Threaded Thursday: Pee Wee’s Pile of Hits

Picking up the thread from yesterday’s You Belong to Me, let’s spin a few more gems from the songwriting partnership of Pee Wee King and Redd Stewart — a duo who, almost accidentally, helped shape the sound of postwar American pop.

Waltz Whirls, Wanders & Wallops the World

We start in December 1947, when Pee Wee and his Golden West Cowboys cut Tennessee Waltz for RCA Victor, with Redd handling the vocal:

Released in early 1948, it became a solid country hit.

But here’s the twist: although Pee Wee’s version was the first released, it wasn’t the first recorded. That honor goes to Cowboy Copas, who laid down his King-label version earlier in 1947:

Both versions found an audience — but the song’s real explosion came a few years later.

Things take a fascinating turn in October 1950, when bandleader Erskine Hawkins recorded a version for Coral with vocalist Ace Harris:

It's surprisingly faithful to the waltz feel of the original. Quite lovely!

That was the record that apparently caught the ear of Jack Rael, manager of Patti Page, who recorded her version for Mercury in November 1950:

And then — boom!

Patti’s Tennessee Waltz, released as the B‑side to Boogie Woogie Santa Claus, became one of the biggest hits of all time. Once it took off, the covers came pouring in, and the song instantly entered the Great American Songbook.

My favorite remake? Sam Cooke’s 1964 RCA version:

A masterpiece — soulful and unmistakably Sam. This track, coupled with Good Times, was the last single release by Sam before his untimely death.

And here’s a fun brain‑itch: The song is called Tennessee Waltz, but it’s about a song called Tennessee Waltz. So… is the song they’re playing in the song the same song the singer is singing?

A little meta moment in Music City!

Retreat Rumbles, Rambles & Reigns Supreme

Next up is Bonaparte’s Retreat, credited solely to Pee Wee King. Pee Wee and Redd recorded it in October 1949, though oddly Redd didn’t get label credit for the vocal:

Released in 1950, it became another country hit.

But once again, the definitive pop breakthrough came from a powerhouse female vocalist — this time Kay Starr on Capitol:

A country/pop crossover tune is right in Kay’s wheelhouse and her version crossed over in a big way!

A particularly intriguing take came from drummer/bandleader Gene Krupa, with vocalist Bobby Soots, on RCA Victor:

It’s got that unmistakable "Chicago Jazz" snap, but Bobby’s vocal leans country. And I love that he sings the jazz band played “Bonaparte’s Retreat” — not fiddles!

This one is meta too, but in a different way: there is an old fiddle tune called “Bonaparte’s Retreat,” so inside the song, the fiddles are playing the "real" melody!

Slow Poke Pops, Percolates & Powers Up the Pop Parade

Now we arrive at the big one — the song Pee Wee didn’t have to surrender to a female pop star: 1951’s Slow Poke.

Let’s spin Pee Wee and Redd’s RCA Victor original:

I adore everything about this record — the tick‑tock beat, the sly vocal, the whole Western Swing vibe. I love it so much that I’m not especially fond of the many cover versions that followed.

But I do have a soft spot for the parody by my boys Homer & Jethro, also on RCA Victor:

That Shep Fields‑style bubbling intro… there has to be a reason for it beyond “funny sound effect,” but I haven’t cracked the code yet! Any thoughts?

Pee Wee and Redd weren’t done with Slow Poke themselves, though. They recorded a slightly revised version for the U.K. as Slow Coach on HMV:

“Slow coach” is a real British expression, and the title change avoided a possible double entendre.

And then there’s Slow Bloke, ostensibly recorded for Australia, but not released at the time:

Very intriguing! Both alternate versions have a subtly different feel, and Redd even tweaks the lyric — singing “Why can’t you hasten when you know that time’s a‑wastin’?” instead of “when you see that time’s a‑wastin’?” Hmmm...

Let’s slip in one more variation: Slow Poke Cha Cha, released by Pee Wee on the Todd label in 1959:

Sam Cooke was right — everybody likes to cha‑cha‑cha!

Convention Capers, Cut‑Ups & Cornball Comedy

To bring it all full circle, here’s Homer & Jethro again, with a quick take‑off on “Tennessee Waltz” from their 1962 album Homer and Jethro at the Convention:

A perfect little button.

Warehouse Whispers

Just like “You Belong to Me,” “Slow Poke” began with songwriter Chilton Price, whose original compositions were adapted by Pee Wee and Redd in exchange for co‑writer credit and publication. Chilton did the heavy lifting, but by all accounts she was satisfied with the arrangement — and with hits this big, the royalty checks must have been very friendly!

