Empire State Observatories - Souvenir

I've been wanting to uplaod this for a while as i havent heard it myself. A very scratchy souvenir from a record making kiosk at the top of the Empire State Building. I imagine it to be at the top anyway. It was back in the 50's 40's when this was made.
A little girl talks to her Granma or Granpa with whispered encouragement from Mom. She talks about going back to England and then she misses Toronto so not sure where she is from. She misses her friends, school and her Dad. It's very touching and sad. The other side is completely flat but has the same label. I think I found it many years ago at Brick Lane market in the East End of London like so many of these old records it caught my eye. It plays at 78 rpm and was able to speed it up using Audacity which is a shareware you can download for free.

Discover more about the Empire State Building HERE.


Empire State Observatories - Souvenir


This SendSpace file is available for seven days or until exhausted.

Socios del Ritmo

An LP from Mexico by Socios Del Ritmo bought back by a friend in the 80's. Released on Ariola in 1983. This track is a medley of old Bill Hayley songs including Florida Twist, Tren Nocturno, Ahi Nos Vemos Cocodrilo and Al Compas Del Reloj-j.

Very little information about this popular band in Mexico on the net. They have many LP's to their name but no website and not one biography.


Socios del Ritmo - La Marea

Socios del Ritmo - La Luna Y El Sol


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

The Howard Morrison Quartet

A medley of old songs including "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" and "Granada" by the Howard Morrison Quartet from New Zealand, recorded back in the 50's at the height of the skiffle boom.

Howard Morrison was born in 1936 in Rotorua, the son of Maori All Black Tem Morrison. In 1955 Howard started putting together vocal groups to entertain at Rugby Club socials in Rotorua. At that stage he had been working as a surveyor's chainman and later as a meter reader for the Tourist Department. He was also playing rugby on the back of the scrum for Waikite.

Music was strictly part-time and he had received a little experience, mainly at Te Aute College and in various Maori cultural groups, show bands and concert parties. At that stage he had dreams of becoming a professional entertainer. In 1956 he became a member of the successful Aotearoa Concert Party that toured Australia. On his return, while attending a family gathering, he heard a guitarist Gerry Merito and decided to put together a group with him and also roped in his brother Laurie and his cousin John. The group was called the Ohinemutu Quartet, but soon after they were renamed to the Howard Morrison Quartet. This became the beginning of the most distinguished Show Business career of any New Zealander permanently based there.

"The quartet began performing around Rotorua and before long bookings were coming in as word spread about this talented group. The group might never have strayed far from Rotorua had they not been spotted by Auckland entrepreneur Benny Levin in December 1957. He was putting together a group of artists to appear on his touring 'Pop Jamboree', and after seeing the boys at a talent quest, he signed them to be part of his show. He was so impressed with them that he started bringing them to Auckland to play at his venues there. With their reputation growing, Benny negotiated a recording contract with Eldred Stebbing at Zodiac.

The first release in 1958 was "There's Only One Of You"/"Big Man", available in both 78rpm and 45rpm format, as were three of the first four singles. The first wasn't a big seller, but the second, a Maori version of the tune "There's A Goldmine In The Sky", called "Hoki Mai" sold well. It was backed with "Po Karekare Ana" and also released in 1958, as were two more singles, "Haere Ra E Hine"/"Marama Pai" and "Marie"/"Deep Purple".

As tended to be the tradition at that time, Zodiac also released three four-track EP's in 1958. In 1959 Benny Levin took the Quartet on their first national tour, finishing with a full house at the Auckland Town Hall. It was at that show that Gerry Merito's parody of the Lonnie Donegan hit "The Battle Of New Orleans" was recorded as "The Battle Of The Waikato".

At one of their shows they were approached by another budding entrepreneur, Harry M Miller, who was looking for acts for his touring show. The Quartet didn't actually have a managerial contract with Benny Levin, so Harry signed them up and became their new manager. While he was at it, he also signed them up to his new La Gloria label. Meanwhile Zodiac released "Short Fat Fannie"/"Goodbye Baby" in 1959 and Stebbing was preparing to release his live version of "Battle Of Waikato", when Miller had the boys at his place doing a studio version of the same song. Miller was about to release his when Stebbing found out and the matter went to court. They were still contracted to Zodiac, so Miller was not allowed to release his version at this stage.

