The Glenn Miller Orchestra played for the last time-September 27, 1942

Glenn Miller's "In The Mood"

On September 27, 1942, Glenn Miller and his Orchestra performed together for the very last time at the Central Theater in Passaic*, New Jersey, prior to Glenn's entry into the Army Air Corps.

He traveled throughout Europe and the US raising troop morale with the Glenn Miller Army Air Force band. On December 15, 1944, Miller boarded a transport plane for Paris to prepare for an upcoming concert; the plane disappeared over the English Channel, presumed crashed. The wreckage of the plane was never found.

During the 1940s, Glenn Miller and his Orchestra were America's house band. The group’s signature swinging sound, provided by a reed section of clarinet, tenor sax and saxophones, kept American spirits up and American feet dancing during the darkest days of World War II.

The 1940s were the Big Band era, and Glenn Miller’s Orchestra was the biggest of them all, enjoying a string of hits including: "In the Mood," "Pennsylvania 6500" and "Chattanooga Choo-Choo" In 1942, * Glenn Miller lived in nearby Tenafly, New Jersey.


Previous Glenn Miller articles of special interest; The-final-flight, The-Glenn-Miller-conspiracy



Here is one of Glenn Miller's biggest hits "A String Of Pearls."

Continue reading on Examiner.com: The Glenn Miller Orchestra played for the last time-September 27, 1942 - National Swing and Big Band
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Frank Sinatra’s angry letter to Mike Royko of the Chicago Daily News ! - National Frank Sinatra | Examiner.com

Frank Sinatra’s angry letter to Mike Royko of the Chicago Daily News ! - National Frank Sinatra | Examiner.com

Frank Sinatra treasure chest: Sinatra The Capitol Years

Capitol Records offers, what maybe, the greatest collection of Frank Sinatra recordings. The collection contains 21 CDs! And covers the period from 1954, when Frank first teamed with Nelson Riddle, to 1962
Artist: Frank Sinatra
Title Of Album: Frank Sinatra - The Capitol Years (1954-1962)
Year Of Release: November 20, 1998
Label: Capitol Records
Here are the tracks;

CD1. Songs For Young Lovers (1954)

01. "The Girl Next Door" (Hugh Blane, Ralph Martin) 2:39
02. "They Can't Take That Away from Me" (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) 1:59
03. "Violets for Your Furs" (Tom Adair, Matt Dennis) 3:07
04. "Someone to Watch over Me" (G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) 2:59
05. "My One and Only Love" (Guy Wood, Robert Mellin) 3:14
06. "Little Girl Blue" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) 2:54
07. "Like Someone in Love" (Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke) 3:13
08. "A Foggy Day" (G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) 2:41
09. "It Worries Me" (Fritz Schultz-Reichelt, Carl Sigman) 2:55
10. "I Can Read Between the Lines" (Ramon Getzov, Sid Frank) 2:50
11. "I Get a Kick Out of You" (Cole Porter) 2:56
12. "My Funny Valentine" (Rodgers, Hart) 2:31

CD2: Swing Easy (1954)

01. "Jeepers Creepers" (Harry Warren, Johnny Mercer) 2:24
02. "Taking a Chance on Love" (Vernon Duke, Ted Fetter, John Latouche) 2:14
03. "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" (Harry Barris, Ted Koehler, Billy Moll) 2:17
04. "Lean Baby" (Roy Alfred, Billy May) 2:34
05. "I Love You" (Harry Archer, Harlan Thompson) 2:28
06. "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down (And Write Myself a Letter)" (Fred E. Ahlert, Joe Young) 2:29
07. "Get Happy" (Koehler, Harold Arlen) 2:27
08. "All of Me" (Seymour Simons, Gerald Marks) 2:08
09. "How Could You Do a Thing Like That to Me" (Tyree Glenn, Allan Roberts) 2:44
10. "Why Should I Cry over You?" (Chester Conn, Ned Miller) 2:41
11. "Sunday" (Chester Conn, Benny Krueger, Ned Miller, Jule Styne) 2:31
12. "Just One of Those Things" (Porter) 3:14

CD3. In The Wee Small Hours (1955)

