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The 1950's ---- Musical variety at its best!

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LittleNipper

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IN 1949 a noir suspense thriller film made a splash at the box office. In 1950 the theme from that movie would be heard everywhere. It was a number one seller for 11 weeks. Who would even imagine that Austrian zither music could be so popular... The record was offered in both 78 rpm and 45 rpm format
 
Frankie Laine would have a big hit that year with THE CRY OF THE WILD GOOSE
 
LittleNipper said:
IN 1949 a noir suspense thriller film made a splash at the box office. In 1950 the theme from that movie would be heard everywhere. It was a number one seller for 11 weeks. Who would even imagine that Austrian zither music could be so popular... The record was offered in both 78 rpm and 45 rpm format
Click to expand...

From the 50's but this version is so much improved.
 
LittleNipper said:
IN 1949 a noir suspense thriller film made a splash at the box office. In 1950 the theme from that movie would be heard everywhere. It was a number one seller for 11 weeks. Who would even imagine that Austrian zither music could be so popular... The record was offered in both 78 rpm and 45 rpm format
Click to expand...

I grew up with 40's and 50's music, but not that kind of music.

This kind...



And this kind...

 
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Here is Kay Starr's hit THE BONAPARTE RETREAT. This actually originated from a hillbilly fiddle tune without words going back to the 19th century by the same title. As I say variety was the word.
 
This one would remain 15 weeks on the charts in 1950 and would be recorded by others including Bing Crosby. But this version (the original) is the best the CHATTANOOGA SHOESHINE BOY by Red Foley: And here he is on TV in 1955:
 
Topsy, Part 2

 
In 1950 a popular tune was born that would reappear with Dean Martin and again with Sammy Davis Jr... This version is with Bing and Gary Crosby and remained on the charts for 19 weeks in the summer of that year peaking at number 3. Earlier that year the original remained on the charts 7 weeks. This "Happy tune" is known as SAM's SONG. You may also note that this record is a 45 RPM. Again, many record companies issued singles in both the 75 RPM and the 45 RPM format. By 1955/56 --- 78's were dead in the United States.
 
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In 1950 a real gem of a song was recorded by Nat King Cole. In wasn't even on the A side. It was the B side, and yet it was the hit and would be reissued again in 1959. It found it's start in an art noir movie --- CAPTAIN CAREY, U.S.A. It is a real pretty song with heart and feeling. The song is MONA LISA and I do believe that Nat King Cole sang it the best ---- though there were other versions.
 
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One odd song that was well played was by Phil Harris and called THE THING. It would appear years later on the Doctor Demento Show on radio (He played oddball music on FM for years). Here is 1950's hit THE THING Good Halloween song.
 
1951 Tony Bennett had his first real hit and he would sing it some 70 years later in his last performance. BECAUSE OF YOU:
 
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Mario Lanza would have a giant hit in 1951 with this record a 2 million seller that remained on the charts for 34 weeks. The song was written with Lanza in mind, for the movie THE TOAST OF NEW ORLEANS, and nobody has done it any better ------ BE MY LOVE :
 
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Tony Martin had a 30 week hit with I GET IDEAS that reaching number 3 on the charts --- RCA VICTOR 45 rpm recording. Ricky Ricardo on I LOVE LUCY sings this song in episode 31 in 1952 and again in 1955:
 
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In 1952 an orchestrated hit climbed the charts, BLUE TANGO recorded by Anderson on the DECCA label having the flip side BELLE OF THE BALL reached number one. Billboard ranked it as the number one song of 1952. The same recording was released in 1952 on the BRUNSWICK label in the United Kingdom with the same flip side.

Hugo Winterhalter and his orchestra also recorded BLUE TANGO, on January 22, 1952. It was released by RCA Victor, with the flip side "Gypsy Trail". This version first reached the Billboard Best Seller chart on February 29, 1952 and lasted 18 weeks on the chart, peaking at #6.

Les Baxter and his orchestra released a version of BLUE TANGO on CAPITAL Record with the flip side BECAUSE OF YOU. This version first reached the Best Seller chart on March 14, 1952 and lasted 9 weeks on the chart, peaking at #10.

