The George Sanders Touch

I've always considered the actor George Sanders to be slightly creepy, so I am not sure that I would consider the title "The George Sanders Touch" to be much of an inducement to buy.

The subtitle here is "songs for the lovely lady," so if there are any lovely ladies out there, this is apparently aimed at you. George is nice enough to offer you a carnation on the cover, while attempting to stifle gas pains.

If you partake, be warned that although Sanders was a thespian of some repute, his singing skills were much less well developed. He mostly relies on his sonorous actor's baritone to make an effect. Pitch, however, is not his strength, and he is at times distinctly flat.

If you can stand the inaccuracies, this is not unpleasant to hear, and the lush arrangements by Don Costa and Nick Perito are very fine. The record was issued in early 1958, shortly before the advent of stereo, and I am not sure that it ever came out in a dual-channel version. This mono pressing has excellent sound and my copy is mint.

Sanders was apparently an amateur musician who often played the piano, and wanted very much to be known as a singer. This is not unusual among actors; many of them started out as singers or in musicals, and any number of others were trained musicians. I love the genre of singing actors, and this is not a bad example, all told.

Sanders did many ads back when. That's him below (although to me it looks more like Robert Montgomery) along with then wife Sari Gabor - Zsa Zsa to you. George and Zsa Zsa were apparently in the habit of smoking cheap cigars while riding horses.

Buster's Swinging Singles

I've started a new blog devoted to stray 78s and 45s that have captured my fancy for one reason or another. It's called Buster's Swinging Singles. The first three offerings are out there now and they look good (although Blogger has been doing its best to confuse the issue by throwing stray duplicate images into my posts). You will find the following:

• A vocal by Dizzy Gillespie that extols eating more meat because the meat from the Texas cows is cheap.

• Margaret Whiting covering New Orleans teen sensation Jimmy Clanton.

• Two rockin' ditties by Napoleon XIV before he was taken away, ha-haaa and before he was calling himself Napoleon XIV! (He was calling himself Jerry Simms at the time, which also was not his real name.)

No one has requested these, and possibly no one wants to hear them but me, but they are now available just in case.

Also hope you like the new nameplate on this blog. That's a photo of a Kansas City record store circa 1950. What could be better than a giant portrait of Frank, a wall full of 10-inch LPs, and a smiling proprietor?

Sacred Music with Jo Stafford

Some unusual Jo Stafford sacred music selections for you tonight.

First is an EP recorded in October 1954 and issued in late 1955. The first two songs ("Each Step of the Way" and "Lord, Keep Your Hand on Me") were written by Redd Harper for evangelist Billy Graham's first film, Mr. Texas, released in 1951. "The Lord Is My Shepherd" is a Ralph Carmichael song, and "It is Springtime" is from Ted Silva.

Stafford never sounded more at home than when singing gospel music, and this is quite a good record in excellent sound.

Despite recording these evangelical songs, both Stafford and her husband Paul Weston were Catholics. In the early 1960s they began a company called Corinthian Records, which began by issuing Catholic liturgical music. The second LP in the series was "We Sing at Benediction," which was designed to teach Catholics the music and prayers of this service. It was a strange idea - it's not as though Catholics would be unfamiliar with their own liturgy. Much of the album is devoted to a fellow named Joseph Rottura instructing us on how to pronounce the Latin of the prayers and songs. His approach is highly Italianate, with rolled R's and elided H's. This is distinctly not the way I was taught to pronounce Latin through years of instruction in the language, but Rottura is intent on his approach, telling us the proper pronunciation will be more pleasing to God. He must have been surprised two years hence, when the Church tossed out the Latin liturgy altogether.

Of course, the main attraction of the record is hearing Jo Stafford singing several hymns, and she does this quite well. However, unless I am misremembering events of 50 years ago, these hymns would then have been presented by the celebrant and congregation, not by a solo singer. Anyway, they are beautiful to hear as done by Stafford. The tracks where she performs are indicated as "sung". Good mono sound from this 1961 LP.

Seventh Batch of Reups

A few more requests filled, all soundtracks, or at least music from the film. Links to all files in the comments.

Three Sailors and a Girl

Features Gordon MacRae and Jane Powell; what could be better? Apple lossless format. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

The Brave One

Victor Young's fine score. Available only in mp3. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

For Whom the Bell Tolls; Golden Earrings

Two more Victor Young scores in these early recordings. Remastered and in Apple lossless format. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST
 

Mitropoulos Conducts Sessions

The music of American composer Roger Sessions has a reputation for being forbidding. To me, it is not that it is "difficult" so much as it makes no attempt to be "easy" in the way that Randall Thompson's own Second Symphony does.

Sessions in 1948

This exceptional performance provides perhaps the best window onto Sessions' sound world. In it, Dimitri Mitropoulos and New York's Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra sound entirely at one with the music. It is a very serious work, written from 1944-46 and dedicated to the memory of Franklin D. Roosevelt. But paradoxically the performance also communicates a constant spirit of delight because of its extraordinary sympathy.