01. "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" (Bob Hilliard, David Mann) 3:02
02. "Mood Indigo" (Barney Bigard, Duke Ellington, Irving Mills) 3:32
03. "Glad to Be Unhappy" (Rodgers, Hart) 2:39
04. "I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)" (Hoagy Carmichael, Jane Brown Thompson) 3:45
05. "Deep in a Dream" (Eddie DeLange, Van Heusen) 2:51
06. "I See Your Face Before Me" (Howard Dietz, Arthur Schwartz) 3:27
07. "Can't We Be Friends?" (Paul James, Kay Swift) 2:50
08. "When Your Lover Has Gone" (Einar Aaron Swan) 3:12
09. "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (Porter) 2:36
10. "Last Night When We Were Young" (Arlen, Yip Harburg) 3:18
11. "I'll Be Around" (Alec Wilder) 3:01
12. "Ill Wind" (Arlen, Koehler) 3:48
13. "It Never Entered My Mind" (Rodgers, Hart) 2:43
14. "Dancing on the Ceiling" (Rodgers, Hart) 3:00
15. "I'll Never Be the Same" (Gus Kahn, Matty Malneck, Frank Signorelli) 3:07
16. "This Love of Mine" (Sol Parker, Henry W. Sanicola, Jr., Frank Sinatra) 3:35

CD4. This is Sinatra (1956)

01. "I've Got the World on a String" (Arlen, Koehler) 2:14
02. "Three Coins in the Fountain" (Styne, Sammy Cahn) 3:07
03. "Love and Marriage" (Cahn, Van Heusen) 2:41
04. "From Here to Eternity" (Freddie Karger, Robert Wells) 3:01
05. "South of the Border" (Jimmy Kennedy, Michael Carr) 2:52
06. "Rain (Falling from the Skies)" (Robert Mellin, Gunther Finlay) 3:27
07. "The Gal That Got Away" (Arlen, I. Gershwin) 3:12
08. "Young at Heart" (Johnny Richards, Carolyn Leigh) 2:53
09. "Learnin' the Blues" (Dolores Vicki Silvers) 3:04
10. "My One and Only Love" 3:15
11. "(Love Is) The Tender Trap" (Van Heusen, Cahn) 3:00
12. "Don't Worry 'bout Me" (Rube Bloom, Koehler) - 3:07

CD5. Songs For Swingin' Lovers! (1956)

01. "You Make Me Feel So Young" (Josef Myrow, Mack Gordon) 2:57
02. "It Happened in Monterey" (Mabel Wayne, Billy Rose) 2:37
03. "You're Getting to Be a Habit with Me" (Warren, Al Dubin) 2:19
04. "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" (Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal, Pierre Norman) 2:49
05. "Too Marvelous for Words" (Richard A. Whiting, Mercer) 2:32
06. "Old Devil Moon" (Burton Lane, Harburg) 3:57
07. "Pennies from Heaven" (Arthur Johnston, Burke) 2:45
08. "Our Love Is Here to Stay" (G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) 2:42
09. "I've Got You Under My Skin" (Porter) 3:45
10. "I Thought About You" (Van Heusen, Mercer) 2:31
11. "We'll Be Together Again" (Carl Fischer, Frankie Laine) 4:27
12. "Makin' Whoopee" (Walter Donaldson, Kahn) 3:08
13. "Swingin' Down the Lane" (Isham Jones, Kahn) 2:54
14. "Anything Goes" (Porter) 2:44
15. "How About You?" (Burton Lane, Ralph Freed) 2:45

CD6. Close to you (1957)

01. "Close to You" (Al Hoffman, Carl G. Lampl, Jerry Livingston) 3:40
02. "P.S. I Love You" (Gordon Jenkins, Mercer) 4:24
03. "Love Locked Out" (Max Kester, Ray Noble) 2:45
04. "Everything Happens to Me" (Adair, Dennis) 3:22
05. "It's Easy to Remember" (Rodgers, Hart) 3:37
06. "Don't Like Goodbyes" (Arlen, Truman Capote) 4:52
07. "With Every Breath I Take" (Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin) 3:41
08. "Blame It on My Youth" (Edward Heyman, Oscar Levant) 3:00
09. "It Could Happen to You" (Burke, Van Heusen) 3:16
10. "I've Had My Moments" (Donaldson, Kahn) 3:50
11. "I Couldn't Sleep a Wink Last Night" (Harold Adamson, Jimmy McHugh) 3:28
12. "The End of a Love Affair" (Edward Redding) 4:09

CD7. A Swingin' Affair (1957)

01. "Night and Day" (Porter) 4:02
02. "I Wish I Were in Love Again" (Rodgers, Hart) 2:31
03. "I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'" (DuBose Heyward, G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) 3:13
04. "I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan" (Schwartz, Dietz) 2:26
05. "Nice Work if You Can Get It" (G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) 2:24
06. "Stars Fell on Alabama" (Frank Perkins, Mitchell Parish) 2:41
07. "No One Ever Tells You" (Hub Atwood, Carroll Coates) 3:28
08. "I Won't Dance" (Jerome Kern, McHugh, Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach, Dorothy Fields) 3:27
09. "Lonesome Road" (Nathaniel Shilket, Gene Austin) 3:57
10. "At Long Last Love" (Porter) 2:27
11. "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To" (Porter) 2:07
12. "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)" (Ellington, Paul Francis Webster) 3:25
13. "From This Moment On" (Porter) 3:56
14. "If I Had You" (Jimmy Campbell, Reginald Connelly, Ted Shapiro) 2:39
15. "Oh! Look at Me Now" (Joe Bushkin, John DeVries) 2:50

CLICK HERE to read Part Two.