Zodiac released their version and it became one of their biggest hits. It was backed with a live recording of "Granada". The follow-up single was also a live double from the same concert, "Hawaiian Cowboy Song"/"Little Darlin' ". Zodiac only had one more song in their cupboard before the contract ran out, so they released it , "Because Of You" backed with the original "Hoki Mai".

As their new manager, Miller insisted that the boys become full-time professional. Laurie and John couldn't make that commitment, so two new members had to be found in a hurry. Howard persuaded Wi Wharekura and Noel Kingi from Rotorua to join him and Gerry, thus forming the best known Quartet combination."

Discover more about Howard Morrison HERE.


Howard Morrison Quartet - Short Fat Fanny

Howard Morrison Quartet - Marama Pai

Howard Morrison Quartet - Little Darlin'

Howard Morrison Quartet - Hawaiian Cowboy


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Charlie Drake 1925 - 2006

"The diminutive Charlie Drake, who had a fine line in slapstick and pathos and a catch-cry of "Hello my darlings", featured in this BBC comedy series (which followed his successful 1959 - 1960 Charlie Drake program).

The Charlie Drake Show was scripted by Drake and Richard Waring, and produced by Ronald Marsh. It featured slapstick-style sketches and situations which brought out the pathos and genius of this much underrated comedian.

Meanwhile on ITV, Charlie featured in a comedy-music series (also called The Charlie Drake Show) in 1963 under producer Colin Clews with scripts by Drake and Lewis Schwarz. A very young Olivia Hussey also appeared in some of the routines.

Drake also starred in The Worker from 1965 - 1970 and then in the early 70's had a show called Slapstick and Old Lace in which he involved viewers in singalongs and madcap sketches in a Vaudeville style (7 x 30 minute episodes).

Charlie Drake was no stranger to accidents, but his narrowest escape was in the first of a new series entitled Bingo Madness. The plot called for Drake to be hurled through a bookcase by two villains, feign unconsciousness, fall to the floor and then be picked up and thrown out of a window.

The stunt nearly ended in tragedy as Drake really was knocked unconscious when he came through the bookcase. It was a live show and the actors, not realize anything was amiss, carried on, picking him up and bundling him through the window. Drake's head crashed against a stage weight.

After the initial applause, there was a hush as everyone realized something was wrong. The director blacked out the screen as millions of people witnessed what could have been the death of Charlie Drake. He lay in a coma for days, and the rest of the series was cancelled."

Charlie also had a successful recording career throughout the 50's and 60's- two of his biggest hits being "My Boomerang Won't Come Back" and "Please Mr Custer".


Discover more about Charlie Drake HERE.


Charlie Drake - I've Lost The End Of My Yodel

Charlie Drake - Starkle Starkle Little Twink

Charlie Drake - Don't Trim My Wick

Charlie Drake - Splish Splash

Charlie Drake - Naughty


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Cedric Bravo with Rico and the Four Stars

Here's an old Jamaican single on the Ska Beat label from 1965 to wish you a "Merry Christmas". I could not find anything about Cedric Bravo but I'm pretty sure Rico is Rico Rodriquez who has been a session musician for many years and has put out some fine records of his own. Now he plays with the Jools Holland Big Band. The B side also uploaded here is the same tune but with different lyrics.

"One of the most prolific session players of Jamaica's pre-ska era, trombonist Rico Rodriguez recorded both as a solo artist and as an honorary member of The Specials. Born October 17, 1934, his musical pursuits began while attending Kingston's Alpha Boys School, an institution for wayward boys, where he studied trombone under the legendary Don Drummond. In the years to follow, Rico emerged as one of Jamaica's most highly regarded session musicians, often working under the direction of the renowned producer Duke Reid.

