A House Party with Ray Anthony

I recently had a request to reupload a Ray Anthony LP called Swing Fox Trots. As is my usual practice, I went to work improving the sound, and, as often happens, I enjoyed the record so much that I pulled another one of the same artist's albums down from the shelf.

This present post is the result. It is a 10-inch LP called Houseparty Hop, taking its title from a terrific boppish tune of the same name that shows off Anthony's band in fine style. Otherwise, the program is composed of standards, all dispatched in a most pleasing manner. Anthony's band became known as a Glenn Miller clone, but there is none of that here.

Unlike many albums of the time, the tunes were not issued first as singles (or at all, as far as I know). The recording sessions were held in August and September 1951 in Los Angeles. I believe this was still a working band, although the personnel may have been augmented by a few session hands such as Ted Nash and Conrad Gozzo. The arrangements are likely by George (The Fox) Williams.

Billboard ad

I have many, many Anthony records, so I admit I chose this one for the cover. The artist assumed that "houseparty" likely referred to a fraternity house, probably accurately - Anthony was very popular on college campuses. So we get a cartoon depiction of what a pre-Animal House frat party looked like. Some dancing, some smooching, and some punch drinking (even the house mother is imbibing, although the Ivy-looking fellow in the crew cut, horn rims and bow tie seems dubious). Also very much of the time is a Cro-Magnon type chasing a girl onto the back cover - you can see the amusing continuation of this scenario below (click to enlarge). I probably don't need to observe that you would not see this kind of behavior depicted so lightly these days. One final observation - I love how the Capitol logo is hung on the frat house wall!

As a bonus, I transferred an Anthony EP called Dixie Parade, which can be found on my singles blog. And be sure to check out Swing Fox Trots, which is a much better album than the title would portend. When I transferred that record years ago, I speculated that Billy May might be responsible for the arrangements. However, subsequent research leads me to think that is unlikely. I came across a 1952 Billboard article in which May complained that "The Fox" was in his henhouse, stealing his style in Williams's arrangements for Anthony's band!

Gisele MacKenzie with Pop Hits of the 50s

My previous posts of music by Canadian singer Gisele MacKenzie have been remarkably popular, leading me to observe that you blog followers like her even more than I do.

Not that I disdain MacKenzie's gifts, which were considerable - she sings in tune, with excellent diction, and always commands attention. It's just that she doesn't go below the surface very often, a quality I value in vocalists.

Fortunately, the repertoire for this new post doesn't call for much depth. It consists of pop hits dating from 1951-55 - the kind of fare that MacKenzie confronted on a weekly basis as one of the stars of the television program Your Hit Parade. That program required her to master all types of music - from Broadway tunes to novelty items to crossover R&B and country material. She could do justice to such varied content, as demonstrated by this particular collection, although I suspect she was weakest at blues-based songs, which are not represented here.

What you will find is offerings derived from the stage and screen ("Hey There," "Unchained Melody," "Stranger in Paradise," "The Song from 'Moulin Rouge'," "Theme from Picnic/Moonglow") other pop hits ("Too Young," "Answer Me, My Love," "Learnin' the Blues," "Ebb Tide," "Blue Tango") and C&W tunes ("Slow Poke," "Half as Much") - all handled in a most pleasing manner.

MacKenzie's accomplice in this program is the veteran arranger/conductor Axel Stordahl, who is mostly known for his superb work with Frank Sinatra throughout the Voice's stint with Columbia Records. I believe Stordahl was the conductor for Eddie Fisher's Coke Time TV show when these sessions were held. His arrangements here, while proficient, are not of the quality he routinely achieved with Sinatra.

The date of the Gisele sessions is unclear. While RCA Victor first issued this LP in late 1958, I believe it may have been taped somewhat earlier. First, as mentioned, the program is of recent hits, but the latest item is from 1955. Second, the excellent portrait of MacKenzie by illustrator Jon Whitcomb was first used for the cover of Cosmopolitan magazine in November 1955 (at right; she is facing west instead of east, as on the record cover). I'm not sure when stereo recording of pop artists began, but I recently posted George Siravo stereo material dating from mid-1957. RCA was recording classical music in stereo as early as 1954 and issuing it on tape starting in 1955.

