$0.00

This item is not currently available.

This item is currently out of print.

Just copy this code and paste it where you want the link on your website:
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.naxosdirect.ca/templates/naxosdirect/includes/link.js.php?id=&css=http://www.naxosdirect.ca/templates/naxosdirect/title_link.css"></script>

Hits of the 1930s Vol. 2: 1931-1933 Original Recordings   After the boisterous high times that were the Roaring Twenties, the Thirties were an...

Hits of the 1930s
Vol. 2: 1931-1933 Original Recordings   After the boisterous high times that were the Roaring Twenties, the Thirties were an indescribable shock. The Great Depression gripped America. Hitler, Mussolini and Franco made the headlines. Breadlines, soup kitchens, hobo jungles and Hoovervilles. Busby Berkeley, King Kong, Fireside chats, Radio City and radio ... 1931 - Banks may have been failing in the United States (more than two thousand did), but skyscrapers were rising: work began on Rockefeller Centre, and the Empire State Building opened on 1 May. The tallest building in the world with 102 floors, it cost fifty-four million dollars. The price of bootleg liquor finally began to drop, and Massachussets presented the first resolution to end Prohibition. Bridge was the latest pastime, along with listening to free entertainment on the radio. The daily misadventures of Amos'n'Andy were so popular that movie theatres had to pipe the programme into the auditorium or risk losing their audience every evening at 7. And while the audience flocked to NBC, CBS would try out new talent such as Kate Smith and Bing Crosby opposite them. Pearl S. Buck's The Good Earth was a bestseller in 1931 and a Pulitzer Prize winner the following year. On Broadway, the hits included Noel Coward's Private Lives, The Band Wagon with Fred and Adele Astaire, and George and Ira Gershwin's Of Thee I Sing, the first musical comedy to win a Pulitzer Prize. At the movies, the favourites included Charlie Chaplin's City Lights, The Front Page, Min and Bill, Street Scene and Delicious. 1931's musical favourites included a rhumba (The Peanut Vendor), a jazz classic full of drug culture references and nonsense lyrics (Minnie The Moocher), oblique references to economic conditions (I Found A Million Dollar Baby and Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries) and a couple of enduring standards (Out Of Nowhere, Dream A Little Dream Of Me). 1932 - Aviation was again in the news, directly and indirectly. Amelia Earhart flew solo across the Atlantic, 20-21 May. James G. Haislip set a new transcontinental record on 29 August flying from Los Angeles to Brooklyn in just over ten hours. And the 19-month-old son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh was kidnapped and found dead. Jack Sharkey fought Max Schmeling on 21 June and won the championship on a decision. Radio City Music Hall opened its doors on 27 December, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected President. The name of his predecessor in the White House, Herbert Hoover, was already being attached to shanty towns (Hoovervilles) and newspapers used for covering (Hoover blankets). Popular books in 1932 included Erskine Caldwell's Tobacco Road and The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett. On Broadway the hits were Dinner at Eight, Face the Music, Gay Divorce and a revival of Show Boat. Double features became an attraction to lure movie-goers; the hits included Bill of Divorcement, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Grand Hotel and The Big Broadcast. Potatoes are cheaper, tomatoes are cheaper, now's the time to fall in love - so went the lyric of a popular song introduced by Eddie Cantor that year. But such were the conditions of the recording industry at the time that Cantor wasn't signed to any label and didn't get around to recording the song for another decade. Fortunately, it was popular with dance bands such as the swinging one led by Gene Kardos. A tribute to Home by radio bandleader Peter van Steeden was another 1932 hit, while the song that most epitomized the unwitting victims of the Depression, Brother Can You Spare A Dime, was immortalized by Bing Crosby. Rudy Vallee's recording of Home appeared on a paper-based Hit of the Week disc and sold for less than a quarter, while most records were still priced - and not selling - at seventy-five cents. 1933 - President Roosevelt made the most of the headlines that year with his inauguration, his 'bank holiday' 4 to 14 March, his Fireside Chats and 'New Deal' policies. Adolf Hitler was also in the news, coming to power 30 January as Chancellor of the Third Reich. Federal relief started in May, The Lone Ranger began its long radio run in November, and Prohibition finally ended in December. The year's books included God's Little Acre by Erskine Caldwell and Hervey Allen's Anthony Adverse. Caldwell's Tobacco Road became a smash hit on Broadway, setting a new record of 3,182 performances. Other Broadway successes were Ah, Wilderness!, Murder at the Vanities, As Thousands Cheer, Roberta and Let 'em Eat Cake. Among the memorable movies in 1933 were Forty-Second Street, Flying Down to Rio, Gold Diggers of 1933, I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang, King Kong, and Marie Dressler in Tugboat Annie. 1933 gave us some unforgettable music, including Stormy Weather, It's Only A Paper Moon, Night and Day (introduced the previous year and featured again when Gay Divorce was filmed as Gay Divorcee), and another Depression anthem, Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf. Looking ahead: dust storms, drought and Dillinger, coming up in 1934. David Lennick, 2006

