Keeping Track - Dateline September 2009
"CAPTAIN NEMO AND THE UNDERWATER CITY" Film Soundtrack (Angela Morley) Conducted by Marcus Dods [USA] Film Score Monthly FSM Vol. 12 No. 8 [61:35 mins]. Angela Morley was still working as ‘Wally Stott’ when she composed the score for this film. This is the premiere release of the complete score, and the CD is limited to 1,500 copies making it an instant collectors’ item. But the important thing is the music, and we hear Angela creating some memorable tunes and glorious harmonies during a period when she had rebuilt her career as a major composer for films, following a self-imposed ‘exile’ due to her disappointment at what she regarded as poor sound quality in cinemas of the 1950s. The music was recorded at Anvil Studios, Denham and CTS London in June 1969. It has been magnificently restored for this CD, and it is such a pity that Angela was unaware before she died that it was ‘in the works’. She would have been delighted – not just with the sound, but also with the accompanying CD booklet which explains in considerable detail how the music fitted the film. I know that RFS members will rush to add this CD to their collections before all copies are sold. If you have problems finding a copy, the RFS Record Service will try to help, but this import may cost around £17. David Ades
GREAT MOVIE THEMES 2 Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra / Carl Davis
Batman; The Pink Panther; Mission Impossible Suite; Love Story; Jurassic Park; Romeo and Juliet; Superman: March; The English Patient; The Godfather; Superman: "Can you read my mind?"; Pirates of the Caribbean; The Deerhunter: Introduction and Cavatina; The French Lieutenant’s Woman; Shakespeare in Love
Naxos 8.572111 [68:44 mins]. It is great to be able to recommend this album by one of the UK’s leading symphony orchestras: a newly recorded release of a kind that in the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s would have made regular appearances in the lists featuring the finest light music orchestras such as those fronted by Stanley Black, Percy Faith and Ron Goodwin. The RLPO under Carl Davis [composer of the penultimate track] play as to the manor born throughout. The brass excel, no more so than on Klaus Badelt’s Pirates, the knockout track for me and everyone else in my family who has heard it. Unsurprisingly three of the scores are by John Williams, with the others being by Danny Elfman, Francis Lai, Henry Mancini, Stanley Myers, Nino Rota [2], Francis Lai, Lalo Schifrin, Stephen Warbeck and Gabriel Yared. The recording, made in St George’s Hall, Blackburn, is very good with the percussion being particularly well-captured. This is my nomination for best bargain CD – at around £5 online – and also my Best Album choice. There is an earlier volume on Naxos 8.570505; I have heard excerpts and it sounds equally attractive. Peter Burt
GOLDEN AGE OF LIGHT MUSIC : Light and Lively For full tracklisting see the Light Music CDs pages on this website. Guild GLCD5160 [79:05 mins] We light music enthusiasts have waited half-a-century for some decent recordings and then 60 come along together [well, almost!] With Guild’s latest offering [its 60th, yes 60th in the series] you get what it says on the tin … something "light and lively" [in the main], much needed feel good factors in the present climate. Thirty tracks at under a tenner strike me as pretty good value for money, even if we can’t claim it back on expenses! To say I enjoyed all the tracks may sound a little glib and twee, but I am at a loss to find anything unkind to say about this selection; something which will not gain me entrance to the Critics Club, no doubt. As with Guild GLCD5159 [reviewed below] there is a fine mix of the familiar and unfamiliar in terms of repertoire and performers. How good to hear names like The Amsterdam Symphonic Orchestra, Lou Busch, The Crawford Light Orchestra Joe Leahy, Michael Piastro, Boris Sarbek and Florian ZaBach for the first time [for me, that is] alongside the establishment of Chacksfied, Farnon, Faith, Hayman, Morley, Ornadel, Rose and Torch – for whom I had the experience of working with the BBC Concert Orchestra at the Camden Theatre in the mid-1960s. As a percussionist just out of short trousers I found Sidney quite scary, but one cannot help be impressed by his versatile contributions, as organist, composer, arranger and conductor, to the light music world in general and, retrospectively, to the Guild series in particular. It’s interesting, by the way, to discover that Coronation Street wasn’t the only tune Eric Spear wrote, and that David Curry wasn’t just a conductor. The exceptionally informative notes, a splendid feature of the Guild series, also tell us that the Austrian Robert Stolz, who contributes the atmospheric African Moon to this disc, was featured on GLCD5118 in his more familiar role as composer and conductor of operetta. As David Ades writes: Stolz fled to the U.S.A. to escape the Nazis but returned to Vienna straight after the war, reclaimed his old house and continued to have a very successful career particularly as a conductor well into his 80s. A very big name in the Austrian capital alongside Brahms, Mahler, Mozart, Schubert, and the Strauss family, Stolz [middle name Elizabeth] provides a bizarre link between Petula Clark and Beethoven. As a young man he followed in the footsteps of the great German composer, and also those of Lehar, Millöcker, Offenbach, von Suppé and Zellar among others, as a major player in the history of Vienna’s iconic Theater an der Wien. And in 1961 Petula Clark and M.D. Peter Knight had a big hit with Romeo, based on Stolz’s quasi-foxtrot Salome. I would urge all light music lovers to invest in ‘Light And Lively’ immediately. It’s jam-packed with goodies, not least Gerard Calvi’s Madame De Mortemouille’s Ball, a singularly whimsical arrangement which just avoids being a wee bit silly, although it’s a mystery why Mr Calvi changed his name from Grégoire Elie Krettly. It’s an absolute cracker! Glyn Bragg