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What did Frank Sinatra say about Sammy Cahn’s lyrics? - National Frank Sinatra | Examiner.com

What did Frank Sinatra say about Sammy Cahn’s lyrics? - National Frank Sinatra | Examiner.com

New Bing Crosby CD's due January 25th

On January 25th 2011, Collectors’ Choice Music releases the latest CDs in the acclaimed Bing Crosby Archive series:Bing & Rosie: The Crosby - Clooney Radio Sessions (2-CD Set), Bing Sings the Sinatra Songbook, Bing Crosby: A Southern Memoir (Deluxe Edition). All three titles also make their debut on iTunes.

Also on January 25, HLC Properties, Ltd, in association with Beach Road Music, LLC releases the first two exclusively digital Bing Crosby Archive albums through iTunes: With All My Heart and Shall We Dance?

The latest additions to the critically acclaimed Bing Crosby Archive series showcase Bing with his frequent duet partner and dear friend Rosemary Clooney, as heard on recordings made for radio broadcasts in the 1950s; Bing’s interpretations of songs associated with the most famous of the crooners who came after him, Frank Sinatra; and the first American release in any format of Crosby’s 1975 album, A Southern Memoir. The two new digital compilations of unreleased Crosby recordings feature the legendary crooner singing classic songs of love and romance by some of the foremost contributors to the Great American Songbook, including Cole Porter, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Johnny Mercer, Bacharach & David, Irving Berlin, Dorothy Fields and Duke Ellington.

PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS:

BING CROSBY & ROSEMARY CLOONEY- Bing & Rosie: The Crosby-Clooney Radio Sessions

This two-CD set presents 59 unreleased tracks taken from the original master tapes of their 1952 -1961 radio sessions (The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric, The Ford Road Show andthe Crosby - Clooney Show), complete with some charming studio chatter and fidelity that rivals their commercial recordings. Includes duets on The Merry-Go-Run-Around; Takes Two to Tango; Chicago Style (two versions); Open Up Your Heart (with Bob Hope); South Rampart Street Parade; Something to Remember You By (three versions); You’re Just in Love (two versions); It’s Only a Paper Moon; Easter Parade (two versions); People Will Say We’re in Love (two versions); Only Forever; a medley featuring These Foolish Things Remind Me of You/We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye/You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To (complete with flub and pickup take and versions of all three songs by themselves); That’s Amore; The Little Brown Jug; Sweet Genevieve; Shine on Harvest Moon (two versions); Buckle Down Winsocki; Indian Summer; Man (Uh-Huh) and Woman (Uh-Huh); and Lily of Laguna, all with accompaniment from The John Scott Trotter Orchestra.

For a different sound, Bing and Rosie are also accompanied by Buddy Cole and His Trio on a couple of Ford jingles; Will You Still Be Mine; another version of We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye; I May Be Wrong; Would You Like to Take a Walk; They Can’t Take That Away from Me; another version of You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To; Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off; Ain’t We Got Fun; Isn’t This a Lovely Day; Let’s Put Out the Lights and Go to Sleep; They Say It’s Wonderful; Let’s Take a Walk Around the Block; Don’t Worry (About Tomorrow); Hey, Look Me Over; Anything You Can Do; What Takes My Fancy; Summertime; True Love; It’s Been a Long, Long Time/Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries/Gimme a Little Kiss; Moon over Miami/Meet Me Tonight in Dreamland/There’s a Long, Long Trail; Goodnight My Someone; September Song/As Time Goes By/Till We Meet Again; Any Town Is Paris When You’re Young/Paris in the Spring/April in Paris/The Last Time I Saw Paris; Singin’ in the Rain; a rare promo record for Eastern Products; and the only two solo tracks on the set: Rosie’s You’re in Kentucky Sure as You’re Born and Bing’s This Ole House. Martin McQuade’s notes tell the tale of this legendary team.