The Peanut Vendor (Moises Simons)
Don Azpiazu & His Havana Casino Orchestra; Antonio Machin, vocal
Victor 22483, mx BVE 62152-3
Recorded 13 May 1930, New York Dream A Little Dream Of Me (Gus Kahn-Wilbur Schwandt-Fabian Andree)
Ozzie Nelson & His Orchestra; Ozzie Nelson, vocal
Brunswick 6060, mx E 36081-A
Recorded 16 February 1931, New York Minnie The Moocher (Cab Calloway-Irving Mills-Clarence Gaskill)
Cab Calloway & His Orchestra; Cab Calloway, vocal
Brunswick 6074, mx E 36212-A
Recorded 3 March 1931, New York Out Of Nowhere (Johnny Green-Edward Heyman)
Bing Crosby with orchestra
Brunswick 6090, mx LA 983-A
Recorded 30 March 1931, Los Angeles I Found A Million Dollar Baby (In A Five-And-Ten Cent Store) (Billy Rose-Mort Dixon-Harry Warren)
The Boswell Sisters with Victor Young's Orchestra
Brunswick 6128, mx E 36826-A
Recorded 22 May 1931, New York Home (Peter van Steeden-Jeff & Harry Clarkson)
Rudy Vallee & His Connecticut Yankees; Rudy Vallee, vocal
Hit of the Week A-3-4, mx 1191-C
Recorded January 1932, New York River Stay 'Way From My Door (Mort Dixon-Harry Woods)
Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians; Kate Smith, vocal
Columbia 2578-D, mx W 152032-1
Recorded 8 December 1931, New York (Potatoes Are Cheaper, Tomatoes Are Cheaper) Now's The Time To Fall In Love (Al Sherman-Al Lewis)
Gene Kardos & His Orchestra; Dick Robertson, vocal
Victor 22865, mx BS 70951-2
Recorded 13 November 1931, New York We Just Couldn't Say Goodbye (Harry Woods)
Annette Hanshaw with orchestra
Melotone M-12471, mx 12199-A
Recorded 16 August 1932, New York Let's Have Another Cup Of Coffee (Irving Berlin)
Phil Spitalny's Music; Helen Rowland & The Eton Boys, vocal
Hit of the Week D-3-4, mx 1206-A
Recorded April 1932, New York Brother Can You Spare A Dime (E. Y. Harburg-Jay Gorney)
Bing Crosby with Lennie Hayton's Orchestra
Brunswick 6424, mx B 12502-A
Recorded 25 October 1932, New York Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries (Lew Brown-Ray Henderson)
Rudy Vallee & His Connecticut Yankees; Rudy Vallee, vocal
Victor 22783, mx BS 70156-1
Recorded 7 August 1931, New York Night And Day (Cole Porter)
Leo Reisman's Orchestra; Fred Astaire, vocal
Victor 24193, mx BS 73977-1
Recorded 22 November 1932, New York It's Only A Paper Moon (Harold Arlen-E. Y. Harburg)
Paul Whiteman & His Orchestra; Peggy Healy, vocal
Victor 24400, mx BS 77645-1
Recorded 11 September 1933, New York Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf (Frank Churchill-Ann Ronell)
Henry Hall & The BBC Dance Orchestra; Les Allen and Band, vocal
Columbia CB 669, mx CA 14060-1
Recorded 16 October 1933, London Annie Doesn't Live Here Any More (Joe Young-Johnny Burke)
Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians; Carmen Lombardo & Trio, vocal
Brunswick 6662, mx C 616-1
Recorded 27 September 1933, Chicago Stormy Weather (Harold Arlen-Ted Koehler)
Leo Reisman's Orchestra; Harold Arlen, vocal
Victor 24262, mx BS 75329-1
Recorded 28 February 1933, New York The Gold Digger's Song (We're In The Money) (Harry Warren-Al Dubin)
Dick Powell with orchestra
Banner 32786, mx 13386-1
Recorded 25 May 1933, New York The Last Round-Up (Billy Hill)
George Olsen & His Music; Jim Morrison, vocal
Columbia 2791-D, mx W 152436-2;
Recorded 11 July 1933, New York Forty-Second Street (Harry Warren-Al Dubin)
Don Bestor & His Orchestra; Dudley Mecum, vocal
Victor 24353, mx BS 75323-1
Recorded 26 February 1933, New York

Disc 1

The Peanut Vendor (El Manisero) (more info)
Performed by: Don Azpiazu Havana Casino Orchestra
Composed by: Moises Simon
Antonio Machin, vocals
Don Azpiazu, piano
Recording date: 13 May 1930


