[Dixielandjazz] Mitch Miller

[Stephen G Barbone]

Poor Mitch. Sinatra hated him because of some bad song choices.  
However there were a lot of good song choices during those Columbia  
years also. And as Miller maintained, Frank had the right under his  
contract to refuse any song he didn't want to do.

Lets also remember the good work Miller did with Tony Bennett, Doris  
Day and many others in the Pop genre.

His work with Charlie Parker & Strings is an example of music the jazz  
critics hated. But Bird thought they were some of his best work. Go  
figure, while listening to Miller's oboe on "Laura" from that album.

I guess it like the old saying: "The higher a monkey climbs up a tree,  
the more of his ass he shows."

Or "Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometime the bear eats you."

Miller was a heck of a guy, wild sense of humor, and he had some great  
accomplishments as well as some great failures. That's the way life  
goes.

Not only that but some would say he was the father of Karoke, with his  
sing a longs. <grin>

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband