Variety (April 1950)

4t ORCHBSTaAS'BllJSIC Wednesday^ A|»rll 26 , 1950 Use of platters for promotional^ purposes Is on the upbeat; via tie- ins between diskeries and / adver- tising ageneids repping various products and. services. While disks were used to promote dims ever since soundtracks came, to the fore, the record industry is finding,^ a hew source of income via premium plugging deals on current pop tunes which coinmercial firms are iatchihg on to as part of their ad campaigns. Recent flock of such tiepins range from tourist agencies to carpet companies, ; Mercury Records - and Laurel : Music have negotiated a major plugging deal with the Mohawk Carpet Go. and NBC radio and television in; behalf of Laurel's plug tune, “Buffalo Billy.” Deal, Which stemmed from the fact that Roberta Quinlan, star of the car- pet company's' video alrer, “Mo- hawk Showroom,'' disked the nuin- ber for Mercury, involved the cbmr pany's distrLbutiOn of 2,000 *’Buf^ alo Billy" records to all disk jock- eys' video and radio outlets,' The disks will also be spotlighted: in Mohawk's jretail agencies: ♦ RCA Victor and Simon & Schus- ter,: book publishers, have entered a deal to cp-proniote W C. Han- dy's book, Treasury of the Blues/' and the Victor album/ “W. G. Handy Tunes," played by Ers- kifie Hawkins. Album and volume of Handy's blues numbers are be^ ing billed as “Two Masterpieces of Music" by book and record stores cooperating in the campaign, Retail outlets are making sales tiedns and; price deals on both • items. The Tower Isle hotel in Jamaica, BWIv aud the. jamaica travel agen- cies are pegging a tourist cam- paign dii the Irving Eields Trio’s disking of “Take Her - to Jamaica” for Victor, Associated with plugs for the side, disk jockeys in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago are ruhnihg. a contest for dialers, with the best letter on “why I want to go Jamaica"' earning free trans- portation and a cuff 0 one-week stay at the Tower Isle hotel. Rainbow Records and RKO have made a joint deal for plugging “Ohuckawalla Swing/’ from the new John Ford picture, ‘‘Wagon- master,’’ which RKO is distribu- ting^ Film Company and diskery are splitting costs on distributing exploitation kits to retailers and : disk jpekeys containing the record and display material from the pic. Eddie “Piano” Miller and the Wagpnmaster Ghorus recorded the number fpr Rainbow. AmnN.Y.Citynea . Alleging discrimination against live music, Local 302, American Federation of Musicians, petitioned the New York City Planning Com- mission last week to . revise its zoning, restrictions against the Operation. of, cabarets in ceriiain areas. • Aecording to local’s brief, current zoning laws are contribut- ing to musicians’ unemployment by preventing .certain bars and restau- rants, now using jukeboxes br piped musicy from employing live footers, That would put them in the cabaret category. Stephen C. Vladeck, Local 802's attorney, requested the Gbmmis- sion to extend the meaning of caba- rets to .-places now designated as restaurants and bars, if the Com- missiph refuses this, he asks that restaurants and bars playing canned riiUsic be designated as cabarets. Ferehtz Reelected of Detroit Local Detroit,; April 25. Ferentz has befen reelected prerident of the Detroit Federation of Musicians (AFL) for a two-year term. He defeated Fred Grissey, bandleader and chairman of the federation’s executive board; 1,171 to 945. The new term is the Sixth for Ferentz. Eduard Werner, now tburing Europe with the Scandinavian symp orch, was reelected v.p. by a vote of 1,194 to 907 for his op- ponent, Jack Wieck. George Clancy was. unopposed for secretary-treas- urer. Dougiaa to Distribufe For Cprid in Cbral Records, Decca distrib, has named the pouglaS Distributing Gorp. as its new distrib outlet for the New Ybrk area. Cosnat pis- tributors formerly handled the Coral label in Ni Y." Coral currently has a total of 38 distribs handling its disks through- out the