GOLDEN AGE OF LIGHT MUSIC : More Strings In Stereo For full tracklisting see the Light Music CDs pages on this website. Guild GLCD5159 [77:07] Guild’s fabulously unique light music series seems now well established in the stereo era. With no less than 25 tracks this album offers a superb mix of familiar and unfamiliar music and performers. More knowledgeable light music fans than me will no doubt have heard many of the tracks in their original form but I was delighted to come across Buddy Bregman, Pierre Challet, the Clebanoff Strings and the Rio Carnival Orchestra for the first time. Once again I was struck by two things: the high quality of the orchestral playing, in particular the strings, and the brilliant inventiveness of the arrangements. There are too many gems to list but Les Baxter’s Harem silks from Bombay was surprisingly delicious, and the combination of Angela Morley and A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square is quite special – even ‘though I never was able to discover that particular bird in that particular part of London [nor blue birds over the white cliffs of Dover, for that matter.] I didn’t enjoy Percy Faith’s rather pedestrian version of Happy Talk from‘South Pacific’. The Gaslight Orchestra’s After the ball seemed slightly out of place and [dare I say?] I found Leon Pober’s The Ski Song a touch old-fashioned. But any lack of enthusiasm for the odd track is more than compensated for by the rest of the disc, which I can recommend wholeheartedly. Needless to say, transfers are of the usual high Guild standard and the liner notes are once again packed with well-researched information. Glyn Bragg
JOHN IRELAND The Hallé Orchestra / John Wilson
Mai-Dun, The Forgotten Rite, Satyricon Overture, The Overlanders Suite [arr. Sir Charles Mackerras], A London Overture, Epic March
Hallé CDHLL 7523 [67:41]. Mr Ireland was born in Cheshire in 1879 and died in 1962. He destroyed all the music he wrote prior to 1908. After that his output included a number of attractive orchestral works, the most famous being included on this album superbly played by the North West’s very own symphony orchestra with our own John Wilson wielding the baton. Well worth acquiring and not only for the deserving to be more popular Suite, arranged from music for a 1946 Australian film [the composer’s sole film score] starring Chips Rafferty and produced by Sir Michael Balcon, Peter Burt
DANCING ON A SUMMER LAWN The Palm Court Orchestra conducted by John Godfrey Pink Lady; A Perfect Day; I Love You Truly; Desire de Moment; Aloha Oe; The Melody; Valse Pathetique; The Little Grey Home in the West; Mighty Lak a Rose; Vision of Salome; La Première Fois; When Irish Eyes Are Smiling; Fairy Dream; The Whirl of the Waltz; When You Remember Vienna; Thrills; Hearts and Flowers; Dreaming; O Sole Mio. Dal Segno DSPRCD 401 [64:04] The orchestra on this CD is essentially a small group comprising a pianist, violinist, violist, cellist and flautist. Emanating from Sydney, they still play at tea gardens and small functions under the baton of Robyn Godfrey, John having died in 1996. Unfortunately the group, its music and recordings have suffered various tragedies over the years including the loss of most of its 15,000 library scores; the studio recordings on this disc are all that survive of their work. The music comprises ragtime, lots of English and European waltzes and light classics. The arrangements and music are sufficiently varied to avoid a degree of sameness. Maybe this album does not quite attain to the heights of Shelly Van Loen but it is immensely enjoyable particularly given the modest price. Ideal for listening to in the garden on a summer evening or doing what the title says! The label is somewhat obscure, but the CD can be obtained from MDT [tel: 01332 540240 or www.mdt.co.uk ] at £9.07 including p&p. Brian Stringer
ANDR? PREVIN : THE GREAT RECORDINGS [The LSO Years 1971-1980]
London Symphony Orchestra / André Previn EMI Classics 2 67969 2. A 10-CD boxful of delights from the prodigiously talented conductor-arranger, composer, pianist and TV personality born Andreas Prewin 80 years ago in Germany and addressed as Mr Preview by Morecambe and Wise. Along with the "heavier" items, which include Boléro, Enigma Variations, The Planets and Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings, there are discs devoted to Tchaikovsky ballet music, Gershwin [Rhapsody in Blue, An American in Paris, etc.] and Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet. Choral music lovers are catered for by the sacred Belshazzar’s Feast and the secular Carmina Burana. With splendid playing, fine digitally remastered sound, well-filled discs, and a bargain price of around £3 per CD, this box will make an excellent Christmas gift. Peter Burt
"THE CHAMPIONS" Original TV series Box Set Network DVD Catalogue Number 2959007. The Network DVD Original Soundtracks series have released music from ‘The Champions’, which includes Robert Farnon’s music, written especially for the ITC series. One of the tracks, entitled simply ‘Violin’ is a fragment from the Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra (a cue in the Chappell Recorded Music Library), but played unaccompanied. It also sounds like Raymond Cohen’s playing to me. The series now includes ‘Department ‘S’’, ‘Jason King’, ‘Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased)’, ‘The Strange Report’, ‘Danger Man (Half Hour Black and White)’, ‘Danger Man (Hour Colour)’, ‘Man In A Suitcase’, and of course ‘The Prisoner’, of which RFS members are already aware. The next in the series will be ‘The Protectors’. The reproduction on all of them (with exception of the main titles from ‘Department ‘S’’) is extremely good. Franck Leprince Network DVDs are available from their website. Copies can also be obtained from the RFS Record Service.
