Variety (October 1954)

Wednesday, October 20, 1954 MUSIC 123 RCA yictor will train its pro* motion and publicity guns on Eddy Arnold in January to celebrate the hillbilly, crooner’s lpth year with the label; Victor’s drive Will in- clude four new .disk items recently cut by Arnold as well as a special promotion kit on exploiting the merchandise. Several 10th anni parties are being prepped by the iabel in key cities around the country.' Initial fete, which Wiir .be held in New York in early January, wiil. be hosted by Frank M. Folsom, RCA prez. NBC also is readying a coast- to-coast program salute for Arnold. It’s estimated that Arnold has racked up close to 30,000,000 disk sales- in his 10 years with Victor, Noble in London On Pic To Write Songs Again Ray, Noble, bandleader-song* smith, is currently in London on a possible film deal. But more im- portantly, says British music pub-; Usher Reg Connelly, who returned to England last week after a lonth’s sbjourn in the States, is “that maybe I’ll succeed in getting Noble to. write more once again.’’ The maestro had quite a few in- ternational hits before he became a U. S. citizen and joined the American Federation of Musicians to officiate oh a number of top- flight radio-tv shows. But since the latter chores he had given up his composing. Perhaps “Cherokee” has been his major U.S.-written ef- fort whereas, when be was making records, for HMV (Victor in the U. S.) in England, he had authored “The Very thought of You,” “Marching Alone Together” and quite a few-others. Connelly had been his collaborator in years past and also his publisher. SONG, PAGE ROY ROGERS Hollywood, Oct. 19. If the State of Nevada needs an official, state song, there’s finally one available—thanks to the Roy Rogers radio show. . i Format of the show as set up by writer-director Ralph Rose has each ’ show built around a song which Roy Rogers arid Dale Evans sing as a production number at the' windup. Wheri a recent show was localed in Nevada, Rose and musi- cal director .Frank Worth ..-re- searched' for weeks looking’for a Nevada song that was anything but “Rerio, The Biggest Little City in the World.” They finally ran across an old Lawrence Welk recording of “The Virginia and TruCkee Line” which mentioned Nevada, and they used that., Liast week; Rose wrote another show with a Nevada locale. Know- ing in advance that there wasn’t anything in the way of a song to use, he arid Worth sat down and knocked out art original called “Nevada.” Rogers liked It and will record it after introducing it on the air .next month and a publish- ing deal is being finalized. Heath’s Personal Pitch To on London, Oct. 19. Ted Heath, top orchestra-leader here; took the musical bull by its horns'last week in an effort to. get some action on the vexing-^and long-delayed band-exchange Im- passe. On. his own, he wrote to James C. Petrillo, president of the Amer- ican Federation of Musicians, ask- ing him to let the Heath band into the States for a trial period of four weeks* in exchange for an American combination for the same period,-arid “let’s see how it works OUt.” He said he thought “a more broadminded outlook to the whole Problem can only result in gain to our profession as a whole,” and hoped his suggestion would help in the establishment of “a sound basis being worked out for the benefit of the musicians on both sides.” * OF TOP TALENT AND TUNES Compiled from Statistical Reports of Distribution Encompassing the Three Major Outlets Coin Machines Retail Disks Retail Sheet Music as Published in the Current issue NOTE: The current comparative sales strength of the Artists and Tunes listed hereunder is arrived at under statistical system comprising each of the three major sales outlets en merated above. These findings are corf elated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive with Variety. The positions resulting from these findings denote the OVERALL IMPACT de- veloped from the ratio of points scored, two ways in the case of talent (coin machines, retail disks) and three ways iii the case of tunes (coin machines, retail disks, retail sheet music),. TALENT POSITIONS This Last Week Week ARTIST AND LABEL ROSEMARY CLOONEY (Columbia) . 