Canary Records owner (and a rather fine experimental musician himself) Ian Nagoski should be commended for his work in bringing to life so many wonderful albums from the turn of the 20th Century cut by Balkan and Jewish musicians who left their home countries and made quite good names for themselves in places like New York City. These recordings are lovingly restored, and apparently are leftover tracks transferred from 78rpm discs for a forthcoming 5-volume / 6-LP series to be issued in early 2019. Considering how lovingly Ian treats this material, this upcoming collection sounds like a grand project!
30s
[Music] Perry Bradford and the Blues Singers in Chronological Order, 1923-1927 (Document DOCD-5353)
PERRY BRADFORD AND THE BLUES SINGERS in Chronological Order, 1923-1927 (Document Records, DOCD-5353) all songs written & produced by Bradford, who plays piano and supervised the sessions 1 –Perry Bradford’s Jazz Phools* Fade Away Blues 2 –Perry Bradford’s Jazz Phools* Day Break Blues 3 –Ethel Ridley Liza Johnson’s Got Better Bread 4 –Ethel Ridley Here’s […]
[Music] Olivier Messiaen – Fête des belles eaux (1937)
Olivier Messiaen was the giant of French contemporary classical music during the 20th Century, and drew his inspiration from things as disparate as Japanese ethnic music and his devotion to Roman Catholicism.
[Music] Svend Asmussen – Dark Eyes String Swing
“The fiddling Viking,” Svend Asmussen, passed away yesterday at age 100. He’s shown here playing the Russian standard, “Dark Eyes.”
[Music] Hotel Pennsylvania Music (Phil Spitalny) – Happy Days Are Here Again
Well, it’s not for everybody. Few, in fact. But, it’s nice to be reminded that there were happy times, and will be again. This slice of Americana was penned and performed by Phil Spitalny and his band.
[Music] Django Reinhardt – Minor Swing
A bit of Manouche music, courtesy of the legendary Django Reinhardt.
[Music] Asmahan- Ya Habibi Taala Elhaani (يا حبيبي تعال الحقني)
[Music] Various Artists – Nightingales & Canaries, Vol. 1: “Oriental” Women on Record, New York & Istanbul, 1928-55
https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3272306330/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/New York City was home to a vibrant musical scene filled with singers from Anatolia, Istanbul and the region of Roumelia. Christians and Jews joined together in making some rather bawdy music.
This treasure was released by Ian Nagoski’s Canary Records, a label filled with some absolute gems.
[Music] Kate Smith – God Bless America
Kate Smith seems very appropriate today, 14 years after the 9/11 attack.
[Music] Lily Pons – The Echo Song
The Franco-Italian opera singer Lily Pons was a staple at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, as well as on television during the 1950s.
