John McCormack was a celebrated operatic tenor at the beginning of the 20th century. While Caruso continues to be the ultimate name in classical voice of this period, McCormack certainly had his admirers. While trained in the Italian school of opera, he was the epitome of the Irish tenor, proficient in classical music but also excelling in popular music and Irish traditional. Like Caruso, McCormack was one of the earliest endorsers of recorded music, putting his voice on cylinders in 1904. He continued to record and perform until his retirement in 1938 and died of Emphysema in 1945.

The Internet archive’s 78rpm collection has collected 55 of his recordings under The Collected Works of John McCormack. There is a few arias here, but most of the tracks are popular songs of the era and traditional Irish melodies. Of interest is “It’s a Long Ways To Tipperary”, noticeable because it was the first recording of this World War I anthem. There are a few untitled songs. Most of them appear to be opera arias. Of course, the Irish songs stand out and these old songs might be a nice addition to your St. Patrick’s Day celebration.

The album is available from The Internet Archive and the tracks are in MP3 format in varying bitrates.

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Normally I present a free full album daily on the appropriately titled Free Albums Galore but the only way to justify today’s offering is by calling it a free box set… a huge free box set. Here are 222 episodes of the CBS radio program The Bing Crosby-Rosemary Clooney Show.

The radio program appeared from 1960 to 1962 and was aired late morning targeting a women audience. Bing Crosby was the quintessential crooner and was at the top of his form having started as a band singer in the 20s with the Paul Whiteman orchestra. While he continued to entertain up to his death in 1977, the vocalist was pretty much at his peak in the early 60s. Rosemary Clooney was also in the prime of her career. She was the one of the best of the traditional pop singers throughout the 50s and on. She continued to record regularly, with her later Concord records having a more jazz inflected style, up until her death in 2002. These 20 minute episodes reflect the mainstream style that both singers developed as their trademark. The programs are all pretty much in the same mold; a theme song, some well worn banter and a series of songs sung solo and in duet. The dialogue is pretty ingratiating. I generally speed through it and get to the music. But the songs are all top notch, many of them repeated in several episodes. This is easy listening vocal music at its best performed by two of the most important vocalists of this style of pop.

The tracks are provided by The Old Time Radio Researcher’s Group in 64kbps MP3 format.

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The product promo album might be the original free album. They were produced to promote a company product and given out at industry shows and stores to potential sellers and consumers. Very few of these were kept by the lucky recipients so it is uncommon to see or hear them…especially one that features such a high quality artist as this one.

Side-by-Side was produced to promote Amana’s side-by-side refrigerators/freezers of the early 60s. What makes this EP special is that it features The J’s with Jamie, the most listened to vocal group of the 60s. While you may have never heard of them, The J’s crisp harmonies and Jamie’s jazzy but girl-next-door voice were heard all over the radio and television in various commercials. The originally 2-sided EP starts with a number of versions of their Amana jingle. These are more of a treat for nostalgia fans than music lovers. Actually they bring back a few memories to this old geezer. However the real delight is the second side which contains seven tracks of standards including “Cotton Fields” and “But Not For Me”. These are excellent examples of the jazz/pop harmonies of the 50s and 60s and are up to par with better known vocal jazz ensembles such as The Swingle Singers and Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross. Skim through the commercials for amusement but be sure you download and enjoy these rare pop gems.

The EP is available from WFMU’s Beware of The Blog in 192kbps MP3.

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Eddie Cantor was one of the most popular entertainers in the first half of 20th century. Cantor originally played in vaudeville and became one of the lead stars of The Ziegfield Follies from 1917 to 1927. His performances built a bridge between the vaudeville days and the growing development of radio and television variety shows. The Internet Archive’s 78rpm collection offers a entertaining group of single recordings and radio transcriptions by the irrepressible Cantor.