BING CROSBY - Bing Sings the Sinatra Songbook

This 18-track CD collection of showcases Bing singing songs that Sinatra made famous, the majority of them previously unreleased! Among the rarities, the Crosby-Sinatra duet on the medley of Among My Souvenirs/September Song/As Time Goes By; Young at Heart; April in Paris; Imagination; Witchcraft; Where or When; All the Way; You Go to My Head; It Happened in Monterey; and a 2010 remix of Summer Wind, plus High Hopes, an alternate take from the Thoroughly Modern Bing album session; the CD debut of South of the Border from the Songs I Love album; The Lady Is a Tramp; Too Marvelous for Words; I Get a Kick Out of You; Chicago; The Tender Trap, and Love and Marriage. Liner notes by Michael Feinstein. The exclusive iTunes digital release includes a bonus video performance of Young at Heart from 1954.

BING CROSBY - A Southern Memoir (Deluxe Edition)

This 1975 album of songs inspired by the South, making both its CD and American debuts, is among the rarest items in the Crosby canon, as it was only released in Britain. Bonus tracks add alternate versions of On the Alamo; Alabamy Bound; Stars Fell on Alabama; Swanee; andSleepy Time Down South, and the unedited version of Georgia on My Mind to the versions that appear on the original album, which also include Where the Morning Glories Grow; Carolina in the Morning; Way Down Yonder in New Orleans; Cryin’ for the Carolines; She Is the Sunshine of Virginia; and Sailing Down the Chesapeake Bay. Appearing for the first time ever is “Bing’s South Texas Quail Hunting Medley,” a private recording from the album sessions on which he substitutes some special lyrics for Galway Bay/Mack the Knife/The Surrey with the Fringe on Top/The Pleasure of Your Company that lampoon, in that ever-so-gentle Crosby way, friends like Phil Harris! Liner notes by Arne Fogel.

BING CROSBY – With All My Heart

Just in time for Valentine’s Day comes this digital collection of 15 rare, unreleased love songs from the original session master tapes for Bing Crosby’s 1950s radio shows. (The Bing Crosby Show for Chesterfield, The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric, The Bing Crosby Show, The Ford Road Show and The Crosby – Clooney Show) There’s also a track recorded for an early Crosby television special. Includes Magic Moments, Secret Love, I Let A Song Go Out of My Heart, Chances Are, Catch A Falling Star, Night and Day, Hello Young Lovers, With All My Heart, Born To Be With You, Some Enchanted Evening, How High The Moon, Misty, I Love Paris, And the Angels Sing and P.S. I Love You. This unique digital package, available exclusively through iTunes, also includes a bonus 1954 video performance of I Love Paris.

BING CROSBY – Shall We Dance?

his digital release collects 15 songsof dance and romance – 14 of them previously unreleased - taken from the original session master tapes for Bing’s 1950s radio shows (The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric and The Ford Road Show), a rare track from the 1968 album, The Songs I Love and a track from a 1962 television special. Includes Begin The Beguine, Puttin’ On the Ritz, Don’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes, I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, It’s Not For Me to Say, Dark Moon, Changing Partners, Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me, Zing Went the Strings of My Heart, Way Down Yonder in New Orleans, Keep it Gay, The Gypsy in My Soul, Granada, Lady of Spain and (the strange but incredibly swingin’) Doin’ the Bing. The exclusive iTunes digital album also features a 1962 bonus video performance of Doin’ the Bing.

About Bing Crosby:

Bing Crosby (1903 – 1977) remains the most recorded performer in history. He made over 2000 commercial recordings including White Christmas, the best selling record of all time. The Guinness Book of World Records reports worldwide sales for Crosby’s recording of the song at over 100 million copies. White Christmas has entered the American pop charts twenty separate times.

To date, Bing Crosby has sold close to one billion records, tapes, compact discs and digital downloads around the world. He may be the best selling recording artist of all time. Only The Beatles, Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson can rival his sales figures. He scored 41 number one records – more than The Beatles (24) and Elvis Presley (18). His recordings reached the charts 396 times - more than Frank Sinatra (209) and Elvis Presley (149) combined.

To order visit THE MEMORY LANE SHOP

A Top 20 list of Sinatra favorites-you agree?

Last week we published a reader's list of his top 20 favorite Frank Sinatra's tunes------Today, another reader, Joe Silvestro, a lifelong Sinatra fan, has provided his favorite twenty. How would your list differ from Joe's list?





