Playlist For December 27, 2017

The playlist for the December 27, 2017 broadcast of the Swing Shift Shuffle New Year's Eve Special has now been added to the playlist filing cabinet.  

Merry Christmas!

While it is admittedly belated, I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!  After all, remember there are 12 days of Christmas, so you have another 9 days to go! 

Peace On Earth

On this Friday before Christmas, I wanted to again post one of my favorite holiday cartoons.  Although some of the imagery in this film seems a bit dark for a holiday cartoon, the message is always relevant.  This short was released in 1939, when Europe was either on the brink of or already at war, many in the U.S. were not interested in reliving the horrors of World War I, and the Japanese had not yet attacked Pearl Harbor.  From the Internet Archive, here is Peace On Earth.

I'll be taking a break for a week, but I'll back in the new year.

Sunrise Serenade: Christmas In Killarney

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "Christmas In Killarney" by Bing Crosby.  Enjoy the video from YouTube.

Sunrise Serenade: Swingin' Them Jingle Bells

Today's Sunrise Serenade was "Swingin' Them Jingle Bells" by Fats Waller and His Rhythm.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line. 

Playlist For December 20, 2017 - Christmas Special

The playlist for the December 20, 2017 broadcast of the Swing Shift Shuffle Christmas Special has now been added to the playlist filing cabinet.  

Christmas Special Tonight!

Join me tonight for the Swing Shift Shuffle Christmas Special, featuring the best Swing, Big Band and popular holiday songs from the 1930's-40's.  Tune in to 89.9 FM in the Memphis area, or online at WEVL. 

Sunrise Serenade: Christmas Island

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "Christmas Island" by the Andrews Sisters.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line.

The Hot Origins Of The Christmas Song

Swing and Beyond tells of how, on an "excessively hot" afternoon in the Summer of 1945, singer Mel Torme drove to Bob Wells' house in the San Fernando Valley.  He walked into the house, and found the following words written on a pad resting on the piano: 

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire

Jack Frost nipping at your nose

Yuletide carols being sung by a choir

And folks dressed up like Eskimos

When Wells appeared, Torme asked him about the little poem.  It was so hot, Wells said "I thought I’d write something to cool myself off. All I could think of was Christmas and cold weather."  Torme said "This might make a song."  A year later, Nat King Cole recorded "The Christmas Song," and the rest is musical history. 

Sunrise Serenade: Santa Claus Is Coming To Town

Today's Sunrise Serenade was "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line.

Top Christmas Gifts Of 1948

Vintage Everyday posted this list of the top Christmas gifts sold by Macy's in 1948.  Lots of apparel on the list, including shirts, ties, nylons; as well as items like pearl necklaces, whisky and music.

Sunrise Serenade: Winter Wonderland

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "Winter Wonderland" by the Andrews Sisters.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line.

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer

More than 15 years before Rankin Bass screened their animated version of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer on television, Jam Handy released this animated short of the same story directed by Max Fleischer.  From the Internet Archive, here is Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer. 

Sunrise Serenade: Jingle Bells

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "Jingle Bells" by Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters.  Enjoy the video from YouTube.

80 Year Old Bluebird Returns To The Water

In 1937, Sir Malcolm Campbell set a new world water speed record of 129.50 mph in his Bluebird K3 hydroplane, and the following year, he broke the 130 mph mark at 130.91 mph with the same boat.  Hemmings Motor News reported that now, 80 years after the vessel's last record, it has returned to the water.  After a 20-year-long restoration by current owner Karl Foulkes-Halbard, the Bluebird K3 managed a speed of 52 mph in a test on Bewl Water in Kent, U.K., in early September in Kent, U.K.

Sunrise Serenade: Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow

Today's Sunrise Serenade was "Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow" by Woody Herman and His Orchestra.  Enjoy the video below from YouTube.

Playlist For December 13, 2017

The playlist for the December 13, 2017 broadcast of the Swing Shift Shuffle has now been added to the playlist filing cabinet.  

Sunrise Serenade: Dese Bones Gonna Rise Again

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "Dese Bones Gonna Rise Again" by the Golden Gate Quartet.  Enjoy the video from YouTube.

Portraits From 1940

Dull Tool Dim Bulb posted this series of four drawings with watercolor from around 1940.  The artist was a Ms. Lucy Moose, and these portraits show men in various poses.  Aside from being well dressed by today's standards (such attire would have been common for many men back then), all these gentlemen appear to be pretty relaxed.  Not a lot of action here.  These guys are just hanging out. 

Sunrise Serenade: Tuxedo Junction

Today's Sunrise Serenade was "Tuxedo Junction" by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line.

National Recovery Admnistration Sign

Here is another find from the Nashville Flea Market in October.  Straight from the New Deal, this is a metal National Recovery Administration (NRA) sign.  The NRA (no, not the National Rifle Association) was a federal agency created during the New Deal to help the country recover from the Great Depression, and businesses would hang these signs to show that they were participating in NRA programs.  It appeared to be original, and I have not found any reproductions available.  The asking price was $75.  Interestingly, I found another such sign in similar condition at another booth for $80.  I had not seen even one, much less two, of these signs prior to this occasion. 

Sunrise Serenade: When It's Christmas On The Range

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "When It's Christmas On The Range" by Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line. 

Whiz Wilson: Time Travelling Fix-It Man

As a time traveler, "Whiz" Wilson has a unique approach.  He does not just handle whatever problem he finds in the present time with the tools available, nor does he jump back in time to prevent the problem from arising.  Instead, he jumps to the future, borrows advanced weaponry, and returns to defeat his foes with technological superiority.  Pappy's Golden Age Comic Blogzine posted this story from 1941.

Sunrise Serenade: Stick To Your Knittn', Kitten

Today's Sunrise Serenade was "Stick To Your Knittn', Kitten" by the Four Vagabonds.  Enjoy the video from YouTube.

Playlist For December 6, 2017

The playlist for the December 6, 2017 broadcast of the Swing Shift Shuffle has now been added to the playlist filing cabinet.  

Sunrise Serenade: Swinging On A Star

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "Swinging On A Star" by Bing Crosby.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line.

Marlene Dietrich - No Highway In The Sky

Here is a set of publicity photos of Marlene Dietrich, posted on Vintage Everyday, taken during the filming of No Highway In The Sky in 1948.  One of my favorite films, in addition to Ms. Dietrich it starred James Stewart, Jack Hawkins and Glynis Johns.  Ms. Dietrich played a glamorous movie star (typecasting?) who becomes intrigued by a sincere but eccentric aviation engineer played by Stewart, who believes the aircraft in which they travel will crash at a specific time. 

Sunrise Serenade: I Want The Waiter (With The Water)

Today's Sunrise Serenade was "I Want The Waiter (With The Water)" by Ella Fitzgerald.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line.

TCM In December

The Star of the Month on TCM for December is Lana Turner, with her movies playing every Tuesday.  With the holidays upon us, there are plenty of chances for seasonal cheer with some favorite films, and I noticed a series of World War II films on Friday, December 8, including Casablanca and This Land Is Mine.  Full schedule here.

Sunrise Serenade: This Time It's Love

This morning's Sunrise Serenade was "This Time It's Love" by Cab Calloway and His Orchestra.  Click on the song title to listen courtesy of Jazz On Line.