And as a bonus, here’s a video clip of Pee Wee and Redd performing Tennessee Waltz and You Belong to Me:

Not sure of the date, but hearing Redd sing You Belong to Me — a song they didn’t record during the original hit period — is a real treat.

OK, now I’m done!

Bonus 78s - It Happens Every Spring!

If you've seen the 1949 movie "It Happens Every Spring" or watched the trailer, you must have notice that it had a catchy title song, which was sung over the opening credits!

Well, said song was placed with all of the big record labels at the time, and they had some of their top artists record it. So, let's give 'em a listen!

Columbia Records had Frank Sinatra record it, backed by his usual collaborator Axel Stordahl:

Decca released this one by Dick Haymes with Gordon Jenkins:

And Capitol had Margaret Whiting with backing from Frank DeVol:

Those are three very talented singers and they all get outstanding arrangements. Stordahl, Jenkins and DeVol, all big band veterans, really knew what they were doing!

Next, we have former Benny Goodman vocalist Art Lund on the newish MGM Records label with Johnny Thompson (whom I don't know other than he backed Art Lund on several MGM records):

I like the vocal backing by The Crew Chiefs, who had formed with Glenn Miller's Army Air Force band, where they often backed Johnny Desmond!

RCA Victor issued the only big band version, by Freddy Martin and his Orchestra with a vocal from young Merv Griffin:

1949 was the same year that Merv recorded "I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts" with Freddy's band. I remember Merv joking about that being his only hit record!

In addition to those regular commercial releases, we also have a couple of 1949 versions from alternate sources!

The first is Kay Starr, who recorded it on a transcription disc:

Then we have what I've always thought of as the definitive version. It's by Spike Jones, who included it as the serious song on the June 25, 1949 broadcast of his show, sung by Dick Baldwin:

I knew the song from that LP release, which I listened to over and over before I had ever seen the movie!

OK, now I really have spring fever!

1940s Christmas Playlist - Part 18 - "December"

Still in 1949, our Christmas music playlist includes the song that might get my vote for the most underrated Christmas song ever: "December" by the team of Al Rinker and Floyd Huddleston.

Floyd recorded the song as soloist with a chorus and orchestra led by Gordon Jenkins for Decca Records:

I think that's just a terrific song and I've always been surprised that there was apparently only this one commercial recording of it back then.

The version that I first was aware of and am most familiar with is by Kay Starr. Hers was also from 1949, but was recorded for Standard Transcriptions, which provided records for radio stations that couldn't be purchased in stores.

I first encountered on a CD back in 1990:

I'm always on the lookout for new-to-me vintage Christmas music, which was harder to find in those dark, pre-internet days and that CD was a fun little item, with Kay Starr's track worth the price of admission on its own! An instant favorite of mine!

That particular track has been anthologized quite a bit since 1990.

Interestingly, the backup is by the Billy Butterfield Quintet, but Billy does not play trumpet on the track. The backing vocal group is Three Beaus and a Peep, a fun name reminiscent of Six Hits and a Miss!

I think Kay Starr was great and could sing any kind of material. Like most of the other singers of the post-WWII period, she had experience as band singer, even cutting a couple of sides with Glenn Miller when she was 17!

"December" is kind of a generic title, but at some point it dawned on me that the song was the same as a track on Jackie Gleason's 1967 album "'Tis the Season" on Capitol Records:

How sweet it is!

I guess I had heard that before Kay Starr's version, but without knowing the words, I didn't make the connection right away.

Anyway, once the internet came along, I discovered the Gordon Jenkins record at some point and was happy to see that Floyd Huddleston got the chance to record his song! (These things really do make me happy!)

Al Rinker, the cowriter, is an interesting show biz character. He was pals with Bing Crosby back in Spokane and they had a singing act. Al's older sister, the great singer Mildred Bailey, was working with Paul Whiteman's band and got them an audition with Whiteman in 1925. They teamed with Harry Barris to form the Rhythm Boys and were popular with the band, setting the stage for Bing's superstar solo career!

If you could "George Bailey" Al Rinker into never having been born, would Bing Crosby never have become a star? Hmmm...

Back to "December," there have been a ton of other songs with that title, but the only other version of the song in question I've run across is on the excellent 2017 album "It's Christmas Time Again" by Christian singer Charles Billingsley:

He gets the vibe right, which is somewhat rare for a contemporary artist tackling vintage material!

Back to Floyd Huddleston, he co-wrote another, even less-known Christmas song, "I've Got the Christmas Spirit," recorded by former Sammy Kaye vocalist Don Cornell for Coral in 1952:

I do like these little unknown gems!