U. S. ai^d Canada. ; ;Reg Gonnelly, head of Campbell- Connelly, Britisb' publtshing flrni; is buying but the 40% in the Irwin Pash company, another British publishing house, not already owned by C-C. pash, ati American, who has beeii operating his firm in England since the pre-war pe- riod, wants to sell his 40% share and return to the tJ:S. Gampbell- GonneUy already owns the other Connelly, who wUi sail back to England May 24, leaves New York for a 10-day visit to the Coast this week. BY Albany, April 25: Via a pocket veto, Gov. Thomas E. Dewey has killed a bill which would hsVe. made New York musi- cians, who work for non-profit in- stitutions, eligible for unemploy- ment .benefits. Bill was. aimed' at giving social security coverage to rnusiciahs Working for such outfits as the New York Philharmonic So- ciety and similar longhair. organi- zations in other cities. Local 802, American Federation of Musicians: conducted a/big drive to get the bill through both houses of the legislature. After 30 days, it automatically became dead. The bill also included/technical em- ployees of the non-profit institu- tions." Bed British Sheet Sellers (Week ending April 15) London, April 19. IVlusic, Ntusici *.*•■»... •.Leeds Jealous Heart . .New World You Were Coming., .Chappell Chattanoogie Boy . .Pic Music Dear Hearts .........Morris . Down in the Glen,.. . Wright Can-Can Polka *... . Connelly My Foolish. Heart,. . . ... . Surt v Garden of Weeds. .Box & Cox s Harry Lime Theme. Chappell Soiig In Our Heart . .20th-Cent. BUnch of Coconuts Box 8c Cox SecumiitZ Best of All . i ^v/. Connelly C’est Si Bon ........ . Maurice My Thanks To You, .Noel Gay ■ I Said My Pajamas . . . . Leeds Enjoy Yourself ..,.Moms Is It True About Dixie. . Wood Cheriy Stone ........ .Fields Hop Scotch Polka, i... .Leeds Clear Blue Sky...... .Dreyer When World Forgotten Carolin Why Is It ....... . Cinephonic Breaking My Heart. . .Sterling Tommy Mercer, vocalist With Eddy Puchin for the past two years; is. taking over tbe: Puchin orch when it winds up a run at the WedgU^pod jRoom of the WaldOrf- Astbria hotel, N. Y., on May 21. puchih leaves shortly thereafter for aii extended European vaca- tion/ " ' , ’■ Mercer will front the ll-man outfit, Which will carry the tag “Eddy Puchirf presents, etc." Band will have ai completely rewritten library, taking it away from the Duchin piano style and the society- crew category/ N®w arrangements are, cun’ently being rehearsed for a May 26 opening at Roseland ball- room, N. Y. If the band clicks with Roseland customers it will hold that stand for the entire summer, Idea for Mercer’s takeover of the orch stemmed from the front- ing job the singer itirned in at the Waldorf during a recent iUness of Duchin’s Which kept him out of the room for a week, How the crew does under Mercer will condition whether he will continue to head it in the fall, or whether Duchin will take it Over again on his re- turn from abroad. If Mercer can establish himself before then, Duchin will form a hew crew at that time, Music Corp. of America will handle the By HERM SenpENFEtD Frank Sinatra: "Kisses and Tears" ■‘When the Sun Goes Down;" :"American BeaUty Rose”- "Just An Old jstone House" (Go- lumbia). Any one of the first three sides has a good chance; Duetting with Jane Russell, Sinatra sells “losses" with a bouncing vocal that should earn plenty of jock and juke attention. “Suii Goes Down ’ is a solid oatune lOping against a fine blues background furnished by Alex Stordahl's orch and the Modemalres, "American Beauty Rose’! has a trickily clever lyric and rhythm smoothly handled by Sinatra. It looks Mg. Reveriie is a fair sentimental item; Mitch Miller's orch backs the latter two sides but Miller's stylistic tendenr dies are only evidenced in “Rose/ Roberta Quinlan: “Buffalo Billy”- “I Never Had a Worry in the WOrid’' (Mercury). "Buffalo Billy/ a juve item in western garb, has a great potential. It’s a parlay Of a cute idea and catchy