Music Mondays: (I've Got Spurs that) Jingle Jangle Jingle, performed by Kay Kyser and his Orchestra

May 9
"(I’ve Got Spurs that) Jingle Jangle Jingle," Written by Joseph J. Lilley and Frank Loesser; performed by Kay Kyser and his Orchestra (1942)

This song is an example of “western swing” music, which peaked in popularity in the early 1940s, at the same time that country music as a genre was really gaining in popularity, as well. Eventually, western swing would be grouped into the broader label of country music, but it had a pretty different sound from the popular country music of the day. This song has been used in various media over the years, including a popular video game, so there’s a good chance people have heard it before. I enjoy the smooth sound of Harry Babbitt, one of the lead singers of Kay Kyser’s orchestra, on this particular version.

Kay Kyser was an extremely popular band leader in the 1930s and 40s, but he abruptly retired in 1950. Due to his abrupt retirement, his band is not as well known among younger people today as some of the other big bands of the time, like Glenn Miller from last week. However, he definitely made a name for himself in the 1930s and was known to have a great sense of humor, incorporating that into his orchestra’s performances. He even created his own character, “The Ol’ Professor,” and incorporated musical knowledge quizzes to further entertain his audiences.

Take a listen to this catchy tune here:

 

Resources
About the song: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jingle_Jangle_Jingle
About Kay Kyser and his orchestra: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kay_Kyser
https://www.kaykyser.net/kay.html
About Country music and Western swing: 

https://nortoncenter.com/2017/03/19/the-origins-of-country-music/
https://www.liveabout.com/the-history-of-country-music-934030

Music Mondays: A String of Pearls, performed by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra

May 2
"A String of Pearls," Composed by Jerry Gray and Eddie deLange, Performed by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra (1941)

With a new month, we’re swinging right into the era of Big Band and swing with the 1940s. One can hardly talk about the Big Band era without talking about Glenn Miller and his orchestra, a sound and style which defines the genre for many. Miller created his own unique sound by having a clarinet play the melodies, with a tenor sax playing the same melody an octave lower and other saxophones playing harmonies. This instrumentation gave his band a unique sound that is still identifiable today. Some criticize him for “watering down” jazz music, but he ignored his critics, focusing on creating music that listeners would enjoy. In late 1942, Miller decided to join the US army as a band leader to help the war effort and helped boost troop morale through 1944. Sadly, his plane was lost at sea in 1944 (when Miller was only 40 years old), so we will never know what other musical treasures he could have created with his musicians. War is a terrible thing. 

This particular song made it to number 1 in the charts, knocking off another Glenn Miller hit, “Chattanooga Choo Choo.”

Here's the top 80 list for 1942: https://playback.fm/year/1942

The song:

Resources
About Glenn Miller:
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Glenn-Miller
http://glennmiller.com/biography/
About the song:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_String_of_Pearls_(song)
https://www.colorado.edu/amrc/glenn-miller-archives/gma-studies/string-pearls