In 1961, in the months prior to the explosion of the ska phenomenon, he relocated to the UK, where he recorded a number of sides for the fledgling Island label and gigged extensively on the jazz and R&B circuits, playing with Georgie Fame's Blue Flames and others. He also remained a top-notch session man, appearing on Sugar & Dandy's 1967 classic "A Message to You Rudy," among others. "

Discover more about Rico Rodriquez HERE.


Cedric Bravo - Merry Christmas

Cedric Bravo - Sugar Baby


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Private Eye's Xmas Flexidiscs 1964 - 1966

Found this LP of Private Eye'sGolden Years of Sound at a boot sale a couple of years ago. It's a compliation of all the Christmas flexi discs they used to give away with the satirical magazine between 1964 and 1970. It has contributions by John Bird, Eleanor Bron, Barry Fantoni, Wiilliam Rushton and many others. On the two snippets here you can hear Peter Cook and Barry Humphries (doing his Barry Mackensie voice) and Dudley Moore singing a song as Whispering Jim Narg.This Lyn label copy was published by Private Eye in 1973. Most of it sounds pretty dated now , being mainly about the politics and personalities of the time who have long since passed from public conciousness (even in the U.K.).


Private Eye's Xmas Record - 1964

Private Eye's Xmas Record - 1965

Private Eye's Xmas Record - 1966


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Chas 'N' Dave

More Xmas fun and frivolity now with part of a 1993 radio series "Chas 'N' Dave's Knees Up" on the BBC. Recorded live on Dec. 25th. at White's Club in Tottenham. Special guests are The Barron Knights.

1. Intro.
2. Darling I Don't Care
3. I Saw Mummy Kissing Santa Claus
4. The Jimmy Brown Song ( The Barron Knights )
5. Flying
6. Sausage & Mash

"Chas & Dave are Cockney pop rock music artists, often billed as Chas 'n' Dave or erroneously as Chaz 'n' Dave. Their full names are Chas Hodges (piano, vocals, banjo, guitars) and Dave Peacock (bass guitar, vocals, banjo, guitars), with Mick Burt on drums. They were regulars on British TV from 1975 onwards and had hits like "Gertcha", their first, as well as "Rabbit" and "The Sideboard Song". Their music was featured in a TV beer advertising campaign which also helped to establish them in the United Kingdom.
The unique cockney style of singing was from the start intentional. They felt an alternative to the way British bands copied American accents was needed. The songs above are partly comic, and Chas 'n' Dave are identified with London pub culture. But their 1982 number 2 hit, "Ain't No Pleasing You" was a more romantic record, with strings added to the usual piano, drum and bass sound. 'Rockney' has been coined as a term for their music style. They have always done a great deal of live work, and are currently doing shows all over the UK.
"Snooker Loopy" is a comic song about snooker by Chas and Dave.
Chas and Dave have remained famous, in part, because of the songs they have written and recorded for Tottenham Hotspur F.C. Among their most famous Spurs recordings are "Glory Glory Tottenham Hotspur", "Ossie's Dream", "Hot Shot Tottenham", "When the Year Ends in One", "Tottenham Tottenham" and the "Spurs Medley"."

Visit Chas 'N' Dave's official website HERE.

BBC Radio Soundtrack Disc

Whilst I'm in the mood for uploadling these old 78's I might as well include this oddity which I've had for 30 years or more. It's a BBC soundtrack disc made of metal with a plastic coating. It plays at 78 and is very scratched so apologies for the crackles and pops. The handwritten label suggests it was made for inclusion in the radio series "Journey Into Space" that was popular in the 50's but why this song? I have another version of "When It's Night Time In Italy , It's Wednesday Over Here" by the Everly Brothers. Bing Crosby apparently recorded a version but I've never heard it. I assume its an old music hall song. I will delve further into the internet and see what I find.

You can find the full lyrics to the song HERE.

Discover more about "Journey Into Space" HERE.


Unknown - When It's Night Time In Italy...

Unknown - When It's Night Time In Italy..Pt. 2


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

The Blue Lyres

One of the old 78's in my collection that I will upload from time to time now I know how to change the speed with Audacity.
This one is by The Blue Lyres who I know nothing about. Its on the Zonophone label and recorded at the Dorchester Hotel in London sometime in the 30's I would guess.

