Showing posts with label Ol' Man River. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Jerome Kern: Top 40 Songs

Jerome Kern

Top 40 Songs

Musical theater composer Jerome Kern was born on 1/27/1885 in New York City, NY. He died 11/11/1945. He composed more than 700 songs used in more than 100 stage works. He collaborated with many of his era’s greatest lyricists, including Ira Gershwin, Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach, Yip Harburg, and Johnny Mercer. Created dozens of Broadway musicals and Hollywood films over a career lasting more than four decades.

“The Way You Look Tonight,” “All the Things You Are,” “Ol’ Man River,” and “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era, 1890-1953.

Awards:

Top 40 Songs

Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists, appearances on compilations and live albums by the featured act, and songs’ chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards.

DMDB Top 1%:

1. The Way You Look Tonight (Fred Astaire with Johnny Greer’s Orchestra, 1936) #1 US, HP
2. All the Things You Are (Tommy Dorsey with Jack Leonard, 1939) #1 US, HP
3. Ol’ Man River (Paul Robeson with Paul Whiteman, 1927)
4. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (Paul Whiteman with Bob Lawrence, 1933) #1 US
5. They Didn’t Believe Me (Harry MacDonough with Olive Kline, 1915) #1 US
6. Look for the Silver Lining (Marion Harris, 1921) #1 US
7. Who? (George Olsen, 1926) #1 US
8. Till the Clouds Roll By (Anna Wheaton with James Harrod, 1917) #1 US
9. A Fine Romance (A Sarcastic Love Song) (Fred Astaire with Johnny Greer’s Orchestra, 1936) #1 US, HP
10. Long Ago and Far Away (Dick Haymes & Helen Forrest with Carmarata’s Orchestra, 1944) #1 HP
11. Yesterdays (Leo Reisman with Frank Luther, 1933)

DMDB Top 5%:

12. Lovely to Look At (Eddy Duchin with Lew Sherwood, 1935) #1 US, HP
13. I Won’t Dance (Eddy Duchin with Lew Sherwood, 1935) #1 US
14. Bill (Helen Morgan, 1928)
15. Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man (Ben Bernie with Vaughn Deleath, 1928)
16. Why Was I Born? (Libby Holman, 1930)
17. I’ve Told Ev’ry Little Star (Jack Denny with Paul Small, 1932)
18. Why Do I Love You? (Nat Shilkret, 1928)
19. The Last Time I Saw Paris (Kate Smith, 1940)
20. The Song Is You (Jack Denny with Paul Small, 1932)
21. Make Believe (Paul Whiteman with Bing Crosby, 1928)
22. She Didn’t Say “Yes” (Leo Reisman, 1932)
23. Sunny (George Olsen, 1926)
24. The Touch of Your Hand (Leo Reisman, 1926)
25. Babes in the Wood (Harry MacDonough with Lucy Isabelle Marsh as Anna Howard, 1917)

DMDB Top 10%:

26. Dearly Beloved (Glenn Miller with Skip Nelson, 1942)
27. The Folks Who Live on the Hill (Guy Lombardo, 1937)
28. All Through the Day (Perry Como, 1946) #1 HP
29. You Couldn’t Be Cuter (Tommy Dorsey, 1938)
30. Pick Yourself Up (Fred Astaire with Johnny Greer’s Orchestra, 1936)
31. Wild Rose (1920)
32. Don’t Ever Leave Me (1929)
33. You Are Love (1927)

DMDB Top 20%:

34. I’m Old-Fashioned (Fred Astaire with John Scott Trotter’s Orchestra, 1943)
35. Blue Danube Blues (Carl Fenton, 1922)
36. Never Gonna Dance (Fred Astaire with Johnny Greer’s Orchestra, 1936)
37. In Love in Vain (Dick Haymes with Helen Forest and Earle Hagen’s Orchestra, 1946)

Beyond the DMDB Top 20%:

38. All in Fun (Jack Whiting with Frances Mercer, 1939)
39. Sure Thing (1944)
40. Nobody Else But Me (1945)

Resources and Related Links:

DMDB Encyclopedia entry for Jerome Kern
DMDB profile page for Jerome Kern
Dave’s Music Database: “Acts’ Profile Pages and Best-of Lists”

First posted 1/23/2024.

Thursday, March 28, 2019

Paul Whiteman’s Top 100 Songs

This page has been moved here.

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.

Awards:

Compilations:

^MP Masterpieces (covers 1920-27, released 2015)

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:

DMDB encyclopedia entry for Paul Whiteman
Dave’s Music Database: Acts’ Profile Pages and Best-of Lists

First posted 5/13/2024.