rhythm for a walloping novelty appeal. Miss Quinlan gives it an excellent work- out with fine production support supplied by Jerry Murad's Har- monloais and Jan August. Miss Quinlan's initial/'cut for Mercury, this side should catapult her high in the hit lists. Backing is a well- executed ballad, Andrews Sisters: Wanna Be L6Yed"-“I’ve Just Got to Get Out of the Habit" (Decca). Two top- rating sides. “I Wanna Be Loved,” an oldie going gack to the early 30's, could Come back big on the basis of this cut. It gets a warm solo treathient by Patti Andrews backed with close : vocal harmony and a lush arrangement by Gordon Jenkins. Flipover, in ; a lighter vein, has equally click possibilities. Andrews Sisters ride this num- ber’s smart lyric with a smooth beaL -’’, King Cole: "Mona LlSa"-“The Greatest Inventor of Them All" (Capitol). “Mona Lisa,'* originally launched by Charlie Splyak's orch oil the London labM, gives Cole the type of material that he needs. Cole,' working without his trio; gives this worthwhile number a sincere, softly rhythmic treatment for a big impact. It’s right for lots of juke and jock spins. Backing has a modern gospel theme with a bouncy commercial twist. Cole’s trio and Les Baxter’s orch and chorus neatly assist, Eileen Barton: ‘ ‘Dixieland JBaU”- “Honey Won’t You Honeymoon With Me” (National). On that Dixie kick, Miss Barton climbs all over “Dixieland Ball’’ With that I 2. 1 •4; 5. I 6. MY FOOLISH HEART (2) (Santly-Joy). Week of April 22 L IF I KNEW YOU WERE COMING xeXRobert).......V. v. .. .. .Mercurj/ IGcorgiia GibbsV. . .Coral THIRD MAN THEME (4) (Chappell) ;....................., j Koros;........; tendon [Gny Lombardo;, ^:Decca. MtJSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC (13) (Cromwell). I,;............... | “*’■•• •• • • ’ ’ • t (Eddie Miller...,,.Rainbow IT ISN'T FAIR (5) (Words-MusicL...;.. Sammy Kaye. Victor SENTIMENTAL'ME (3) (Knickerbocker) v,.. •... •. j Bros. ., , ,., ,,.. . Coral (Ryss Morgan,.Decca .Decca .M-G-M J 8. i Gordon Jenkins. , .... , I JQllly [M^rman^Bolger Decca ****^^^*^’*r*^*:^**Stafford^MacRae......,, Capitol ENJOY YOURSELF (7) (Morris) t. DEARIE (7) (Laurel) iGuy Lombordo.V.,. . . .Decca .. 0 ....... 2)om Day, ... ^.....Columbia o 9. CHATTANOOGIE SHOESHINE BQY (11) - We QUICKSILVER (2) (Morris) eroaby: yCrosby-Andrews ....,,j ... /, Decca .Decca .Decca ..., , . Columbia PADDY'S LITTLE GIRL (Beacon) C'EST SI BON (Leeds)/.. ( Mills • * • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • I Rhil Regan * 4 . • .« ..,. . Decca . .Victor doJynny Desmonds . BEWITCHED (CiiappeU) . . . CANDT and care (Oxford) MAN AROUND THE HOUSE (Morris) IBiU Snyder. . ...Tower j Mindy Carson .;;....... Victor. ± (Arthup Godfrey ;..... . Cotumbid I>inah' Shore:.........Columbia t RAG MOP (11) (Hill & Range) ;.....,..........;... Bros.../....... ,/coral THFRF'U KO TAMAWnnw iioV vb * v I Flanagan..........Victor THERES NO TOMORROW (18) (Paxton) Tony Martin ......... Victor .. d • Victor «. • Capitol • 4 ♦ • ! 0.0 f 0 • I SAIl) ME PAJAMAS (13) (Leeds) .,. . v., ...;........ I GpibS WBEE ANGRE WITH ME (Century). ,;...... sitting BE THE WINDOW (Shaplroi):... OLD PIANO ROLL BtUES (Leeds) CHOO'N GUM (HVC) . . . . . PETER COTTONTAIL (Hill-Range) I ALMOST LOST ME MIND (Hill-Rauje) ......... SUNSHINE .CAKE-(Burke-yH)-^ tPisure* in parenthe«s indicate number weiu tditg has beek tn the Top lOJ ■hS9* . f , t ♦> > ♦ ♦ ♦♦ f , i , ,♦ s u t m ttst.t ti ti ..a a ti t . t f it 111 Vt t m > Z , h ,/ (i,, • e e: • , . . « • * as...... Martin-Warren Whiting-Wahely ( Vic Damone .;.,,.; .Mercury (Billy Eckstme..y....... .M^O-M Jubilaires Capitol Teresa Brewer;s .., * .London Gene Autry ,...,... . Columbia Fran Warren . . . .Victor same bright-type vocalizing that hit^on “Bake a take." It's sfleffi without, however, having standout novelty originality in view of all the straight two-beat material on the market. Ginny Gibson and Bobby Sherwood's orch also give a happy version of this number