Gale Storm.

Josephine Owaissa Cottle (April 5, 1922 – June 27, 2009), known professionally as Gale Storm, was an American actress and singer. After a film career from 1940 to 1952, she starred in two popular television programs of the 1950s, My Little Margie and The Gale Storm Show. Six of her songs were top ten hits. Storm's greatest recording success was a cover version of "I Hear You Knockin'," which hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1955.

1. I Hear You Knocking

2. My Happiness

3. Brazil

4. Tired

5. Goody Goody

6. That's My Desire

1. Memories Are Made Of This

2. You Can't Be True Dear

3. Sweet Georgia Brown

4. Teenage Prayer

5. Music Music Music

6. The Three Bells

      3. Sweet Georgia Brown

Britxotica...VA

Here's a strange compilation I didn't know we Brits did Exotica !!...but its a great fun record with some great rare tracks....I should think !!

1. African Waltz......Lyn Cornell

2. Jungle Drums......Ted Heath & His Band

3. Poinciana......Allan Bruce

4. Bahama Rumba......Rawicz & Landauer

5. Follow Me......Lucille Mapp

6. Taboo......Sounds Incorporated

7. Run Joe......Nadia Cattouse

8. Street Of A Thousand Bongo's......Brian Fahey

1. Zambezi......Tony Mansell

2. Ritual Blues......Reg Owen

3. The Green Eye Of The Little Yellow God......Harry H Corbett

4. Take My Lips......Laurie Johnson & His Orchestra

5. A Night Of Adventure......Edmundo Ros

6. Cha Cha Cha Calypso......Maxine Daniels

7. Cerveza......Cherry Wainer

8. The Hat......Jerry Allen

      2. Jungle Drums

Ralph Hermann & The Medallion Concert Band.

Here's a very unusual L/P it does evoke pictures of what the titles are all about... that is the sound effects go well with the music !...and once again the Stereo is pretty good...definitely music for listening to and not as background music !!!

Ralph Hermann      

              Ralph Hermann (February 9, 1914 – July 28, 1994) was an American composer and conductor. He also used the pseudonym Richard Hale. Hermann worked as head of the music department of the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) since 1952 until his retirement in 1971.   

     4. The Teddy Bears Picnic

        5. In A Persian Market

The Decca Audition...The Beatles.

The two posts below record the early efforts of the big band singers of the 40's & 50's so we move to 1962 1st of January to be precise to some early "Beatles".....and you can hear how much they improved in the years after Jan 1962....There is quite a lot of info about that recording date !!!

I recon that Columbia, HMV, Pye, Philips, and Oriole would have been kicking themselves about the missed opportunity !!

The English rock band the Beatles auditioned for Decca Records at Decca Studios in West Hampstead, north London, on 1 January 1962. They were rejected by the label, who instead opted to sign a contract with Brian Poole and the Tremeloes. The audition was recorded, and five of the songs—"Searchin'", "Three Cool Cats", "The Sheik of Araby", "Like Dreamers Do" and "Hello Little Girl"—were officially released on the Beatles rarities compilation Anthology 1 in 1995.

Manager Brian Epstein met with record companies in London to secure a record contract for the Beatles and was rejected by many, including Columbia, HMV, Pye, Philips, and Oriole. After Epstein had meetings with both EMI and Decca at the start of December 1961, Decca A&R executive Mike Smith travelled to Liverpool to see the Beatles perform at the Cavern Club, and was impressed enough to ask Epstein to bring the band down to London for a test in Decca's recording studios, scheduled for 1 January 1962.

Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Pete Best arrived at the audition, formally known as a "commercial test" to be headed by Mike Smith with Decca staff, on 1 January 1962 at 10 a.m.  At the audition, the Beatles performed songs hand-picked by Epstein.

At the time, the standard procedure for a test of this type was to record between two and five songs and then quickly usher the artists out of the studio. However, the Beatles ended up recording fifteen songs, and the recording session was extended after a lunch break into the afternoon. This could suggest that, if offered a deal, their first single and perhaps others would have been taken from the resulting tape.

