Completing the Early André Previn Collection

My good friend Scoredaddy, one of this blog's earliest supporters, asked me for more early André Previn piano recordings. Specifically, he wondered if there were more items from Previn's years with RCA Victor (1947-53).

There were, and this post presents all such Victor recordings that have not previously appeared on this site, mainly drawn from two 10-inch LPs in my collection, Piano Program and Plays Harry Warren. Both albums came out in 1951, although the sessions were held mainly in the previous year. In addition to the LPs, we have two songs from a 1947 single that hasn't been offered here before.

As far as I can tell, if you combine this post with my previous efforts, you will have all of Previn's early piano sessions on RCA Victor. You also will have the even earlier recordings he did for the Sunset label, and a bunch of later material - a film score, songs, pop records and a classical date. Previn could - and did - do it all in the realm of music.

I also want to plug a related new post on my other blog - it consists of four live recordings released by the Modern label. These apparently came from a 1947 "Just Jazz" concert held in Pasadena. Also on the singles blog, you'll find an earlier post presenting several Previn V-Discs dating from 1946.

André Previn Piano Program

The André Previn Piano Program LP includes the following songs that will be new to those who have been collecting my Previn posts: "Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year," "Dearly Beloved," "I've Got My Eye on You" and "September in the Rain." The other two songs on the album also appeared on Camden reissues I've uploaded previously.

Previn's accompanying trio on the LP includes Bob Bain, guitar, Lloyd Pratt, bass, and Ralph Collier, drums. Several of the songs also have string arrangements, which Previn presumably wrote.

The cover above may look familiar to those who have followed these posts. One of my earlier collections included an EP that had the same busy graphics as this LP, but different contents. This is the opposite of the usual record company approach, i.e., the same contents with different covers.

André Previn Plays Harry Warren

By 1950, Previn was an old Hollywood hand, having worked in the studios since he was in high school. For this LP, he paid homage to another LA luminary, the songwriter Harry Warren.

For a renowned songwriter, Warren was unusual in that he wrote primarily for the movies. All eight tunes in this collection were first heard on a sound stage. The liner notes mention that Warren did not achieve the same fame as other leading songwriters, even though he had won three Academy Awards. But his compositions were known far and wide, as you will discover when you scan the contents for this disc.

The following songs have not appeared here before in a Previn version: "I Only Have Eyes for You," "I'll String Along with You," "Lullaby of Broadway," "I Know Why and So Do You" and "Jeepers Creepers."

Bain, Pratt and Collier again compose the backing trio, but there are no strings arrangements in this set.

"I Didn't Know What Time It Was" and "Should I"

Our final Previn record on RCA is a 1947 single coupling of "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" and "Should I." As far as I can tell, it has not been reissued.

The backing musicians are Al Viola, guitar, Lloyd Pratt or Chic Parnell, bass, and Jackie Mills, drums.

This record comes to us from Internet Archive, cleaned up for posting here.

To close out, let me add one more plug for the post of Previn's four 1947 live recordings issued on the Modern label, new on Buster's Swinging Singles.