[78-L] 1950s big band (was Frosty)

[David Lennick]

It got to #43 in 1961. Big bands still sold LPs, just not much in the way of 
charted hits.

dl

Royal Pemberton wrote:
> How high did Si Zentner's 'Up a lazy river' get (1962)?   That's a big band
> instrumental, though done with what I call a 'twist tempo' feel.  (And
> you'll notice the tempo gradually slowing down through the track....drummer
> getting lazy?)
> 
> On Mon, Jan 11, 2010 at 6:08 PM, David Lennick <dlennick at sympatico.ca>wrote:
> 
>> Billy May went only to #49 in the US. Not a hit.
>>
>> Les Baxter? You gotta be kidding. Unchained Melody and Wake The Town are
>> vocals. Poor People of Paris is "cute instrumental" and no more big band
>> than
>> my Aunt Geri's grocery list.
>>
>> Honey-Babe is strictly vocal, not a big band record by anyone's definition.
>>
>> Nelson Riddle led a big band for singers like Sinatra but Lisbon Antigua
>> has
>> STRINGS and no big band elements. Eddie Heywood with Hugo Winterhalter
>> comes
>> closer to big band.
>>
>> Ted Heath couldn't sell shoelaces in the US but he definitely counts in the
>> Uk.
>>
>> Reg Owen was a top ten hit here, so that one counts. Ditto Ray Anthony.
>> We're
>> almost up to ten....
>>
>> Answer to backup question: Mitchell Ayres?
>>
>> dl
>>
>> Kristjan Saag wrote:
>>> David Lennick wrote:
>>>
>>>> Nobody's saying they weren't popular, only that there were virtually no
>>>> big
>>>> band hit singles after 1954. And I think we've listed the two
>> exceptions.
>>> --
>>> There were more exceptions.
>>> Art Mooney reached the no 6 spot in the US 1955 with "Honey-Babe"
>>> Les Baxter no 2 in the US and no 10 in the UK 1955 with "Unchained
>> Melody"
>>> Les Baxter no 10 in the US in 1955 with "Wake The Town And Tell The
>> People"
>>> Perez Prado no 1 in the US and UK 1955 with "Cherry Pink And Apple
>> Blossom
>>> White"
>>> Billy May no 9 in the UK 1956 with theme from "The Man With The Gold Arm"
>>> Nelson Riddle no 1 in the US 1956 with "Lisbon Antigua"
>>> Les Baxter no 1 the US 1956 with "The Poor People Of Paris"
>>> Perez Prado no 2 in the US and no 8 in the UK 1958 with "Patricia"
>>> Ted Heath no 3 in the UK 1958 with "Swingin' Shepherd Blues"
>>> Reg Owen no 10 in the US 1959 with "Manhattan Spiritual"
>>> Ray Anthony no 8 in the US 1959 with "Peter Gunn"
>>>
>>> And this was just Top 10.
>>> True: most of these weren't jazz tunes, not even jazz arrangements, but
>> who
>>> said Big Bands always played jazz music?
>>> Big Band arrangements though, were still commonplace on many, if not most
>>> vocal hits of the 1950's. Who backed Jo Stafford, Frank Sinatra, Perry
>> Como
>>> and all the successful vocal quartets? It wasn't Bill Haley's Comets or
>> The
>>> Kingston Trio. Many of those hits would have been released under the
>>> orchestra's name in the early 1940's.
>>> Kristjan
>>>