GOLDEN AGE OF LIGHT MUSIC European Tour For full tracklisting see the Light Music CDs pages on this website. Guild GLCD 5161 [77:47]. A European Tour, courtesy of one of Guild’s latest offerings with some evocative tunes to keep us company - starting in the capital with Voice of Londonby Charles Williams played here by his Concert Orchestra. This is a longer version than the original Chappell recording by the Queen’s Hall Light Orchestra who used it to introduce their broadcast concerts. I had an idea it was also used many years ago by the BBC as intro music for a radio film programme introduced by Peter Noble, but I could be wrong. A non-stop trip to Scotland with Bob Farnon and his Orchestra allows us to hear two of his arrangements of traditional melodies from his suite "From The Highlands" – Comin’ Thru’ The Rye and My Love Is Like A Red, Red Rose. However if there’s a further ‘tours’ CD I’ll ask David to stop off in the Midlands to hear Leslie Bridgewater’s homage to Worcestershire – Bromsgrove Fair – played by the New Century Orchestra conducted by Sidney Torch on FDH. Back-tracking down to Wales with the Melachrino Orchestra, Rhondda Rhapsody by the BBC producer Mai Jones used to introduce a feature in the show she produced "Welsh Rarebit" – a tuneful ‘Concerto’ style number reminiscent of the so-called ‘Denham Concertos’. Then we go across the Irish Sea for a sparkling version of Victor Herbert’s The Irish Have A Great Day Tonight from Mantovani and his Orchestra, before setting foot on the European mainland to the strains of Clive Richardson’s Continental Galop played by the Danish State Radio Orchestra. There are echoes of Clive’s Running Off The Rails (Locomotion) I’m sure. Werner Müller (alias Ricardo Santos and his Cascading Strings) provide a sound portrait of Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens with Heino Gaze’s Tivoli Melodie followed by a real lilting melody – Luxembourg Waltz by Geoffrey Everitt and Frederick Peter Hargreaves, played in fine style by Frank Chacksfield’s Orchestra. Did the two composers write anything else? I don’t know, but I’m sure somebody will! A fiery rendition of Fiesta In Seville by David Rose conducting his own orchestra gets the feet a’tapping, as does Tony Osborne’s Lights Of Lisbon with a wordless chorus. Is this a first for a Guild Light Music CD? When It’s Spring In Baden Baden played by the Baden-Baden Symphony Orchestra (now known as the South West German Radio Symphony Orchestra) conducted by Hans Rosbaud is an absolutely delightful piece of light music – and to think the orchestra was originally a Spa municipal group of players! Where I live we used to have a Spa orchestra but it was a much more modest affair (more the salon type) disbanded many years ago. Another David Rose number Roman Holiday is a really catchy corker of a piece. Apparently Italian motorists are to be avoided at all costs, so I’ve read, so I wondered if David Rose had ever visited Rome because I’m sure there are echoes of frantic motor horns in the music – great stuff! Passe Partout by Victor Young from "Around The World In Eighty Days" is played in gradn style by the Cinema Sound Stage Orchestra – could they be the same players as are used on the ‘101 Strings; LPs? A very underrated series, in my opinion. Swiss Holidayby Joe Leahy, played by his Orchestra, is another tuneful, catchy item as is Swedish Polka by Hugo Alfvén. Although credited as the conductor it was Bengt Hallberg, a jazz pianist and arranger, who took the places of the aged composer on the podium, although I’d never heard of Hallberg anyway. Be that as it may, buy Guild Light Music CDs and not only are you entertained – you’re educated too! Track twenty-two has Victor Young and his Orchestra playing Sicilian Tarantella by Balsamo, Conn & Miller (who?!) which is a dead ringer for Henry Mancini’s score for "What Did You Do In The War Daddy?" made in 1966 about the same time as I bought the LP soundtrack, whereas Sicilian Tarantetta was recorded in 1956. The film is described in Halliwell as a ‘silly war comedy with insufficient jokes for its wearisome length’! So there! Georges Auric is a name I associate with British films of the 1940s such as "Dead Of Night", "Passport To Pimlico" and "It Always Rains On Sunday" – but here is his Pavements Of Paris played by Michel Legrand’s Orchestra. Our European Tour ends in Belgium with a quirky little number called The Spider Of Antwerp played by Guy Luypaerts and his Orchestra – another name I hadn’t heard before until it started to appear on earlier Guild Light Music CDs. But before Belgium we’re diverted to the Mediterranean – East Of Malta to be exact – Ronald Hanmer’s dramatic, slightly oriental piece from the Francis, Day & Hunter library, played by the New Century Orchestra with Sidney Torch conducting. Personally I think that would have given this CD a stronger finale than ‘Spider’. Either way, another scintillating choice to add to this ever gowing collection of light music, enhances as ever by Alan Bunting’s restoration magic. Ken Wilkins
GOLDEN AGE OF LIGHT MUSIC Hall of Fame – Volume 3 For full tracklisting see the Light Music CDs pages on this website. GLCD 5162 [77:54]. "Hall of Fame 3" kicks off with Singing In The Rainplayed by the Conrad Salinger Orchestra conducted by Buddy Bregman, which I must confess isn’t my favourite tune. I don’t know what it is, apart from being a bit repetitive – I was probably put off by Gene Kelly’s warbling on the film soundtrack! He should have stuck to dancing! In complete contrast track two is a corker of a performance from Percy Faith’s Orchestra of Spanish Serenade by Victor Herbert. It’s number one of ‘A Suite of Four Serenades’, the others being Chinese, Cuban and Oriental – the Spanish Serenade being particularly tuneful. The Percy Faith version is longer than the Paul Whiteman recording on Naxos which I have, but that includes the three other serenades. Did Percy Faith conduct the complete ‘Suite’? I bet PF expert Alan Bunting knows! Ron Goodwin’sLingering Lovers meanders along nicely on track three, courtesy of David Carroll’s Orchestra, followed by Philip Green’s Ecstasy which has (I think) a strong Spanish flavour, hence the ‘José Belmonte’ pseudonym I suppose. Richard Hayman and his Orchestra get into the swing of things with a sparkling, and at the same time exotic, rendition of Ernesto Lecuona’s Amor Que Bonito (Love And The World Loves With You), and in a similar vein Hugo Winterhalter adds another touch of Spain with his own composition La Muneca Espanola (The Spanish Doll). Now here’s where I disagree with David: he calls Charles Williams’ Columbia recording of his own Devil’s Galop the definitive version. My Chambers dictionary defines ‘definitive’ as ‘ final, expert, most authoritative’ – and the onlyDevil’s Galop that falls into that category is the Chappell version recorded at Levy’s Sound Studios. Nobody, but nobody, plays that piece like the Queen’s Hall Light Orchestra – crisp drumrolls at the beginning and end, and a sparkly xylophone in the middle – and fast. No wonder BBC producer Neil Tuson chose it: he says in "The Inside Story of Dick Barton", published in 1950, "When I found the Galop (spelt incorrectly in the book with two ‘ll’s’) and heard that drumroll I could hardly believe my ears – so I lit a cigarette and relaxed!" In his defence, David says he included the well-known Columbia version because the original Chappell piece only lasted 79 seconds. No such reservations with Jumping Bean and Shooting Star – Decca and Columbia releases from 1948, and Elizabethan Serenade – Ron Goodwin’s Parlophone single from 1957. Crazy Violins is a tour-de-force in playing ‘out of tune; which, if you can actually do something reasonably well, is a hard thing to do – as Helmut Zacharias and his Magic Violins must have found out. It’s a delightfully eccentric melody written by someone called Wildman. Now would that be a pen name for David Rose, because hisMarch Of The Pretzels also uses the off-key violins sound in this very catchy piece played by his Orchestra. Eric Coates rounds off the main part of the CDD programme with his Rediffusion March – Music Everywhere with him conducting the Queen’s Hall Light Orchestra. What busy musicians they were in those halcyon days of light concert music! Finally there is a tribute to George Melachrino in which he and his own Orchestra are featured on four recordings with the maestro as guest conductor on a fifth – made between 1947 and 1958. It begins with the Theme from Runnymede Rhapsody by the long-lived but rather neglected composer/conductor Reginald King. Then an arrangement by George of Bob Farnon’s Sophistication Waltz called by its original song title My Song Of Spring,followed by his own catchy composition Winter Sunshine. Then something I’ve never heard of: Aprite Le Finestre (Open The Windows) by one Virgilio Panzuti – this time George is conducting the San Remo Festival Orchestra. It was an Italian entry in the first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956, and also the winner in the San Remo Festival of the same year. Ten to one this is its first outing in yonks! And to round off the third Guild ‘Hall of Fame’ Richard Addinsell’s Warsaw Concerto from the film "Dangerous Moonlight", the last of the featured Melachrino recordings with William Hill-Bowen at the piano Apparently the music became such an instant hit with cinemagoers that a record was rushed out to satisfy public demand, but it’s my contention that the issued disc was a rejected studio ‘take’ because the pianist, Louis Kentner, isn’t entirely in-step with the orchestra – which has probably added to the charm of the music! Ken Wilkins The above two Guild Light Music CDs are due to be released at the beginning of October. You can order copies in advance from the RFS Record Service.
