100 Years of Music

This year was a relief, because almost all the music I listened to was at least bearable. In previous years, there was always a good percentage of the music that I couldn't stand. There's so much variation in popular music now.

Everyone's still going on about the moon. Three songs on my favorites playlist this year are about the moon! When will the sun get any credit?

Porgy and Bess, the opera by George Gershwin, came out this year. Some consider it to be racist, others a big move forward in race relations. I'll stay out of that - it's just an innovative moment in music history. It was definitely interesting to hear the first version of Summertime, since I had only heard the later jazz remakes before. Originally "folk opera," since Gershwin wrote his own folk songs in opera style. The more you know!

Interesting footnote: this is the first year where I've seen a music artist go by a mononym (Ambrose). It's only been first and last names or multi-word nicknames before.

Standout Artists

The Dorsey Brothers

Favorites Playlist

Blue Moon - Glen Gray & the Casa Loma Orchestra. Beautiful, and so nice to sing along to. Everyone knows this song.

I've Got a Feelin' You're Foolin' - The Dorsey Brothers & Bob Eberly. The transitions from one part of this song to another are so satisfying. Wonderful harmonies, and the recording quality is great.

The Music Goes 'Round and Around - The Rhythm Rascals & Swing Rhythm Boys. Just a simple and fun song. There is nothing wrong with music being simple!

Roll Along, Prairie Moon - Red Allen and His Orchestra. Now that is a trumpet! The ending of this song will give you chills. He takes the style of Louis Armstrong and makes it just as exciting, if not more so.

I'm on a See-Saw - Ambrose. The first time I listened to this, I found it annoying. It grew on me and grew on me until it is now perhaps my favorite song of 1935. It's repetitive, but there's something about it that makes me need to listen to it on repeat.

I Wished on the Moon - Bing Crosby. Great intro. A beautiful, melancholy song.

Begin the Beguine - Cole Porter. Other best song of 1935! There were a lot of other instrumental songs like this one made around this time, but this is the real deal. It's a blank slate song, where you'll hear whatever emotion you're experiencing at the moment in it.

It's been a nice year! Not much to say about it. No big developments that I noticed, but no lack of good music either. Just another year of the '30s. I think I'll make this post as short as possible. One thing I must say is that my love for clarinets has only been growing and growing.

Cab Calloway's lost his marbles:

Here's Shirley Temple:

I know some people can't stand listening to Christmas music when it isn't winter, so that's why I put Winter Wonderland at the very end of my Favorites Playlist. It's just a lovely song!

Standout Artists

Fats Waller

The Mills Brothers

Favorites Playlist

All I Do Is Dream of You - Ray Noble and His Orchestra. This song has so many phases it goes through, and they're all good. Fun to sing along to!

Believe It, Beloved - Fats Waller. Such perfect lyrics! I think all popular music tries to find that perfect balance between catchy and clever, and Fats Waller has it down. I love the part where he scat-ifies the one word, making it completely unintelligible. Mercy!

Honeysuckle Rose - Fats Waller. This song has the feel of that wild blues from the early '20s.

What a Difference a Day Made - The Dorsey Brothers and Bob Crosby. Just beautiful. This is the song that I haven't been able to stop singing.

Flirtation Walk - Eddy Duchin and Lew Sherwood. This is from a musical with the same name. I know I've heard it before from somewhere, but I can't place it. It's  a bounce-as-you-walk kind of song.

Sleepy Head - The Mills Brothers. I like how absurdly slow this one is. As a warning, this might make you very sleepy. The Mills Brothers' voices are just so nice, and I love the responses from the guy who's supposed to be the sleepy head.

It seems to me that a lot of the music of this year was some kind of a reaction to the economic troubles of the time. A lot of songs were about how you don't need money to be happy. One of my favorite themes in music! Others, like The Gold Digger's Song (We're In the Money), let the listener fantasize about wealth. There was just a lot of singing about money in one way or the other.