on Mercury, backing, with the Dixie classic, ‘‘Muskrat Ramble." Miss Barton switches tempo ori“Horiey-. moon," a cute hammock-swinging bsll&d.' Helen Forrest: ‘T Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate"- “More Than X Should" (M-G-M). JMiss Forrest Impreisses on a couple of chaiige-of-pace tunes. “Shimmy" is colorfully vocalled after a de- ceptively slow getaway and builds into a solid side; Bottom deck also has a big chance to register, “More Than -I Should" is a fine ballad tastefully handled by Miss Forrest, Russ Case's orch accohips. Pick Haymes: “Rdses”-"I Still Get a Thrill" (Decca). This ver- sion' of “Roses" coiild cut into the play Sammy Kaye's orch is getting on this number for Victor; It’s a smooth cut with hardly a trace of the original hilLbilly flavor. Flip- over, a standard by J. Fred Cobts and Benny Davis, might carry this disk high on the hit lists. A fine ballad that hais all the perennial values of the • best in pop music, “ThriU"; is strongly sold via Haymes' excellent vocal and an- other deluxe orchestration by Gor- don Jenkins. Four Hits and a Miss lend valuable choral support on both sides. Eddie Dean: "DeyU's Desert Land"-“You Want to Divorce Me”. (Mercury). Every so often a hill- billy or western tune strikes at- , tention by sweiving off the Well- beaten path. It happened with “Riders in the Sky" and again with “Miile Train." It might hap- pen once more With “Devirs .Desr ert Land/' a dramatic tune closer ly akin to “Riders." . Maybe too close and too soon after: to .make a mark. But it’s a fine number on its own merits and Eddie Dean gives it a firstrate interpretation. Reverse is a typically twangy item in marked con&ast to the musical content of the other side. Ray Anthony Orch :“The Girl That I Mafr^’-“They Say It’s Wonderful" (Gapitol): Capitol hai been giving heavy play to the Ray Anthony orch as its trump card in the cur- rent revival of interest in dance bands. These sides are samples of this orch’s fine takeoff on the feeds - on - top,- rhythmically-clean style of the late Glenn Miller. Ronnie Deauville handles the vo- cals on both ; sides in topflight style; Albiam Reviews Joe Bushkin:“I Love a Piano" (Atlantic). Bushkin, one of the most creative keyboard artists to emerge from jazz circles, has exe- cuted a fine long-playing set for Atlantic. A subtle stylist with a versatile attack, Bushkin extends his interpretive range in this set from Cole Porter'i“So in Love” to .“Four Hand Boogie Woogie," always retaining his individuality without reaching for trademark effects, Eight other numbers in the album are “I Love a Piano" “But Not For Me,” “One F6r the Road," ‘Tt Never Entered My Mind," “Dancing On the Celling/' “I Can’t Get Started," “If I knew You Were There" and “Oh Look At Me Now" latter two being Bushkin's own compositions; Biish- kin plays with drum and bass ac- companimeht. Platter Pointers Artie Shaw displays his virtuoso clarinet in a couple of 12-inch sides with the New Music String Clari- net for Columbia. Compositions are a pseudo mix of longhair and pop ideas that are interesting even if they don’t quite jell . . . Bobby Smith's orch has a solid cut of “Da Dai Strain" (Apollo) ... Lorry Ralne: has . a likely side in“D 0 Qr- way to Your Heart’! (Uhivefsal) V . > Out of the RKO film, “Wagon Master,” Rainbow has a cute coun- try dance number in “Chuckawahs Swine" with Eddie '‘Piano'' IVIfile' and the Wagon Master chorus . . v Dick Noel impressively vocals ‘‘Mist" for, Columbia . . .Bing Crosby gets oh the two-beat kich with ‘^The Dixieland Band" (Dec- ca) , Georgia Gibbs With two more firstrate sides m “I Don't Care If the Sun Don’t Shine" and “I'll Get Myself a Choo-choo Train" (Coral) . . . On the same label, Billy Taylor Quar- tet, gives a solid Ihstruniental rhythm treatnient to“My Stood Still'' /. . Mickey Kat* does a Spike Jones carbpn “Happy; Pay-Off Day" (Capitol) Dale Evans renders “A Heart Stone" neatly for Victor /; of I • ‘ • of 0 •