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4 5 6 8 9 10 TUNE [Hey There *) This Ole House i fl Need You Now EDDIE FISHER (Victor) .... \ Count Your Blessings (Heaven Was Never Like This fSh-Bobm CREW CUTS (Mercury) ^ Oop-Shoop [Crazy ’Bout You, Baby DORIS DAY (Columbia) If I Give My Heart to You DON CORNELL (Coral), Hold lAy Hand RALPH MARTERIE (Mercury).. ... Skokiaan (Papa Loves Mambo ‘ " *'' * ’) Things 1 Didn’t Do PERRY COMO (Victor) POSITIONS This Last Week Week 1 2 3 8 9 10 1 2 3 7 6 10 8 BILL HALEY-COMETS (Decca) LES PAUL-MARY FORD (Capitol) VICTOR YOUNG (Decca) TUNES (♦ASCAP. fBMI) TUNE ♦HEY THERE . ♦IF I GIVE MY HEART TO YOU ♦I; NEED YOU NOW fTHIS OLE HOUSE ♦SKOKIAAN ♦HOLD MY HAND fSH-BOOM ♦PAPA LOVES MAMBO ♦HIGH AND THE MIGHTY fSHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL Shake, Rattle and Roll (Whither Thou Goest / I’m a Fool to 'Care High and the Mighty PUBLISHER Frank ........... Miller . Miller ........ Hamblen ,. Shapiro-B Raphael Hill & Range Shapiro-B Witmark essive Derby Records, indie New York disk label which recently was hit with a triple damages suit by a group of top publishers, has filed petition of bankruptcy in N. V; Federal Court. Liabilities were j, listed at $213,000 .With assets of $18,93.5. One claim of a $100,000 debt is made by a singer, Andy Castro, but'Derby is disputing thii claim. Larry Newton, head of Der- by Records, has now closed shop and disconnected the office tele- phone. Newton’s worries began a couple of months ago when attorney Jul- ian T. Abeles, in behalf of Harry Fox, publishers’ agent and trustee, filed suit against Derby,, charging that the diskery had not been, pay- ing publisher royalties on its plat- ter sales. Suit was part of a con- tinuing drive by : Fox’. arid Abeles, in behalf of the major publishers, against fly-by-nighters in the dustry. Clear Martin, Damone For MGM’s ‘Heart’ Album; Label’s Top Soundtrack Hollywood, Oct. 19. MGM Records made a deal for clearances for Tony Martin and Vic Damone last week to green- light what Will be the diskery’s biggest soundtrack album to date —the 12-inch LP packaging of “Deep In My Hearty the Sigmund Romberg biopic. RCA Victor okayed Martin’s album participa- tion and Mercury granted, a clear- ance for Damone. Others who’ll be heard on the platter are Jose Ferrer, who has done some Columbia recording with his wife. Rosemary Clooney, and ’is the; only other member of the cast in any way tied to a disk pact; Mme. Helen Traubel, Gene arid Fred Kelly, Jane Powell, Ann Miller, William Olvis and Howard Keel. Score will consist solely of Romberg melodies, nothing new having been added. Among them, however, will be several, which are not too well known and were writ- ten early in the composer’s pro- lific career. Indies Swing To 45 Cuffos Continued from page 119, 78s, so they order the 45s for their disk jockey service. It’s expected that by next year, the 45 rpm ebnyersion will be vir- tually completed. An Increasing number of stations are installing equipment for the slow speed plat-: ters, both 45 and 33; and the few outlets that opposed the switch in the first place ~are now yielding ground. As was originally pointed out by the major coriipaniesj the stations arid jockeys would have to come along if they wanted to play the current hits. ■ Explaining the switch of the indie Dot Records label to 45s, Randy Wood, head/Of the diskery, notified jockeys that the “action is necessary in view of the fact that we are unable to obtain -the 78 rpm records from any manufac- turer in the entire country.” — 1 Q Coast Deejay ‘Revolts’ Hollywood; Oct. 19. Mounting disk jockey resentment over 45 rpm disks broke out into the open when Larry Finley, KFWB deejay, angrily announced that the diskettes could stop send- ing him complimentary copies. of the seven-inch platters. Finley’s blowup