Search - Bing Crosby, Al Jolson :: Bing Crosby Meets Al Jolson

Great companion to Swingin' With Bing!

Greg Van Beek | West Bend, Wisconsin | 10/23/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you loved last years' "Swingin' With Bing" radio performance box set on the Shout Factory label, you're sure to love this new 2 CD set on the Sepia label. It contains all of the duets Bing Crosby performed with Al Jolson on radio, from both Bing's shows, circa 1947-50, and Jolson's own 1947-48 KMH, in addition to a healthy dose of solos by each performer. The remastering job is fantastic....you've never heard these old transcriptions sound so fresh, crisp and clear as they do on this new compilation. Ken Barnes and his production team are master craftsman at painstakingly restoring the audio of vintage recordings and correcting them to play back at their proper speed. Kudos once again to Ken and company (who also produced the 3 CD box set "Swingin' With Bing") for a job well done. I heartily recommend it to everyone."

Elemental Performers' Elemental Performances

Jon Oye | IL, US | 03/02/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The team that brought us the indispensable "Swingin' With Bing", producer Ken Barnes (who worked with Bing Crosby on several LPs in the 1970s) and restoration wiz Peter J. Reynolds, have rescued from oblivion more essential Crosby radio performances-this time Bing is accompanied by the idol of his youth, fellow entertainment titan Al Jolson. Barnes & Co. have restored the sound quality to a level that would have been far beyond the reproduction capabilities of the classic Philco model 1201 radio we hear Bing & Al pitch in this significant compilation. Likewise, the songs, chat, and a couple of Philco spots (one of which is repeatedly and hilariously "fluffed") from various radio transcription discs, circa 1946-50, have been edited into a series of seamless performances, rather than a snippet here and a snippet there, with the abrupt, distracting fades that are typical of most radio show compilations. The resulting two-CD set is another Barnes tour de force, worthy of any serious music collector's library of classic American popular song.



There are a staggering 99 tracks, 68 of which are songs or medleys. Every Crosby-Jolson radio duet is featured, plus selected solos, including all of their musical numbers from the classic April 2, 1947 broadcast of Philco Radio Time, with John Charles Thomas (sans Bing's tribute to Bert Williams, "Nobody"). There's also a delightful Gershwin medley from the October 16, 1947 edition of Al's Kraft Music Hall, and a moving, poignant reading of "My Old Kentucky Home", the last song Bing and Al would perform together. Also noteworthy is a riveting duet of "The Best Things in Life Are Free"-at least the third Crosby version of this song with which Barnes has been involved, beginning with their first LP collaboration, 1975's "That's What Life Is All About", available as part of the must-have "Complete United Artists Sessions" box set.



While this collection isn't quite the All Star Game "Swingin'" was (Crosby and Jolson were the biggest stars in the world at the time, so there's not much room for more anyway), a couple of heavy hitters do come off the bench to contribute. The primordial 20th century composer and provider of many Crosby and Jolson hits, Irving Berlin, is on hand for the May 7, 1947 Philco show, and he even performs an endearingly breathless, croaky reprise of his classic, "Oh How I Hate to Get Up In the Morning", which he had immortalized on film a few years earlier in the Michael Curtiz-directed "This Is the Army." It's the only solo number in the set not sung by Crosby or Jolson. Also on hand for a few songs and witty exchanges is Al's KMH sidekick, the appealingly irascible Renaissance man Oscar Levant, who lends some classically ornate ivory tickling to the Gershwin medley.



Ken Barnes has done a huge service in restoring and releasing to CD these irreplaceable and long forgotten gems, not only for their sheer entertainment value, but also for the undeniable historic necessity of keeping these classic examples of seminal American entertainment available to the public. Here's hoping he'll continue with these labors of love for many years to come-at least until all of Bing's radio duets with Peggy Lee, Connee Boswell and Rosemary Clooney have been given the Barnes treatment and are committed to disc!"

THE titans of 20th Century music take to the airwaves!

Robert Badgley | London,Ontario,Canada | 02/14/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ken Barnes,music writer/producer/historian has done it once again.Those that recall his seminal CD sets of Bing Crosby's entire UA Sessions and the complete London Fred Astaire sessions(both long out of print) will know the man very well.He has a solid rep in the music and entertainment biz and has even created a company that restores music and movies.This 2005 2-CD set is one of his latest projects and offers us up some highly significant and historic recordings.

Presented here are two of the greatest singers(arguably the two GREATEST)ever to grace a stage and enter a recording studio;Al Jolson and Bing Crosby.Jolson was the "greatest entertainer" and was at the dizzying heights of his early career when Bing was just a pup.No one before or since has ever performed with the bravura and energy on stage as did Jolson.He was a force unto himself and engaged his audiences from start to finish.Of course he was also a big name in the early years of recorded sound and sold millions of discs and sheet music and later, in movies.

Crosby was a third of a vocal group called the Rhythm Boys working with Paul Whiteman's famous Orchestra.From there he went solo and in his own unique way slowly but surely carved himself out a monster of a career in show business also through the recording medium and movies.Crosby had idolized Jolson as a youngster but he was no copy cat.He had a style all his own,more rooted in jazz than Jolson,and with his persona of the relaxed and cool crooner,he became a hit with millions of people.His vocal style still influences singers today.

Jolson had done the Kraft Music Hall(the source of most of these recordings)in the early 30s but Bing took it over as host steadily from /36 to /46.After Bing,Jolson took the reigns until 1949.Both men were highly successful during their respective runs at the Hall and these cuts amply demonstrate why these two men were simply the greatest at what they did.Jolsons' voice aged beautifully as time went on and the newer and better recording technology captured the deep richness of his vocal timbre that his earlier recordings had failed to get.Bings' voice also improved as the technology did and Bing also is heard to best advantage on these recordings.

The dates for these songs range from 1946 to 1950 and Ken Barnes has managed to present the material on hand in the best possible way,sonically speaking.You will here the patter and the chatter between,before and after the cuts and they enhance the listening experience as a whole.You can tell both men were relaxed,at their best and seemingly having a ball together.Jolie's phrasing and voice are in superb form and vocally he never drops the ball once.Bing,as always,was in fine form as host and as guest.Also included is a booklet with some info regarding these recordings by Barnes and the complete release and recording info.

Fans of both these men will want to get this CD set for their collections.The Kraft Music Hall performances are quite rare these days on CD and as they showcase the myriad of talent that passed in front of its' microphones like no other,in this case Jolson and Crosby,you have to get while the getting is good.These historic treasures are a definite must have.

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