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General Discussion » What non-Bing music have you been listening to recently? » 29/10/2024 3:36 am |
Recently I've been delving into the work of Jolson. I'd heard a couple songs of his before and thought they were okay, but not much else. Now I'm really loving them, and can understand why Bing was such an admirer of Jolson. Definitely a departure from parts of Bing's style, but not an unwelcome one.
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 27/10/2024 3:31 am |
Nice to meet you Graham! I don't get to meet many people from Australia. On the bit about Chicago, there are a great many things the city can be commended on, sure. Nothing like a Midwest winter, is there? I was just trying to make a crack about the (sometimes-not-so) friendly antagonism between Chicago and the rest of the state (I being from the 'rest of the state').
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 19/10/2024 2:05 am |
I believe I have heard the story about Sinatra taking a sledgehammer to the place after Kennedy stayed with Bing.
Don't worry about not providing a link. And yes, some of their radio duets were quite good. Gone Fishin' has to be a favorite. I hadn't seen the television bit, though. Good stuff.
It's hard to rank some of those greatest composers. Some of Bach's stuff is a bit too different for me to truly appreciate, but he certainly was important. As a Lutheran, I can attest to how many hymn arrangements he put together. Don't worry; I plan to continue lessons for a long while!
Didn't realize either, perhaps as an American, what extensive archives the BBC has. I'll certainly have to look more into it. I don't think anyone serious can not appreciate classical music as something valuable, and I'm glad that Bing recognized something in it.
Should we continue this by private message? Are we the target of that admin post a few days back?
Books » Gary Giddins online on March 14 » 12/10/2024 2:29 pm |
Pantelis Kavouras wrote:
Do we know if a third Giddins book would cover all the remaining years till 1977? Or it would be just about a specific period in Bing's life?
I recall Giddins saying somewhere that it would be all the way until 1977. That would have been a few years ago when the second book came out. Of course, that could be all up in the air now, so we'll have to wait and see if there's even a third.
Member Introductions » Welcome UTOPIA! » 11/10/2024 2:09 am |
Welcome, and looking forward to chatting in the future!
I imagine that the path from Sinatra, and other younger singers, to Bing is a common one, now even more so than in '98. Bing is gone from the public consciousness now, whereas Sinatra, or Dino, etc. still have some sway in the public eye, though even that is now quickly fading. Did some particular song of Bing's initially catch your ear, or was he simply the next step back in time after Sinatra?
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 11/10/2024 1:59 am |
Glad to know that I'm not being a nuisance!
Dennis Day has a nice version of McNamara's as well. Even goes for a bit of a Jack Kennedy impression in there:
How is Kennedy, I'm curious, viewed over in Britain, if at all? I know British politicians, other than perhaps Churchill, tend not to remain much in memory here in the American public.
The "repeat treatment" has recently been applied to, as a whole, the Bing & Satchmo album. I first came across it a few years ago, but for some reason nothing but "The Preacher" seemed to stick. After coming back to it here, the whole album has been thoroughly enjoyed, repeatedly, as it should be.
I do play piano as a music student (private lessons; not through school or anything else). I started a couple years after my older brother did after seeing him play. I largely cover more classical stuff, though I have done a couple from the American Songbook, as well as Rhapsody In Blue. And to be specific, when I say "classical" I'm using that as most use it, meaning that I play Baroque, Classical, Romantic, etc.
Hopefully Beethoven's quote, "To play a wrong note is insignificant. To play without passion is inexcusable" applied well in your case on piano! Happy you ended up on an instrument that suited you. I don't think I can say I've ever forced any teachers from the area. Look at it as an accomplishment! That's two more than I imagine most people have.
Fan Interests » Check this out. Funny! » 09/10/2024 8:21 pm |
Completely forgot about that movie! Lots of good songs out of there. I always liked "Don't Be a Do Badder" because of its simple, cheery message. You don't get too many of those kinds of songs now. Mr. Booze is always a fun one, and "Bang! Bang!" always made me laugh because its rather suspiciously upbeat song by a half-crazed man who loves shooting stuff. Hmmm....
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 09/10/2024 12:49 am |
Unfortunately, I was unable to listen to Duke the Spook. Something about being "unavailable". Maybe government copyright laws, etc.?
Glad to introduce you to another song! Don't worry, I'm not struggling with anything serious, and I don't mean to burden you with any troubles. I just happened to be a little particularly stressed that night.
Muddy Waters was a delightful little piece. I'm left wishing Bing sang more than just a little middle interlude! I also can't imagine what it would be like to have almost the entirety of your life saved on record for countless future generations to hear.
Glad I'm not the only one who can replay a song many times right in a row. I wonder if my having to do many repetitions of specific sections when practicing piano has influenced that at all. Do you play anything yourself?
And nice to meet you as well, Carmela (if I may call you that, gathered from elsewhere on here). I look forward to talking to you!
Fan Interests » Check this out. Funny! » 08/10/2024 8:13 pm |
Okay, thanks to the both of you! I'd heard of both, but I didn't know enough to pick out a parody of them.
Fan Interests » Check this out. Funny! » 08/10/2024 2:12 am |
This is a fuller video of one of the clips, in which several other entertainers besides Bing are parodied. Can someone help me identify them? Of the four of them one is Bing, obviously, and another is Jolson, but I can't tell who the other two are.
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 07/10/2024 1:59 am |
Wow! Coincidentally, I just listened to That Old Black Magic today. Not because of our '70s talk, either, but because it was on a playlist of Halloween music.
I guess it's the "black magic" part of it that's supposed to be Halloween-ish; other than that, it doesn't seem a particularly spooky song.
