[Dixielandjazz] Bing Crosby reviewed

[J. D. Bryce]

It is incredible to realize that, in 1945, Crosby was the number 1 movie box
office attraction, he had the number 1 radio show and had individual records
in the top ten for 50 on the 52 weeks and had the number 1 record (albeit
different rcords) for 40 of the 52 weeks.  No other performer has come close
to that level of dominance.  It would be comparable if someone like Brad
Pitt was the number 1 box office attract, had the number 1 TV shgow, had the
number 1 music video and the number 1 record.  It is inconceiveable.

Crosby was a force of nature in the entertainment world in the 1940s.

Jack Bryce


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Robert Ringwald" <rsr at ringwald.com>
To: "Jack Bryce" <brycejd at comcast.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 26, 2010 11:04 PM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Bing Crosby reviewed


> 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
>
>
> __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus
signature database 4772 (20100114) __________
>
> The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus.
>
> http://www.eset.com
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> To unsubscribe or change your e-mail preferences for the Dixieland Jazz
Mailing list, or to find the online archives, please visit:
>
> http://ml.islandnet.com/mailman/listinfo/dixielandjazz
>
>
>
> Dixielandjazz mailing list
> Dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com