No subject

Benny Goodman-Billie Holiday Columbia =E2=80=9CYour Mother's Son-in-Law=E2=
=80=9D

=E2=80=9CYour Mother=E2=80=99s Son-in-Law=E2=80=9D Columbia 2856-D by =0ABe=
nny Goodman & His Orch. seems to be a greatly sought-after =0Arecording by =
Goodman, Holiday, blue-wax fans, or all three. Some copies =0Ahave sold on =
E-bay for over $200. To my knowledge Columbia Phonograph =0Anever issued it=
 on black shellac with a blue label, as were some =0Arecordings of the same=
 period (see Norvo issues from 1935), or Columbia =0Ared label. According t=
o Russ Connor=E2=80=99s several discographies on Goodman, =0Athe recording =
was made [Monday] November 27, 1933 and was issued as take=0A three. Strang=
ely, the vocalist on the two other tunes recorded on that =0Adate are by Et=
hel Waters. Also strange is that Holiday, who was =0Apresumably a complete =
unknown at the time except to a few musicians and =0AJohn Hammond, is liste=
d by name on the label, rather than as =E2=80=9CVocal =0AChorus.=E2=80=9D I=
 do not own a copy of Co 2856-D but do have the recording =0Aissued on (E) =
Co CB786, and on Special Editions SE-5009. =E2=80=9CYour Mother=E2=80=99s =
=0ASon-in-Law=E2=80=9D was also released on (E) Co FB 2826. Neither (E) Col=
umbia =0Aissue is listed in the 1940 (E) Columbia Catalogue, of which I hav=
e a =0Acopy. The Special Editions label has =E2=80=9CAmerican Record Corpor=
ation=E2=80=9D at =0Athe bottom but makes no reference to Columbia Records =
as the source. The=0A irony here is CBS changed the name of =E2=80=9CAmeric=
an Record Corporation=E2=80=9D May=0A 22, 1939 to Columbia Recording Corpor=
ation, and then to Columbia =0ARecords Inc. March 5, 1947. At the time the =
Special Editions records =0Awere issued, ARC no longer existed as a corpora=
te name. None of the =0ASpecial Editions records are listed in the Columbia=
 catalogs for 1948, =0Athe year SE records were issued over a three-month p=
eriod.

Hammond=0A set up a number of recording dates with American jazz players fo=
r =0AEnglish Columbia and (E) Parlophone. (E) Columbia put up the money and=
 =0Athe recordings were made in various stateside studios. One of the =0Apr=
ovisions in the contract agreement with (American) Columbia Phonograph=0A w=
as that it could lease recordings from (English) Columbia for release =0Ain=
 the United States on the Columbia Phonograph label. I have a copy of =0Ath=
e letter from (E) Columbia stipulating this provision. The vast =0Amajority=
 of record collectors think Columbia Phonograph is the label of =0A=E2=80=
=9Cfirst issue,=E2=80=9D but in a number of cases it is (E) Columbia. I cho=
ose to =0Acollect these (E) Columbia and (E) Parlophone recordings because =
they =0Aare (A) =E2=80=9Cfirsts,=E2=80=9D and because (B) they are much che=
aper than American =0Ablue-wax/blue-label Columbias, thank you!

An interesting point =0Aabout the November 27, 1933 recording date of =E2=
=80=9CYour Mother=E2=80=99s Son-in-Law=E2=80=9D=0A is that on November 24, =
1933 Columbia Phonograph=E2=80=99s parent company, =0Aradio and appliance m=
anufacturer, Grigsby-Grunow, was put into equity =0Areceivership. This incl=
uded Columbia Phonograph, which was also declared=0A involuntarily bankrupt=
, in part because it owed money to its parent =0Acompany. Once this legal s=
tep was taken, the trustees for the =0Areceivership governed every business=
 decision, every penny spent by =0AColumbia Phonograph. If only 300 copies =
of =E2=80=9CYour Mother=E2=80=99s Son-in-Law=E2=80=9D =0Awere pressed and i=
ssued, this would likely be why. It would also explain=0A why the record wa=
sn=E2=80=99t a good seller: 300 copies isn=E2=80=99t a lot to sell.=20