Then there was a lot of ... mystery? I don't know how else to describe it. The moon, smoke, storms, nighttime. It seems to be related that musically, there was a push towards "exotic" sounds from East Asia, the Middle East, and all over the rest of the world. Prohibition ended this year, so maybe everyone was just drunk.

It was a pretty good year, but I liked a lot more songs than I loved. I did change my mind about Bing Crosby, though! He's really growing on me.

Standout Artists

Ray Noble & Al Bowlly

Bing Crosby

Eddie Cantor

Favorites Playlist

Forty Second Street - Hal Kemp & His Orchestra. A feel like a cool cat listening to this! So easy to dance to! I think it's interesting to hear the lyric "sexy ladies from the '80s," because, of course, he's talking about the 1880's. Soon we'll be in the '20s again and we'll have to refer specifically to the 1920's when talking about flappers.

We've Got the Moon and Sixpence - Ray Noble Orchestra and Al Bowlly. I suppose this song is inspired by this book, where a stockbroker abandons his family to pursue art. That's kind of a depressing plot, but this song doesn't come across that way at all! It's so uplifting - one of those beautiful songs about how you don't need money to be happy. The intro is exciting, too!

Happy as the Day Is Long - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra. I love the lyrics and how they're delivered.

Young and Healthy - Bing Crosby. He's full of that Vitamin A! I don't know about the message, but it's certainly catchy. YOLO of the '30s.

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes - Bob Lawrence and Paul Whiteman. Incredibly beautiful. I usually don't like singing with a lot of vibrato, but here it fits in perfectly.

Temptation - Bing Crosby. One of those mysterious songs of '33. I think the beginning is stronger than the rest of the song, but it's still great overall. Dark and beautiful.

Everyone, get out your timbrel and harp! Tomorrow will be my first major life event since I started this music journey. I'll be Baptized, Confirmed, and receive First Eucharist in the Catholic Church! Photos are pending.

1928: 2 songs. 1929: 2 songs. 1930: 5 songs. 1931: 4 songs. 1932: 2 songs.

Most Represented Artists

Paul Whiteman: 2 songs

Swing is here! And it don't mean a thing if you ain't got it. With swing music the emphasis is on the off-beat, and the bands (or orchestras?) have strong rhythm sections with the wind and brass free to be as jazzy as possible. It's very exciting.

The Depression has finally sunk in at this point, and not all the songs are about sunshine and joy. As evidence:

Thankfully, it seems like having no money somehow made people more creative. Since they didn't have as much money to go out, maybe they stayed in and made music? I wonder. Regardless, a lot of music this year was completely unique. One thing I'm happy about is that the standard way of ending a song (ba-dum-DUM), finally started to be replaced by more interesting outro's.

Standout Artists

No one in particular this year...

Favorites Playlist

It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra. I don't think I had ever heard this original version before, but it's got to be the best! Ivie Anderson does the vocals, and she has a great jazzy voice! The love the way this song ends, with a kind of crossfade.

Sailing on the Robert E. Lee - Al Bowlly with Ray Noble & His Orchestra. The drums in this song are so exciting! Well, the whole song is, but particularly the drums.

Hell's Bells - Art Kassel & His Orchestra. I'm sure a lot of people might find this song incredibly unpleasant to listen to, but I tend to really like jarring, alarming music. It's actually a pretty fun song.

I'll Never Have to Dream Again - Isham Jones. So beautiful! There were a whole lot of songs similar to this one in '32, but not as lovely and timeless.

Worrying You Off My Mind Part 1 - Big Bill Broonzy. Good, solid blues. I love the guitar.

There was a lot of the same this year - slow, emotional songs. Dream a Little Dream of Me came out, as well as some other well-known songs such as:

Of course this song is a huge classic, and I like the melody, but I honestly don’t understand the big fuss about Bing Crosby. Nothing special, in my opinion. Maybe I’ll change my mind as time goes on.