Fortunately, RCA's mike manipulators did better work for Gisele than for George. The results here are reasonably well-balanced, although the sonics for the band were distinctly brighter than those for the singer. It was almost as though the engineer had thrown a blanket over MacKenzie on some cuts. (Perhaps the studio was chilly.) I have compensated for this effect, with some success, I hope.

This was the only MacKenzie LP that originated on the RCA Victor label. Her other albums first came out on the Vik subsidiary. RCA folded that imprint in November 1958.

In common with many other singers in the post-war era, MacKenzie endorsed cigarettes (see below - click to enlarge). If she actually did smoke, it did not affect her pipes.

Francescatti in Lalo and Vieuxtemps

Here is the second installment in my series devoted to the French violinist Zino Francescatti. Reader Alan Cooper suggested this particular recording, noting that Columbia and its successor companies have never offered a CD reissue of the violinist's traversal of the Vieuxtemps Concerto No. 4.

I am happy to oblige Alan, because the Vieuxtemps performance is superb. It displays Francescatti's spectacular technique, which is all the more remarkable for seeming so nonchalant. The fine support here is by the Philadelphia Orchestra and Eugene Ormandy. The sessions were in the Broadwood Hotel in April 1957.

Zino Francescatti and Eugene Ormandy

That's not to say that the coupling, Lalo's Symphonie Espagnole, is any less impressive in this performance with the New York Philharmonic and Dimitri Mitropoulos, dating from April 1957 and Columbia's 30th Street Studio. Here, Francescatti chooses the truncated version of the work that was then the norm, omitting the central Intermezzo. This was his second recording of the Lalo work; the first was in 1946 with André Cluytens and a Parisian orchestra.

My transfer is from the original mono pressing, which has excellent sound. The Lalo was later issued in stereo, as a coupling for the Walton concerto, but I don't have that LP. To my perhaps deficient knowledge, the Vieuxtemps has never seen a stereo release.

Spirituals from Marian Anderson, Plus Reups

The response to my first post of a Marian Anderson record was enthusiastic, so here is another of the great artist's early LP - and if anything, it is even more treasurable.

This 10-inch album collates the 11 spirituals that Miss Anderson recorded for RCA Victor in May 1952, with her longtime accompanist Franz Rupp at the piano.

Marian Anderson and Franz Rupp in 1951

You will not find a more impressive or satisfying record. The contralto's voice is perfection, her control is complete and her involvement in the material is total. The effect is stunning - it is no wonder she was one of the most famous and beloved singers of the time.

Please note: As a complement to this LP, I have also posted an EP collecting four spirituals that Miss Anderson recorded for Victor in May 1947. You can find it on my companion singles blog. The recordings on both records were done in RCA's New York Studio No. 2, and the resulting sound is very good.

Excerpt from a 1941 ad

Reups

Also for you today, several reuploads, all remastered for better sound. Three are by a few of the fine postwar bands that are something of a specialty on this blog.

Ralph Marterie - Dancing on the Down Beat. The Marterie band is little noted today, but the trumpeter led a skilled and powerful ensemble that played a variety of styles most effectively. This LP dates from 1952.

Ralph Marterie - Marterie Moods for Dancing. Another from the Marterie men, this example from 1951; again, very worthwhile.

Ziggy Elman - Ziggy Elman (M-G-M E535). Speaking of wonderful bands, Ziggy had one, led by his powerful trumpet. This LP collects singles from 1947-50. (Note: you'll need to make some allowances for the sound on this one.)

Woody Guthrie - Talking Dust Bowl. The same era, but much different music The seminal folk singer and some of his most famous records, including "So Long (Dusty Old Dust)," on this early LP.

