Cor de Groot

I'm starting on a new series of recordings by the outstanding Dutch pianist Cor de Groot. This 10-inch LP of Beethoven's fourth concerto was made at the height of de Groot's career, in 1955, four years before he lost the use of his right hand.

The pianist was 41 when this concerto was recorded; it was only 12 years after he had first come to prominence by substituting for Wilhelm Backhaus in Beethoven's third concerto.

This is a superb performance, displaying de Groot's gorgeous tone, flawless technique, sensitivity and elegance. The accompaniment by the Vienna Symphony and Willem van Otterloo also is quite good. And the disk is nicely recorded. One small issue is that the English Philips pressing has a persistent rustle in the first movement and some swish in the second. (De Groot seems to be pressing his own records in the photo at right, which I purloined from Rudolf Bruil's interesting site.) Enduring the slight noise is worth it to hear this fine interpretation.

I've been trying to recall what other de Groot recordings are in my collection and so far have located items by Rachmaninoff, Liszt and Morton Gould. I'll probably feature the Gould next because it is the least often heard.

Hope you enjoy this excellent artist.

Sheila Guyse

Last time out we were discussing the career of Billy Eckstine, and speculating that he could have had a second career in film or television except for the accident of his race.

This post concerns a much more obscure artist, but one who faced many of the same hurdles. Sheila Guyse was a singing actress who first came to some notice in the black cinema of the 1940s, appearing in such titles as Sepia Cinderella and Miracle in Harlem. (You can see her in Boy! What a Girl! via this link, but she does not sing in this film.)

Guyse was in the original cast of Lost in the Stars on Broadway in 1949-50, and appears on the cast album.

Being an African American singing actress at the time was almost a guarantee of little work, and so she had few credits for a number of years, and apparently some personal problems. After winning an Arthur Godfrey Talent Scouts contest, she was signed to an M-G-M records contract and in 1958 made this LP with Leroy Holmes. There was some publicity at the time that told her story, including a Jet magazine cover story, included in the download (cover below).

Guyse is still with us, and there are a few effusive articles on the web that liken her to Lena Horne and Dorothy Dandridge. No doubt that she was a good singer and a very good looking woman, but she was not on that level. As a singer, she doesn't always hit the notes squarely and tends to rush the beat. But she is enjoyable, and this LP is certainly highly collectible.

A note about Boy! What a Girl!: the plot of this Room Service gloss revolves around three different men falling for the well-known vaudeville comic Tim Moore in drag. (The film's strength was not its believability.) While this was at the end of Moore's stage career, he would go on to considerable fame as Kingfish in the televised version of Amos 'n' Andy - a role originated on radio by the white Freeman Gosden.

This post is in response to a request by my friend Jeronimo, who provided the link to Boy! What a Girl!

Mr. B Sings R&H with Riddle

Quincy Jones said of Billy Eckstine after his death that had the singer been white, he would have had a career in television and the movies, not just as a singer. This is quite possibly true, for Eckstine was a very handsome man and a style-setter. It's likely that his considerable mid-century popularity would have been even greater but for the accident of his race.

An article in The Crisis at the time notes that Eckstine and other African American artists appearing in Las Vegas in the early 50s could not stay in the hotels there. Nor was this unusual. It's remarkable to recall that strict segregation was pervasive even within my own lifetime.

That's why it is always interesting to me to read commentary that seems rueful that Eckstine left his jazz roots behind to become a pop singer; it's as if people wanted him to remain in his own niche and not try for broader success and fame, elusive though it might be.

Eckstine started out as the singer with the Earl Hines orchestra, then led his own big band that was an incubator of bop in the 40s. He began recording for M-G-M in 1947 and quickly began having hits with the highly romantic ballads that were then popular. He was at the height of his success in 1949 and 1950, not just selling records but winning magazine polls.

Billboard ad

By late 1952, when this record came out, he was still a success but the romantic style was giving way to new approaches. This record of Rodgers and Hammerstein songs apparently did not sell as well as Eckstine's earlier LPs, and today seems to be considerably scarce. I don't in fact have a copy of it myself, so I am grateful to Will Friedwald and David Lennick for making it available to me and readers of this blog.