There were also a lot of these bizarre songs that feature this half-talking, half-singing vocal abomination:

The most exciting part of ‘31 was the blues! Cab Calloway and Skip James both made the most incredible, breathtaking blues I have ever heard in my life. Powerful, emotional, just amazing. This whole music journey will have been worth it just to discover these two artists.

To end on a hilarious note, what is this?

Standout Artists

Skip James

Cab Calloway

Favorites Playlist

St. James Infirmary - Cab Calloway. Wow. Not many people could pull off belting like that. Full of emotion, amazing delivery. It’s shocking, in the best way. The St. James Infirmary Blues has been recorded so many times before by other artists, but not like this!

When Yuba Plays the Rhumba on the Tuba - Rudy Vallée. Another goofy song about someone playing an instrument, along the same lines as Piccolo Pete from ‘29. It’s so fun!

Time On My Hands - Leo Reisman and His Orchestra. Here is one of those songs that seems to slow down time when you first hear it. If a song can be described as “sparkly,” this is it. Lee Wiley is the vocalist, and I just love the quiet way she sings here. 

Devil Got My Woman - Skip James. Otherworldly. I keep trying to describe this song, but it’s too overwhelming. It’s just the pinnacle of blues.

Hard Time Killin’ Floor Blues - Skip James. Here’s a song that was on O Brother, Where Art Thou? So, so beautiful. The guitar adds so much to his already perfect voice.

A new decade! Full of happiness, sunshine, and dancing! I guess this was the beginning of the Great Depression, but you wouldn't know it listening to the music of this year. JUBILATION! These songs are just full of simple messages and nonsense. It's a breakthrough. Full of life.

There was much jazzier singing this year than in years past. People really started doing bizarre things with their voices. Emphasizing the unimportant parts of words/sentences, way more scat singing, etc. At least it's fun compared to the operatic r-rolling of the past (which is finally going out of style, thank goodness).

In these posts I've been mentioning the things that are new as opposed to the things that keep going on, but I guess that's interesting too. There are still a million versions of each song coming out each year. I don't even think I can call them "cover songs," because it seems to just come out of a sheet music mentality. A lot of these songs actually were first released as sheet music, and then all the big stars and their bands recorded them in the same year or couple of years. I wonder when that will change.

Another observation, for not just this year but since 1927, is that a lot of the hit songs are from movies. I can’t imagine how exciting talkies were originally!

Okay, listen to this great Cuban song. It was in Breaking Bad.

Standout Artists

Ted Weems

Louie Armstrong

The Revelers

Favorites Playlist

Puttin’ on the Ritz - Harry Richman. On the Wikipedia page, John Mueller explains it way better than I ever could: the central device is the “use of delayed rhythmic resolution: a staggering, off-balance passage, emphasized by the unorthodox stresses in the lyric, suddenly resolves satisfyingly on a held note, followed by the forceful assertion of the title phrase.” Well, how about that!

Happy Days Are Here Again - Ben Selvin and His Orchestra. I think I’m lucky for being able to listen to this song without any of the political or alcohol-related connotations this song must have for older people (see Wikipedia page). I’m far removed from that time, so I just think it’s a great, uplifting song! Happy happy happy days!

I Got Rhythm - Red Nichols & His Five Pennies. This song is so fast! People must have gotten so out of breath dancing to this. A lot of rhythm changes.

The Man From the South  (With A Big Cigar in His Mouth) - Ted Weems. I can’t believe I like this dumb song. It’s just about a man from the south with a cigar in his mouth, with some dumb jokes thrown in the middle. It’s so much fun though! If my fiancé was a musician from 1930, this would be his song. I love you, Keaton!

Happy Feet - The Revelers. I love when the guy goes “brrrr.” You’ll hear it.

The Peanut Vendor - Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra. The original is the best version, I think, but I love Louis Armstrong’s take on this song. Replacing the original Spanish with scat singing is hilarious.