FINE TUNING The Music of Roy Dean : Warren Mailley-Smith [piano], Matthew Jones [violin], Susie Parkes [soprano], Frances Patton [mezzo], George Bartle [tenor], Henry Grant Kerswell [bass-baritone] Ceremonial March: Betjemania, A Century of Songs [12 songs], Lyric Suite: Three moons [32:17]. Roy Dean is an 82-year-old amateur composer who, since retirement from the Diplomatic Service, has gone into music. This CD, which admittedly offers short measure, presents a selection of his work which he admits is pastiche [‘though so much light music is] but is certainly tuneful. It begins with a cheerful march inspired by the former Poet Laureate, played here as a piano solo. The sequence A Century of Song is written in various 20th century song styles: music hall, parlour ballad, New Orleans, rock musical, Irish song, calypso, Country and Western, etc. The Three Moons, originally songs and shapely ones, are transcribed for violin and piano and the Joplinesque finale, Honeymoon Tune, rounds things off happily. Well performed, nicely recorded and enjoyable. Available from the composer at 14 Blyth Road, Bromley, BR1 3RX, £10 [including p&p] Philip L Scowcroft
GOLDEN AGE OF SALON MUSIC The Schwanen Salon Orchestra, G. Huber Skater’s Waltz; Vienna, City of My Dreams; The Gypsy Princess: Potpourri; Jocelyn: Berceuse; Serenata; Portuguese Fisherman’s Dance; Salut d’amour; Il bacio; Blue Tango; A Waltz Dream, Act 1: Non sai mia bella: Leise, ganz leise klingt’s durch den raum; Mélodie in F major [Rubinstein]; Belle of the Ball; Blauer Himmel; Liebesleid; The Dragon Fly; Hexentanz / Funiculi, Funicula; Mattinata; The Opera Ball: A Private Room; Humoresque No.7 [Dvorak]; Dark Eyes; Romanian Gypsy Festival; A media luz; Puszta Fox; Thais: Méditation; Gerhard Winkler Medley; Harlequin’s Millions: Serenade; Das muss ein Stuck vom Himmel sein; South of the Alps: In a Port; Sie hören Paul Lincke: Sie hören – PotpourriNaxos 8.578003-04 Over two-and-a-quarter hours of salon music on 2-CDs affectionately played and well recorded. There are no big surprises here in this compilation from the previous four albums which the orchestra has recorded on Naxos going back as far as 2000. The potpourris are of quite reasonable length, unlike similar items that used to appear on 78’s which gave you about 15 seconds of one title before switching to the next. A pity that only one movement has been selected from Ernst Fischer’s delightful South of the Alps suite. However if the selection of titles appeal, and at around £11, then you can safely invest. Brian Stringer
STAN KENTON’S MUSIC 1955
Artistry in rhythm theme, One o’clock jump, Alright, okay, you win, Egdon Heath, It’s only a paper moon, Come rain or come shine, Harold Arlen song medley, This can’t be love, Bernie’s tune, Opus in chartreuse, Lover come back to me, Learnin’ the blues, Blues in D flat, Theme
Sounds of Yesteryear DSOY776 [54:22]
Kenton fans will be disappointed with this one because the Musicians’ Union would not let him use his own band. Johnny Richards recruited as many good New York based players that he could; the line-up changed week by week cutting down on the tightness of the sound. Guests involved included Harold Arlen, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins, Ilinois Jacquet, Oscar Pettiford, Jimmy Raney, Buddy Rich and Joe Williams. Stan did all the announcements. The CD consists of two shows, the sound dodgy to say the least, some of the applause should have been edited. Two from the Kenton band book, Egdon Heath and Opus in chartreuse, fit uneasily in the show sounding quirky without the cohesion Stan’s full band could provide. Harold Arlen was a wonderful composer, here singing himself plus a couple from Julie Wilson. They really murder great tunes; the crime increased on As long as I live by including an organ. The jazz soloists on board do an over the top frantically paced Bernie’s tune. The penultimate number Blues in D flat includes most of the sessioneers in a jam session. In summary: if you listened to the original broadcasts, a memory jogger but little else! Paul Clatworthy
EVELYN LAYE Queen of Musical Comedy I’ll See You Again, Vila, I Love You So, Lover Come Back To me, Dear Little Café, Zigeuner, Love Is A Song, Let The People Sing, I See Your Face Before Me, You’ve Done Something To My Heart etc.. 55 tracks in total Avid Easy AMSC 977 2 CDs [158:10]. Avid have already spoiled musical comedy fans with 2-CD sets devoted to three famous leading ladies - Jessie Matthews, Frances Day and Pat Kirkwood; now compiler Hugh Palmer has turned his sights on perhaps the greatest of them all, Evelyn Laye. To quote Avid’s own publicity: Arguably the most historic retrospective double-CD ever released in the United Kingdom, "Evelyn Laye – Queen of Musical Comedy" spans 71 years of the glittering career of the legendary British star whom the director Max Reinhardt called "that rare and Holy Trinity of the stage, a great singer, a great actress, and a great beauty".The 55 tracks, many of them never previously released, take her from her first major London hit as a 19-year-old Gaiety Girl in the 1920 revival of The Shop Girl to the last (and hitherto unreleased) studio recordings she ever made, in 1991, at the age of 91. Along the way are rare and unreleased performances from The Merry Widow, in which she took London by storm at the age of 22 in the 1923 revival, but from which she made no commercial recordings; two songs that she never recorded from her greatest international success in Noel Coward’s Bitter Sweet; unreleased soundtrack songs from her two Hollywood films, One Heavenly Night, with John Boles, and The Night is Young, with Ramon Novarro; an operatic duet from Verdi’s La Traviata, and even a stirring and hitherto unreleased version of Elgar’s ‘Land of Hope and Glory’. CD-2 contains still more