A recording of the song by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians was released on DECCA Records, with the flip side "At Last, At Last".[10] This version first reached the Best Seller chart on April 11, 1952 and lasted 10 weeks on the chart, peaking at #16.

I reveal this to indicate just what an impression this tune made on the radio, TV and records... Leroy Anderson would compose music with an American flair as Norman Rockwell would illustrate it... BLUE TANGO:

I'm also going to provide the flip side --- BELL OF THE BALL:
 
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1951 Johnnie Ray and the 4 Lads would record Cry for the COLUMBIA Record label on October 16th, 1951 It is popular song written by Churchill Kohlman. The song was first recorded by Ruth Casey on the Cadillac label also that year... It would become one of Johnnie Ray's biggest hits. Even though a ballad, you may get the feeling at least that the Rock'n Roll sound is not far away ---- even at this early date:

Compare the Johnnie Ray version with that of Ruth Casey that same year. It not what is said, it how you say it!
 
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1951 Nat King Cole had another great hit with TOO YOUNG. He really had a smooth voice and could put over a song. The song was #1 for 5 weeks and remained on the best selling charts for 29:

TV appearance
 
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This record reached number 4 in 1953 ---- 23 in the top forty for that year. TELL ME A STORY is one of those songs that was popular and then forgotten except to those who originally heard it. Here is JIMMY BOYD recorded by COLUMBIA Records.

At the age of 13 Jimmy would be forever linked to the song I SAW MOMMY KISSING SANTA CLAUS in 1952 Boyd's record was condemned by the Roman Catholic church of Boston when it was released on the grounds that it mixed kissing with Christmas. Boyd was photographed meeting with the Archdiocese to explain the song. After the meeting, the ban was lifted.
 
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1953 Percy Faith had a number 1 hit for that year with vocal by Felicia Sanders on January 22, 1953 --- from a movie of the same name Moulin Rouge 1952: WHERE IS YOUR HEART. The sound by RCA was listed as LIVING STRINGS...
Lyrics
When ever we kiss,
I worry and wonder.
Your lips may be near,
but where is your heart?
It's always like this,
I worry and wonder.
You're close to me here,
but where is your heart?
It's a sad thing to realize (that you've a heart that never melts.
When we kiss, do you close your eyes,
pretending that I'm someone else?
You must break the spell,
this cloud that I'm under.
So please won't you tell, darling,
where is your heart?
 
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On December 18, 1952 Patti Page recorded HOW MUCH IS THAT DOGGIE IN THE WINDOW. It would climb the charts to reach #1 in April of 1953. The song would become # 3 for that entire year. Here is a TV performance of the song: ODDLY, MERCURY Records did not have wide distribution in the United Kingdom. As a result Lita Roza recorded the song in the UK on DECCA Records. That rendition hit #1 in that country and made Roza the first number one hit woman in that country.
 
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The Ames Brothers in 1953 had a hit that originally had German lyrics and then English lyrics were written a hit was made for RCA Victor:
 
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"Dragnet" is an instrumental theme from the radio and television show of the same name. It was composed by Walter Schumann for the radio show, and was also used on the subsequent television series and later syndication of the TV series under the name "Badge 714". The theme is in two parts: an opening introduction "Main Title" and the "Dragnet March" used over the end credits. The Popular chart hit version was recorded by Ray Anthony and his Orchestra.

Once the theme hit the charts, the publishers of the score for the 1946 film "The Killers" composed by Miklós Rózsa challenged the authorship of the copyright of the Dragnet "Main Title". Their contention being that Walter Schumann had visited the sound stage in 1946 when Miklós Rózsa was recording "The Killers", and so had picked up (maybe subconsciously) the melody of a cue for that film known as "Danger Ahead". A settlement between publishers allowed both the composers and publishers to share the royalties for the short introduction signature "Main Title", which became known as "Danger Ahead" after that. The "Dragnet March" remained the exclusive composition of Schumann.
 
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