jeremyrose wrote:

I was very sorry to read in the latest issue of "Bing" magazine of the demise of Redmond Nostalgia.  - - -
- - - I would be very interested to know the fate of these masters if anyone has any info...

A sorry loss indeed, and it would be reassuring to know if the masters are being preserved in good hands.

For what it is worth, gazing into my personal crystal ball, I think it likely that we may see issues of the song content from many of the later programmes from Crosby family sources. We now know that many of the General Electric sequence at least were pre-recorded for the shows and survive in excellent quality, and we have had examples of a few.

I presume that such issues will depend on the success or otherwise of the issues last year and possibly on the future of Collector's Choice, the direction of which seems to be the subject of some sort of question. I know nothing of the success of the issues but I have seen nothing but favourable comment both among fans and the wider musical community.

However many of Bing's fans do hanker after the complete radio shows, particularly those with major guest artists where Bing's ability with 'off the cuff' repartee came to the fore, and some of the duets performed with them are far better heard in the context of the show. I for one would wish that it might be possible that these shows could continue to be available. They will never ever sell in vast quantities but a permanent library with access for suitable paid downloads would preserve and make available for all, this part of Bing's considerable legacy.

Last edited by Richard Baker (06/4/2011 10:21 pm)

There are so many different interests making up the 'Crosby Community'. Some like the songs and Bing's interpretation, but in the context of the radio shows, many appreciate the overall environment in which they were presented - the narrative leading up to them, the jokes and the 'dramatics' surrounding them (many of those with Judy Garland are hilarious), and even the serious references relating to the events of the time.

I for one repeatedly return to the 'middle' and late KMH shows, the  Philcos and the early Chesterfields, - I am even quite addicted to the really rather awful 'Sound off for Chesterfield' ditty.

Many of the radio versions of Bing's hits have something special about them as well, whether the addition of a special guest, some new 'off the cuff' lyrics, an aside, or even a 'fluff' which combine to add something to the entertainment value.

I am curious whether anyone has a catalog or list, preferably a soft copy, of the Redmond Nostalgia CDs which featured Bing. I am curious to see what they had available in their heyday.

I was disappointed when Redmond Nostalgia closed. At the time I was concentrating on Bing's commercial recordings, buying the Chronological and Through the Years series, figuring I would get around to the radio shows later (although I had purchased some of the better compilations of songs and excerpts from the radio shows). So, they closed before I had a chance to take advantage of their catalog.

Since BCE has excellent quality sources for many of the later shows, I am hoping they will make an extensive catalog of the full shows available for download at some point.

I'm still kicking myself for not completeing my purchases of all the 400+ Bing releases that Redmond offered. I amassed app. 250 CDs - all the KMH, Philco, Chesterfield, and GE releases, together with a fair selection of the Lux Radio Theatre releases, radio specials, out-takes, rehearsal tracks, etc...
The stuff that I frustratingly missed contained some absolute gems which I've never seen available elsewhere. I've got a hard copy of the Redmond "Bing" list which I printed off from the web-site but not a "soft" copy, I'm afraid...
It shouldn't be forgotten that the Bing releases - although a major part of the Redmond releases - comprised only a part of that amazing catalogue. I also bought about 20 CDs of the Gordon MacRae "Railroad Hour" productions of classic musicals.
A sadly-missed resource...