unreleased treasures: versions of Joyce Grenfell’s ‘I’m Going To See You Today’ and Ivor Novello’s‘Love is My Reason’; an extreme rarity, ‘Liaisons’, recorded from the stage in live performance during her last musical, A Little Night Music, in 1979; duets from the 1980s with Sir Harry Secombe and with Roy Hudd, and two songs specially written for her in 1991 by her musical director, John Dalby, the second of which, ‘Thank You’, is a moving valedictory to her loyal public during a career that spanned nine decades. The detailed booklet contains just about everything you need to know about her career (and her often troubled private life) with copious recording information to satisfy those of us who like to know the source of the music we are hearing. This CD is a poignant example of the kind of valuable and historic archive that might be lost if changes in sound copyright law made such releases uneconomic. The major companies (and their accountants) certainly wouldn’t be interested in such a project. David Ades
THE BOSWELL SISTERS The Music Goes Round And Round 19 tracks including the Title tune, The object of my affection, It’s the girl, Every little moment, Let yourself go, Top hat white tie and tails, It’s written all over your face, Coffee in the morning and kisses in the night, The lonesome road, When I take my sugar to tea, I’m gonna sit right down and write myself a letter, Dinah etc.Sounds of Yesteryear DSOY775 [54:28] On this CD the sisters are mainly backed by members of the Dorsey Brothers various groups. They set the standard that many later vocal groups tried to compete with. Elle Fitzgerald is quoted as saying she used Connie Boswell’s voice as one to emulate. As with many of these historical issues, tunes are included that have not survived the passing of time; I only knew ten of the titles. Charming nostalgia all the way. Paul Clatworthy
BUDDY HOLLY & THE CRICKETS The Very Best Of
Heartbeat, That’ll be the day, Peggy Sue, Oh boy, Rave on, Think it over, Brown eyed handsome man, Let’s make a fool of you, True love ways, Raining in my heart, Everyday, Wishing, Love me, …..Universal 1797581 [54:45 & 53:49] I enjoyed every one of these 50 tracks by the singer who, aged 22, was tragically killed in a ‘plane crash; a very talented pioneer of rock ‘n’ roll whose work, thanks to his interest in production techniques, sounds as fresh today as it did nearly 50 years ago. I find what has been called his "hiccoughing vocal style" most attractive. Mention, too, should be made of The Crickets in the success of this 2-CD set, available online at around 17 pence per track [a consideration in these straightened times]. Peter Burt
BETTY HUTTON At The Saints And Sinners Ball 20 titles incl. My cuty’s due at two-to-two today, Banana boat [Oomba-oomba-oomba], Sleepy head, Hit the road to dreamland, Back home, Satins & spurs, This must be the place, Chicken hawk Sepia 1133 [53:30] Probably better known as a rather rumbustious character in movies, this is an interesting album. The first ten tracks are shared by orchestra conductors Nelson Riddle [4], Vic Shoen [4] and Billy May [2]. Tennessee Ernie Ford sings on two tracks, one of which is The honeymoon’s over that became a Top 20 single. Betty’s sister Marion also joins her on two tracks: Ko ko mo [I love you so] and Heart throb. The album from which the CD is named was recorded in 1958 and includes Whole world in his hands, When the saints come marchin’ in and Search my heart, which perhaps presages Betty’s later decision to dedicate her life to religion and teaching. Ray Pavene
JANE RUSSELL Fine And Dandy 17 tracks incl. The Title tune, Take love easy, Love on the rocks, When a woman loves a man, Can’t we talk it over, You don’t know what love is, Love is here to stay, The one I love, You’re mine, you, Sepia 1132 [44:43] Miss Russell’s obvious physical attributes have probably rather overshadowed her ability as a singer. The first 12 tracks on this album date from 1958 and the disc became Jane’s personal favourite. The last five tracks – Sing you sinners,I’ve got the world on a string, One way ticket to the blues, Diamond’s are a girl’s best friend and One for my baby – have never been released before and there are, as the booklet notes put it, "some rough edges". Enjoyable, but short measure for this company. Ray Pavene
KATE SMITH We Remember Kate Smith 26 tracks incl. Just in time, All the way, It don’t mean a thing, Thinking of you, The beat o’ my heart, Yes indeed!, High on a windy hill, Mr Wonderful, Love is a many splendoured thing, Comes love, Wish you were here, Come rain or come shine, …. Sepia 1134 [78:08] Well, I don’t remember her … but glad to make the singer’s acquaintance here. Born Kathryn Elizabeth in 1907, she had a good soprano voice, first used in church choirs, and was popular from the mid-‘20s into the ‘70s. She passed on in 1986. She had been training as a nurse before moving into show biz. The ever comprehensive booklet notes tell us that the great classical conductor Leopold Stokowski said of her voice: "Don’t ever take a lesson, Miss Smith. Your voice is a gift from God". She made Irving Berlin’s God bless America [track 25 here] into a substitute national anthem in WWII, during which she raised $600 million for GIs. Although she had sole performing rights to the song, proceeds went to the Boy Scouts. Here is a fine choice of quality songs and this full measure album can be recommended. Peter Burt
ALMA COGAN Dreamboat: Her 31 Finest including Bell bottom blues, Half as much, The moon is blue, The little shoemaker, Canoodlin’ Rag, Little things mean a lot, Skokiaan, This old house, I can’t tell a waltz from a tango, Paper kisses, Blue again, Softly, softly, Mambo Italiano, Tweedle-dee, The naughty lady of shady lane