1-New York-New York
2-Lady is a Tramp
3-A Foggy Day
4-Nancy
5-Tina
6-A Fine Romance
7-Your Nobody Till Somebody Loves You
8-I'll Never Smile Again
9-Night and Day
10-All or Nothing at All
11-I Won't Dance
12-Night and Day
13-Pick Yourself Up
14-I Get A Kick out of You
15-If I had You
16-Tangerine
17-Pick Yourself Up
18-Night and Day
19-I've Got You Under My Skin
20-Misty


Thanks to Joe Silvestro

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Michael Feinstein to perform “The Sinatra Project” in Syracuse

Singer and pianist Michael Feinstein will join the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra for a pops series show that honors The Great American Songbook, particularly songs from Feinstein’s album, “The Sinatra Project, this weekend at the Crouse-Hinds Concert Theater.

The songs that made America sing along with Ol’ Blue Eyes will ring out as Feinstein is sure to show why he’s become known as “the ambassador” of cherished songs from that golden era of pop music.

Noted swing music composer and arranger Bill Elliott will conduct.

HAT: Michael Feinstein performs “The Sinatra Project” for SSO.
WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
WHERE: Crouse-Hinds Concert Theater, 411 Montgomery St., Syracuse.
TICKETS: Tickets are $15, $25 or $40. Call 424-8200 or 800-724-3810 or go to www.syracusesymphony.org.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Michael Feinstein to perform “The Sinatra Project” - National Frank Sinatra | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/frank-sinatra-in-national/michael-feinstein-to-perform-the-sinatra-project#ixzz1AxTWrMjC

South Pacific is coming to the New Jersey Performing Arts Center

The Seven-time 2008 TONY AWARD®-WINNING LINCOLN CENTER THEATER Production of RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN'S SOUTH PACIFIC is coming to the New Jersey Performing Arts Center from January 26th-30th, 2011.

After sweeping the 2008 Tony Awards and enchanting audiences throughout the country, the Lincoln Center Theater Production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC - featuring the largest orchestra of any Broadway production currently on tour - will land at Prudential Hall in the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) for an eight performance run starting Wednesday, January 26, 2011.

 

Tri-state area audiences will have a rare second chance to see the Bartlett Sher-directed show that enthralled Broadway during its original run at Lincoln Center in New York City. The NJPAC performances, which feature David Pittsinger reprising his acclaimed Broadway turn as Emile deBecque, will kick off Wednesday, January 26 at 7:30 p.m. and continue Thursday, January 27th at 1:30 and 7:30 p.m.; Friday, January 28th at 8 p.m.; Saturday, Jan. 29th at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sunday, January 30 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets for performances on Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday evening range from $24 to $90. Tickets for performances on Friday and Saturday, and the Sunday matinee, range from $26 to $100. Tickets may be purchased by telephone at 1-888-GO-NJPAC (1-888-466-5722), by visiting the NJPAC Box Office at One Center Street in downtown Newark, or online at www.njpac.org. Rodgers & Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC is sponsored in part by Cadillac, TD Bank, New Jersey State Council on the Arts and Discover Jersey Arts.

 

This revival of SOUTH PACIFIC won seven honors at the 2008 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival and Best Director for Bartlett Sher. The breathtaking staging features a cast of 34 and a full orchestra of 26 members.  The production completed a sold out 2 ½ year run at the Vivian Beaumont Theater on Broadway on August 22, 2010 (after playing 1,000 performances) and was recently featured on PBS' 'Live from Lincoln Center' series.

 

The National Touring Company of Rodgers & Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC will be led by David Pittsinger (Emile de Becque) and Carmen Cusack (Nellie Forbush), with Anderson Davis (Lt. Cable), Timothy Gulan (Luther Billis), Jodi Kimura (Bloody Mary), Gerry Becker (Capt. Brackett), Peter Rini (Cmdr. Harbison), Sumie Maeda (Liat), Rusty Ross (Professor), original 2008 Broadway cast member Genson Blimline (Stewpot), Troi Zee (Ngana) and Luka Kain (Jerome). 

 

Based on James Michener's Pulitzer Prize winning book Tales of the South Pacific, Rodgers & Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC has music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan. Set on a tropical island during World War II, SOUTH PACIFIC tells the grand romantic story of two couples whose happiness is threatened not only by the realities of war, but also by their own prejudices. The timeless score include "Some Enchanted Evening," "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair," "There is Nothin' Like a Dame," and more.

 

The ensemble will include Frenie Acoba, Christopher Carl, Christian Carter, Eric L. Christian, Jacqueline Colmer, MaryAnn Hu, Robert Hunt, Rashaan James II, Chad Jennings, Christopher Johnstone, Kristie Kerwin, Julia Osborne, Kate Pazakis, Diane Phelan, John Pinto Jr., Greg Roderick, Bret Shuford, Kristen J. Smith, Matt Stokes, Gregory Williams, Victor J. Wisehart and Amos Wolff.