came after “I had to offend 23 artists in the space of six hours by taking their records off because the quality was so poor that I wouldn’t play ’em.” Finley, whhse 54 hours bn the air reportedly make him the busi- est deejay in the country, contends the promotional disks sent out are of inferior quality and have a tend- ency. to warp on the turntable. “I don’t want any more of ’em,” Finley announced yeserday (Mon.) with an air. of • finality; “If the record Companies don’t Want to send me 78s, they don’t have to send me anything.” Deejay .pointed out that' he. gets, a total of about 60 new releases a week from the major companies. “Only about eight or 10 of therii are any good anyway,” he declared. “If necessary, I’ll go down to the corner store and buy what j need in 78 Speed.. It will only cost me about $10 per week and I’ll be giv- ing my listeners the best iri fidelity and I’ll avoid offending the artists. “The record companies can take it from here.” REMENIH'S CHI EXIT Chicago, Oct. 19. Tony Remenih, assistant to Chi- cago Tribune radio-tv editor Larry Welters, is leaving the daily .next month after .12 years lb join the Foladare, Greer & Bock public re- lations firm in Hollywood. His Chief function will be writing fea- tures for the radio-tv talent in the FG&B stable. John Fink takes over, the No. 2 [ spot on the Trib radio-tv desk. Lawrence-Lee’s ‘RR Hour’ Muslplays penned, by Jerome Lawrence and RobertLee for NBC’s “Railroad Hour” are being pub- lished in folio form by Harms, which plans to issue two Lawrence- Lee muSiplays a year. Kicking off the project is- “Annie Laurie,” a story of Robert Burns* Folio will be priced at $1,25. -Writing duo is due in New York this week from.the Coast enroute: to England where they’ll prowl a “singing Ronald Colman” for their upcoming legit musical; “Shangri- La,” which Courtney Burr arid John Byraris . will, produce; Latter is accompanying them to Europe. St. Louis Symplt’s 75th Season to Tee Oct. 23 St. Louis, Oct. 19. The 75th or diamond anniversary season of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra will tee off-in the Kiel municipal auditorium Oct. 23. Vladimir Golschmann will be en- tering his 24th season as. conductor, with Harry Fbrbriian'starting his 13th season as ebneertmaster and assistant maestro. Season will offer 26 guest artists, new faces including Grant Johan- neseri mid Maria Tipo,. pianists; Andres Segovia, guitarist; Oscar Shumsky, violinist; Shirley Russell, Ilona Kpmbrink and Helen Phil- . lips, sopranos, and David Lloyd, 1 t.erior. Hollywood, Oct. 19. Coast promoters who can afford to come up. with guarantees for big packages are feVv and far between, so the elements of the second Nor- man Granz touring concert of this season will be seen on the Coast as single attractions next ' month. Duke Ellington and the Dave Bru- beck and Gerry Mulligan quartets are due back here around Nov. 8 after the. extensive junket. They split up immediately. Ellington will play a one-niter in Fresno, Nov. 9 to launch a new gig trek. Brubeck plays Pomona Col- lege Nov. 10 and teams with Mulli^ gan for a one-nighter Nov. 12 in Stockton promoted by KXOB dee- jay George Westcott. Bi.ubeck then goes off on a series of dates and Mulligan comes back to town for a six-week location at the Haig, starting Nov. 161. MATP’ $8,600, Mpls. Minneapolis, Oct. 19. . Annual one-nighter engagement- of “Jazz at the Philharmonic” at the local Auditorium music hall section, for its exclusive Twi Cities’ appearance, resulted in $8,600 gross, about par for it here. The 5,700-seat house was scaled at $4 top. Col Adds New Package In ‘Confederacy’ Cantata Columbia Records is continuing: its splurge in the package field. Latest entry on Col’s slate is “The Confederacy,” ah original cantata by Richard Bales Which will be ped- dled with a 32-page bboklet oh the south penned by Bruce Catton arid Clifford Dowdey. The musical piece, whiph in- cludes popular Civil War themes, was etched on one 12-inch LP by Bales and the National Gallery