Retrospective 4121 [76:17] This collection on a new label complements the broadcast selection from Sepia reviewed in JIM 178. Nine of the songs here were Top 20 hits including the title tune which made it to No.1 in April 1955. Frank Cordell and his Orchestra accompany on the majority of tracks although those of Ken Macintosh, Geoff Love and pianist Felix King are also featured. Penny-whistler Desmond Lane plays on Willie Can. The label did not reply to my e-mail so I cannot tell you who made the arrangements. This is something of a nostalgia trip for those of us who in the ‘fifties were a little bit in love with "The girl with the laugh in her voice". Peter Burt
LISA KIRK Sings At the Plaza 22 tracks including I travel light, I’m sitting on top of the world, Yo’d be so nice to come home to, Anything goes, Hi-lili, hi-lo, How come you do me like you do, Why can’t you behave, Good little girls, Far away places and the Riviera, Limehouse blues Sepia 1128 [74:53] I must admit to not having heard of this lady before but the customary informative liner notes for this label tell me that not only was she a Broadway star but "truly the Queen in the golden days of night life entertainment". Nice personality and voice and well supported by her M.D. Don Pippin and The 4 Saints, the applause is deserved and not too obtrusive. In addition to the album titles listed above there are a further dozen musical theatre tracks such as Shaking the blues away, Little girl blue, But not for me, The lady is a tramp and My funny valentine. With Sepia’s generous timing and the price [around £8], well worth adding to your collection. Peter Burt
BOZ SCAGGS Speak Low Invitation, She was too good for me, I wish I knew, Speak low, Do nothing till you hear from me, I’ll remember April, Save your love for me, Ballad of the sad young man, Skylark, Sense fine, Dandy, This time the dream’s on me Decca B 001202602 [52:30] Long overdue follow-up to his last CD, where singer Boz started to be more experimental. Inspired by ideas Gil Evans explored, Boz picks a wide range of ballads arranged by Gil Goldstein. His distinct vocalising gives a new slant to some well-known diverse songs. A very nice release with a few surprises in the repertoire, a real change of style first explored on his last album which left his early days as a singer of blues and rock and roll a distant memory. I hope all his followers have moved with him. Paul Clatworthy
FRANK SINATRA Nothing But the Best 2-CD Set CD1: 22 tracks including Come fly with me, The best is yet to come, The way you look tonight, Luck be a lady, Bewitched, The good life, The girl from Ipanema, Fly me to the moon [in other words], Summer wind, Strangers in the night, Call me irresponsible, Somethin’ stupid, My kind of town. CD2: 12 tracks including White Christmas, Go tell it on the mountain, The little drummer boy, Do you hear what I hear?, The twelve days of ChristmasReprise 8122798853 [74:38 & 38:17] Perhaps not quite the best, but still very good. These are digitally remastered Reprise tracks from the ‘60s, including some Capitol re-recordings. Arrangers are Nelson Riddle, Billy May, Quincy Jones [with Count Basie and his Orchestra], Ernie Freeman, Billy Strange [with Nancy Sinatra], Gordon Jenkins, Skip Martin [the title tune], Claus Ogerman and Don Costa [including My way]. The final track, Body and soul, is a Torrie Zito arrangement conducted by Frank Sinatra Jr. and was previously unreleased. The 2-CD set also includes the "Rare and Unreleased" 12 Songs of Christmas with Frank being joined by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians, and Bing Crosby. The main album is available separately. Peter Burt
ANN SOUTHERN / DOROTHY LAMOUR Southern Lamour After you’ve gone, Another year, Always, The last time I saw Paris, You’ll never know, My man, Life is just a bowl of cherries … & 7 other tracks / You’re mine now, Did you ever see a dream walking? Why was I born, Can’t help loving that man, I can’t tell why I love you … and 5 other tracks Sepia 1127 [66:09] Two successful LP albums from 1957 by two of the silver screen’s songbirds. Ann Sothern was another new name to me but her 14 tracks, arranged and conducted by Ian Bernard, who composed the rather wistfulAnother year, make for very pleasant listening. Berlin, Kern-Hammerstein II, Brown-Henderson, Gershwin-Heyward, Rodgers-Hart, Arlen-Koehler and Porter figure among those supplying the words and music. There are some splendid instrumental soloists especially on Ballin’ the jack. Dorothy Lamour was, of course, known to me through the ‘Road’ films with Crosby and Hope. She, too, was a "proper" singer and her 10 tracks are arranged and conducted by Georges Norman. Again, good compositions equally pleasant to listen to, with Kern-Hammerstein II responsible for four of them, although P.G. Wodehouse also got in on one of them, Bill. For all their long film careers the two vocalists only worked together once, as chorus girls in the 1933 Busby Berkeley classic "Footlight Parade". Peter Burt
BITTER SWEET Selections from the Operetta by Noël Coward, Vanessa Lee, Roberto Cardinali, Julie Dawn and John Hauxvell, The Rita Williams Singers and Michael Collins and his Orchestra Overture, The call of life, If you could only come with me, I’ll see you again, Ladies of the town, If love were all, Dear little café, Tokay, Kiss me, Ziguener, Finale … Sepia 1130[77:29] The first eleven tracks [of 23] above are by the artists listed and were recorded in 1958, the first stereo version of the 1929 show. They are followed by a selection played by the London Palladium Orchestra conducted by Clifford Greenwood just before the outbreak of war in 1939. Then there are the original London cast members, Peggy Wood, George Metexa and Ivy St Helier, singing the major hits of the show. Evelyn Laye, the original Broadway star sings I’ll see you again andZigeuner, and then we have four tracks from the Paris production of 1930 starring Jane Marnac and René Bussy. "The Master" himself completes the disc with his distinctive version of I’ll see from a recording made in 1954, exactly 25 years after the show was first seen. A veritable cornucopia of what was, as the detailed liner notes opine, "Coward’s first musical and arguably his best". Ray Pavene