About a month later, Decca rejected the Beatles. The executives felt that "guitar groups are on the way out" and "the Beatles have no future in show business". Some music historians have suggested, however, that their work that day did not yet reflect their true potential, and the "guitar" comment may have been intended as a polite let 

down.

Sale of audition tape

The original safety master tape the group recorded at Decca's London studios was sold by auctioneers the Fame Bureau in December 2012 to a Japanese collector for £35,000. A spokesman for the auctioneers said at the time: "The tape went to a Capitol Records executive after the Beatles signed with EMI. He sold it to the current owner who was one of the top buyers for Hard Rock Cafe but it was for his own personal collection." The authenticity of the tape sold remains debatable among experts, however, as the tape of the audition contains 15 songs and the tape auctioned has only 10. Additionally, the auction recording is on Ampex tape, which was not in use in 1962. It has not been firmly ascertained if the original master tape recorded by Decca on 1 January 1962 is in the possession of the Beatles' Apple Corps Ltd.

                                     (All Info Edited From Wikipedia)

      11. September In The Rain

The Essence Of Jazz Vocals 1...VA

Here is the first 22 tracks of Jazz Vocals that feature singers who before they entered a solo singing career sang with some famous swing & jazz bands of the day...as you can see there are some classy singers featured just at the start of their fame also featured are some of the great jazz bands so if you like the 30's & 40's Jazz Sounds have a listen to this selection !!! 

The second 22 tracks feature singers and bands from the 50's and maybe the 60's

      1. It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing

       10. Georgia On My Mind

The Essence Of Jazz Vocals.2...VA

And with a click of the fingers we have the second 22 tracks of some great singers !!

       3. Its Alright With Me

       12. This Heart Of Mine

1001 Songs.Part 11...VA

Music from the 60's are still with this selection so enjoy the memories !!

1. Oh Happy Day......Edwin Hawkins Singers.

2. The Israelites......Desmond Dekker.

3. Wichita Lineman......Glen Campbell.

4. I Heard It Through The Grapevine......Marvin Gaye.

5. America.....Simon & Garfunkel.

6. Ain't Got No Life (I Got Life)......Nina Simone.

7. Piece Of My Heart......Big Brother & The Holding Company.

8. Say It Loud,'m Black & I'm Proud(Part 1)......James Brown.

9. Hard To Handle......Otis Reading.

10. A Minha Menina......Os Mutantes.

11. Sympathy For The Devil.....The Rolling Stones.

12. Pressure Drop......Toots And The Maytals.

13. Cyprus Avenue.....Van Morrison.

14. Hey Jude......The Beatles.

15. Voodoo Child (Slight Return)......Jimi Hendrix Experience.

16. The Pusher.......Steppenwolf.

17. The Weight......Band

18. Days......Ray Davies

19. My Way......Frank Sinatra.

20. The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face......Roberta Flack.

21. I'm Just A Prisoner(Of Your Good Lovin')......Candi Staton.

22. She Moves Through The Fair......Fairport Convention.

23. Many Rivers To Cross......Jimmy Cliff.

24. In The Ghetto......Elvis Presley.

25. Oh Well,Parts 1&2......Fleetwood Mac

      12. Pressure Drop.

          14. Hey Jude.

The Eddie Albert Album.

Change of pace and style now bit of CW (I think)...american actor "Eddie Albert" giving it a go !!..we certainly have a mixture this time !!!..."Variety Is The Spice Of Life" !!!!

      3. Guantanamera

Julie Andrews...The Lass With The Delicate Air.

Not a Peep from "Eliza" !!....just the clear English voice of Julie's

1. As I Went a Roaming
2. London Pride
3. The Floral Dance
4. These Precious Things
5. Where'er You Walk
6.  Pedro The Fisherman

1. Tally Ho
2. If my Songs Were Only Winged
3. The Lass With the Delicate Air 
4.  Canterbury Fair
5. To A Wild Rose
6. Oh The Days Of Kerry Dancing

 Julie Andrews was only 22 when she released this, her debut solo album. But she already had an extensive résumé as an entertainer that included recordings dating back ten years; numerous appearances on the London stage; two Broadway musicals, The Boy Friend and My Fair Lady; and two American TV movie musicals, High Tor and Cinderella. She might have been expected to sing show tunes on her own LP, but instead she harked back to her British music hall days as a child and assembled a collection of English folk songs and art songs.

