Sound Beat

Mr. Theodore G. Bilbo was a US senator, and not a good one. A member of the Ku Klux Klan, he once proposed a bill that would deport 12 million African-Americans to Liberia… in an effort to save on unemployment costs. He accepted illegal contributions, among them

excavation of a lake for… creating…his…own…island?

And, just when you think he couldn’t get any worse, he was well-known for his frequent practice of illeism, the use of the third person to refer to oneself.

Adrienne Claiborne wrote this song with singer, labor activist and husband Bob Claiborne, in 1938. District voters seemed unswayed by the protest and Bilbo would remain in office for nearly a decade longer.

Store owner Morton Savada had a policy of never selling the last copy of a recording, which we collectors can identify with. Morton’s son Eli sai

“He was running a business, but he knew he had an important archive here and he had a responsibility to maintain it.”

After 30 years in business, and distinguishing itself as a landmark for collectors worldwide, Records Revisited closed. The archive his son spoke of, roughly 200,000 records, was boxed and shipped in 2008 to….Syracuse University. The gift ensures the collection’s preservation for  future researchers. And…it plays a role in a certain radio show of which you may be aware…

You’re listening to Drum Boogie by Gene Krupa, an OKEH 78 from 1941, and one of the last ever played at Records Revisited.

“A dark presence enters the ship. The ominous commander of the Imperial Forces, Darth Vader: tall and threatening in his flowing black cape, and a face forever masked by a foreboding metal breath screen. Darth Vader, who moves forever in a cloud of awesome evil.”

One of the best, (eh, worst?) baddies of all time.

You’re on the Sound Beat.

“Vader grips the rebel’s throat. “”If this is a councilor’s ship then where is the Ambassador?””

Would have been nice to play Vader’s theme, the famous Imperial March….

Thing is, John Williams hadn’t composed it yet. It first appeared, courtesy of the London Symphony Orchestra, in the original trilogy’s second film, the Empire Strikes Back. James Earl Jones famously voiced the character, and almost as famously wasn’t credited for the first two films. He’d claim at the time that his work was just “special effects”…something, I don’t know, VOICE ACTORS might disagree with. You’re listening to “The Story of Star Wars”, a 20th Century Fox LP from 1977.

Sound Beat is produced at the Belfer Audio Archive, Syracuse University Libraries.

Image courtesy of Roger Schultz, used under Creative Commons license.

Well, unless you’re in an ice cave on Hoth, you probably recognize this one. It’s “The Story of Star Wars” and…

You’re on the Sound Beat.

Fall in love with a movie nowadays, you can watch it pretty much whenever you want; ask any parent of a Frozen fan. WHEN-EV-ER. But for a rabid Star Wars fan in 1977, your options were limited. You went to the movies, or you bought this, a 20th Century Fox LP. It featured dialogue and sound effects from the film, and was narrated by Roscoe Lee Browne.

The record would go as gold as C-3PO.

Image created by Andrew Forgrave, used under Creative Commons license.

The song you hear ”Let Me Call You Sweetheart” by Bing Crosby with Georgie Stoll and His Orchestra was recorded in 1934 on the Decca label.

You’re on the Sound Beat.

“Let Me Call You Sweetheart“ was originally written by Leo Freidman and Beth Slater Whinston in 1910.

The song was a big hit for Author Clough in May 1911 and a #1 hit for Henry Burr and the Peerless Quartet in November 1911

And this version is still popular today. In fact “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” by Bing Crosby was #3 on Apple Music’s top 200 jazz songs in Bolivia on January 27 2019.

This episode was written by Ian Coe. Artwork by Omari Odom. Watch a video of their work at Let Me Call You Sweetheart — Sound Beat – Syracuse University Videos

The mythical Sirens have long been depicted as tantalizing, seductive, banes to the existence of accursed sailors, enchanted by their fatal song.  The Greeks had them as winged maidens, but somewhere along the way, the meaning shifted: in most European languages, the word Siren translates as “mermaid”. You’re listening to the Green Brothers Novelty band with “Siren of the South Sea”.

If the smell of fresh-brewed coffee renders you helpless, you may have run into Melusina today. Starbucks has used the half-woman, half water-serpent’s likeness since 1971, based on a Norse woodcut. Why the nautical theme? Starbuck was the name of Captain Ahab’s first mate in Moby Dick.

Like Slim Gaillard said, “The Atomic Cocktail” is “the drink that you don’t pour”…until Las Vegas bartenders made it one.

You see, in 1951, the government announced Nevada would be home to new bombing test sites. There was, understandably, heightened tension in the area…but then, Vegas knows a thing or two about relieving tension. Hotels and bars embraced the plans and the Atomic Cocktail was born.

Want to make your own? (info courtesy of Esquire Magazine)

Just take:

Stir the vodka, brandy, and sherry well with cracked ice, then strain into  a chilled cocktail glass and add 1 1/2 to 2 ounces cold brut champagne. Garnish  with plastic three-eyed fish from Simpsons playset. Note: If you use the  sweeter Spanish brandy, opt for the drier Amontillado sherry. Conversely, if you  use the (dry) cognac, choose the (sweet) Oloroso. We strive for balance in all  stirs.

You’re listening to “The Airplane” from an RCA Victor Youth Series 78 entitled “LET’S PLAY”. It was produced by Helen Myers in 1946.

The year before that, New York mayor Fiorello Laguardia left office. One of his biggest achievements, the development of the airport that would bear his name, came about as the result of, well, a bit of a hissy fit.

The mayor had been sold a ticket to “New York”, which was at the time serviced by Newark Airport. Indignant, he refused to step on to Jersey soil and demanded to be flown to Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, and held an impromptu press conference proclaiming New York City’s need for an airport. In short, it worked, and construction began in 1939.

Image: unknown author, courtesy of U.S. National Archives.

Aerial view of the tip of Manhattan, New York, United States ca. 1931. Note that the Cities Service Building (now known as the American International Building), which would become lower Manhattan’s tallest building in 1932, is only partially completed.

After the Battle of Gettysburg, a Gold Moulded cylinder recorded by the Edison Military Band in 1902.

The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1 to July 3, 1863, is considered by many to be the most important engagement of the Civil War, when southern forces led by General Lee made a Northern invasion attempt. The Confederates defeat, coupled with the July 4th Fall of Vicksburg in Mississippi, helped turn the war’s bloody tide for good.

50 years later, veterans and supporters met at the battle site to commemorate the event. In fact, over 53,000 veterans showed, making it the largest ever Civil War veteran reunion. According to then Lieutenant Colonel A.E. Bradley, from the office of Chief Surgeon: “never before in the world’s history [had] so great a number of men so advanced in years been assembled under field conditions“.

Click for more on the Reunion of 1913.

Even Cowgirls Get the Blues was included on Harris’ Blue Kentucky Girl, a Warner Brothers LP. It was recorded in Nashville in 1979, with an award winning cast; that’s none other than Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt singing backup. Between the three of them that’s 32 Grammy awards… 8 for Dolly, 11 for Linda and 13 for EmmyLou. This album would win one of them for the Best Female Country Vocal Performance of 1980. Another came from a collaboration with the writer of this song, Rodney Crowell. The album “Old Yellow Moon” was named Best Americana Album in 2014.

Image credit: C. Kuhl / www.chriskuhl.com/music. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.