 

The San Francisco Chronicle lauded the tour as "Electric!" and "the South Pacific we've been waiting for," while The Chicago Sun-Times called the production "a tribute to the sublime beauty of this musical, filled with gorgeous voices and astonishing emotional depth." The Houston Chronicle said the musical is "superbly sung and powerfully acted" and called the touring cast "equal of the New York team."

 

For more information on the production, visit www.SouthPacificOnTour.com.

 

South Pacific is the inaugural production from the partnership between NJPAC and Nederlander Presentations. Established in 1912 by David Nederlander, Nederlander Presentations is a family-owned company run by James M. and James L. Nederlander who own and/or operate world-renowned theaters in the United States and England, including in New York: the Brooks Atkinson, the Gershwin, the Lunt-Fontanne, the Marquis, the Minskoff, the Nederlander, the Neil Simon, the Palace, and the Richard Rodgers.  It has remained prominent for three generations in the management and operation of theaters and productions of distinguished entertainment. In addition, the company is a major producer of national touring theater productions.

New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), located in downtown Newark, New Jersey, is the sixth largest performing arts center in the United States.  As New Jersey's Town Square, NJPAC brings diverse communities together, providing access to all and showcasing the State's and the world's best artists while acting as a leading catalyst in the revitalization of its home city.  Through its extensive Arts Education programs, NJPAC is shaping the next generation of artists and arts enthusiasts. 

 

NJPAC has attracted over 6 million visitors (more than one million children) since opening its doors in 1997, and nurtures meaningful and lasting relationships with each of its constituents.  Visit www.njpac.org for more information.

 

Programming has been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, by funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, and by Discover Jersey Arts.

 

NJPAC is a wheelchair accessible facility and provides assistive services for patrons with disabilities.  For more information, call 888-GO-NJPAC.

New Home for Michael Feinstein's Great American Songbook Collection

News from Indiana: The Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel has unveiled plans for the Palladium concert hall's grand opening week. A ribbon cutting and free concert is set for January 22. 2011.

Governor Mitch Daniels has designated January 22-30 Palladium Week. The Palladium will also be home to Michael Feinstein's Great American Songbook Collection, acting as a museum and education center by day and a concert venue by night.

The Center for the Performing Arts has finalized plans for the Palladium's January 22-30 grand opening week presented by St.Vincent Health. The celebration will begin with a ceremonial ribbon cutting scheduled for Saturday, January 22, 2011 at 11 a.m.

The community is anxious to experience this state-of-the-art hall in person. We have made sure opening weekend is packed with a lively mix of musical events open to everyone, said Steven B. Libman, President/CEO of the Center for the Performing Arts. The Palladium is a one-of-a-kind concert hall. Opening week presents an amazing opportunity to join us as we unveil this magnificent arts venue.

Immediately following the January 22 ribbon cutting, Carmel Brass will present a free concert. Next, Community Day presented by Vectren continues with back-to-back musical performances on the Palladium stage as part of Take Center Stage. A free open house continues the weekend's celebration lineup on January 23.

Additionally, Governor Mitch Daniels has designated the week of January 22-30, 2011 as Palladium Week. The proclamation honors the Center for the Performing Arts and its positive contributions to the State of Indiana.

The gala dinner and concert is Saturday, January 29, 2011. The gala features artistic director Michael Feinstein with jazz artist Chris Botti, vocalists Neil Sedaka, Dionne Warwick and Cheyenne Jackson. The gala will be produced by Hollywood producer Gordon Hunt and will include performances by the Carmel Symphony Orchestra.

On Sunday afternoon, January 30, the Palladium's first Bose McKinney & Evans Classics Series concert debuts featuring a roster of world-class artists: Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Mir Quartet and cellist Lynn Harrell. Tickets are available at the Palladium box office, One Center Green, by phone at 317-843-3800 or online at www.TheCenterForThePerformingArts.org.

The Center for the Performing Arts includes the Palladium concert hall, the Tarkington proscenium theater and the 200-seat Studio Theater.

To buy Michael's music visit THE MEMORY LANE SHOP

Continue reading on Examiner.com: News of Michael Feinstein's Great American Songbook Collection - National Swing and Big Band | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/swing-and-big-band-in-national/news-of-michael-feinstein-s-great-american-songbook-collection#ixzz1AwrfNYNC

Rosemary Clooney one of the iconic singing stars of the 20th Century

Rosemary Clooney is one of the iconic singing stars of the 20th century. Rosie shines right up there with Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Judy Garland. Her early success at Columbia Records, under the direction of A&R chief Mitch Miller, however was with songs such as "Come On A My House" and "Mambo Italiano."

