Threaded Thursday: Waltzing and Swinging with Cinderella

Following yesterday’s tune, When a Prince of a Fella Meets a Cinderella, we keep the thread going with what might be the fella’s reply — the charming 1938 waltz Cinderella (Stay in My Arms).

British Beginnings

The song comes from British songwriters Jimmy Kennedy and Michael Carr, and it first appeared on record that same year courtesy of Joe Loss on Regal Zonophone, with the velvet‑voiced Chick Henderson:

Very lovely!

Ambrose Takes a Turn with Vera

Another major British bandleader, Ambrose, also took a shine to the tune in 1938. His Decca version features longtime star vocalist Vera Lynn:

It’s interesting that the lyrics weren’t gender‑flipped for Vera — perhaps the rewrite would have felt too clunky on the tongue.

Vera's Verse

Even more interesting: Vera recorded another version, in 1939, again for Decca, this time backed by The Six Debutantes:

This one includes the middle verse, which clarifies that Vera is quoting the fella’s plea to Cinderella rather than addressing Cinderella herself. A neat little narrative pivot tucked inside a pop waltz.

Glenn and Ray Crash the Ball

By 1939 the tune had crossed the Atlantic, and American bands began picking it up. Glenn Miller recorded it for Bluebird with Ray Eberle:

The Miller band was really hitting its stride here — and Glenn even steps forward with a pair of warm, confident trombone solos.

Jack Joins the Party

Of course, Glenn’s trombone was no match for the great Jack Teagarden, who both plays and sings his own version for Brunswick:

By this point the song has been fully de‑waltzed, but what a joyful, easygoing record it becomes in Jack’s hands.

Paula Brings the Pep

We return to a female vocalist with this Vocalion side by Al Donahue featuring Paula Kelly:

Paula really swings it — light on her feet, but with a little kick.

Carmen Cuts In

And for variety, here’s one more version that restores the tune to its waltz roots: Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians, with brother Carmen Lombardo on the vocal, for Decca:

It says something about a song when both Jack Teagarden and Carmen Lombardo can sing it as though it were tailor‑made for them!

Final Footnote: A Dance Card Full of Charmers

Cinderella has met a lot of fellas — and a few gals — along the way. Which version waltzes (or swings) its way into your heart?

"One Night in the Tropics" (1940)

Now that we're in the new year, I'm changing direction a tiny bit!

I've been enjoying matching up the movie sheet music with contemporary recordings and I'll still do that, but I'm going to focus on the films of Bud Abbott & Lou Costello!

Fans know that their early films featured a lot of musical numbers, which some modern viewers don't like. I do, though!

I'll also be talking about their non-musical movies as they come up.

So, let's begin with "One Night in the Tropics" from Universal in 1940, the team's movie debut!

The boys are supporting players in this one, proving the comedy relief and they are awesome!

The rest of the movie when they're not onscreen is a little clunky, but entertaining enough.

Allan Jones with Nancy Kelly

As a musical, its strongest point is Allan Jones, who had moved over from MGM to Universal.

He does most of the singing, but the non-singing female leads, Nancy Kelly and Peggy Moran, lip-synch to some dubbed vocals.

The songs are by no less than esteemed composer Jerome Kern with lyrics by the talented Dorothy Fields, but non of hem really went anywhere.

But we do have some records!

First up is Sammy Kaye with Tommy Ryan singing "You and Your Kiss" on Victor Records:

I say it all the time, but that's so Sammy Kaye!

Also on Victor is Leo Reisman's version of "Remind Me" with vocalist George Griffin:

Nice rumba (rhumba?) beat there!

Guy Lombardo is always popping up and he cut "Your Dream (Is the Same as My Dream)" with Mert Curtis on Decca:

As I mentioned, "One Night in the Tropics" is pleasant but not overly memorable unless Bud and Lou are on-screen.

Rounding out the attractive cast is Robert Cummings as the other male lead who looks about the same as he did years later on his 1950s sitcom.

Also on board is William Frawley, who looks like he did on "I Love Lucy" years later.

The difference is that Bob looks young and Bill already looks old!

So, we're off to a good start!

Bonus Song - "(There Ought To Be A) Moonlight Saving Time" (1931)

                                                   

As we're now fully into Daylight Saving Time, I'm reminded of a popular song from 1931 that puts a fun spin on the concept: "(There Ought To Be A) Moonlight Saving Time."

There were a zillion versions of the song when it was published in 1931, but the most popular was by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians on Columbia Records with brother Carmen on the vocal:

It seems like Guy Lombardo's always in the mix when we're listening to early to mid-1930s songs!

