Thursday, December 17, 2015

Paul Whiteman: A Retrospective

Paul Whiteman

A Retrospective

Overview:

Big-band leader Paul Whiteman was born on 3/28/1890 in Denver, Colorado, to musical parents. His mother was a former opera singer and his father supervised music for the Denver Public Schools for 50 years. He died 12/29/1967. The media called him "The King of Jazz" although critics said his music lacked the improvisational techniques associated with the genre. In Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954, he's called "the most popular bandleader of the pre-swing era."

Whiteman joined the Denver Symphony Orchestra as a viola player in 1907 and the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra in 1914. In 1918, he conducted a 12-piece U.S. Navy band. He moved to New York City in 1920 and directed groups up to 35 at a time when most dance bands consisted of 6-10 men. He worked with RCA Victor (20-28, 31-37), Columbia (28-30), and Capitol. He produced more than 600 recordings and provided music for six Broadway shows. He launched the career of Bing Crosby, who sang with the orchestra from 1925 to 1930.

Links:

Awards:

Compilations:

Top Songs

Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists as well as chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards.

HB = Harry Barris, BC = Bing Crosby, JF = Jack Fulton, CG = Charles Gaylord, AR = Al Rinker, AY = Austin Young. Songs which hit the top of the U.S. pop charts are noted (#1). Click for codes to charts.

DMDB Top 1%:

1. Whispering (1920)
2. Ol’ Man River (w/ Paul Robeson, 1928)
3. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (w/ Bob Lawrence, 1933)
4. Three O’Clock in the Morning (1922)
5. Rhapsody in Blue (w/ George Gershwin, 1924)
6. My Mammy (1921)
7. Valencia (A Song of Spain) (w/ Franklyn Baur, 1926)
8. What’ll I Do? (1924)
9. Lover (w/ JF, 1933)
10. The Japanese Sandman (1920)

11. Somebody Loves Me (1924)
12. The Birth of the Blues (w/ JF, CG, & AY, 1926)
13. Wang Wang Blues (1920)
14. Stumbling (1922)
15. Say It with Music (1921)
16. Among My Souvenirs (w/ JF, CG, & AY, 1928)
17. Parade of the Wooden Soldiers (1923)
18. Side by Side (w/ BC, AR, & HB, 1927)
19. Lover, Come Back to Me (w/ JF, 1929)
20. Willow, Weep for Me (w/ Irene Taylor, 1932)

DMDB Top 5%:

21. Oh, Lady Be Good (1925)
22. Linger Awhile (1924)
23. Hot Lips (He’s Got Hot Lips When He Plays Jazz) (1922)
24. Great Day (w/ BC, 1929)
25. In a Little Spanish Town (‘Twas on a Night Like This) (w/ JF, 1927)
26. You’re the Top (w/ Peggy Healy & John Hauser, 1934)
27. My Angel (Angela Mia) (w/ JF, CG, & AR, 1928)
28. Do It Again (1922)
29. I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise (1922)
30. Bambalina (1923)

31. Without a Song (w/ BC, 1929)
32. Ol’ Man River (w/ BC, 1928)
33. My Heart Stood Still (w/ AR, JF, CG, & AY, 1928)
34. Body and Soul (w/ JF, 1930)
35. Together (w/ JF, 1928)
36. Song of India (1921)
37. Anything Goes (w/ Ramona Davies, 1934)
38. My Blue Heaven (1927)
39. Crinoline Days (1923)
40. My Romance (1936)

41. Cherie (1921)
42. Last Night on the Back Porch (w/ the American Quartet, 1923)
43. Limehouse Blues (1924)
44. You Took Advantage of Me (w/ BC, JF, CG, & AY, 1928)
45. I Love You (1924)
46. All Alone (1925)
47. Bright Eyes (1921)
48. Indian Love Call (1925)
49. Wagon Wheels (w/ Bob Lawrence, 1934)
50. April Showers (1922)

51. It All Depends on You (1927)
52. Trav’lin Light (w/ Billie Holiday, 1942)
53. Rose Marie (1925)
54. Just a Memory (1927)
55. Ramona (w/ AY, 1928)
56. All of Me (w/ Mildred Bailey, 1932)
57. Rise ‘N Shine (w/ Ramona Davies, 1933)
58. Moonlight on the Ganges (w/ AY, 1926)
59. Carolina in the Morning (1923)
60. I’m Coming, Virginia (w/ BC, AR, & HB, 1927)