Early Copland and Gould Recordings, Plus Reups

My recent post of a Copland for children record on my other blog reminded me I wanted to offer this 10-inch album that couples early recordings of music by Aaron Copland and Morton Gould.

For the LP issue, Columbia top-billed the first recording of Gould's Spirituals for Orchestra, even though its companion item, Copland's Lincoln Portrait, has turned out to be a far more popular composition than the Gould, worthy though that may be.

Cover of 78 set

Both recordings date from 1946, the Copland from February and March sessions, and the Gould from May, with the New York Philharmonic under the characteristically taut direction of its then-music director, Artur Rodziński. The sound from Carnegie Hall is excellent.

The sonorous narrator in the Lincoln Portrait is actor-singer Kenneth Spencer, who at the time was on Broadway in an acclaimed revival of Show Boat. In the previous few years, Spencer had been in several films, including A Walk in the Sun, whose soundtrack turned up on this blog last year. Spencer moved to Germany in 1950.

1947 ad

A few words about the performance history of A Lincoln Portrait. This was its second recording; the first was by Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony, only a few weeks before Rodziński and the New Yorkers. The work had been written in 1942, through a commission by Andre Kostelanetz, and premiered by the Cincinnati Symphony. Kostelanetz himself did not record it until 1958.

I mentioned that this was the first recording of Gould's Spirituals. The second recording appeared on this blog some years ago, emanating from the unlikely source of the Hague Philharmonic and Willem van Otterloo. Gould himself did not get to tape it until 1965, when he led the Chicago Symphony for RCA Victor. Then in 1978 he conducted the London Philharmonic in a direct-to-disc effort for Crystal Clear.

Now on to a few reups.

Raymond Scott - Raymond Scott's Drawing Room (remastered). An early LP compiling some of Scott's best known compositions in their 1930s recordings, including those cartoon staples "Powerhouse" and "The Toy Trumpet." (Also see my other blog for a recent post of a Scott-scored trip to the moon.)

So This is Paris (OST). Tony Curtis warbles on this obscure soundtrack from a 1954 musical. Also features Gloria De Haven and Gene Nelson, who actually could sing.

Danny Thomas and Peggy Lee - Songs from The Jazz Singer (remastered). In 1952, the Warner Bros. figured they would remake The Jazz Singer and cast a non-singer in the lead role. What could go wrong? You can find out here, in this, another obscure soundtrack (actually "songs from the film"), with Danny Thomas, who was long on charm but short on chops. I've added the three songs from the film recorded for another label by co-star Peggy Lee, who, again, actually could sing.

The links above lead to the original posts. Download links are in the comments there; also in the comments to this post.

Columbia goes overboard for Rodziński in 1945 ad

The ODJB's First Recordings at 100

Sunday marks 100 years since the Original Dixieland Jass Band took their instruments into a loft studio on New York's West 38th Street to record what many experts consider the first jazz records - the "Livery Stable Blues" and the "Dixieland Jass Band One-Step."

I was reminded of this anniversary the other day by a typically informative piece on Marc Myers's blog, JazzWax, and of my own transfer of those recordings by a discussion of "X" Records in the comments section of my last post, on arranger George Siravo.

The original ODJB 78 came out on Victor Records, and was reissued by Victor subsidiary "X" Records in the mid-50s, together with a 1918 coupling of "Skeleton Jangle" and "Tiger Rag." I transferred that "X" Records EP back in the early days of this blog.

1917 ad

To mark the centenary of the ODJB's first session, I decided to see how much I could improve the sound of those 1917-18 acoustic recordings. I won't suggest that the results will transport you back to that loft in New York 100 years ago, but it will give you a good impression of the goings-on that day.

To adjust the sound, I corrected the pitch, which was quite sharp, addressed some of the peaks that gave the records an unpleasantly shrill sound, and added some heft at the lower end to balance things out.