Hal Kemp recorded another popular version of the song for Brunswick Records with a vocal by Skinnay Ennis and some snappy trumpet from Jack Purvis:

Such a song really suits the Kemp/Ennis combination, or is it the other way around?

Before leaving 1931, we'll jump over to England for this version by Ambrose and his Orchestra with vocalist Sam Browne on the His Master's Voice label:

That's a great arrangement! I like those Ambrose records a lot!

There were several other contemporary recordings of "Moonlight Saving Time," but I don't think that co-writer Harry Richman recorded it, despite having other records out around that time.

Then I don't think anyone recorded the song at all in the 1940s, but it made something of a comeback in the 1950s.

I like this one from Ray Anthony from 1952 with Marcie Miller and the Skyliners on Capitol:

We'll sneak in one more version, this one from Jackie Gleason's 1956 album "Music for Lovers Only," also on Capitol:

Gorgeous trumpet from Bobby Hackett on that one!

I would definitely vote to replace Daylight Saving Time with Moonlight Saving Time!

"Winter Wonderland" - Part 3 - The Revival!

So, we heard a bunch of versions of "Winter Wonderland" from the song's initial period of popularity that followed its publication in 1934.

It seems that the song was then largely forgotten, as is the case with most popular songs of the day, as new songs came along. It certainly was a long way from becoming the perennial seasonal standard that it's become.

In fact, I don't the song was recorded for another ten years or so after 1935, but it came back in a big way after WWII was over.

For some reason (maybe post-war audiences were nostalgic?), 1946 saw three new popular versions of "Winter Wonderland" on major labels!

Leading the way was Johnny Mercer on Capitol Records. We heard it back here, but let's listen again:

Nice, mellow vibe from Johnny with the Pied Pipers and Paul Weston's orchestra.

Perry Como had the swingiest take on the song on RCA Victor, which we first heard back here, but it's definitely worth another listen:

That's probably my favorite vintage version. I like how the Satisfiers are billed right up there with Perry!

Decca Records also got in on the act with the original "Winter Wonderland" hit-maker, Guy Lombardo, teamed with the Andrews Sisters:

This was the flipside of "Christmas Island," making for a popular record.

I think the Lombardo band sounds less Lombardo-ish here, giving a nice background for the Sisters.

They include the rarely heard verse in the middle, which is fun!

With these three records all selling well and the business of seasonal records getting bigger and bigger, "Winter Wonderland" was on its way to becoming a seasonal perennial!

RCA Victor was back in 1947 with Sammy Kaye's recording as part of the ten-inch album "Year 'Round Favorites":

That's old school "Swing and Sway" with the singing song title at the beginning and vocalist introduction by Sammy in the middle!

Also in 1947, as we heard here, the small Signature label released a great version by Johnny Long and his Orchestra with vocalist Francey Lane:

Love it!

It took a couple of years for the other major record label, Columbia, to get with the program, but in 1949 they released this fine version by Buddy Clark:

Good backing from the Girl Friends and Ted Dale's orchestra.

This was paired with "Merry Christmas Waltz" and was also recorded at Buddy's last studio date.

Lots of good music in the post-war Winters!

"Winter Wonderland" - Part 1 - The Beginning!

Now that we're done with "Jingle Bells" (for now), I thought I would turn my attention to some other holiday/seasonal songs in between Scrooge-related content.

Let's get started with "Winter Wonderland!"

The song was introduced in 1934, a time when there were really no new seasonal songs. We know "Jingle Bells" was still being recorded, but that was about it until "Winter Wonderland" with words by Dick Smith and music by Felix Bernard came along.

Those songwriters are not well-known except for this one song.

Lyricist Dick Smith

I don't know if Dick Smith wrote any other songs that were recorded, but Felix Bernard did co-compose the 1919 hit "Dardanella," if nothing else of note.

Both had untimely passings, Smith in 1935 and Bernard in 1944, neither seeing their song grow into the the huge seasonal standard it eventually became.

The first recorded version of "Winter Wonderland" was by Richard Himber and his Ritz-Carlton Orchestra with vocalist Joey Nash. Nash had apparently discovered the song and had sang it on the radio with the Himber band prior to recording it at the tail end of a Himber recording session.

Here's that first version on Victor Records:

Sounds good in that "hotel band" style so popular in those just-slightly-pre-swing-era days! I always like the sub-tone clarinet!

I don't think the Himber record made any splash at all, but another popular band came right along to make the song a hit...

The extremely popular Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians cut their version for the new Decca label:

The Lombardo recording was very popular and, to me, represents the band in its element, when its style was most popular and Guy's brother Carmen was leading the vocal trio with his very distinctive voice.

