrill! 

 

   That’s it for this baker’s dozen batch.  I’ll keep on buying records when I find them and I’ll post about them.  After all, found music that’s really good truly is The Most Happy Sound.  Sorry, I couldn’t resist.