[Dixielandjazz] Bing Crosby reviewed

[Robert Ringwald]

Bing Crosby: The CBS Radio Recordings 1954-56 (Mosaic Records, 2009)
by David Rickert
All About Jazz, January 25, 2010

For many years, in millions of homes, singer Bing Crosby ruled the airwaves. A large
chunk of the US listened to his Kraft Music Hall on a weekly basis and as a result
Crosby was able to dominate the music industry (and later the movie industry) without
serious rivals. Aside from developing the template for radio programs, his most notable
accomplishment may have been the move from live programming to taped recordings.
Understandably, after doing it for years, Crosby wanted to be free of the pressures
of live radio performance (of which there was a West Coast and East Coast show, doubling
the likelihood of on-air flubs.) But he also wanted to be able to record his show
in advance -- in other words, he wanted to be able to hit the links at Pebble Beach
whenever he wanted. Crosby pioneered the use of tapes to prerecord his programs.
This enabled him to keep his radio show going while pursuing other interests; in
fact, he stayed loyal to radio long after many of his contemporaries had been permanently
lured away by television.
Thus we have these recordings from 1954 to 1956, recorded for Crosby's CBS radio
show. All were done over a few recording sessions under the direction of Buddy Cole,
Crosby's long time musical director. The seven discs in this set are a whirlwind
tour of popular music from the first part of the 20th century: some classics, some
novelties, some hokey, some forgettable, all done with the crooner's ebullient charm
and nonchalant delivery. All these recordings are filled with breezy swing and the
relaxed air of people who know they can take another take if they need it. It's perhaps
fitting, given the star's origins on radio, that these are among the freshest, most
fun recordings he ever made and a lot better that the stuff he was putting out for
Decca at the time.
Crosby had an uncanny ability to remember a large number of tunes and was able to
nail almost every song in a couple of takes. Even then he was surprisingly prolific;
it was not unusual for him to exceed the usual six songs per session to 17 or 18.
He was in fine form vocally on these sessions, injecting the patter that he was known
for in the form of jokes about movie studios and Bob Hope. However, a great deal
of the success comes from Buddy Cole, Crosby's long time arranger. Cole was never
a terrific musician in his own right -- he recorded a few organ records under his
own name that went nowhere -- but he was a superb accompanist with a bouncy, lively
style that incorporated elements of swing, boogie-woogie or whatever else the occasion
called for. He could also move seamlessly between instruments, and it's common to
hear him playing with one hand on the piano and the other on the organ.
The other players provide sturdy backing as well; in particular Vince Terri on guitar,
who contributes tasteful chords and nimble solos. It's particularly satisfying to
hear so many jazz breaks on these records and it clearly helps Crosby's credentials
as a guy who was rooted in jazz when it was just popular music. Cole and Terri both
get in their dues, and contribute the type of solos that session men are known for:
always serviceable, never spectacular.
So what we have is a tour of some of the best and most popular songs over the past
30 years. Many of them are standards (some freshly so), and some are novelty numbers
from musicals that aren't pinnacles of songwriting, yet ones that Crosby knows he
can pull off with his folksy delivery. Since they were all prerecorded, Crosby could
replay more popular tunes again in subsequent shows. Only a few misfires exist. "Unchained
Melody" is one of those songs in which the best-known version is so definitive, it
sounds awful if anyone else does it. "My Funny Valentine" is too maudlin for Crosby,
and there's absolutely no reason why anyone should use a harpsichord on any song
(particularly the already hackneyed "Love and Marriage").
As befits a Mosaic set, the sound is absolutely superb; these tracks sound as if
they were recorded for broadcast in 2010. Crosby knew that in order for the prerecorded
idea to work, the quality of the tape needed degrees of fidelity and reliability
to approximate live performance, and thanks to the Ampex company, he more than succeeded.
The original tapes were obviously in pristine condition (small wonder as most hadn't
been touched or heard in years) and the fastidiousness that Mosaic employs in putting
out their product make these the best sounding Crosby recordings currently available.
Also included in the packaging is a history of Crosby's relationship with the radio,
as well as a discussion of some of the more interesting anecdotes about the material.
Despite the fact that he ruled the entertainment industry for years, Crosby has not
received the hipness stamp that other crooners have. You can throw on any Rat Pack
record at a party for an air of cool; put on Crosby and people will wonder when the
retirement van will pull up. To be fair, Sinatra didn't record as much piffle as
Crosby did, and thus his recordings will always be more swanky than corny. But if
there's a benefit to this set it will be to establish Crosby as a guy who could swing
with the best of them. Mosaic has done it again, creating a definitive set of recordings
that deserved to be unearthed.


--Bob Ringwald K6YBV
rsr at ringwald.com
Fulton Street Jazz Band
916/806-9551

Check out our latest recording at www.ringwald.com/recordings.htm

My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much
government.  -Thomas Jefferson


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