The excellent sonics, too, convey a sense of a real performance. The simple miking helps to provide an integrated sound to the orchestra - so different from the synthetic approach that has been the norm for many years. The symphony was recorded in Columbia's 30th Street studios in January 1950.

The liner notes below provide a good introduction to Sessions and this music. The only negative to this issue is the completely inappropriate front cover art.

Dancing with Zig

In our last post, we had a dancing couple on the cover, but the music inside was a no-way-danceable symphony. This time out, the dancing couple on the cover does indeed signify music you can dance to, should you have the inclination.

And who better to dance with than the clarion trumpeter Ziggy Elman and a variety of studio bands in these M-G-M recordings. Ziggy, of course, was once a member of the powerful Benny Goodman brass section, along with Chris Griffin and Harry James. Post war, he set out on his own, but did not have consistent success as a bandleader, although he did have a recording contract with M-G-M for several years.

This LP brings together singles from 1947 through 1952. Although the dates and personnel vary, the music is all very well played. The fare consists mainly of standards, and it's hard to imagine why the record company thought such items as "Me and My Shadow" (which practically usurps an Ellington arrangement) would achieve commercial success. The best number is certainly the title tune, a Basiesque swinger.

Still and all, this is a highly enjoyable outing from a fine musician, and the sound is good.

Detail from 1951 Billboard ad

Randall Thompson's Second Symphony

Looking at the cover, you might expect this record to dance band music that would make you want to get up and do the Lindy hop.

Well, not exactly. Randall Thompson's 1931 Symphony No. 2 is not something that you would find in the Paul Whiteman book. It is a relatively conventional symphony, although it makes use of simple materials - even simplistic, in the case of the first movement. Thompson, one of the leading American composers for many years, is today much better known for his choral works than his symphonic efforts.

Randall Thompson

The performance is a good one, led by the American conductor Dean Dixon with what is probably a Viennese orchestra. This was among the first issues by the American Recording Society, a non-profit organization that was set up in 1951 by the Alice Ditson Fund to promote American music. This recording is now rebalanced and enhanced with ambient stereo to counteract the bony acoustic.

Dean Dixon

Sixth Batch of Reups

Most of these reups are from the early days of this blog, and so are available in mp3 versions only. At that time, I did not consistently archive the lossless versions. The sound may be variable. All these are in mp3 format unless noted. Links to all posts in the comments.

Gershwin - Second Rhapsody, Etc.

Oscar Levant's recordings with Morton Gould. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

Music by Morton Gould, Charles T. Griffes and Aaron Copland

Excellent New York Philharmonic recordings of Gould's Philharmonic Waltzes (led by Dimitri Mitropoulos) and Quickstep (led by the composer), Griffes' The White Peacock and two scenes from Copland's Billy the Kid (both led by Leopold Stokowski). LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

Neal Hefti - Music of Rudolf Friml

The big band arranger unexpectedly takes on the operetta composer. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

Christmas Eve Vespers

Notable 1952 recordings from the monks of the Franciscan Abbey of St. Martin, Beuron, conducted by Dr. Maurus Pfaff. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

Siegmeister - Ozark Set

Elie Siegmeister's Coplandian suite, strangely coupled with Lalo. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

Hanson - Piano Concerto; Grieg - Holberg Suite

Howard Hanson conducts his piano concerto with Rudolf Firkušný. FLAC format. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

Hindemith - The Four Temperaments

Lukas Foss with the Zimbler Sinfonietta. Apple lossless format. LINK TO ORIGINAL POST 

Risë Stevens Sings Victor Herbert

Mezzo-soprano Risë Stevens, still with us today, managed to be popular not only on the operatic stage, but also in the more popular arts, appearing in films and on radio relatively soon after her 1938 Metropolitan Opera debut. She was often on television during its early years as well.

Stevens was a fine artist, but she also had a great manager. She appears in all types of ads, especially in the 1940s - for two different brands of cigarettes, for hand cream, for an airline, and even for a motor oil. She was a Columbia Records contractee during that time, and Columbia gave her a strong promotional push through full-page color ads in the popular magazines. Columbia at that time was running major ad campaigns for classical records in such periodicals as Life. (An example of one of these ads is at the bottom of this post.)

Billboard ad from 1950

In 1950, Stevens left Columbia to join RCA Victor. The attraction was producer Manie Sachs, who had left Columbia to join Victor, taking several artists with him, also including Ezio Pinza. To mark the occasion, RCA took out the peculiar ad at left, showing Stevens looking disconsolate at the move to RCA, and not nearly as glamorous as she appeared in her Columbia ads.

Fortunately, the artistic results were much brighter than the advertising. The first fruits of the RCA contract were contained in this 1950 LP of "Victor Herbert favorites". Stevens was in prime voice, sounding secure throughout her range and fully involved in these choice operetta items from the 1890s and early years of the 20th century.

Frank Black, long-time music director for NBC radio, conducts the anonymous orchestra. The sound is quite good.

Detail from a 1940s Columbia Records ad