As referenced on the label of the Lombardo record, at some point "Winter Wonderland" made it into the 1934 Ziegfeld Follies. Flo Ziegfeld had died in 1932, but his widow Billie Burke attempted to revive the franchise, with her name noted on the sheet music seen at the top of the page.

Another popular version from 1934 was by Ted Weems and his Orchestra featuring singer Parker Gibbs on Columbia Records:

That's a pretty jaunty version and you have to dig the blue shellac!

Freddy Martin and his Orchestra also cut a version in 1934 with pianist Terry Shand on the vocal for Brunswick Records:

Freddy Martin's band wasn't as established as those of Guy Lombardo and Ted Weems at the time, so his version is more obscure, but it's good!

Those bands were all very popular, but the name Angelo Ferdinando, cool as it is, is way more obscure. He did, however, cut some sides with his Hotel Great Northern Orchestra for Bluebird Records, including another 1934 version of "Winter Wonderland":

The vocalist on that record is the prolific studio singer Dick Robertson, who remains well-known to 1930s music buffs, but by no means the general public!

Another busy studio vocalist of the time was Chick Bullock, who in addition singing with various orchestras was sometimes the leader, such on this 1934 recording of "Winter Wonderland" on the Perfect label:

The Levee Loungers has a ring to a it!

I think Chick's record is the only one at the time to have to include a vocal of the verse. Some of the other records have the band play a bit of it, but since Chick is the leader, he gets more room to spread out vocally than the band singers.

Records such as Chick Bullock's were issued on various labels from the American Record Corporation line in addition to Perfect (Banner, Melotone, Conqueror, etc.) and sold at five and dime stores for a lower price than those on the big labels, not a bad idea considering the Depression.

Chick was a great singer and employed a lot of great backing musicians, so the product was as good as anything on the major labels!

Also on the Perfect (and others) label was another 1934 version of "Winter Wonderland," this one by the Marimba Novelty Orchestra, which was led by xylophone/marimba player Joe Greene:

I don't know who the vocalist is on this one, but he sounds typical for the time. I do like the marimba!

I think those are all the American versions from 1934, so the song was off to a good start!

Next: We go across the pond!

Bonus - New Year's Eve!

Still in a 1940s mood, let's celebrate New Year's Eve with a handful of 78s!

To ring in the 1940s, we start off at the end of 1939 with this typically idiosyncratic (in a good way) cut from the Raymond Scott Quintet on Columbia Records:

Always fun!

Of note is that the tricky trumpet part is played by Russ Case, later a prominent arranger/conductor for RCA Victor, working a lot with Perry Como.

Next up is Bing Crosby with another song from Irving Berlin's score for "Holiday Inn" on Decca:

Fun that Bing's brother Bob provides the backing with his band!

Leader Kay Kyser (right) introduces singer Harry Babbitt.

We jump ahead to 1947 for Kay Kyser's version of Frank Loesser's "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve" featuring Harry Babbitt on Columbia:

That's my favorite recording of that song. I'm always partial to big bands and Harry Babbitt might be my favorite band vocalist, having recorded a ton of great work with the Kyser band.

Another vocal group name to make me feel retro-smart is the Campus Kids. Kay Kyser's popular radio show was The Kollege of Musical Knowledge" so I get it!

I understand that Frank Loesser didn't think this song should be played at New Year's as the point is that the singer is jumping the gun with the title question. But, it does give a lot of people a chance to hear it every year, which can't be said of most 75-or-so-year-old songs!

Spike hopes his earmuffs block Doodles Weaver's "singing!"

We move to 1948 for the flipside of the massive Spike Jones hit "All I Want for Christmas (Is My Two Front Teeth) on RCA Victor:

I love that record! Having listened to so many Spike Jones recordings and radio shows, I feel like I actually know Sir Fredrick Gas, George Rock and Doodles Weaver, so I really enjoy hearing their resolutions!

Doodles really crams a lot in there!

And it's not a 1940s New Year without Guy Lombardo, is it? So here's the Royal Canadian's 1947 Decca record of "Auld Lange Syne":

Now, on to 2022...

1940s Christmas Playlist - Part 23 - "Merry Christmas Waltz" (1949)

Our 1940s Christmas music playlist certainly includes some songs that have more or less slipped through the cracks and we have another one today: "Merry Christmas Waltz."

This one did get a couple of recordings at the time, including this gem from Buddy Clark on Columbia Records:

This was one of the last songs recorded by Buddy Clark, who tragically passed away in a plane crash on October 1, 1949, about a month after the recording date.

Capitol also got in on the tune with Gordon MacRae:

I think Buddy Clark and Gordon MacRae offer an interesting contrast in their vocals.