"My inspiration is you" ANNETTE HANSHAW. Moanin’ low, Loveable and sweet, Here we are, I get the blues when it rains, Mean to me, A precious little thing called love, My inspiration is you, My blackbirds ere bluebirds now, Forgetting you, From now on, Miss Annabelle Lee, Ever since time Began, Would you like to take a walk, Yes indeedy he do, The way I feel today, Nobody cares if I’m blue, If I had a girl like you, Telling it to the daises, Cooking breakfast for the one I love, I have to have you. Sounds of Yester Year DS0Y779 [59:00]. Old as I am there are not many tunes here that I know, Identifying titles is not helped by the fact that the sleeve puts many songs in a different order to the CD! Her "Betty Boop" voice puts her into my novelty catalogue although there will be many nannies and grandpas who would love a copy. Her main backing group goes under the name "The Sizzling Syncopaters"; other tracks have The Dorsey Brothers, Manny Klein, Adrian Rollini and Benny Goodman. Rated top notch in the 1920s her recording really sounds its age! Paul Clatworthy
THE ORIGINAL BLONDE BOMBSHELL : EVELYN DALL VOL. 1 - Mrs. Worthington; Cohen The Crooner (MB/JC); Lulu’s Back In Town; The General’s Fast Asleep (RB);The Lady In Red; Wotcha Gotcha Trombone For?; Woe Is Me (JC); Cuban Pete; I’m All In; Lost My Rhythm, Lost My Music, Lost My Man; Organ Grinder’s Swing; Did You Mean It?; On The Isle Of Kitchymiboko; Swing Is In The Air; Sailor, Where Art Thou?; I May Be Poor, But I’m Honest (SB,LC); Rhythm’s O.K.In Harlem; Gangway; Swing High, Swing Low; Poor Robinson Crusoe; Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off (SB); Fifty Million Robins Can’t Be Wrong; It’s The Natural Thing To Do; No Songs About Love (KTMA); It’s The Rhythm In Me (KTMA); The Coster Rhumba (HFAS); You’ll Love The Army (KAWAG); Actions Speak Louder Than Words (KAWAG); Sitting On A Cloud That’s Silver-Lined (TF); Hey There Bellman (TF). MB – Max Bacon; SB – Sam Browne; JC – Jack Cooper; LC – Les Carew; RB – Rhythm Brothers. From film soundtracks of: KTMA – Kicking The Moon Around; HFAS – He Found A Star; KAWAG – King Arthur Was A Gentleman; TF – Time Flies (acc. Stephane Grappelli) Memory Lane MLCD00178:05. Memory Lane magazine, in what promises to be an exciting new venture, has just launched its own CD label, and this is the first release. It contains 23 tracks with Ambrose & his Orchestra covering just over two years from September 1935, and seven more from film soundtracks, and is sub-titled "The Complete Evelyn Dall Recordings" with a promise of more to come. By my reckoning around half these tracks have appeared individually on various CD reissues, but many are now out of print. To have Miss Dall’s complete output brought together in this way is a major step for which Ray Pallett and Dave Cooper deserve every support. The remastering has produced a very clear sound, and given the timbre of Evelyn’s voice I found it preferable to listen with the tone setting set towards the bass. It’s apparent that she had a considerable stage presence and a strong personality, which was perfectly suited to the material she was assigned. That included some real scorchers, which she sang as to the manner born, but she was equally at home in broad comedy and Latin-American numbers. The presentation is excellent, with an informative liner note and a reproduction of the original publicity for "The Coster Rhumba" (note correct spelling!). I would like to have seen composer credits included, and a slightly longer interval between tracks, but as the first of a new label this is impressive, and highly recommended. Barry McCanna The CD is priced at £5.99 inc. P&P to a UK address, or £7.99 inc P&P for air mail post to an address outside the UK. It can be ordered from Memory Lane, PO Box 1939, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex SS9 3UH. Payment can be made by sterling cheque to "Memory Lane", or you can log on to www.memorylane.org.uk where there is a PayPal facility.
HANSEL AND GRETEL Original Television Cast Sepia 1125 [76:20] The music for ‘Hansel and Gretel’ was composed by Alec Wilder with words by William Engvick, who wrote the English lyrics to the Song from Moulin Rouge [Where is your heart]. It starred Rudy Vallee, Stubby Kaye and Paula Laurence. Coupled with this are five numbers from Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘Yeoman of the Guard’ with Barbara Cook, Celeste Holm, Bill Hayes and Alfred Drake. Then there are 16 "Bonus Tracks" by such as Red Buttons, Barbara Cook, Eddie Bracken, Stubby Kaye, and Rudy Vallee, one of whose songs isThe pig got up and slowly walked away. Rather a mixture but, surprisingly, enjoyable. But I can’t see many sales outside the States – especially if they don’t read JIM! Ray Pavene
"THE THIRD MAN" AND OTHER CLASSIC FILM THEMES including Passport to Pimlico, La Ronde, The Romantic Age, Whisky Galore, The Glass Mountain, Genevieve, La Strada etc.. Naxos 8120880.Featruing recordings by Anton Karas (zither), Mantovani, Charles Williams, Larry Adler, Percy Faith, David Rose and others.
BILL SAVILL AND HIS ORCHESTRA "We Could Have Danced All Night"; "In a Dancing Mood". Original Decca LPs from the 1950s. A welcome reminder of "Music While You Work".Vocalion CDLK4397.
INTERNATIONAL POP ALL STARS "Great Film Themes From Many Lands"; "Vibrations Around The World". Original Decca LPs from the 1960s. Featuring some pleasant surprises – pity all the arrangers aren’t known. Vocalion CDLK4394.