It's particularly notable that the charts on this record are by Nelson Riddle, who had achieved some success already with Nat Cole and soon would start working with Frank Sinatra. This is Riddle at his most romantic, not Nelson the swinger. The songs are all familiar with the possible exception of So Far, which is from one of the least successful Rodgers and Hammerstein efforts, 1947's Allegro.

The album is a gorgeous collection from a singer who inspired a generation of virile baritones, including Johnny Hartman and Arthur Prysock. Thanks again to Will and David for making it available.

A Souvenir of Mitch, from Mitch

I've written before about Mitch Miller, the pop potentate whose first love was classical music, where he was Mitchell Miller, oboe and English horn virtuoso.

Mitch must have been proud of the recordings he made of classical and light music because he made his own CDs to give out to friends and acquaintances, among them Will Friedwald. I am making them available here in tribute to this important personality, thanks to Will.

Mitch had two different CDs. One was his recordings of Vaughan Williams, Cimarosa, J.C. and J.S. Bach, Mozart and Sibelius (The Swan of Tuonela), conducted by Leopold Stokowski and Daniel Saidenberg. The other was of light music fare recorded in the early 50s with Percy Faith, for Columbia (cover above).

We've encountered the Bach and Mozart items on this blog previously (courtesy of Joe Serraglio) - here. And my friend Fred posted the Vaughan Williams on his blog, Random Classics - here - along with a few other items that aren't part of this post. I believe I have seen the Cimarosa elsewhere; can't remember where. The Sibelius is new to me, and is excellent.

I haven't seen the light music LPs offered elsewhere - and actually had vague thoughts of presenting my own copies here. But here are both of them, courtesy of Will. It's So Peaceful in the Country features music of Jimmy Van Heusen and Alec Wilder (whose music Miller promoted for decades). There are two additional items by Wilder on Music Until Midnight - Ellen and Piece for English Horn. Both LPs are exceptionally fine examples of the genre.

Mitch Miller was an unusual combination of artist and pop entrepreneur. As he so often did, Al Hirschfeld captures his subject's spirit in pen and ink, on the caricature that Mitch himself chose to put on the cover of the CDs that he used as his own calling card. It wasn't the only time Mitch was depicted by a famous artist - see Fred's blog post for a wonderful, puckish Norman Rockwell portrait that originally was on one of Miller's Sing Along LPs (perhaps Family Sing Along with Mitch).

One of my first records was a kiddie 78 conducted by Miller, so I have been listening to his music literally all my life - and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience (well, maybe not the sing-alongs). A fond farewell to this important figure.

ADDENDUM - My friend Mel tells me the Percy Faith records were recorded in 1954 and 1955. And I really should have linked you to Will's article on Mitch - it's here.

Elgar with Sir Adrian

For years there has been something of a debate about who was the ultimate Elgarian conductor - Adrian Boult or John Barbirolli. They both had long careers and made many great records of Elgar's music. If forced to choose (and I am forcing myself via this rhetorical construction), I would point the critical finger at Sir Adrian. He's a particular favorite of mine.

So I am pleased to present this 10-inch LP of Elgar's lighter music in a 1954 recording with the London Philhamonic, which Boult led at the time. It comes to us through the good graces of my friend Don (aka Sacqueboutier), who offered this on Symphonyshare and simultaneously suggested it to me for presentation here.

The recordings were made in February and October 1954 in Kingsway Hall, one of the most famous venues of its time, with Kenneth Wilkinson engineering - one of the most famous engineers. A first-class production, to be sure.

These recordings also were issued on a 12-inch LP, which I have in my own collection, but which has previously been issued by my friend Fred on his blog Random Classics. There they were coupled with Malcolm Arnold's English Dances (which are delightful) - so if you want Boult's version of those pieces, go see Fred.

I've quite grateful to Don, who is a veritable transfer machine, because I am having trouble producing any posts whatsoever, having been working around the clock. I hope to enjoy some leisure (and music) soon.

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