Livin’ in the Sunlight, Lovin’ in the Moonlight - Bing Crosby and Paul Whiteman. How incredible is the recording quality getting? How great is Bing Crosby’s voice? I love this time and its joyful music! Coffee’s only a dime!

It was a low-key year, but with some great songs! It seems as though there was a push towards slower, understated songs, but they're very artistic.

While blues had kind of been in a lull since '23, it had a bit of a resurgence this year.

So many love songs. So many songs about nighttime. This was the time for singing in the rain, tip-toeing through the tulips, and not misbehaving.

Standout Artists

Rudy Vallée

Ethel Waters

Favorites Playlist

Singin' in the Rain - Cliff Edwards. Certainly a song that everyone already knows! There's something so lovely about playing a ukulele in the rain. There were a lot of versions of this song released this year, but I like this one the best.

Piccolo Pete - Ted Weems. SO MUCH FUN. Easy to dance to, a bit of a novelty song. It's just a blast. Did you ever hear Pete go 'tweet tweet tweet' on his piccolo? No?

Moanin' Low - Libby Holman. There's an intro in the beginning of this song that I think is interesting to hear. The actual song begins at 0:19. I just love Libby Holman's exaggerated signing style. This is the first time I've heard a woman doing scat singing, too. It's an intentionally goofy blues song.

Am I Blue? - Ethel Waters. The lyrics aren't anything special, but Ethel Waters' voice is just unbelievable. 

Great Day - Paul Whiteman & His Orchestra. This song references a lot of Bible stories. The music gets jazzier halfway through, but it's exultant the whole way through. It is a great day!

Sweetheart of My Dreams - Rudy Vallée. This is just the simplest, most beautiful song, and it makes me feel like I'm dreaming.

Let's Do It, Let's Fall In Love - The Dorsey Brothers Orchestra. A little racey, but I like it! There are some racial slurs in the beginning, but I don't think it was meant to be offensive. It's a catchy song. 

Another Paul Whiteman year! He really was to the '20s what The Beatles were to the '60s. He just dominated the whole decade. It was a slow year besides the incredibly artistic songs he was making. If I'm learning anything about the music cycle through this project, though, that means that '29 will be amazing!

Some of the top hits from this year were from The Jazz Singer, the first movie with sound, but I'm not crazy about them. I think Al Jolson's earlier songs were stronger. This was also the time of the Show Boat musical. It was the first serious musical, as well as the first where black and white performers were on stage together. I wish I could have seen it on Broadway.

Helen Kane, the inspiration for Betty Boop, became a star this year. I cannot stand her voice whatsoever. What is this? Is that an actual human voice?

Also, there's this song. I was really getting into the rhythm, but then I heard the lyrics. "Just as happy as a cow chewing on a cud when the darkies beat their feet on the Mississippi mud." WHAT? We've really come a long way.

Overall though, there were lots of songs about flowers, the moon, birds, the sky. It was a romantic time. People were experimenting with more unusual harmonies too, so I'm excited for the upcoming years.

Standout Artists

Blind Willie Johnson

Favorites Playlist

Get Out and Get Under the Moon - Paul Whiteman. I could listen to this on repeat for hours! The excitement when the violins and singing start at the same time! The trumpets! The wonderful lyrics! Everyone should take this advice, too.

I'm On the Crest of a Wave - Paul Whiteman. I think Björk would love this song, since it really reminds me of her song Oceania. It's so cool how the singers scale up and down just like ocean waves. "Whoosh!"

Ol' Man River - Paul Whiteman & His Orchestra. This is one of the songs from Show Boat. It's just a celebration the whole way through! Paul Whiteman does the jazziest singing here.

Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning - Blind Willie Johnson. There is something about call-and-response songs that prevents you from not singing along. Blind Willie Johnson had so much soul. Get burning! 

1923: 1 song. 1924: 4 songs. 1925: 1 song. 1926: 3 songs. 1927: 4 songs.

Most Represented Artists

Paul Whiteman: 2 songs