At=0A this time, this was generally an irreversible process that would end =
in=0A dissolution and dispersal of assets. Before the new Bankruptcy law of=
 =0Asummer 1934 superceded the then current bankruptcy law, this was =0Asta=
ndard federal bankruptcy court procedure. All bankruptcies were =0Ahandled =
through federal courts. Since Grigsby-Grunow was based in =0AChicago, this =
was assigned to the federal bankruptcy court in Chicago. I=0A have document=
s covering every step of the way from the bankruptcy =0Afiling through the =
liquidation of assets and their transfer to a new =0Acorporation called Sac=
ro Enterprises, which was incorporated in New York=0A State. Sacro was a co=
rporation on paper but not on an office door. =0AIntended as a =E2=80=9Cshe=
ll=E2=80=9D corporation, Sacro never filed any required papers=0A or paid a=
ny federal or New York State taxes. In his August 12, 1940 =0Areport to the=
 federal court in Chicago regarding the completion of his =0Aduties as trus=
tee, Frank M. McKey failed to mention Sacro Enterprises or=0A anything else=
 regarding the disposition of Columbia Phonograph other =0Athan it was liqu=
idated. Thus, no question was raised at the time =0Aregarding whether New Y=
ork State had removed the name =E2=80=9CColumbia =0APhonograph=E2=80=9D as =
a chartered corporation from its books. The documentation=0A I have clearly=
 shows that Consolidated Film Industries indirectly =0Acontrolled Columbia =
Phonograph=E2=80=99s name and assets through its subsidiary,=0A American Re=
cord Corporation.

Goodman also made another recording=0A of =E2=80=9CYour Mother=E2=80=99s So=
n-in-Law=E2=80=9D and other tunes he had recorded at that =0Atime for Colum=
bia. These 24 tunes were done under the name =E2=80=9CBill Dodge =0A& His O=
rchestra=E2=80=9D in February and/or March 1934 for World =0ABroadcasting. =
They were later dubbed in the 1960s and issued on the =0AMelodeon label in =
two 12-inch LP albums: =E2=80=9CSwinging =E2=80=9934 Vol. 1=E2=80=9D (Melod=
eon=0A 7328) and =E2=80=9CSwinging =E2=80=9934 Vol. 2=E2=80=9D=C2=A0 (Melod=
eon 7329). =E2=80=9CYour Mother=E2=80=99s =0ASon-in-Law=E2=80=9D is on Vol.=
 2, track 4. This version has no vocal. I have =0Aboth LPs but haven=E2=80=
=99t listened to either in many years, so I can=E2=80=99t say =0Awhether th=
e same arrangement was used. Melodeon was started by Dick =0ASpottswood, wh=
o then sold it to Arnold S. Caplin of Biograph and =0AHistorical Records.=
=C2=A0 Caplin also reissued under different names some of =0Athe albums ori=
ginally issued on the 1950s Dawn label. Among them are the=0A Zoot Sims =E2=
=80=9CModern Art of Jazz=E2=80=9D retitled as =E2=80=9COne to Blow On,=E2=
=80=9D Lucky =0AThompson, and Paul Quinichette [=E2=80=9CKid from Denver=E2=
=80=9D]. Two Dawn/Biograph =0Aalbums were later reissued on excellent 180 g=
m. audiophile vinyl =0Apressings by Sundazed Music on the Euphoria label: A=
l Cohn [=E2=80=9CCohn on the=0A Saxophone=E2=80=9D ELP 196], and Jimmy Rane=
y [=E2=80=9CJimmy Raney Visits Paris=E2=80=9D ELP =0A198].=20

The Internet has separate discographies for Biograph, =0AHistorical Records=
, and Melodeon. Some Biograph issues are not shown, =0Aespecially Bunny Ber=
igan BLP-C-10. From Warren Hicks, I bought some of =0Athe Vocalion one-offs=
 used by Caplin in mastering the Berigan album. The=0A sound is marvelous! =
Under Historical Records, HLP 24 =E2=80=9CTerritory Bands =0A1929-1933=E2=
=80=9D is mentioned but the orchestras of Zack Whyte and Alphonse =0ATrent =
are not. This is the LP that has Trent=E2=80=99s =E2=80=9CClementine=E2=80=
=9D and =E2=80=9CI Found=0A a New Baby=E2=80=9D (Side 2, tracks 4 and 5). T=
he late Ken Crawford, record =0Acollector, producer, and founding member of=
 the International =0AAssociation of Jazz Record Collectors, bought a copy =
of =E2=80=9CClementine=E2=80=9D =0Ayears ago for $1600 at a record show in =
New Jersey. I walked into the =0Aevent just as he bought it.

Question: Is being the son-in-law of =0Aone=E2=80=99s own mother sort of li=
ke being one=E2=80=99s own grandpa, per that =0Acolossal, all-time classic =
song of the 1940s?
Geoffrey