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Song 24 – Stormy Weather

SONG: Stormy Weather ARTIST: Lena Horne YEAR: 1943 Listen to it here: THE SONG: Stormy Weather was written by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler in 1933 and premiered at the Cotton Club by Ethel Waters that same year. The song gained so much traction so quickly that the same year it was released, a GermanContinue reading “Song 24 – Stormy Weather”

Song 22 – Guantanamera

SONG: Guantanamera ARTIST: Joseito Fernandez YEAR: 1941 Listen to it here: THE SONG: Guantanamera started off as a poem of four verses by Cuban poet Jose Marti and set to music by Joseito Fernandez as early as 1929. Although the lyrics to the song are often improvised, the most common lyrics sung by Fernandez areContinue reading “Song 22 – Guantanamera”

Song 20 – Java Jive

SONG: Java Jive ARTIST: The Ink Spots YEAR: 1940 Listen to it here: THE SONG: Java Jive was written in 1940 by Ben Oakland and Milton Drake as a fad song and recorded later that year by The Ink Spots. Their version reached number 17 on the charts and is seen as a light-hearted departureContinue reading “Song 20 – Java Jive”

Album 2 – Elvis Presley

ALBUM TITLE: Elvis Presley ARTIST NAME: Elvis Presley YEAR OF RELEASE: 1956 Favourite Song: Holly: Trying To Get To You Kelly: I Got A Woman ALBUM HISTORY: Elvis Presley by Elvis Presley was released on March 23rd 1956 but had been recorded throughout a period of a year and a half. Some of the recordingsContinue reading “Album 2 – Elvis Presley”

Song 18 – The Gallis Pole

SONG: The Gallis Pole ARTIST: Lead Belly YEAR: 1939 Listen to it here: THE SONG: Gallis Pole aka Gallows Pole was originally a centuries-old folk song of unknown origin titled The Maid Freed from the Gallows. The song may have originated in continental Europe, more specifically Finland, Sweden, Lithuania and Hungary, with over 50 notedContinue reading “Song 18 – The Gallis Pole”

Song 16 – Strange Fruit

SONG: Strange Fruit ARTIST: Billie Holiday YEAR: 1939 Listen to it here: THE SONG: Strange Fruit originated in 1937 as a poem by Abel Meeropol, who wrote the words after seeing a photograph of the lynchings of Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in Marion, Indiana in 1930. He originally called the work “Bitter Fruit” andContinue reading “Song 16 – Strange Fruit”

Song 14 – Cross Road Blues

SONG: Cross Road Blues ARTIST: Robert Johnson YEAR: 1936 Listen to it here: THE SONG: Cross Road Blues or Crossroads was written by blues artist Robert Johnson in 1936. The song was the result of a 3rd recording session, recorded in a hotel with a portable disc cutting machine. Two similar versions of the songContinue reading “Song 14 – Cross Road Blues”

Song 12 – Hula Girl

SONG: Hula Girl ARTIST: Sol Hoopii YEAR: 1934 Listen to it here: THE SONG: There’s not a lot of information on the song itself, other than it was recorded in 1934 by Hawaiian Sol Ho’opii. There was a big Hawaiian craze in America starting in 1915 when slack key guitar players and grass-skirted hula dancersContinue reading “Song 12 – Hula Girl”

Song 10 – Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

SONG: Brother, Can You Spare a Dime ARTIST: Bing Crosby YEAR: 1932 Listen to it here: THE SONG: Brother, Can Your Spare A Dime was written in 1932 by Yip Harburg after his appliance business went bust. He became a lyricist and teamed up with composer Jay Gorney, who borrowed the melody from a RussianContinue reading “Song 10 – Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?”

Song 8: Minnie the Moocher

SONG: Minnie the Moocher ARTIST: Cab Calloway & His Orchestra YEAR: 1931 Listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mq4UT4VnbE THE SONG: Minnie the Moocher was first recorded and released in 1931 by Cab Calloway and his Orchestra. It was the biggest hit of 1931 and was most famous for Cab’s nonsensical words (scat) of hi-de-hi-de-hi/ho. It’s alsoContinue reading “Song 8: Minnie the Moocher”