Sadly, many in my lecture audiences mention these very commercial pop recordings when I start to discuss Rosemary. She was so much more. My favorite comment: "Rosemary Clooney, an American musical treasure and one of the best friends a song ever had."

Many, forget that over her almost six decades of performing she did it all; vocalist with sister, Betty in Tony Pastor's band, Columbia recording star, movie star ("White Christmas" with her good friend, Bing Crosby), later in her career, jazz star for Concord Records, AND, what she was most proud of, mother of five (including my friend Monsita).

Listen to Rosemary Clooney sing the very beautiful "Tenderly." Many have recorded this now American Songbook standard, but Rosemary's version, to me, is so superior to the others.

Margaret Whiting who had hit with Moonlight in Vermont has died

Big Band Era singer Margaret Whiting has died at age 86 at the Lillian Booth Actors’ Home in Englewood, N.J.

Her musical talent may have been inherited; her father Richard Whiting, was a famous composer of popular songs. In her childhood her singing ability was already noticed, and at the age of only seven years she sang for Johnny Mercer, for whom her father worked. In 1942, Mercer started Capitol Records with two partners, and signed her as one of their earliest recording artists.

Her first recordings were as featured singer with various orchestras:
*"That Old Black Magic", with Freddie Slack And His Orchestra (1942)
*"Moonlight In Vermont", with Billy Butterfield's Orchestra (1943)
*"It Might As Well Be Spring", with Paul Weston And His Orchestra (1943)
In 1945 she began to record under her own name, making such recordings as:
*"All Through The Day" (1945, becoming a bestseller in the spring of 1946)
*"In Love In Vain" (1945):(these two from the movie "Centennial Summer")
*"Guilty" (1946)
*"Oh, But I Do" (1946)
*"A Tree In The Meadow" (a number 1 hit in the summer of 1948)
*"Slipping Around", a duet with country music star Jimmy Wakely (a number 1 hit in 1949)
*"Baby, It's Cold Outside" (1949)
*"Blind Date", a novelty record with Bob Hope (1950)
*"Faraway Places (With Strange Sounding Names)"

One of her biggest hits was "Moonlight In Vermont." The top paper in Vermont is the Burlington Free-Press. Here is a portion of their story about Whiting and the impact of the song on the state;
"The singer who popularized the tune “Moonlight in Vermont” and in the process helped craft the image of the state as a rustic haven illuminated by a silvery glow is dead.

Whiting was a young Hollywood singer who had never been to Vermont when she first recorded “Moonlight” in the midst of World War II. The bittersweet ballad was broadcast on Armed Forces Radio and brought images of a quietly beautiful Vermont to people around the globe.

The song contributed to the Vermont brand, starting with the impact it had on World War II soldiers, said Harry Orth of Shelburne, professor emeritus at the University of Vermont and co-author of the Vermont Encyclopedia.

The song is beautiful yet reflective, said Orth, who wrote the entry about “Moonlight in Vermont” in the Vermont Encyclopedia.

“It’s a very contemplative song,” he said. “You could really see some soldier leaning back in a bunk or in a foxhole and just wishing he could be in such a wonderful place.”
The song was written by Karl Seussdorf and John Blackburn. Neither one was a Vermonter — which might explain why sycamore trees appear in the “Moonlight” lyrics but make so few appearances in the Vermont woods." Source: The Burlington Free-Press

Visit THE MEMORY LANE SHOP to buy Margaret's music.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Margaret Whiting who had hit with Moonlight in Vermont has died - National Swing and Big Band | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/swing-and-big-band-in-national/margaret-whiting-who-had-hit-with-moonlight-vermont-has-died#ixzz1Avlmx7bU

Jane Ira Bloom new album "Wingwalker"

Announcing the release of
JANE IRA BLOOM Wingwalker
on Outline Records  (OTL140)
appearing live at   Cornelia Street Café
Sun,  Jan 23   8:30 pm

"A powerful group of fearless jazz explorers...who share a commitment to beauty & adventure  
                                                   - Bob Blumenthal

Jane Ira Bloom   soprano sax & live electronics
Dawn Clement   piano
Mark Helias   bass
Bobby Previte  drums




CORNELIA STREET CAFE
29 Cornelia St.   Greenwich Village, NY
tel # 212 989-9319   http://www.corneliastreetcafe.com Admission: $10 cover

Whether adventuring into interior or outer space in her music, award winning soprano saxophonist Jane Ira Bloom continues to navigate her unique musical path with creative abandon. Wingwalker, her 14th album as leader and fourth album on the Outline label reunites Bloom with long-time bandmates Dawn Clement on piano, bassist Mark Helias, and drummer Bobby Previte.  After two years since Bloom’s last release “Mental Weather,” she brought the band together in June 2010 to record new compositions written during time made possible by a Guggenheim Fellowship. Wingwalker was recorded in Avatar Studio B in New York City with renowned audio engineer Jim Anderson. The album features eleven Bloom originals and a solo sax rendition of Lerner & Lowe’s classic “I Could Have Danced All Night.”  From the groove inspired “Life on Cloud 8” to the spare simplicity of “Adjusting to Midnight,” Jane has journeyed further into jazz dimensions without a safety net. The CD also features an extra mp3 downloadable version of the music condensed into a 5 minute 49 second event.

