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20th Century Concertos with William Masselos
M-G-M was best known for its films, but it also had an excellent record company for many years. Beside pop records from Billy Eckstine, George Shearing and Joni James and soundtracks from its movies,...
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Somebody Loves Me, Plus Seeley and Fields
The title Somebody Loves Me may lead you to think that this is the soundtrack for a Gershwin musical. Not so - it's from a 1952 film that starred the Betty Hutton in a story "suggested by the careers...
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Little Richard
I don't think I've ever posted a rock 'n' roll record before, but I transferred this one for my own amusement, and thought some of you might like it.Little Richard's success was a happy accident of...
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Gershwin's Oh, Kay! - The 1926 Recordings
Original cast recordings of Broadway shows may seem like they have been around forever, but they didn't come into vogue until 1943 and the stunning success of Oklahoma! both on stage and as a cast...
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Hans Kindler, Conductor and Cellist
Detail from 1944 Life adI've been interested for some time in the recordings of conductor Hans Kindler, who founded the National Symphony Orchestra of Washington, D.C., in 1931 and led it until 1949. I...
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A Tribute to Buddy DeSylva
Songwriter-producer Buddy DeSylva was one of the three founders of Capitol Records in 1942, so when he died in 1950, the record company issued this memorial LP, presumably sending it to the company's...
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Ray McKinley on RCA Victor, 1947-50
While drummer-singer-bandleader Ray McKinley had a long career, the 1940s were his heyday. Today we'll look at his longest-lasting band via a selection of 32 recordings he made for RCA Victor from...
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The First Buddy DeSylva Tribute Album
A few days ago, I published a private record that Capitol issued to commemorate the 1950 death of Buddy DeSylva, one of its founders.At that time, I lamented the fact that Capitol didn't see fit to use...
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Orchestral Music of Gabriel Fauré
Longtime friend of the blog Centuri recently mentioned a notable series of recordings from the ORTF (the Office de Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française), made some years ago. I have several of these...
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Tony Martin Strolls Through Melody Lane
I recently transferred this fine Tony Martin album for friend and fellow collector John Morris, so why not share it here as well.This 1956 double EP is equivalent to a 10-inch LP. The album also exists...
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Rome by Sophia, Lingerie by Yolande
Sophia coverAmerican television viewers in 1964 were treated to a travelogue of Rome courtesy of Sophia Loren and sponsor Chemstrand, makers of nylon. Sophia Loren in Rome had a score by the...
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More Transcriptions from Doris Day
A little over a year ago I posted a memorial to Doris Day than mainly consisted of transcriptions that she recorded in 1952. Those recordings are still available here.That post, however, did not...
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First Recordings of Vierne Orchestral Works
Here is another in the Inédits ORTF series, following on my recent post of orchestral works by Gabriel Fauré.As with the Fauré disc, this LP contains previously unrecorded music, in this case by the...
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Gordon MacRae in Desert Song and Roberta - New Transfer
Gordon MacRae starred in radio's The Railroad Hour from 1948 to 1954. Sponsored by the railroad industry, the show concentrated on highlights from operettas and musicals, featuring MacRae and a...
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The Rarest Jeri Sullivan
Our ongoing exploration of the career of singer Jeri Sullivan has previously included two long posts on this blog and one on my singles blog.Post number one detailed her early career and included a...
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Gordon MacRae in 'The Student Price' and 'Merry Widow'
I enjoyed preparing the recent post of Gordon MacRae with highlights from Roberta and Desert Song, so here is a second post containing two more operettas from the same series.As before, Capitol teamed...
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Elaine Shaffer in Mozart Flute Concertos
This is another in a series of recordings by Efrem Kurtz that I have been uploading periodically over the past 18 months. Here he accompanies his distinguished wife, Elaine Shaffer, in the Mozart flute...
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Jack Jones, Plus Margaret Whiting and Bob Manning Reups
Jack Jones is one of my favorite singers, but he has never appeared here. Today I'll present his first real chart success, and add a vocal reup bonanza with collections from Margaret Whiting and Bob...
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Remembering Johnny Mandel and Ida Haendel
Two significant musicians have passed away this week - composer-arranger Johnny Mandel and violinist Ida Haendel.In remembrance of Mandel, who has not appeared on this blog before, I've transferred the...
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First Recordings of Piston and MacDowell from the Boston Pops
Today's post is devoted to two important first recordings of American music made by the Boston Pops and Arthur Fiedler in the 1930s. First is Edward MacDowell's Piano Concerto No. 2, recorded in 1936...
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