Buddy, to me, is kind of conversational and sounds like what a normal person would sound like if said normal person had a really great voice. Gordon also had a great voice, but sounds like a singer, you know?

We have one more recording of "The Merry Christmas Waltz" from 1949, this one on Decca from the ubiquitous Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians:

That is full-on Lombardo, which must have seemed so dated to anyone with even the slightest amount of hipness in 1949!

I think Kenny Gardner was a good vocalist. He can't compete with Buddy Clark or Gordon MacRae, but he goes along with the schmaltz instead of fighting it!

I don't think RCA Victor had a recording of "Merry Christmas Waltz" for whatever reason, but they did have society pianist/bandleader Larry Green cut a competing 1949 song, "Our Christmas Waltz":

That's pleasant, but not a lot of oomph.

Decca also got out a version of "Our Christmas Waltz" by country superstar Red Foley with Judy Martin:

Same song, totally different style. Larry Green and Red Foley weren't competing for the same gigs!

I feel I must point out that while Red sings "Our Christmas waltz," Green Vocalist Ray Dorey sings "The Christmas Waltz." Was there a reason?

The smaller Rondo label also got out a version that wouldn't be confused with either of the other two. It features star organist Ken Griffin with vocalists Karen Ford and Bill Snary:

The organ certainly gives it a holiday vibe. And this uses both "our" and "the" in there!

If we jump back a year to 1948, there was a different song titled "The Christmas Waltz" and think it got just one recording, which was by country artist Cliffie Stone on Capitol:

That's very nice too and pairs well with Red Foley's record.

None of these songs went anywhere, but a Christmas waltz song finally broke through in 1954 with Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne's "The Christmas Waltz" recorded by Frank Sinatra on Capitol:

Frank re-recorded it a couple of times and several other artists have also recorded it, so Christmas waltzing goes on!

Let's sneak in one more unique recording, this one also titled "Merry Christmas Waltz," by Gene Autry on Columbia in 1955:

Nice tune and rare non-novelty holiday offering from Gene!

1940s Christmas Playlist - Part 7 - "Christmas Island" (1946)

Still in 1946 with our Christmas music playlist, we come across a semi-standard - "Christmas Island!"

This song is not nearly as well-known as something like "White Christmas," but there have been enough versions over the years to keep it from obscurity.

It was introduced on a Decca record teaming up two of the label's most popular artists: The Andrews Sisters and Guy Lombardo:

You know right from the start that it's Guy Lombardo's Royal Canadians playing and you can't mistake the sound of the Andrews Sisters, so a listener in 1946 didn't even need to look at the label to know who was on this record!

I've had a copy of the 78 for I don't even know how long and always thought it was a fun song. Back in those days it was hard to find out anything about anything, but I later did learn that it was a popular release.

I confess that back in the day I was somewhat annoyed by the corny and dated-even-by-1946 Lombardo sound, but years later I find it sort of charming!

For whatever reason, the other big labels (RCA Victor, Columbia, Capitol) didn't have any of their artists record the song at that time, which was often the case, so I don't know how it wound up at Decca.

The only other version I can find that I think is contemporary (probably 1947) is on the small Coast Records label by Jack McLean and his Orchestra:

That label just screams period charm! And Down Melody Lane with Jack McLean? I'm in!

The band certainly has a Lombardo sound to it and from hearing the other occasional Jack McLean records, it was definitely a sweet band.

We had actually run into vocalist Wayne Gregg back in 1936, singing with the Riley-Farley band. Wayne was with the McLean band when they cut some early Capitol records back in 1942, so if he was still with them in 1947, it must have been a pretty good gig!

Anyway, for some reason, "Christmas Island" had a mini-revival as a country-tinged song in 1950, with a couple of new recordings.

Here's the Dinning Sisters with country singer Bob Atcher on Capitol Records:

They definitely go for a more tropical vibe, but Bob Atcher has a singing cowboy sound, yet it works!

Interesting to see the sisters' names all spelled out on the label instead of as "The Dinning Sisters," especially if they were Capitol's answer to the Andrews Sisters!

For even more of a country feel, superstar Ernest Tubb recorded the song for Decca:

I cannot tell you how much I love that the female backing vocal group is named the Troubadettes! See, I'm well aware that Ernest Tubb was nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, so I totally get it!

It may seem like an odd song choice for E.T. to record, but it somehow suits him!

The song has been recorded here and there over the years and even served as the title track on holiday albums by Leon Redbone and Jimmy Buffet, who have their own fan bases to keep the song alive. Bob Dylan even cut a version!