"Arguably the best hotel band in Britain at the time, the Ambrose Orchestra at the Mayfair could count royalty among their audience and aquired the top Saturday night spot for radio broadcasts.
Over two hundred HMV recordings were made during 1930-1932, and several recordings on Decca and Zonophone by the Blue Lyres are now regarded as being by members of the Ambrose Orchestra. During this time it was Sam Browne who delivered most of the vocals. "

"Sam's voice is easily recognisable and it has been quite an easy task for discographers to identify many of the anonymous 'vocal refrains' on records by the less famous bands. It's obvious now that Sam made over 1000 recordings. Bands that featured Sam on many records include Alfredo (on Edison), Bertini (on Eclipse), Harry Bidgood (on Broadcast), Harry Hudson (on Edison), and of course Lew Stone and about a dozen more.

Not regarded as a 'jazz' singer, Sam Browne nevertheless performs very adequately on a number of hot dance records, and as well as some of the early Ambrose recordings Sam also sang on a few other hot recordings by the bands of Jay Wilbur, Six Swingers etc. Sam is featured in several British films, including Calling All Stars, Variety Parade and Hi Gang, as well as numerous film shorts."


The Blue Lyres - He Played His Ukulele As The Ship Went Down Pt. 1

The Blue Lyres - He Played His Ukulele As The Ship Went Down Pt.2


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

SWAPATORIUM: The Blue Lyres

Beatle Beat

I've been aching to upload this daft children's record for a while now - since I found it in my local Oxfam charity shopfor 25p! I've just discovered there is a speed changer setting on Audacity which allows you to play 78's at the right speed. I only have 33 & 45rpm on my cheap record deck. So now I can upload some of my prized shellac recordings if I buy a suitable stylus. This one ofcourse is yellow plastic!
The whole idea that these tracks are "Blue Beat" "Ska" or "Slop" is very amusing and quite ridiculous!
Apparently there was a whole Lp of this stuff released in 1964 at the height of Beatlemania called "Nursery Rhymes Sung With A Beatle Beat".


Beatle Beat - Three Blind Moose

Beatle Beat - Georgie Porgie


These SendSpace files are availble for seven days or until exhausted.

Warren Mitchell

The above medley comes from an Lp called "Alf Garnett's Music Hall" that was released on the Allegro label in 1967. The long running sit-com Til Death Us Do Partfeaturing the bigot Alf played by Warren Mitchell .

Wikipedia says of Warren Mitchell-

"Warren Mitchell, (born Warren Misel, 14 January 1926, Stoke Newington, London) is an English-born actor with Australian citizenship.
Best known for his role as the bigoted Cockney West Ham United F.C. supporter, Alf Garnett in the BBC television sitcom Till Death Us Do Part, Warren Mitchell has a long and distinguished career on stage and television. Ironically, his real life persona is quite the opposite, being a left-winger, Jewish, and a staunch supporter of Tottenham Hotspur F.C..
Mitchell joined the RAF in company with his contemporary Richard Burton in 1944 and completed his navigator training just as the war ended.
Mitchell had been reading physics at University College, Oxford. Richard Burton's description of the acting profession convinced him that it would be better than completing his physics degree and so Mitchell attended RADA for two years. In 1951, Mitchell became a professional actor but his big break did not occur until 1965 with the role of Alf Garnett in a Comedy Playhouse play. This was the pilot edition of the series Till Death Us Do Part with Dandy Nichols, Una Stubbs and Anthony Booth (now Tony Blair's father-in-law).
Other small screen roles include performances in Lovejoy, Waking the Dead and Gormenghast.
On stage he received extensive critical acclaim for his performances in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and Harold Pinter's The Caretaker at the National Theatre; and Pinter's The Homecoming and Miller's The Price in the West End.
Even after the cancellation of In Sickness And In Health, Mitchell played Alf on a number of occasions. ITV aired a series of mini episodes called A Word With Alf featuring Alf and his friends. When Johnny Speight died in 1998, the series was cancelled at the request of Mitchell saying he no longer wanted to play Alf now that Speight was dead.
Warren Mitchell suffered a stroke in August 2004 and was back on stage a week later performing in Arthur Miller's "The Price", a two-hour play that featured four actors.
Warren Mitchell is a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association."