The 78rpm recordings varies from very scratchy (1923’s “He Loves It”) to amazingly good (”Ain’t She Sweet”). There’s a lot of old standards of which Cantor gives his unique renditions. The classic tracks include “If You Knew Susie”, “Yes Sir, That’s My Baby” and Cantor’s trademark “Ma, He’s Making Eyes At Me”.

But the real treats are two half hour transcriptions of Cantor’s radio show called “It’s Time To Smile”. One features Jack Benny and it is a riot. Benny, in my humble opinion, was the greatest comedian of radio’s golden era. He is often called the father of modern stand-up comedy. He was a master in getting maximum laughs out of the minimum of words and only Benny could get a big laugh out of a moment of silence. Cantor manages to keep up with the comedian’s perfect timing. The show also features a very young Dinah Shore. The other radio session has Al Jolson as a special guest. Also included is a very funny public service announcement with Cantor, Benny, Shore, and Burns & Allen extolling the virtues of gas rationing during World War II.

You can download these tracks separately or in a full album zip. The format is MP3 but the bitrates varies per track from 32kbps to 160kbps. These are delightful glimpses of entertainment from the golden age of radio.

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American composer John Phillip Sousa reigned as the March King throughout the late 19th century and early 20th century until his death in 1932. He left a legacy of military marches that are still with us to this day. Sousa’s Band recorded many of these and you can find these rare recordings in the Internet Archives’ “Collected Works of Sousa’s Band”.

Perhaps the most intriguing historical fact about these tracks is that none of them are directed by Sousa himself. He had an intense dislike for phonographic technology and refused to participate in these early recordings. He believed the phonograph would lead to the evolutionary extinction of the human vocal chords! The director was probably composer and trombonist Arthur Pryor as he conducted most of these sessions with the band until 1929.

As for the actual records, these 18 tracks date from 1895 to 1918. By today’s standards the sound is rather abysmal but it is a treat just to be able to hear these marches played as the maestro himself intended them to be played. “At A Georgetown Camp Meeting” (1902) has amazingly clean sound. The outstanding performance of “Stars and Stripes Forever” (1901) reminds us why it is an American classic synomonous with Independence Day. “Blue Danube Waltz” (1905) makes for a pretty change of pace from the syncopated marches. Not unexpectingly, the two later marches, “Hippodrome March” (1916) and “The Caissons Go Rolling Along” (U.S. Field Artillery March) of 1918 offer the best sound to assess what must have been one of the greatest marching bands in history. Whether you are a fan of military music or not, this is a collection that any music afficionado must hear.

The collection is available in 128kbps MP3 through either separate tracks or a full zip.

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2006 is the 50th anniversary of the unsuccessful 1956 Hungarian uprising against the Soviet Union. Therefore, it is especially appropriate to present this online capsule of dance music from Hungary mostly recorded in the 50s and 60s. History has shown that hard times reap optimistic, often escapist, music and Hungary appears to be no exception to the rule. These 28 short tracks presents a varied array of light fun music with influences from American swing, Latin dance, modern jazz, and even early rock and roll. Actual Hungarian traditional influences may be well hidden but Bergendi’s “Magyar Tancok” steals proudly from Brahms’ Hungarian Dances. (I am doing this from memory knowing that someone reading this will correct me if I am wrong on the composer!). “Selejtezo szam” sounds amazingly like something you might hear from an Austin Powers movie while “Volgai hajosok dala” is a delightful upbeat take on The Volga Boatmen Song. Two of the more accomplished tracks are by The Hungarian Radio Dance Orchestra playing 50s jazz in both swing and cool jazz styles. The song “Je t’aime” was a big hit in Europe and this somewhat mourning Hungarian knock-off shows that even the Warsaw Pact could not stop cultural over-lap. “Les feuilles mortes” (Autumn Leaves) gets a make-over that is part Modern Jazz Quartet and part Percy Faith. The last track returns to the Volga Boatmen Song with a emotional vocal over a slow rock beat, one of the highlights of this album. Over-all this is an enjoyable time capsule of a beseized country during the cold war doing its best to party on.