61. St. Louis Blues (1926)
62. Wonderful One (1923)
63. There’s Yes! Yes! In Your Eyes (1924)
64. Manhattan (1925)
65. When It’s Sleepy Time Down South (w/ Mildred Bailey, 1931)
66. Learn to Smile (1921)
67. Charleston (1925)

DMDB Top 10%:

68. When Buddha Smiles (1922)
69. Three on a Match (w/ Red McKenzie, 1932)
70. It Had to Be You (1924)

71. When Day Is Done (1927)
72. All Through the Night (w/ Bob Lawrence, 1934)
73. Broken Hearted (Here Am I) (w/ JF, CG, & AY, 1927)
74. The Man I Love (w/ Vaughn DeLeath, 1928)
75. How Deep Is the Ocean? How High Is the Sky? (1932)
76. I Never Knew I Could Love Anybody Like I’m Loving You (1921)
77. Mandy, Make Up Your Mind (1925)
78. My Man (Mon Homme) (1921)
79. It Happened in Monterey (w/ JF, 1930)
80. I Get a Kick Out of You (w/ Ramona Davies, 1934)

81. Journey’s End (1923)
82. Let’s Put Out the Lights and Go to Sleep (w/ Red McKenzie, 1932)
83. Make Believe (w/ BC, 1928)
84. Get Out and Get Under the Moon (1928)
85. I’ll Never Be the Same (w/ Mildred Bailey, 1932)
86. Chiquita (w/ JF, 1928)
87. Dearest, You’re the Nearest to My Heart (1923)
88. Changes (w/ BC, AR, HB, JF, CG, & AY, 1928)
89. Do You Ever Think of Me? (1921)
90. That Certain Feeling (1926)

91. My Moonlight Madonna (w/ JF, 1933)
92. C-O-N-S-T-A-N-I-N-O-P-L-E (w/ AR, HB, JF, CG, & AY, 1928)
93. Farewell to Arms (w/ JF, 1933)
94. Canadian Capers (1921)
95. Way Down Yonder in New Orleans (1923)
96. I’m Just Wild About Harry (1922)
97. Whispering (new version, 1954)
98. After You’ve Gone (w/ BC, 1930)
99. Chansonette (1923)
100. You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me (w/ BC, 1930)

Masterpieces

Paul Whiteman

Recorded: 1920-1927

Released: December 17, 2015

Peak: --

Sales (in millions): --

Genre: big band jazz

Rating:

4.658 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings)

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

Tracks in Chronological Order:

  • Whispering (10/30/1920, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • The Japanese Sandman (11/13/20, 1 PM, 2 GA)
  • Wang Wang Blues (12/4/1920, 1 PM, 5 GA)
  • Grieving for You/Feather Your Nest (2/5/1921, 3 PM)
  • Bright Eyes (4/23/1921, 2 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • My Mammy (5/7/1921, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • Say It with Music (11/21/1921, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • Do It Again (6/3/1922, 1 PM, 5 GA)
  • Stumbling (7/1/1922, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • Hot Lips (He’s Got Hot Lips When He Plays Jazz) (9/9/1922, 1 PM, 2 GA)
  • Three O’Clock in the Morning (11/18/1922, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise (12/9/1922, 1 PM, 8 GA)
  • Nuthin’ But (recorded 3/1/1923)
  • Parade of the Wooden Soldiers (4/7/1923, 1 PM, 3 GA)
  • Wonderful One (5/19/1923, 3 PM, 2 GA)
  • Bambalina (6/2/1923, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • Linger Awhile (2/16/1924, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • What’ll I Do? (7/5/1924, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • Somebody Loves Me (11/1/1924, 1 PM, 5 GA)
  • All Alone (1/17/1925, 1 PM, 1 GA)
  • Valencia (A Song of Spain) (6/26/1926, 1 PM, 1 GA, 1 SM)
  • The Birth of the Blues (11/20/1926, 1 PM, 6 GA)
  • My Blue Heaven (10/15/1927, 1 PM, 1 GA)

About the Album:

Although it was released after the Beatles’ 1 and Elvis Presley’s 30 #1 Hits, consider this their predecessor. Those two collections are considered the ultimate assemblages of chart-topping hits, but Paul Whiteman’s Masterpieces is right up there with them, gathering twenty songs which topped the charts decades before the rock era took hold.

Resources and Related Links:

First posted 5/13/2024.

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