I actually hadn't heard September Song. Too bad I just missed September to listen to it in. It's definitely a good song, though I think that I need to avoid some of these more contemplative songs for a bit. I've been thinking a lot about college next year, and my future more generally, so at this point I'm bit tired of worrying about growing up. At least I have the Headless Horseman to cheer me up:
And after relistening to Robeson here, I'm definitely in a bit of a downer mood! Definitely a rendition that tugs at the heartstrings, especially the line "I'm tired of living, but scared of dying." I believe Hammerstein wrote that, right? What genius.
Yes, it is like that. In fact, I don't know how other people are, but sometimes I can sit down and listen again and again to the exact same song for 45 minutes.
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 05/10/2024 1:39 am |
Well, sorry to be costing you so much! For most of the first part of what you wrote, I don't know what to say other than, thanks for the info!
Yes, the 1976 recording of Ol' Man River is moving at a pretty quick clip. After going through all the ones on the board, plus this 1977 recording ( ) I have hopefully covered them all. Are the 1954/55 the same recording? I saw people referring to it both ways on the chat page.
And don't worry, I have heard the Robeson version!
I'd agree, The Only Way to Go does seem a bit similar to The Good Old Times, though maybe a bit less reflective on the past.
I've heard some select songs off of Seasons, though I haven't listened to the album in its entirety. I should probably get around to that, considering that it's on Youtube. Funnily enough, though, even though I can listen to anything I want on there, I so often find myself listening only to the music I've heard instead of branching out to new things.
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 02/10/2024 2:30 am |
I didn't realize how much Bing, and Kathryn, continued to support the boys well into their adulthood. Of course, I knew all the stories about Bing beating them black and blue were false, but I didn't realize how much their care extended in terms of doing things for the boys.
Any word in the community about when the third Giddins book will be out? Or is all of that still up in the air? It would be great to finally have the trilogy of Bing's life complete.
I suppose that considering most celebrity biographies are ghostwritten, then Hope's venture about Gary's wouldn't have been too much of a leap. I didn't put two and two together there. Honestly, I'm a bit surprised more celebrities don't write their own books, seeing how most probably like to hear themselves talk. Too lazy to actually to write one, but still wanting to put something out there for the publishers, maybe?
Well, any more versions of Ol' Man River by Bing that I'm missing? All of them have been quite decent. A good change of pace, though; for before that initial one I came across, the version that I was most familiar with was William Warfield's ( ). Definitely taken in a different direction than those of Bing.
As for the 70s, there are definitely some good songs from Bing there. I know I mentioned The Good Old Times already. That's What Life Is All About and There's Nothing That I Haven't Sung About are favorites. I also recently listened to Bingo Viejo. Nothing particularly stood out to me, but it was nice to hear Bing singing in a Spanish style.
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 01/10/2024 2:57 am |
I guess Hope was ahead of the curve on guessing that the book was mostly ghostwritten (that wasn't common knowledge at the time of its publication, was it?) And I'm glad that Hope, even with his many personal indiscretions, was loyal to his friend, even in death.
The 1928 version, which I hadn't heard, is pretty good too. I almost prefer the orchestra to Bing's singing. Not that he isn't in fine form here, but I just really like the instrumentation. Especially the little Swanee River riff at the beginning. I've always liked early American folk music, as well as that very early popular music (if that's what you'd call Stephen Foster's work).
And, yes, the war all around was a terrible fix; and life in Rhodesia certainly didn't seem to get any better after the fighting was finally done.
Discussion Board Use and Registration Isssues » New Forums? » 30/9/2024 10:26 pm |
Books seems like a good idea. I second.
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 30/9/2024 12:06 am |
I can't imagine how dated I would've sounded if I talked about Jolie, or someone of that caliber, instead! I'm used to the blank stares at this point, though. The speech before last I gave was about the Bush War, and nobody had heard of that.
What was it like meeting Bob Hope, if I may ask?
As for favorites, the past couple days I've been unable to get this new gem out of my head. Never heard Old Man River in that style before.
Some of my general favorites, though, besides obvious popular ones, are Sing a Song of Sunbeams, Ain't Got A Dime, The Good Old Times, and Til the Clouds Roll By .
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 29/9/2024 4:01 am |
As both of you mentioned here, I'm glad that I'll hopefully have a long time left to help preserve Bing's legacy-which I didn't realize until late how bad of a shape it is in among younger people. Recently I gave a short speech about him in my public speaking class, and nobody (other than my teacher) had even heard of him. When I mentioned White Christmas, there were a couple of hesitant nods, but that was it. Some also thought that I was saying Benny, at first, instead of Bing. I hadn't expected any fans, but I at least thought they'd've heard the name.
To answer your questions, Mr. Kerstein, I mostly discovered him through Youtube. I still mostly listen through there, as I don't have a lot of extra cash to spend on records, etc., but I do have several of his earlier movies on DVD and a few books (Giddins's two published works and Call Me Lucky). I've also recently found use of other websites, mostly this one and the ones linked off of here.
Member Introductions » Welcome michaelbiesenthal! » 26/9/2024 3:56 am |
Thanks for the welcome! I suppose I should supply a bit of information about myself:
I'm from Central Illinois (not the dread Chicago!) and am currently 17 (senior in high school). Of course, I'd always heard in passing some of Bing's stuff at Christmas, but I first really discovered (if that's how you'd put it) him when I was 14, maybe 13? The first chronologically definite moment I remember would be August or September 2021 (I would've been 14 then), when I was humming Till the Clouds Roll By to myself on the bus to morning practice. I'm certain it goes back farther than that, but I'm a bit fuzzy on the details. Anything else anyone would like to know?
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