Warren Mitchell - Every Little While

Warren Mitchell - I Live In Trafalgar Square (Medley)


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

El Disco Del Ano

To make up for the previous post I have found this lovely 1980's Colombian record on the Zeida lable for you. It certainly looks very xmassy but my guess would be that it's "Hits Of The Year" and these are some of the favourites in Colombia in 1980.

Wikipedia says-

"Modern Colombian music is a mixture of African, native Indigenous and European (especially Spanish) influences, as well as more modern American and Caribbean musical forms, such as Trinidadian, Cuban, and Jamaican. The national music of Colombia is said to be cumbia.
Cumbia is a mixture of Spanish and African music, the latter brought by slaves. In the 19th century, slavery was abolished and Africans, Indians and other ethnic groups mixed more fully. Styles like bambuco, vallenato and porro was especially influential. When the waltz became popular in the 19th century, a Colombian version called pasillo was invented. International Latin, a type of pop ballad, and salsa music are best-represented by Charlie Zaa and Joe Arroyo, respectively."


Juan Pina Con La Revelacion - El Pilon Guajiro

Alcides Diaz Con Los Piratas Sabaneros - Dos Mujeres

Los Hispanos - La Cobija


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Freddie "Parrot Face" Davies

As everyone seems to be uploading all their Christmas junk, I thought I would find a few horrors lurking in my collection and join in with the festive fun ( or not, as the case may be ). This LP on the Major Minor label was released in 1968 when Freddie was at the height of his powers. As you will hear his comedy was not very subtle and relied heavily on a strange impediment - a lisp with a limp.

"He learned his craft as a Butlin's Redcoat in the 1950s. By 1963 he had pulled an old hat over his face and adopted a ferocious lisp to become "Parrot Face", pronounced "Parrot Faith".

A sniffy producer at the BBC told him: "You can't do that voice - it's an impediment."

Two years later, having won Opportunity Knocks outright and become a national favourite, Davies returned to the Beeb. Was his "impediment" now acceptable?

"I suppose it will have to be," flounced the same producer.

But as quickly as he flew to stardom, this Parrot vanished from sight. New, alternative comedy came along and tastes changed, he smiles ruefully.

"People get fed up with performers doing the same thing and they move on, particularly with comedy in the 1980s."

And yet there's more to it than that. Looking back, he reckons he was never focused enough to be a great comedian.

"A lot of comedians are not very nice people," he confides. "They have this single-minded selfishness. I wanted other things."

He had a spell in drama management, spent years entertaining cruise-liner passengers, starred in the brilliant Lee Evans film Funny Bones, toured in the Victoria Wood play Talent, and became a fixture for two years in the TV series Harbour Lights."


Freddie Davies - Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer/Jingle Bells

Freddie Davies - Christmas Alphabet

Freddie Davies - I'm A Little Christmas Cracker


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Xmas Podcassette

A selection from the privately pressed? tape of old xmas songs and adverts cunningly cobbled together by Eddie Gorodetsky in 1997 that someone sent me a couple of years ago.

Tracks are-

1. Christmas For Moderns - Maynard Ferguson
2. Jingle Bells - Jimmy McGriff
3. Frosty The Snowman - The Lizard Men
4. Cowboy Santa Claus - Bill Lacey & Group

Jimmy McGriff

"One of the all-time giants of the Hammond B-3, Jimmy McGriff sometimes gets lost amid all the great soul-jazz organists from his hometown of Philadelphia. He was almost certainly the bluesiest of the major soul-jazz pioneers, and indeed, he often insisted that he was more of a blues musician than a jazz artist; nonetheless, he remained eclectic enough to blur the lines of classification. His sound -- deep, down-to-earth grooves drenched in blues and gospel feeling -- made him quite popular with R&B audiences, even more so than some of his peers; what was more, he was able to condense those charms into concise, funky, jukebox-ready singles that often did surprisingly well on the R&B charts. His rearrangement of Ray Charles' "I Got a Woman" was a Top Five R&B hit in 1962, and further hits like "All About My Girl," "Kiko," and "The Worm" followed over the course of the '60s. McGriff spent much of the '70s trying to keep pace with the fusion movement, switching to various electric keyboards and adopting an increasingly smooth, polished style."