     6. Pedro The Fisherman

Mario Lanza...On Broadway.

The golden voice of Mario Lanza getting away from his operatic songs and doing "Broadway"

Nice to hear Mario's versions of Show Tunes showing how he could sing popular songs as well as all the "Opera" Aria's.....and he does a great job on them !

          1. On The Street Where You Live

Film Encores...Mantovani & His Orchestra

Over the channel now to see what "goodies" bob has !!.....first a gentle set of instrumentals from the films....Loads of "Violins" which of course is "Mantovani's" signature !

      7. Love Is A Many Splendored Thing

The World Of Lulu.

We now have a selection of singers from the 1960's....From JohnF

Thanks John nice to hear them again...and we must have Lulu's "Shout" as  the sound bite !!

      7. Shout

The Best Of Cilla Black.

Singles And tracks from Cilla's early recordings covering her years from 1963 to 1968...

     5. Its For You

The Best Of Manfred Mann.

Manfred Mann were an English-based rock band formed in London in 1962. They were named after their keyboardist Manfred Mann. The group had two lead vocalists: Paul Jones from 1962 to 1966 and Mike d'Abo from 1966 to 1969. Other members of various group line-ups were Mike Hugg, Mike Vickers, Dave Richmond, Tom McGuinness, Jack Bruce and Klaus Voormann.

      7. Oh No Not My Baby

When A Man Loves A Woman...Percy Sledge.

The definitive version of the title of this L/P will go down as a classic !!..and it has !!!

        3. Put A Little Lovin' On Me.

Frankie Vaughan At The London Palladium.

Ok now for a "live" performance from "The London Palladium"..hope you are all sitting comfortably and got a good seat....

Interesting to get an impression of just how popular Frankie Vaughan was at the height of his career. But the recording techniques were pretty brutal when he first appeared at the Palladium - he was also drowned out by the screaming fans. If you want a better idea of his fine singing voice listen to his early recordings .

This Was Recorded In 1959....

20 Scottish Favourites.

Another pleasant surprise and a very good compilation of songs....putting song titles 
 to some very familiar tunes that I think I might not be the only one outside Scotland that will know the tune but not the title !!!...Go on Folks give it a go and see how many of the titles you didn't know !!!

1. The Skye Boat Song...The Corries
2. Westering Home...Moira Anderson
3. Charlie Is My Darling...Robin Hall & Jimmy MacGregor
4. We've Only Just Began...Stuart Gilles
5. Twa Corbies...The Corries
6. My Love Is Like A Red Red Rose...Allan Bruce
7. The Road To The Isles...Moira Anderson
8. Tatties & Herring...Robin Hall & Jimmy MacGregor
9. Amanda...Stuart Gillies
10. Lewis Bridal Song...The Corries

1. These Are My Mountains...Moira Anderson
2. As I Came Doon The Canongate...Robin Hall & Jimmy Macgregor
3. The Road To Dundee...The Corries
4. For all We Know...Stuart Gillies
5. The Isle Of Mull...Moria Anderson
6. Where Are You Going My Bonnie Wee Lass...Robin Hall & Jimmy MacGregor
7. Annie Laurie...The Corries
8. There Goes My Heart...Stuart Gillies
9. Ye Banks And Bries...Moira Anderson
10. Will Ye No Come Back Again...Allan Bruce

         1. The Skye Boat Song 

         10. Lewis Bridal Song

20 Power Hits. VA

Here's a compilation from the 70's that was found with a few others in a battered old suitcase !!...the tracks are not perfect with plenty of "Snaps Crackles & Pops...I did try to get rid of the surface noise but the results sounded like the singers were singing in a tunnel so I left them as they are....maybe somebody who has a better programme than I have could perhaps clean them up and repost the link in the comments below !!!....there is about 4 L/P's that need this....so here's hoping !!!...there are some great songs on them not to be missed !!!

       8. I've Been Hurt