The tracks are available in 128kbps MP3. The sound is very good despite quite a few pops, scratches, and hisses from the obviously worn out vinyls.

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Is there any opera singer more famous than Enrico Caruso? Not only is he considered one of the greatest tenors of all time but was the most popular vocalist of any musical genre in the early 20th century. Although he died in 1921, Caruso made over 250 recordings and was one of the first artists to embrace the early techniques of recorded music.

The Internet Archive’s 78 RPM collection has obtained a ton of Caruso recordings and placed them in two parts. This is not just an online album but a truckload of music. Part one has 96 tracks. Part two is less unwieldy with 30 tracks. The sound ranges from awful (”Adorables Tourments” of 1908) to quite good (”Vienie Dur Mar” of 1919) considering these were taken from very old 78rpm acetate disks. Of special interest is the recording of “Vesti La Giubba” which was the first record to sell a million copies. Predictably most of these tracks are opera arias but there are a few old popular standards (”Dreams of Long Ago” 1912) and Italian classics (”O Sole Mio” 1916).

Both collections are in 128kbps either by separate tracks or album zip. The bitrate doesn’t mean much since, as stated before, these are very old and scratchy recordings with the earliest being from 1902! Nonetheless, despite the primitive sound, it is easy to see why Caruso was and is so revered.

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Collected Works Part 1
Collected Works Part 2

Benny Bell was a Jewish singer / comedian who recorded in the 1940s . He performed humorous songs filled with mild double-entendres. His recordings didn’t do all that well and he would have disappeared into obscurity if it wasn’t for a radio personality named Dr. Demento who would play Benny Bell’s “Shaving Cream” on his show. In 1975 “Shaving Cream” managed to break through to the Billboard top 30, giving him one last moment in the sun. He died in 1999 at the age of 93.

The Internet Archive has put together 30 of his singles in the 78 RPM collection. Benny Bell’s music is a step back to a more innocent era when risque lyrics were limited to witty implications in songs like “A Goose For My Girl”and “Everybody Wants My Fanny”. Many of his songs like “Dopey John” and “I’ll Never Get Drunk Again” were probably rescued orphans from the vaudeville days. Of course, “Shaving Cream’ is here. These are all fun novelty songs but it should be noted that on “Down by the Old Mill Stream” Benny Bell actually showed some ability to get down and swing a little!

The track are MP3 s ranging from 80kbps to 128kbps but remember these recordings are from old 78rpm acetate disks and sounds like it.

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Invitation and Tiempo Latino collect jazzy, energetic or laid-back big band tunes, with Tiempo Latino obviously sounding more latino. Included are standards from Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, Johnny Green, Ray Noble, and more, along with works commissioned by the Airmen of Note from living jazz composers.

The tracks are available, alas, in 64kbps MP3.

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Invitation
Tiempo Latino

Two Zombies Later is a 2-CD compilation of exotica mash-ups from diverse artists that combine styles and ideas in unprecedented ways. 99% of everything produced by amatuers with the cheap sound tools available in the digital age is crap, but this is excellent. Jolly listening!

Tracks are available in 192kbps MP3 (a few tracks are 160kbps) or a full-album ZIP from Comfort Stand.

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The endlessly stunning Internet Archive hosts dozens of restored 78RPM recordings from the early 20th century. My favorite collection features Al Jolson’s ebullient pop vocals. The energy behind his singing always gets me; if you’ve seen The Jazz Singer, you know what I’m talking about. This compilation album collects 36 of his most popular tunes from 1911-1926 (including “Swanee,” “You Made Me Love You,” “Rock-a-Bye Your Baby,” and others). The sound quality is understandably lacking (coming from dusty 78s), but Jolson’s voice shines through.

You can download the album in a single ZIP file or as individual MP3 files of various bitrates from the link below.

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