Search - Various Artists :: Complete Modernaires 1

THE DEFINITIVE MODERNAIRES COLLECTION TO DATE!

John P. Cooper | Hollywood, CA United States | 12/15/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Long in production, "The Complete Modernaires On Columbia" 79
tracks and four CDs worth of 40s and very early 50s (1950, to be
exact) vintage pop, is now available on the Collectables label with
the tracks leased from Columbia/CBS/SONY to insure excellent
sound quality. Many of these recordings are first rate material, except for the
'misery' tunes they were handed and did a better job with than
the songwriters did. If you have a taste for four part harmony, these sides are for you! All the material on these four CDs were recorded during the years
1945 - 1950. They are all of a commercial nature with the only jazz coming from
instrumental soloists and a surprising bop influence in some of the
later arrangements in the instrumental portions. The material ranges from dismal to first rate, with many surprises
along the way. Any group that can take "My Friend Irma" and
make it listenable has my respect. Needful to say is that all the performances are top class. The
Modernaires never fall down of the job even when the tunes are
stiffs. Also, don't let the titles of unfamiliar tunes fool you. There are
titles you would bet your life are dogs, yet they turn out to be
good tunes and excellent performances. The late forties were rugged times over at Columbia for the best of
artists as the A&R department seemed to loose its mind and just
went after anything that might turn into a hit and they were really
big on novelties. Fortunately, it sometimes seems like they had written off the
Modernaires as 'yesterday's news', so they got to do some tunes
that were standards with little 'hit' potential left and those are
exceptionally good. These CDs also mark an important milestone in the history of
record company restrictions : For years now, Frank Sinatra and/or
the Sinatra estate had a agreement with Columbia Records stating
that Columbia could not issue Sinatra/Columbia sides on anything
except complete Sinatra releases, which meant no
Sinatra/Columbia sides on any anthologies or releases by other
artists. Finally, that agreement has ended and Columbia is now
able to issue Sinatra sides more liberally. Frank Sinatra and the Modernaires did about a half dozen sides
together and this is the first time that they have appeared outside
of a Sinatra titled release. There are some truly stunning ballads amongst these 79 tracks,
along with some clever novelties and many top notch pop tunes. The sound quality will amaze you. They should nearly all sound as
if high fidelity and it is very easy to hear the individual parts. The instrumental arrangements, many done by Fran Scott of the
Mods, range from just rhythm section back ups and to full
orchestra accompaniment with strings to classic swing/big band
charts with plenty of reeds, brass, rhythm just kicking along. Paula Kelly is the female voice on most of the sides, but Ginny
Maxey subs for her when Paula was unable to make a date. This
information was noted on the original Columbia 78 rpm issues and
I hope they have noted that on the CDs. The Modernaires with
Maxey have a beautiful version of "Something In the Wind" and a
spirited recording of "The Turntable Song", both from a very late
Deanna Durbin film. The Modernaires back up Doris Day on "Thoughtless" and it is a
real gem. If all late forties material were as good as this, it would
have been a better decade! Buddy Clark and the Modernaires turn up on some acapella sides
made during the AFM recording strike/ban of 1948. No musicians,
nice sides. This set of four CDs really is a goldmine of recordings simply
because you really *have* to mine it and then pan for the gold. And, of course, reissues being what they are, they managed to
miss a Bob Crosby Columbia session from the mid fifties on which
the Modernaires did a couple tunes, though, luckily, one of them
was a very comic novelty that needed to be seen and heard, but
not heard alone if you had never seen it. The Modernaires on most of these recordings consist of Hal
Dickenson and Ralph Brewster (of the 'original' four Modernaires)
and Johnny Drake and Fran Scott who had come to replace Chuck
Goldstein (who left the Modernaires the day after the Miller band
broke up in 1942) and Bill Conway (one of the original three
members of the group) who left during the war and never returned
to the Mods for a handful of reasons. So, as far as recordings are
concerned, the Columbia Modernaires are as close in sound to the
Glenn Miller era Modernaires as you can ever hope to hear. The Columbia Modernaires 'sound' was very consistent throughout
the decade, even when Ralph Brewster left the group and was
replaced by Alan Copeland. Many vocal groups would have fallen
apart with the loss of three of the four male voices. but Hal
Dickenson, the groups leader was very, very choosy and careful
about who came in and who was going to stay, so he was able to
maintain a continuity of sound for a very long time. Even into the
early Coral Records years of the 1950s, he was able to hold onto
that 'sound' for a time, but as the fifties came to an end and the
third and fourth regime of replacements rolled in and as Hal
purposely updated the style of the group, the sound of the forties
Modernaires began to disappear for good and only the voices of
Paula and Hal, along with their many hit tunes identified the group
as "The Modernaires". The Columbia Modernaires is a set worth owning and I never
thought that such a set would come out. Without that first
inexpensive SONY ten track CD of a few years ago and the
subsequent Varese/Sarabande issue of some of the best Coral
Records material, this might have never happened. I am glad it
did."

Dreamy Forties Harmonies Will Get You In The Mood

Roger Mahan | 03/20/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you are a fan of Glenn Miller's civilian band, you know the Modernaires. They are the close harmony vocal quintet led by Paula Kelly and her husband, Hal Dickensen who back up Tex Beneke , Marion Hutton and Ray Eberle on so many of Miller's most memorable hits. But if you are under 50, as I am, you may not realize they had a career long after the Miller band broke up. This CD is the first in a series of four that document the post war career of the Modernaires, covering the period 1945 to 1950. Each CD has about 20 tracks covering a wide variety of material, from dreamy ballads like "I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night" and "There, I've Said It Again" to up-tempo, swingy numbers like "The Turntable Song", "Hoodle Addle" and "Rock It For Me", the latter of which actually uses the term "rock and roll" while still maintaining the atmosphere of 1940s America. Additionally, there are more than enough novelty numbers, some amusing and some downright awful, but bravely made the best of by this talented group. Ever wonder where the Campbells Soup company got the tune and slogan that's been a staple of their TV advertising seemingly forever? Listen to the Modernaires singing "Mm Mm Good" (which is NOT about soup!) and you'll see where Madison Avenue got the idea. I hope that obscure songwriter got a royalty deal.The first CD in the series helps ease the transition for Miller fans into the post-Miller Modernaires by containing a nearly resurrected version of "Juke Box Saturday Night" and a medley of Miller hits that includes some of the rarely-heard lyrics to "Moonlight Serenade". But part of the fun of this series, at least for me, as someone who rarely listens to music recorded after 1945, is the atmospheric evocation of late '40s America in all its variety, from its obsession with westerns to cutesy songs that would appeal to the kiddies of the baby boom generation in their formative years, while Wonderbread was helping build their strong bodies 12 ways. There is even an (annoying) 13 minute childrens story covering 4 tracks on the fourth CD in the series, which is really the only thing I wish the compilation had skipped. It made me wonder if Ms. Kelley had had a child somewhat earlier and had insisted on recording a bedtime story for it. But, with that minor criticism in mind, I strongly recommend the entire 4 CD series. I loved it, and if you are a Miller fan, so will you."