28/4/2020 1:47 pm  #1


Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

Over the last several years it looks like Bing's 50's album output has been given well deserved attention and glorious special or deluxe editions have been released of "Le Bing", "Some Fine Old Chestnuts", "Songs I Wish I Had Sung the First Time Around", "New Tricks" and others have at least been released on CD, "Bing Sings Whilst Bregman Swings", "Bing with a Beat", "Fancy Meeting You Here", and even "Join bing and Sing Along" has been available at one point.

However, I have never seen a mention of "Bing Sings The Hits" and I'm wondering why? Wikiapedia lists it as a "Compilation album" but I don't quite understand why when it seems like it was originally composed of 6 songs recorded for Bing's radio show and 2 others that were recorded just around the same time period and hadn't been released on any other album. But I'm guessing it's that "compilation" designation that has kept this from being given the attention of all the albums above. (I have to admit though I am not sure if I see much difference between how this album was assembled compared to "New Tricks" or "Some Fine Old Chestnuts". )

Anyway any thoughts on this album and why it seems to have been so forgotten?



 

 

28/4/2020 4:51 pm  #2


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

I think it’s probably because it’s a compilation album that ‘Bing Sings The Hits’ has never had the ‘Deluxe Edition’ treatment. I take your point about ‘New Tricks’ and ‘Some Fine Old Chestnuts’, though...

The Wikipedia entry is for the US release. Decca DL5520. Confusingly, the UK equivalent 10” LP release - Brunswick LA8674 - has a different track listing. Three of the JST tracks originally destined for the GE show are there, together with a duet with Gary, ‘Down By The Riverside’ -also from GE but not on DL5520 - and the two Perry Botkin items. The remaining two tracks are the commercial releases of  ‘Hello Young Lovers’ and ‘I’ve Never Been in Love Before’.

Anyone got any idea why the content is slightly different..?

 

28/4/2020 5:19 pm  #3


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

BING SINGS THE HITS

US Decca DL5520

Side One

Vaya con Dios
My Love, My Love
Stranger in Paradise
No Other Love

(All with Orchestra conducted by John Scott Trotter)

Side Two

Secret Love
I Love Paris
(Orchestra conducted by John Scott Trotter)
Changing Partners
Y’all Come
(Orchestra conducted by Perry Botkin)

UK Brunswick LA8674

Side One

Vaya, con Dios
My Love, My Love
Down by the Riverside (duet with Gary Crosby)
(Orchestra conducted by John Scott Trotter)
Hello, Young Lovers
(Orchestra conducted by Victor Young)

Side Two

Secret Love
(Orchestra conducted by John Scott Trotter)
I’ve Never Been in Love Before
(Orchestra conducted by Axel Stordahl)
Changing Partners
Y’all Come
(Orchestra conducted by Perry Botkin)

 

28/4/2020 11:44 pm  #4


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

It was certainly a compilation album, in character little different from several dozen early LPs, apart from the fact that it was picking up on some recordings that were fairly recent. They were never conceived as a single entity.

New Tricks and Some Fine Old Chestnuts were conceived as albums, though the tracks used were taken from radio recordings. 

As to differences between the US and UK issues, the British Decca label Brunswick sometimes showed a degree of independence, varying things to suit the British market as they saw it.
This independent streak reached a peak some years later when they issued a whole new range of LPs under the sub - label Ace of Hearts.   

 

29/4/2020 6:35 am  #5


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

Each had a life of their own as singles, 

 

29/4/2020 1:01 pm  #6


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

It's clear that Decca considered it to be a compilation, and the fact that the UK release differed seems like further evidence of that. 

In my mind, I guess the question is, could it, should it have, been considered a studio album?

"Bing Sings The Hits" seems to be almost the same concept as "Songs I Wish I Had Sung The First Time Around", or Bing Crosby Sings The Great Country Hits" - both studio albums.

And while I get that these songs may have had a life as a single before being included on an album, Perry Como had a huge hit with the song "It's Impossible", which resulted in RCA rushing Como to record an album's worth of material to accompany the already released single. I think the same thing happened with "And I Love You So". 

It seems the only thing that kept this from being classified as a "studio album" is someone didn't say "Let's have Bing do an album of recent hit songs and call it  Bing Sings The Hits!"

 

     Thread Starter
 

29/4/2020 6:06 pm  #7


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

There might be points in favour, but I'm puzzled why you should think it important, Ron. The titles are available in very good transfers on the "Through The Years" series and individual tracks can also be found on other CDs. 

Although Amazon state several in the Through the Years series are not available, Sepia themselves still list them here https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=013750088890942159193:l6jqyenqono&cof=FORID:0&q=Bing+crosby+Through+the+years&sa=Search

A CD covering the titles in question would be very short measure and "extras" would necessarily swamp them. It would no longer be "Sings the Hits" as such but some other compilation!

 

29/4/2020 6:58 pm  #8


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

LOL, I think your puzzlement is justified! I have "Through The Years" Vol. 5 & 6 which as those tracks and I agree a "Bing Sings The Hits" deluxe edition would wind up being a messy affair. 

I think I'm just puzzled to why Decca made the decison to put this together as a compilation and looking at it in hindsight. The reality when this came out people probably bought it as a "new album" and whether it was a "studio" or "compilation" didn't matter.

I tend to favor listening to albums all the way through vs. pulling apart singles so I guess for me it is the irration that some of this albums, compilation or otherwise have been ignored. Like this could be released with another compilation as a two-fer. 
 

     Thread Starter
 

30/4/2020 10:57 am  #9


Re: Whatever happened to "Bing Sings The Hits"

An interesting discussion. I think it should be taken into account how the album was perceived by both record company and buyers at the time of the initial release. Fascinating topic though!

 

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