“There’s something different about the way the music revealed itself to the band in this recording.  We didn’t have a lot of preconceptions and that allowed a certain freedom to open up and move the music in unexpected ways.  All we had to do was to let it happen.” - JI Bloom

Jane Ira Bloom is a pioneer in the use of live electronics and movement in jazz as well as “arguably the soprano’s most distinctive and major voice… beautiful, exciting, and adventurous” - Erie Times-News. She’s the winner of the Mary Lou Williams Jazz Award and the prestigious Guggenheim fellowship. She’s the first NASA commissioned musician and has an asteroid named in her honor. Her music is always lyrical and provocative.

“Bloom is a soulful, futuristic romantic at heart”  - Michael G. Nastos/ All Music Guide

ROD STEWART'S THE BEST OF THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK

On the heels of the Grammy nomination for Rod Stewart’s FLY ME TO THE MOON…THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK, VOLUME V for “Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album,” which has sold over one million albums worldwide already, and just in time for Valentine’s Day, Rod Stewart is set to release THE BEST OF…THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK available in stores February 1^st, 2011 (J Records).


THE BEST OF…THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK presents the highlights from five albums, recorded across eight years, which have become nothing less than a musical and cultural phenomenon. In addition, this new “Songbook” collection features one, newly recorded, never before released track “You’ll Never Know,” produced by one of Rod’s longtime collaborators Richard Perry, along with brand new mixes of “Someone To Watch Over Me” and “Bye Bye Blackbird.”

Long celebrated for his expressive, distinctively raspy voice, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Living Legend Rod Stewart is widely regarded as having one of the most interpretive voices in music. THE BEST OF…THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK celebrates the unprecedented success of the 5 volume series, which is the biggest-selling ongoing series of new music recordings in history with over 18 million copies sold worldwide.

Rod infuses his incomparable vocal style into iconic standards written by Rodgers and Hart, George and Ira Gershwin, and many other great composers and lyricists, including “Someone To Watch Over Me,” “The Way You Look Tonight,” “They Can’t Take That Away From Me,” “What A Wonderful World” featuring Stevie Wonder, and many, many more.

Clive Davis, Chief Creative Officer, Sony Music Entertainment and a producer of Rod’s Songbook series reflects: ”In a transient, ephemeral business, it is so gratifying to have the dual opportunity to show how long a career can last, and how these songs have a life into a new century.”

Every one of Stewart’s 7 albums since signing with J Records has entered Top 4 on the chart, including all five volumes of The Great American Songbook series - It Had To Be You…The Great American Songbook (2002) entered at #4, As Time Goes By…Volume II (2003) at #2, his Grammy-Award-winning Stardust…Volume III (2004) at #1, Thanks for the Memory…Volume IV (2005) at #2, and Fly Me To the Moon… (2010) at #4. Fly Me To The Moon…Volume V, his latest Grammy-nominated “Songbook” released in October is Rod Stewart’s 38^th charting album and 15^th Top 10 album. Besides, Toby Keith, Kenny Chesney and Jay-Z, no other musical artist has enjoyed 7 Top 5 albums since 2002.

Having just wrapped a sold-out first ever concert run in Las Vegas in November and a sold-out European tour this past summer, Rod is planning a US tour in Spring 2011. More details to be announced soon. In a career spanning five decades, with an estimated 250 million album and single sales, Rod Stewart is indisputably one of the most successful performers of all time.

To follow find a final track listing:

THE BEST OF…THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK

01. Long Ago And Far Away
02. Someone To Watch Over Me
03. They Can’t Take Away From Me
04. Beyond The Sea
05. You’ll Never Know
06. Time After Time
07. I Can’t Get Started
08. The Way You Look Tonight
09. Bye Bye Blackbird
10. These Foolish Things
11. But Not For Me
12. What A Wonderful World featuring Stevie Wonder
13. My Foolish Heart
14. I’ll Be Seeing You
www.rodstewart.com

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