Jimmy Buffet included the seldom-heard verse on his version, but I think the earliest to do so was British singer Dickie Valentine in 1956 on British Decca:

I like Dickie Valentine's Christmas records, which were apparently very popular in England, but perhaps not issued in the U.S. back then?

Note to self: I feel like I'm using the word "version" too much. Where's editor Slugger?

"Jingle Bells" - Part 23 - More Decca!

We're back with Decca Records for a couple of renditions of "Jingle Bells" from a couple of the most popular "sweet" bands from back in the day, each of which had a multi-record Christmas album in the early 1950s.

First up is Fred Waring and his Pennsylvanians with an epic two-sided version of "Jingle Bells" from 1950:

That's really something! The Pennsylvanians get a workout!

Fred Waring was popular on the radio for a long time, but interestingly did not make recordings for a decade or so starting in the early 1930s, as he apparently did not want his records to be played on the radio, thus competing with his live performances.

Guy Lombardo, however, kept recording with his Royal Canadians all the while, selling millions of records!

Here's their take on "Jingle Bells" from a 1952 album:

That's a more typical version of "Jingle Bells" - short and literally sweet! The Sweetest Music This Side of Heaven, in fact!

And could Decca have possibly put you-know-what as the flipside of this record? Oh, yes:

Fred Waring and Guy Lombardo both appealed to a large segment of the listening audience and their records serve as reminders that the Big Band Era wasn't just Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey all the time!

Christmas 1945 - Part 1 - The Records

Since we landed in 1945 with "The Fireside Book of Christmas Stories," I'm not going to leave for a while!

So, here's a look at some of the notable Christmas records from 1945!

We start off with a cut from Dick Haymes, outstanding crooner of the 1940s who had previously sung with the bands of Harry James, Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey - as solid a resumé as anyone!

This is the only recording of this song of which I'm aware:

I think this was recorded in 1944 but released in 1945, so close enough!

Of note is that Ken Darby and Victor Young performed similar roles on both this record and Ronald Colman's adaptation of "A Christmas Carol," also on Decca Records.

Bob Wills fiddles while Tommy Duncan strums.

Christmas of 1945 was significant as it followed the end of WWII. A time for celebration indeed, but this record from Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys shows a different side:

Bob Wills had a great band and singer Tommy Duncan was one of the best Western Swing vocalists ever!

I think this next record is one of those rare gems you come across every now and again.

It's by Mark Warnow, who was leading the orchestra on the "Your Hit Parade" radio show, and vocalist Dick Todd who was also featured on that show. We throw in the fun B-side as well, as it contains a snappy version of "Jingle Bells":

I think that's just great!

Dick Todd was from Montreal and was sometimes called the Canadian Crosby, because he kind of sounded like Bing. I think he does, but I think he sounds even more like Bob Crosby, Bing's brother!

This next record is interesting as the label implies that it's a band led by legendary songwriter Hoagy Carmichael. I don't think of him as a bandleader and I don't know what his contribution to the record other than composing the song would be. Did he play piano on the recording? It's good, though:

Singer Martha Mears is an interesting personality as she did a ton of voice dubbing in the 1940s for actresses who were not as capable in the singing department!

Nice to hear her as herself!

None of the pop songs from above really went anywhere, but I think they all had merit.

This next record didn't become a standard, but it was a huge hit on the Country (then called "Folk") charts. Here's singing cowboy Tex Ritter:

At this point in time, there still wasn't a flood of holiday releases each year, but some standbys did get recorded.

"White Christmas" was only three years old, but already a standard. Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians gave it their typical treatment. I see sources that indicate this record was from 1946, but "Billboard" reviewed it in 1945, so here we go:

So totally square, but not unpleasant! Guy Lombardo was really popular for a really long time!

Far more hip (hep?) is this treatment of "Jingle Bells" by the Slam Stewart Quintet:

Great work from Slam, formerly of Slim & Slam of "Flat Feet Floogee/Flat Foot Floogie" fame, and a stellar group including vibraphone master Red Norvo. Love Slam's humming along while bowing!

Frank Sinatra with Axel Stordahl

Frank Sinatra had preceded Dick Haymes in both the Harry James and Tommy Dorsey bands and they and other former band vocalists were making strong inroads by 1945, crowding out the bands.

Frank had this nice double-sided record of Christmas carols, which I think are from 1945? It should be easier to tell. I like 'em so here they are:

Very nice with the usual outstanding musical direction of Axel Stordahl, who had worked with Sinatra in the Dorsey band.

So, so some good new records for listeners to enjoy while spending the holidays with their loved ones in 1945!

In retrospect, there was a song published in 1945 that became a Seasonal/Holiday standard.

We'll check it out next!