George Van Dusen ( By Request )

Tracks above are-

1. Murphy's Wedding Day
2. Izzy Izzy Izzy
3. Holiday Time Is Jollity Time
4. The Yodelling Sailor

Little is known of George Van Dusen and despite extensive searches on the internet have failed to find anyone who knows anything about him except that he was a renowned yodeller held in high regard and a contemporary of Harry Torrani and Ronnie Ronalde in the 30's and 40's. His "Yodelling Chinaman" track is probably his most well known and popped up on several compilations of novelty songs over the years. These tracks are from 1937 and kindly supplied by Jim Benson who will doubtless phone me up to tell me I've got it all wrong and that infact George was a dutchman who died in 1929! I love this photo of him from the only one I could find.

Since this was last blogged I had some interesting comments to say that George was born Thomas Harrington , probably in the East End of London in the early 1900's and recorded for the Rex record label. He was still perfoming well into his 80's though confined to a wheel chair. He apparently had a minor hit in the 60's but I can find no record to confirm this.


George Van Dusen - A Wee Drop Of Scotch

George Van Dusen - Poloski's Russian Party


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Armpit Jug Band

My friend Jim in Basingstoke sent me this cassette from the Armpit Jug Band recently. It's a rare live recording from 1995 at the Silver Jubilee Jamboree at the Bedworth Civic Hall on April 1st- hence the title of the LP "April Fool". Some great tracks including typical jug band fare- Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gave To Me, St. James Infirmary etc. but some original and daft songs like the excellent Slug Surfin'.

"If life is like a tale told by an idiot, then being in the Armpit Jug Band is a lot more like life than we realised. What Strange Chemistry connected this band?

Before the Armpit Jug Band there was the Gosford Armpit Band. And before that there were several disparate and desperate individuals wandering the mysterious and joyous landscape of the early 60s.

Jazz Beasley and Hot Lips Haines, his surly companion in schoolboy criminality, were struggling out of the musical straightjackets of the Boys Brigade to form the ill fated Tame Valley Juke Stompers. It foundered on the rocks of discordant incompetence. Little Wedge Beasley was kicking at his pushchair straps and beating his Tommee Tippee in time to Budgie and Iron Maiden.

Somewhere on the others side of the Birmingham tracks, in the depths of Shard End, was T-Bone "Axeman" Jones, treading the solitary path of a blues Visionary. He was to be a catalyst in the evolution of Fleetwood Mac . . . He told Peter Green to give all his money away.

In the days when Fred West was just another cowboy builder with a spare bag of cement .... somewhere in Gloucester was Stringbean, the tortured aesthete standing alone in the shadows of the match factory . . . England's Glory! He tossed a coin up into the foggy glare of a sodium lamp and lost his bus fare home.

Jazz and Stringbean, with others too inept to mention, became the Gosford Armpit Band while students in Coventry. At first it was just holding hands . . . but before they knew it they were going steady. There were hours of rehearsal . . . ( was it 3 or 4?) . . . in a tiny room made of foetid with the secretion of bodily odours and the acrid smouldering of Park Drives.

At last they were ready to thrust themselves into the world of musical history."


Discover more about the Armpit Jug Band HERE.


Armpit Jug Band - San Francisco Bay Blues

Armpit Jug Band - Beedle-Um-Bum

Armpit Jug Band - Tiger Rag

Armpit Jug band - Slug Surfin'


These SendSpace files are availble for seven days or until exhausted.

Fats Waller

I have picked up so many Fats Waller CD's and LP's over the years and they are all fantastic. He really could have a whole blog to himself he was so prolific. Lots still available on cheap compilations so go out and find them.