1.   The Peanut Vendor - 3:30


Dream a Little Dream of Me (more info)
Performed by: Ozzie Nelson Orchestra
Composed by: Wilbur Schwandt Fabian Andree
Ozzie Nelson, vocals
Recording date: 16 February 1931


2.   Dream A Little Dream Of Me - 3:06


Minnie The Moocher (more info)
Performed by: Cab Calloway Orchestra Studio orchestra
Composed by: Cab Calloway Irving Mills
Conducted by: Maurice Abravanel
Danny Kaye, vocals
Recording date: 5 May 1941


3.   Minnie The Moocher - 3:10


Out of Nowhere (more info)
Performed by: Studio orchestra
Composed by: Johnny Green Bing Crosby
Recording date: 30 March 1931


4.   Out Of Nowhere - 3:09


I Found a Million-Dollar Baby (more info)
Performed by: Victor Young Orchestra
Composed by: Harry Warren
Recording date: 22 May 1931


5.   I Found A Million Dollar Baby (In A Five-And-Ten Cent Store) - 3:06


Home (When Shadows Fall) (more info)
Performed by: Rudy Vallee Connecticut Yankees
Composed by: Harry Clarkson Jeff Clarkson
Recording date: January 1932


6.   Home - 4:24


River Stay Way From My Door (more info)
Performed by: Guy Lombardo Royal Canadians
Composed by: Harry M. Woods
Conducted by: Guy Lombardo
Kate Smith, vocals
Recording date: 8 December 1931


7.   River Stay 'Way From My Door - 3:13


Now's The Time To Fall In Love (more info)
Performed by: Gene Kardos Orchestra
Composed by: Al Sherman Al Lewis
Conducted by: Gene Kardos
Dick Robertson, vocals
Recording date: 13 November 1931


8.   (Potatoes Are Cheaper, Tomatoes Are Cheaper) Now's The Time To Fall In Love - 2:54


We Just Couldn't Say Goodbye (more info)
Performed by: Studio orchestra
Composed by: Harry M. Woods
Annette Hanshaw, vocals
Recording date: 16 August 1932


9.   We Just Couldn't Say Goodbye - 2:56


Face the Music (more info)
Composed by: Irving Berlin
Helen Rowland, vocals
Recording date: April 1932


10.   Let's Have Another Cup Of Coffee - 2:46


Brother Can You Spare A Dime (more info)
Performed by: Lennie Hayton Orchestra
Composed by: Jay Gorney Bing Crosby
Recording date: 25 October 1932


11.   Brother Can You Spare A Dime - 3:07


George White's Scandals of 1931 (more info)
Performed by: Rudy Vallee Connecticut Yankees
Composed by: Ray Henderson
Recording date: 7 August 1931


12.   Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries - 3:16


Night And Day (more info)
Performed by: Leo Reisman Orchestra
Composed by: Cole Porter
Fred Astaire, vocals
Recording date: 22 November 1932


13.   Night And Day - 3:26


It's Only a Paper Moon (more info)
Performed by: Paul Whiteman Orchestra
Composed by: E. Y. Yip Harburg Harold Arlen Billy Rose
Conducted by: Paul Whiteman
Peggy Healy, vocals
Recording date: 11 September 1933


14.   It's Only A Paper Moon - 3:24


Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf (more info)
Performed by: BBC Dance Orchestra
Composed by: Frank Churchill
Conducted by: Henry Hall
Les Allen, vocals
Recording date: 16 October 1933


15.   Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf - 2:41


Annie Doesn't Live Here Anymore (more info)
Performed by: Guy Lombardo Royal Canadians
Composed by: Joe Young
Conducted by: Guy Lombardo
Carmen Lombardo, vocals
Recording date: 27 September 1933


16.   Annie Doesn't Live Here Any More - 3:07


Stormy Weather (more info)
Performed by: Leo Reisman Orchestra
Composed by: Harold Arlen
Recording date: 28 February 1933


17.   Stormy Weather - 3:16


We're in the money, "The Gold Digger's Song" (more info)
Performed by: Studio orchestra
Composed by: Harry Warren
Dick Powell, vocals
Recording date: 25 May 1933


18.   The Gold Digger's Song (We're In The Money) - 3:09


The Last Round-Up (more info)
Conducted by: George Olsen
Jim Morrison, vocals
Recording date: 11 July 1933


19.   The Last Round-Up - 3:22


42nd Street: 42nd Street (more info)
Performed by: Don Bestor Orchestra
Composed by: Harry Warren
Conducted by: Don Bestor
Dudley Mecum, vocals
Recording date: 26 February 1933


20.   Forty-Second Street - 3:02

Reviews

Be the first to review this title