In the mid 20th century, whenever a famous songwriter prepared a new musical, the record companies would quickly enlist their top acts to record the numbers likeliest to be the most popular.Cole Porter's Can-Can of 1953 was set in the boîtes of 1890's Montmartre, a perfect setting for a lively score. And Porter did produce several songs that enjoyed some popularity in the day, and a few that are still heard today. The show was quite a hit, remaining on Broadway for more than two years. It was the career breakout for Gwen Verdon.
Capitol records had several of its top acts swing into action with recordings from the score. Four of these are collected on today's EP, with one more added as a bonus.
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| Les Baxter |
The record begins with a choral version of "I Love Paris" from a Les Baxter ensemble. The single did well on the charts (which may be why it leads off the record). Baxter effectively handles the transition from the dirge-like opening to the sunny proclamation "I love Paris every moment!" His instrumental chart is in the exotica style that was then becoming popular.
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| Gordon MacRae, Kay Starr |
Gordon MacRae must have thought that "C'est Magnifique" required a bravura approach - he came out with an operetta-style performance that is effective of its type. Axel Stordahl is the conductor.
Kay Starr's intense singing is well suited to "Allez-vous-en (Go Away)," a good song that is less often heard that the two already mentioned. Providing the backing is Harold Mooney.
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| Nat King Cole |
One of the label's biggest stars, Nat King Cole, was matched with one of the weaker songs from the score - "I Am in Love." He handles it in his usual sincere manner, but it doesn't take flight, despite a chart by Nelson Riddle.
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| Bob Manning |
Capitol entrusted the most famous song from the score - "It's All Right with Me" - to its new romantic balladeer, Bob Manning, in one of his first recordings for the label. Bob's smooth version did not make it onto the EP, possibly because the other artists were more established, but I've added it to the download file. Sid Feller was the conductor on Bob's single.
Manning's collected Capitol singles can be found here.
Such EPs with songs from the musicals of the day were common back then. At times they came from varied artists, such as this one, but just as often they featured one of the label's stars in all four songs. For example, just for Rodgers and Hammerstein's 1951 hit The King and I, RCA Victor issued an EP with Dinah Shore, and M-G-M did the same with Jane Powell. For the listener, it was an inexpensive way to get to know the new songs in versions by their favorite artists.
13 comments:
Another great one on Buster's Swinging Singles! Thanks for this one.
RecordCollector - You're welcome!
Thanks Buster. I always get excited when something new pops up at your singles blog, and you never disappoint. :)
Ernie - Thanks! Glad to hear it.
I didn't quite know why you would throw darts on such an A-list act as Nat King Cole and Nelson Riddle, but upon listening, I could find out why. You are spot-on on your comments; however, personally, I think that Peggy Lee did a much better job on this song on her classic Latin Ala Lee album, as did Vic Damone on his final Capitol album, On the Street Where You Live:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5GWAXRuDkU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozdGFmRrv5g
Van Alexander's introduction on the arrangement on Gordon MacRae's "C'est Magnifique" is eerily similar to the one featured on Nat King Cole's classic "Too Young." This is a decent version, however, personally, I think Peggy Lee did a much better job with this song on same said album:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ij_5OB5Y0I
"It's All Right with Me" was on the flip side of "All I Desire", the only Bob Manning record I have in my collection at the present moment. Les Baxter's "I Love Paris" has a little more of a beat than his usual orchestral recordings. And "Allez-Vous-En" is probably more associated with Kay Starr than Can-Can, as it became a pretty substantial hit for her. Will post chart rankings at another time.
musicman - I didn't say it, but Nelson Riddle's arrangement and Nat did not get along very well. That's true about Kay Starr - it was a good seller for her. She was a talented singer, for sure.
Great
I read in the Riddle biography that Baxter was wont to take credit for the work of ghost arrangers. I don't know how widespread this was but it irks me.
Andrew - I've heard that as well. He must have thought himself as a bandleader who didn't necessarily credit his arrangers - very common with big bands.
Follow-up information: Kay Starr's "Allez-Vous-En" was recorded on April 15, 1953 at the Capitol Tower in Hollywood. It was released almost a month later, on May 11, and made its intial chart appearance on June 20, 72 years ago this coming Friday, eventually peaking at #11 on Billboard, just missing the top ten. Information comes from Kay's entry in the Capitol Collectors Series CD collections.
Follow-up information: "Allez-Vous-En" was recorded at the Capitol studios on April 15, 1953, and was released almost a month later, on May 11, 72 years ago this coming Friday, it made its initial chart appearance on Billboard, almost cracking the Top ten with a peak position of #11.
musicman - Thanks for the information!
You are welcome.
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