"Thomas "Fats" Waller is one of the more important of the modern pianist-composers. Born in New York on May 21, 1904, the son of a minister, "Fats" played the organ and sang in the choir of the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, where his father preached until he was fifteen years old. Shortly after, the lure of the stage beckoned him to the interesting field of the Harlem cabaret, and he remained in that gay section of the city until 1924, occasionally doubling as a theatre organist and as a. piano-roll artist for the Q-R-S Company.

Some of "Fats' " other accomplishments include vaudeville appearances with the famous blues singer, Bessie Smith, soon after which he wrote the music to the show "Keep Shufflin'". In 1930, he composed the score for "Hot Chocolates," the hit song of which was "Ain't Misbehavin," and when this production closed, he subsequently appeared in leading supper clubs in London, Paris, Berlin and Vienna.

In 1932, he joined the artist staff of WLW at Cincinnati, where he instituted the famous "Fats" Waller Rhythm Club, which created millions of Waller fans throughout the country.

Mr. Waller is currently considered Victor's best record seller. He has been a feature in RKO films and at the time of this writing is in Hollywood for the filming of "King of Burlesque," a 20th Century--Fox production in which he will have an important role.

"Fats" is generally known as "Radio's Harmful Little Armful," and for many years studied under Godowsky in Vienna and Carl Bohn in New York."


Discover more about Fats Waller HERE.


Fats Waller - Abercrombie Had A Zombie

Fats Waller - Mamacita

Fats Waller - "Send Me" Jackson


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.

Dear Eskiimo

Flash animation for "Gotto Wee", a quirky song by Manchester band Dear Eskiimo that Archie, my 14 year old son made last year. It was a three week Easter Challenge for the Cornerhouse in Manchester and was shown at the Cornerhouse on a Music Video Night in 2005. It has since been seen on BBC 2 and yesterday we went to see a screening as part of the Under Exposed young persons ( under 18 ) film festival at the Cornerhouse.

"So it is refreshing, not to mention rare, when a pop band arrive on the scene who actually know each other's names before they step into the recording studio together.
It's even more heartening when their music is as original as Manchester based trio, Dear Eskiimo, whose Be Patient EP is primed to help burst the shiny, manufactured bubbles of Cowell's cash cows in record time. Perhaps what makes them stand out is their contrasting musical backgrounds: Katie White gains her inspiration from iconic female vocalists like Joni Mitchell, Janis Joplin and Debbie Harry ("Someone with a bit more to say than just standing there and shouting"), fellow vocalist and main songwriter, Jules De Martino, has his roots in indie while sampler-wielding deck-hand Simon Templeman has a heart with a hip hop beat."

Dear Eskiimo's My Space web page is HERE

Guy Lombardo

Another big band from the 40's but this time from Canada. Someone sent me this recording recently and just had to share this great novelty songs with you.

Wikipedia says-

"Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo (June 19, 1902 – November 5, 1977) was a Canadian bandleader and violinist famous in the United States. With his three brothers Carmen, Lebert, and Victor and other musicians from his hometown of London, Ontario, he formed the big band The Royal Canadians in 1924, famous for playing what is considered "The Sweetest Music This Side of Heaven." His very first recording session took place where Bix Beiderbecke made his legendary recordings — in Richmond, Indiana, at the Gennett Studios — both in early 1924.
The band played at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City from 1929 to 1959, and their New Year's Eve broadcasts (which continued until 1976 at the Waldorf Astoria) were a major part of New Year's celebrations across North America. In 1938, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. They were noted for playing the traditional song "Auld Lang Syne" as part of the celebrations. Their recording of the song still plays as the first song of the new year in Times Square.
The Lombardos are believed to have sold more than 300 million phonograph albums during their lifetimes, a considerable feat given that many homes had no record players in the 1920s and 1930s.
Although Lombardo is not considered by most to have been a top tier musician, Louis Armstrong famously enjoyed Lombardo's music. When questioned about this, Armstrong quipped "The man gets the melody right.""

Guy Lombardo - Get Out Those Old Records

Guy Lombardo - The Chicken Song

Guy Lombardo - I'm My Own Granpaw


These SendSpace files are available for seven days or until exhausted.