We're still in 1950 with "Jingle Bells," but as Artie Shaw was experimenting with newish music, the Firehouse Five Plus Two was doing decidedly the opposite!
Here they are with their take on "Jingle Bells":
One thing I will say, their record label being named Good Time Jazz is truth in advertising!
The group was made up of members of Walt Disney's animation department who used to play Dixieland music as a hobby, then realized they were pretty good and turned professional!
Here's s fun clip of them performing "Jingle Bells" while ostensibly at work:
Walt actually approved of the band, but insisted they never quit their day jobs, as they were invaluable to the studio.
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| Ward Kimball at work! |
Leader/trombonist and pianist Frank Thomas in particular were brilliant animators, part of Disney's "Nine Old Men" who anchored the animation staff for years.
I really enjoy their records, as I dig intentionally corny music and they sound like they're having a blast!
This was the first record I had by them, way back in the day:
I think that's just awesome with the siren and all!
The flipside is "The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise" as an instrumental, but Gene Lockhart would still have gotten royalties:
The banjo that opens the record really puts me in mind of the Les Paul and Mary Ford recording from a year later. Was Les possibly influenced by the Firehouse Five Plus Two?
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