thebb

Kate Smith began her recording career on the Columbia Records 35 cent label like Harmony, Clarion and Velvetone. As her radio popularity took off, she moved over to the more prestigious Brunswick label. Here she is on my Clarion label 1931 "dime store" 78 singing MORNING, NOON AND NIGHT

17 Morning Noon And Night

Here is my one-of-a-kind internal MGM studio recording of a song cut from King Vidor's HALLELUJAH! ('29). The risque song, YOU'LL HAVE TO DO BETTER THAN THAT, was sung by Nina Mae McKinney, "The Black Garbo" and is backed by Curtis Mosby's band. You can hear the studio chatter before and after the take. While it's not clear why the song was cut, it's lyrics are at last partly to blame!

02 You Gotta Do Better Than That

Although the sole nitrate print decomposed twenty years ago, here is the soundtrack to Rudy Vallee's first sound film, the Vitaphone short RUDY VALLEE AND HIS CONNECTICUT YANKEES (1929)

04 Rudy Vallee & His Connecticut Yankees Vitaphone

Let's Get Friendly

One of the disks in my recent acquisition was listed as having a huge chunk out of it and I wrote it off before the disks arrived.  Incredibly, the bite, which is about 20% of the disk, stops about a 16th of an inch away from the grooves so all the sound is there.  This turned out to be an important Vitaphone disk as it is the "Prelude" or audience entrance disk for Paramount's very first film with sound, a Richard Dix baseball feature titled WARMING UP (1928). The film had no dialog but did have music and sound effects.  No other soundtrack disks for this film are known. On this disk, you don't just hear the usual overture type music. There is a whole routine at the ballpark by Billy Murray and Monroe Silver, two long time Victor recording artists.  I'll post the Victor ledger sheet for this session and it appears to be among their first.

09 WARMING UP Prelude Vita Disk

Dogtail blues
Sid Phillips

The Riviera Five "del Cova"; leader H. Phillips


Dogtail blues - The Riviera Five "del Cova" - leader H. Phillips

Helen Ward & Buddy Clark sing Johnny Green's "Not Bad," from one of the first LET'S DANCE NBC programs by Benny Goodman, December 1934. Transferred from the original aircheck lacquer, which was recorded for arranger Joe Lipman. 

Not Bad - Benny Goodman

Buddy Clark sings with BG on the first LET'S DANCE show, December 1, 1934. Transferred from the original aircheck disc

The Object of My Affection - Benny Goodman

Here is a rare, unfortunately incomplete, fragment of the Kraft show of August 2nd, 1934.  Ramona Davies calls out solos from Johnny Mercer, Jack Teagarden, and others in a spirited rendition of "La Cucaracha."

Whiteman Kraft La Cucaracha-08 02 34

BLACK PANTHER played by Bert Lown & his Orchestra

Whiteman Kraft La Cucaracha-08 02 34

Vitajazz

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