Wednesday, July 12, 1995

Oscar Hammerstein II: Top 50 Songs

First posted 12/8/2019.

Musical theater composer born Oscar Greeley Clendenning Ritter von Hammerstein II one hundred years ago today on 7/12/1895 in New York City, NY. He co-wrote 850 songs, composing musicals first with Jerome Kern and later with Richard Rodgers. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Awards for Best Original Song. Died 8/23/1960.

South Pacific (cast album: 1949; soundtrack: 1958) and The Sound of Music (cast album: 1959; soundtrack: 1965) are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. “All the Things You Are,” “Ol’ Man River,” and “Some Enchanted Evening” are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era, 1890-1953.

For a complete list of this act’s DMDB honors, check out the DMDB Music Maker Encyclopedia entry.

Top 50 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. Many of these songs have been recorded multiple times. Only the highest-ranked version in Dave’s Music Database is included in this list. The recording artist is noted in parentheses. Songs which hit #1 on on the Billboard pop chart (US) Hit Parade (HP), Cashbox (CB), the UK pop charts (UK), and the Australian pop charts (AU) are noted.

DMDB Top 1%:

1. All the Things You Are (Tommy Dorsey with Jack Leonard, 1939) #1 US, HP
2. Ol’ Man River (Paul Robeson with Paul Whiteman, 1927)
3. Some Enchanted Evening (Perry Como with Mitchell Ayres’ Orchestra, 1949) #1 US, HP
4. Who? (George Olsen, 1926) #1 US
5. People Will Say We’re in Love (Bing Crosby with Trudy Erwin, 1943) #1 HP
6. It Might As Well Be Spring (Dick Haymes with Victor Young’s Orchestra, 1945) #1 HP
7. If I Loved You (Perry Como with Russell Case’s Orchestra, 1945)
8. Lover Come Back to Me (Paul Whiteman with Jack Fulton, 1929)

DMDB Top 5%:

9. Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’ (Bing Crosby with Trudy Erwin, 1943)
10. When I Grow Too Old to Dream (Glen Gray with Kenny Sargent, 1935) #1 US

11. I Won’t Dance (Eddy Duchin with Lew Sherwood, 1935) #1 US
12. Bambalina (Paul Whiteman, 1923) #1 US
13. Bill (Helen Morgan, 1928)
14. Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man (Ben Bernie with Vaughn Deleath, 1928)
15. You’ll Never Walk Alone (Frank Sinatra, 1945)
16. Why Was I Born? (Libby Holman, 1930)
17. I’ve Told Ev’ry Little Star (Jack Denny with Paul Small, 1932)
18. The Desert Song (Nat Shilkret with Mischa Russell, 1927)
19. Why Do I Love You? (Nat Shilkret, 1928)
20. No Other Love (Perry Como with Henri Rene’s Orchestra, 1953) #1 US, HP, CB

21. The Last Time I Saw Paris (Kate Smith, 1940)
22. The Song Is You (Jack Denny with Paul Small, 1932)
23. Make Believe (Paul Whiteman with Bing Crosby, 1928)
24. My Favorite Things (John Coltrane, 19610
25. Sunny (George Olsen, 1926)
26. That’s for Me (Jo Stafford, 1945)
27. Bali Ha’I (Perry Como with Mitchell Ayres’ Orchestra, 1949)

DMDB Top 10%:

28. The Folks Who Live on the Hill (Guy Lombardo, 1937)
29. Hello Young Lovers (Perry Como with Mitchell Ayres’ Orchestra, 1951)
30. All Through the Day (Perry Como, 1946) #1 HP

31. I’ll Take Romance (Rudy Vallee, 1938)
32. A Kiss to Build a Dream On (Louis Armstrong with Sy Oliver’s Orchestra, 1951) #1 AU
33. The Sound of Music (Julie Andrews, 1965)
34. Climb Ev’ry Mountain (Tony Bennett, 1959)
35. Oklahoma! (Alfred Drake & the Oklahoma Cast, 1943)
36. Don’t Ever Leave Me (1929)

DMDB Top 20%:

37. The Gentleman Is a Dope (Jo Stafford, 1947)
38. The Surrey with the Fringe on Top (Alfred Drake with Jay Blackton’s Orchestra, 1943)
39. Younger Than Springtime (Billy Tabbert, 1949)
40. Shall We Dance? (Marni Nixon with Yul Brynner, 1956)
41. Love Look Away (Tony Bennett, 1958)
42. