Hep Jazz ( UK ) has a must-have, new 2-CD Artie Shaw title, "The Complete 1945 Spotlight Band Broadcasts" (catalog no. 84/85), with performances from military bases in southern California, awaiting release.
But there's a couple significant differences from previous issues of the material by other labels [ including the 2003 CD, "Artie Shaw: 1945 Spotlight Bands Broadcasts," Jazz Unlimited ( Sw ) 201 2088, and the CD "Spotlight On Artie Shaw" (Joyce JRC-1016), a reissue of a 1974 LP (Joyce LP-1003) ].
"These are from Artie's personal acetates," as I was told by e-mail. "The AFRS broadcasts which have been issued on the CDs you mentioned were only 15 minute edits."
Equally important, unless you were tuned in to the original programs which aired in September and October 1945, there are at least 12 songs or versions that you've never heard before: Dancing in the Dark, Out of This World, I Can't Get Started, It Might As Well Be Spring, If I Loved You, Together, Star Dust, I Cover the Waterfront, I'm Gonna Love That
Guy, Summertime, It Had to Be You, and Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise.
In fact, those aren't even documented in Vladimir Simosko's Artie Shaw discography!
"The actual programmes were 25 minutes and held complete, not fade-out performances, plus additional tunes," it was explained by Hep.
As a bonus, producer Alistair Robertson is also including three selections from the November 7, 1945 "Fitch Bandwagon" show: 'S Wonderful (previously-unissued), Night and Day, and Let's Walk.
The performances have been restored by Doug Pomeroy "and are fabulous," it was promised. "Plus great photos and good notes. A fine set in all regards."
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
YOU GOTTA GET GOODMAN
It came out just in time for the holidays... a 7-CD blockbuster, "Classic Columbia and Okeh Benny Goodman Orchestra Sessions (1939-1958)," Mosaic MD7-240.
While a few collectors may bellyache (in reviews posted on Mosaic's own website!) that Mosaic didn't follow its usual policy of including everything the performer did for the labels, it is "complete" given the set's focused title.
For starters, every instrumental which Goodman did for Columbia and Okeh with his big band between August 10, 1939 and October 15, 1946 is here. That means the original recordings of many Goodman staples, such as Let's Dance, Stealin' Apples, Jersey Bounce, and Mission to Moscow... the fabled Eddie Sauter arrangements like Benny Rides Again, Superman, and Clarinet a la King... plus many other wonderful records, Cocoanut Grove, The Hour of Parting, Scarecrow, Tuesday At Ten, Take It, Caprice XXIV Paganini, and Gotta Be This Or That, to name only a few. Also included are some two dozen alternate takes, not counting ones that were unissued until Phontastic put them out on LP and CD.
Another portion of the set are recordings done in hi-fi when Benny returned to Columbia during the 1950s, including old and new Fletcher Henderson instrumental big band charts, such as Mean to Me, Lulu's Back in Town, and Sunrise Serenade... the Swing Into Spring session of February 25, 1958 with one tune completely undocumented previously, Swanee River... and the selections made with strings for a 10" LP, "Let's Hear the Melody," containing, for example, Embraceable You, Moonglow, and Georgia On My Mind.
The sound on everything is uniformly very good; it was stated in Mosaic publicity that they went back to the original Columbia and Okeh metal mothers, lacquer discs and (for the '50s tracks) reel-to-reel tapes. However, I must mention that, to my ears, it seems a little dry in spots, and I can't honestly say that, for instance, the 1951-53 Fletcher Henderson tunes sound any better than when some of them came out on the LPs "Swing with Benny Goodman" (Harmony HL 7190) and "Swing Time" (Harmony HL 7225).
The cover and booklet feature, among others, never-before-seen images taken by photographer Charles Peterson at a New Year's Eve dance in 1938 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City (see the illustration above) and, 20 years later, Benny and band in the studio during the "Swing Into Spring" date, photographed by Don Hunstein.
Jazz historian and former Goodman musician Loren Schoenberg has written a session-by-session analysis of the recordings, and, in a few places explains why he's not totally enthused about certain performances.
Being a longtime record hunter, the enclosed discographical listing and comments make interesting reading to me, and are based on research done by Russ Connor in his Goodman volumes. Mosaic also stated that it had access to the original Columbia and Okeh ledgers and American Federation of Musicians logs to confirm the details as accurately as possible.
I think that Mosaic made a wise choice in sharply focusing this set, eliminating the vocals of Helen Forrest, Peggy Lee, Helen Ward, and others with the Goodman band, since nearly every one of those selections is already presently available on CD in separate packages by Collector's Choice Music. Also, by limiting this set to studio recordings, they avoided duplication with the live 1958 "Benny in Brussels" performances originally issued by Columbia which are now available on a CD from Collectables.
In spite of others' opinions and my own nit-picky quibbles, this is one to get.
While a few collectors may bellyache (in reviews posted on Mosaic's own website!) that Mosaic didn't follow its usual policy of including everything the performer did for the labels, it is "complete" given the set's focused title.
For starters, every instrumental which Goodman did for Columbia and Okeh with his big band between August 10, 1939 and October 15, 1946 is here. That means the original recordings of many Goodman staples, such as Let's Dance, Stealin' Apples, Jersey Bounce, and Mission to Moscow... the fabled Eddie Sauter arrangements like Benny Rides Again, Superman, and Clarinet a la King... plus many other wonderful records, Cocoanut Grove, The Hour of Parting, Scarecrow, Tuesday At Ten, Take It, Caprice XXIV Paganini, and Gotta Be This Or That, to name only a few. Also included are some two dozen alternate takes, not counting ones that were unissued until Phontastic put them out on LP and CD.
Another portion of the set are recordings done in hi-fi when Benny returned to Columbia during the 1950s, including old and new Fletcher Henderson instrumental big band charts, such as Mean to Me, Lulu's Back in Town, and Sunrise Serenade... the Swing Into Spring session of February 25, 1958 with one tune completely undocumented previously, Swanee River... and the selections made with strings for a 10" LP, "Let's Hear the Melody," containing, for example, Embraceable You, Moonglow, and Georgia On My Mind.
The sound on everything is uniformly very good; it was stated in Mosaic publicity that they went back to the original Columbia and Okeh metal mothers, lacquer discs and (for the '50s tracks) reel-to-reel tapes. However, I must mention that, to my ears, it seems a little dry in spots, and I can't honestly say that, for instance, the 1951-53 Fletcher Henderson tunes sound any better than when some of them came out on the LPs "Swing with Benny Goodman" (Harmony HL 7190) and "Swing Time" (Harmony HL 7225).
The cover and booklet feature, among others, never-before-seen images taken by photographer Charles Peterson at a New Year's Eve dance in 1938 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City (see the illustration above) and, 20 years later, Benny and band in the studio during the "Swing Into Spring" date, photographed by Don Hunstein.
Jazz historian and former Goodman musician Loren Schoenberg has written a session-by-session analysis of the recordings, and, in a few places explains why he's not totally enthused about certain performances.
Being a longtime record hunter, the enclosed discographical listing and comments make interesting reading to me, and are based on research done by Russ Connor in his Goodman volumes. Mosaic also stated that it had access to the original Columbia and Okeh ledgers and American Federation of Musicians logs to confirm the details as accurately as possible.
I think that Mosaic made a wise choice in sharply focusing this set, eliminating the vocals of Helen Forrest, Peggy Lee, Helen Ward, and others with the Goodman band, since nearly every one of those selections is already presently available on CD in separate packages by Collector's Choice Music. Also, by limiting this set to studio recordings, they avoided duplication with the live 1958 "Benny in Brussels" performances originally issued by Columbia which are now available on a CD from Collectables.
In spite of others' opinions and my own nit-picky quibbles, this is one to get.
20 DOLLARS PER HOUR
The man came home from work late again, tired and irritated, to find his 5 year old sonwaiting for him at the door.
"Daddy, may I ask you a question?"
"Yeah, sure, what is it?" replied the man.
"Daddy, how much money do you make an hour?"
"That's none of your business! What makes you ask such a thing?" the man said angrily.
"I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?" pleaded the little boy.
"If you must know, I make $20.00 an hour."
"Oh," the little boy replied, head bowed. Looking up, he said,
"Daddy, may I borrow $10.00 please?"
The father was furious. "If the only reason you wanted to know how much money I make is just so you can borrow some to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you're being so selfish. I work long, hard hours everyday and don't have time for such childish games."
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door. The man sat down and started to get even madder about the little boy's questioning.
How dare he ask such questions only to get some money.
After an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think he may have been a little hard on his son.
Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $10.00, and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.
"Are you asleep son?" he asked.
"No daddy, I'm awake," replied the boy.
"I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier," said the man.
"It's been a long day and I took my aggravation out on you. Here's that $10.00 you asked for."
The little boy sat straight up, beaming. "Oh, thank you daddy!" he yelled.
Then, reaching under his pillow, he pulled out some more crumpled up bills.
The man, since the boy already had money, started to get angry again.The little boy slowly counted out his money, then looked up at the man.
"Why did you want more money if you already had some?" the father grumbled.
"Because I didn't have enough, but now I do," the little boy replied.
"Daddy, I have $20.00 now. Can I buy an hour of your time?"
"Daddy, may I ask you a question?"
"Yeah, sure, what is it?" replied the man.
"Daddy, how much money do you make an hour?"
"That's none of your business! What makes you ask such a thing?" the man said angrily.
"I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?" pleaded the little boy.
"If you must know, I make $20.00 an hour."
"Oh," the little boy replied, head bowed. Looking up, he said,
"Daddy, may I borrow $10.00 please?"
The father was furious. "If the only reason you wanted to know how much money I make is just so you can borrow some to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you're being so selfish. I work long, hard hours everyday and don't have time for such childish games."
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door. The man sat down and started to get even madder about the little boy's questioning.
How dare he ask such questions only to get some money.
After an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think he may have been a little hard on his son.
Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $10.00, and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.
"Are you asleep son?" he asked.
"No daddy, I'm awake," replied the boy.
"I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier," said the man.
"It's been a long day and I took my aggravation out on you. Here's that $10.00 you asked for."
The little boy sat straight up, beaming. "Oh, thank you daddy!" he yelled.
Then, reaching under his pillow, he pulled out some more crumpled up bills.
The man, since the boy already had money, started to get angry again.The little boy slowly counted out his money, then looked up at the man.
"Why did you want more money if you already had some?" the father grumbled.
"Because I didn't have enough, but now I do," the little boy replied.
"Daddy, I have $20.00 now. Can I buy an hour of your time?"
THE APPLE TREE
A long time ago, there was a huge apple tree. A little boy loved to come and play around it every day. He loved the tree top, ate the apples, took a nap under the shadow...He loved the tree and the tree loved to play with him. Time went by....... The little boy had grown up and he no longer played around the tree everyday. One day the boy came back to the tree and he looked sad. "Come play with me," the asked the boy. I am no longer a kid, I don't ' play around trees anymore." The boy replied, "I want toys. I need money to buy them." "Sorry, but I don't have money.....but you can pick my apples and sell them. Then you will have money." The boy was so excited. He grabbed all the apples on the tree and left happily. The boy never came back after he picked the apples.
The tree was sad.. One day the boy returned and the tree was so excited. "Come and play with me" the tree said. I don't have time to play. I have to work for my family. We need a house for shelter. Can you help me? "Sorry but I don't have a house. But you can chop off my branches to build your house." So the boy cut all the branches off the tree and left happily. The tree was glad to see him happy but the boy never came back since then.
The tree was lonely and sad. One hot summer day, the boy returned and the tree was so delighted. "Come and play with me!" the tree said. "I am so sad and getting old. I want to go sailing to relax myself. Can you give me a boat? " "Use my trunk to build your boat. You can sail far away and be happy." So the boy cut the tree trunk to make a boat. He went sailing and never showed up for a very long long time.
Finally, the boy returned after he left for so many years. "Sorry, my boy, but I don't have anything for you anymore. No more apples for yo u...." the tree said". "I don't have teeth to bite" the boy replied. "No more trunk for you to climb on" I am too old for that now" the boy said. "I really can't give you anything.....the only thing left is my dying roots" the tree said with tears. "I don't need much now, just a place to rest. I am tired after all these years." The boy replied "Good! Old Tree Roots is the best place to lean and rest on." "Come, come sit down with me and rest " The boy sat down and the tree was glad and smiled with tears......
This is a story for everyone. The tree is our parents. When we were young, we loved to play with Mom and Dad...When we grew up, we left them...only come to them when we need something or when we are in trouble. No matter what, parents will always be there and give everything they can to make you happy. You may think the boy is cruel to the tree but that is how all of us are treating our parents. Love your parents, no matter where they are.
The tree was sad.. One day the boy returned and the tree was so excited. "Come and play with me" the tree said. I don't have time to play. I have to work for my family. We need a house for shelter. Can you help me? "Sorry but I don't have a house. But you can chop off my branches to build your house." So the boy cut all the branches off the tree and left happily. The tree was glad to see him happy but the boy never came back since then.
The tree was lonely and sad. One hot summer day, the boy returned and the tree was so delighted. "Come and play with me!" the tree said. "I am so sad and getting old. I want to go sailing to relax myself. Can you give me a boat? " "Use my trunk to build your boat. You can sail far away and be happy." So the boy cut the tree trunk to make a boat. He went sailing and never showed up for a very long long time.
Finally, the boy returned after he left for so many years. "Sorry, my boy, but I don't have anything for you anymore. No more apples for yo u...." the tree said". "I don't have teeth to bite" the boy replied. "No more trunk for you to climb on" I am too old for that now" the boy said. "I really can't give you anything.....the only thing left is my dying roots" the tree said with tears. "I don't need much now, just a place to rest. I am tired after all these years." The boy replied "Good! Old Tree Roots is the best place to lean and rest on." "Come, come sit down with me and rest " The boy sat down and the tree was glad and smiled with tears......
This is a story for everyone. The tree is our parents. When we were young, we loved to play with Mom and Dad...When we grew up, we left them...only come to them when we need something or when we are in trouble. No matter what, parents will always be there and give everything they can to make you happy. You may think the boy is cruel to the tree but that is how all of us are treating our parents. Love your parents, no matter where they are.
14 VOWS OF SUCCESS
Dear Lord, Thank you! Today you wake up my mind from a deep sleep. Thank you for reminding me that today is the preparation of my future success. Thank you for helping me to realize that life is full of hardships, pains, sorrows, and trials. The only way to beat these odds is to face and take them as challenges of life and continue on improving myself.Therefore, beginning today dear Lord, I will not waste my time with idleness, laziness, cowardliness, and timidity. Instead, I will use it as an opportunity for the improvement of my being.Beginning today, I will take charge of my mind. I've learned from my life experiences that if I think a negative, the result is always a negative. But if I think a positive, the result is always a positive.Beginning today, I will take charge of my mouth. I'll be careful and tactful in my words when I am engaging in conversation with my beloved fellow human being. I know that life and death is in the power of the tongue.Beginning today, I will take good care of my health for it is my only investment and tool to reach my goals and dreams in life.Beginning today, I will take charge of my emotions. Everyday, I will motivate myself to act as an educated and emotionally mature individual. If it happens that I encounter insult and disappointment, I will just remind myself that this too shall pass!Beginning today, I will put the others first and serve them honestly with love and care for these are my only chances to share the love, kindness and blessings from above.Beginning today, I will teach myself to be compassionate, humble, lovable, and open-minded in dealing with people. I've learned from the counsels and writings of the great men of the ages that being a compassionate, humble, lovable, and open-minded person is the best cure in healing of the old wounds of the broken-hearted.By being this way, I can help to cast out the doubts, feeling of inferiority and hatred in their hearts and minds. It can also be the best technique in winning the hearts of the wicked men and eventually to become his friend.Beginning today, I will teach myself the importance of hard work, honesty, sincerity, time management, frugality, initiative, planning, creativeness, determination, patience, persistence, enthusiasm, cooperation, extra mile, faith, and trust in myself for these are the secrets of success in any field of work.Beginning today, I will embrace all the hardships, pains, sorrows, and trials as challenges and stepping-stones for success. Trials are medicines, which my Loving God prescribed because I need them. He proportions the frequency and weight of them to what the case requires. Therefore, let me trust His skill and eventually thank Him for His prescription.Beginning today, I will nurture my character for my character is the only shield to protect and cover my reputation against the trap and honey words of wicked individuals.Beginning today, I will improve myself. I will encourage and teach myself the importance of self-respect and self-discipline for these are the foundations of success.Beginning today, I will treasure the importance of reading good books. Books are the best, wise, patient mentors, and professors of all/any colleges and universities in the world. Books are the best source of knowledge and wisdom. Doing this can help me to become more discerning, a deeper individual and a great thinker.Beginning today, I will practice to have my own originality. Today is my only chance that I can prove and show to the world that I am a unique individual, created by the loving hands of the Almighty God, who has a mission and vision to fulfill - to plant the seeds of my uniqueness and productivity in this land!Beginning today, I will remove from my vocabulary such words and phrases as defeat, failure, improvable, impossible, hopeless, and retreat from these for they are the words and phrases of fools and losers.Finally, beginning today, I will make my Loving God a partner in every plan and decision of life. With Him, I can do all things that others think and see as impossible!Now, with these precious short 14 vows of success in my hands, if I just diligently follow each precept daily and put it in my heart and mind, surely, I'll be the most happiest and successful person in the future.
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