These recordings were a marvel in their day, but don't expect musical revelations. As a friend of mine recently observed, the records may be more significant for their repertoire than the performances themselves. The ODJB's Nick LaRocca, Eddie Edwards, Larry Shields, Henry Ragas and Tony Sbarbaro were mainly important as pioneers.

As I myself wrote back in 2008, "The ODJB was a sensation in its time, and you will find it sensational too if you go for hectic ensembles, barnyard effects and clattering percussion. It's easy to scoff at this stuff 90 years later, but it was the precursor of much great music."

One final note for those who may be curious. The name of the band on the first record was given as "Original Dixieland 'Jass' Band." By the time of the 1918 sessions, they had become known as the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. I've followed the spelling on the "X" Records EP.

1918 promoional card: Tony Sbarbaro, Eddie Edwards, Nick LaRocca,
Larry Shields, Henry Ragas

Siravo Swings in Hi-Fi and Stereo

When I recently reupped three early LPs by arranger-conductor George Siravo, my friend Scoredaddy sent in a polite plea for more.

SD is one of the blog's earliest and most loyal supporters, so I made it a priority to unearth more Siravos from the cartons in my cavern of a basement. Here is the result of my search.

George Siravo

This one is an unusual post because I am offering both the mono and the stereo versions of the record, while stating my strong preference for the single-channel version.

The cover you see above is from the LP's original incarnation on RCA Victor's subsidiary Vik label. Recorded in July 1957, it probably came out later that year under the title "Swing Hi Swing Fi." A good example of hi-fi it was, too, with a wide range and good instrumental balance. My only niggle would be that because it is a multi-miked but single-channel recording, the musicians sometimes sound like they are standing on top of one another.

Stereo was supposed to address this phenomenon, and when it came along in a big way in 1958, people were astounded by what they heard. The tendency back then was for engineers to park some of the instrumentalists over on one side and some over on the other, with nothing in the middle, so as to emphasize that you were hearing two-channel sound, let there be no doubt about it.

So when RCA decided to put out a stereo version of the Siravo LP in 1959, that's exactly what it did - hole-in-the-middle stereo. Too bad the ham-handed engineer in charge used a 14th generation tape for a master and then added clumsy reverb to the whole thing, resulting in a sonic horror that does not do justice to the performances.

Since "hi-fi" was dated as a marketing gimmick and "stereo" in vogue, RCA renamed the mess "Siravo Swing Session" and issued it on its budget line, Camden, in the cover below. (You may think that's the same photo as on the mono release, but look closely and you will see it's from a different negative. I just wonder how the drummer managed to play his kit with the the pieces scattered all over the place.)

On to a few words about the music. Siravo reached way back for his repertoire choices, with all tunes composed in the first three decades of the century. I imagine some of this was impelled by royalty considerations, but the arranger did have a taste for the real oldies. His previous LP for Vik was music by Stephen Foster and his 19th century contemporaries.

Siravo of course updated the material, turning the "Twelfth Street Rag" into a rhumba, and using an R&B motif to intro "Margie." (I might note that he then turns that figure into a riff that is suspiciously similar to Kenyon Hopkins's famous theme from the film The Strange One, which came out a few months before "Swing Hi" was taped.) Otherwise, you will hear many echoes of Siravo's big-band background, including one arrangement that sounds a lot like a Benny Goodman recording with Charlie Christian that I can't place.

As usual I've included a run-down of personnel where known. Soloists are not noted, but my guess is you are hearing (among others) Buck Clayton on trumpet, Boomie Richman on tenor, Toots Mondello on alto, and Buddy Weed on piano. Terry Snyder is on vibes, and is probably also the xylophone player on "Twelfth Street Rag."

One final note: the title "Siravo Swing Session" predates "Sinatra's Swingin' Session!!!" by a few years. Somewhat ironic, since half of the Sinatra LP (arranged by the irreproachable Nelson Riddle) was a remake of the "Sing and Dance with Frank Sinatra" album that Siravo arranged for Columbia. That was probably not lost on Siravo, who by that time was on the outs with the Voice. (See this good article on the arranger.)