More new releases noted by Wilfred Askew
THE BEST OF BROADWAY VOL. 1 South Pacific 8 tracks with Peggy Lee, Margaret Whiting & Gordon Macrae; Orchestra conducted by Dave Barbour and Frank DeVol [1950 Capitol album] Kiss Me Kate 8 tracks with Jo Stafford and Gordon Macrae; Orchestra conducted by Paul Weston [1949 Capitol album] DRGCD 19113 [45:41]
MEL TORME SINGS HIS OWN CALIFORNIA SUITE The 1949 Capitol recording conducted by Hal Mooney plus the 1957 Bethlehem recording arranged and conducted by Marty Paich, in an attractive digi-pack with two booklets, one containing the lyrics of the two versions. Fresh Sounds FSR-CD 496 [67:14]
VINTAGE CINEMA Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra Selections from King Kong, The Adventures of Robin Hood, Spellbound, Sunset Boulevard, A Streetcar Named Desire, A Place In The Sun, On The Waterfront, North By Northwest, El Cid, To Kill A Mockingbird and Taras BulbaTelarc CD-80708 [53:13]
HENRI REN? AND HIS ORCHESTRA Compulsion To Swing In Rhythm A coupling of the two albums ‘A Compulsion to Swing’ & ‘Riot In Rhythm’: 24 tracks including The blue room, Cry me a river, Baubles, bangles and beads, Compulsion to swing, It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing, Just a gigolo, ‘S wonderful, Nature boy, The hot canary, Blue chartreuse, The surrey with the fringe on top, Don’t cry Joe, Whispering … Jasmine JSCD 490 [63:46] RCA stereo recordings from 1958
JANE MORGAN Fascination : The Ultimate Collection Original Kapp recordings on 2 CDs: 56 tracks including The heart you break, Why [are there things we can’t explain], Why don’t you leave us alone, Give me your word, Flyin’ high, In Paree, Take me away, Let’s go steady, I’ve got bells on my heart, Only one love, I may never pass this way again, Catch a falling star, Where the blue of the night, Makin’ love … Jasmine JASCD 489 [149:58]
THIS IS IT : The Best Of Jack Leonard and Tommy Dorsey 28 tracks including I’m in a dancing mood, Where are you, If my heart could only talk, You’re here, you’re there, you’re everywhere, Dedicated to you, Marie, Sweet is the word for you, Love is never out of season, Have you any castles, baby?, An old flame never dies, In the still of the night, Blue Orchids Flare ROYCD 281[77:47]
BOB EBERLY Sings Tender Love Songs with the Enoch Light Orchestra 12 tracks from ‘Sings Tender Love Songs’ [1957] including Brazil, Moonglow, Tangerine, I understand, Amapola, Maria Elena, Green eyes, September song …13 tracks from ‘Best Of the ‘Fifties Singles’ including This much I know, Long before I knew you, Alone, I made a promise, You’ll never know how it feels, The beat o’ my heart, I’ll always be following you ... Flare ROYCD 276 [70:49]
TEDDI KING ‘Round Midnight Extended album plus ‘Very Best Of The Singles’: 25 tracks including I concentrate on you, Little girl blue, It never entered my mind, What’s new, Prelude to a kiss, ‘round midnight, I saw stars, Love is a now and then thing /Are you slipping through my fingers, Mr Wonderful, There’s so much more, Married I can always get, Travelling down a lovely road, Say it isn’t so … Flare ROYCD 275 [77:05]
MORTON GOULD Star Dust Symphony Blues In The Night, Birth of the Blues, Solitude, Old Devil Moon, Nocturne, Limehouse Blues, Mood Indigo, St Louis Blues, Sophisticated Lady, Big City Blues, Moonglow, Deep Purple, The Surrey With The Fringe on Top, Besame Mucho, I Get a Kick Out of You, Speak Low, Body and Soul, What Is This Thing Called Love, My Silent Love, That Old Black Magic, Night and Day, The Very Thought of You, Poinciana, You And The Night And The Music, Summertime, Star Dust, Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, Pavanne, Stormy Weather, Beyond the Blue Horizon, Cresta Blance Waltz, Where or When, Orchids in the Moonlight, Over The Rainbow, Time on my Hands, Holiday for Strings, I Love You, My Blue Heaven, Serenade in the Night, Mexican Hat Dance. 2 CDsJasmine JASCD 666 [148:17]
LEROY ANDERSON Blue Tango Bells of the Ball, Promenade, Syncopated Clock, Serenata, Saraband, Waltzing Cat, Trumpeter’s Lullaby, Jazz Pizzicato, Jazz Legato, Plink Plank Plunk, Horse and Buggy, Phantom Regiment, Blue Tango, China Doll, Penny-Whistle Song, Irish Washerwoman, Bluebells of Scotland, Song of the Bells, Fiddle-Faddle, Typewriter, Girl in Satin, Sandpaper Ballet, Buglers’ Holiday, Summer Skies, Sleigh Ride, Last Rose of Summer, Forgotten Dreams Bygone Days BYD 77025
ELMER BERNSTEIN Staccato / Paris Swings Original Capitol LPs from 1959 and 1960 DRGCD 19110 [64:51]
LES BAXTER & HIS ORCHESTRA Thinking Of You 2 CDs, 60 tracks including The poor people of Paris, Blue star, Zing zing – zoom, zoom, With my eyes wide open I’m dreaming, The Shrike, Tropicana, Ruby, Temptation / Unchained Melody, The nearness of you, The roving kind, Out of this world, The high and the mighty, The breeze and I, Shrimp boats, Blue Tango … Jasmine JASCD 672[159’48"]
JEFF CHANDLER You And I : Sings Songs Of Love U.S. Decca recordings 1953/4 and Liberty recordings 1957/8 DRGCD 19110 [64:51]
LOVE LETTERS FROM YVONNE DeCARLO / MAUREEN O’HARA SINGS ? their debut albums from 1957 and 1958 Flare ROYCD 278 [72:24]
THE HOLLYWOOD LADIES SING - ELIZABETH SCOTT Lizabeth [1957] / DENISE DARCEL Banned In Boston [1958] Flare ROYCD 277 [64:06]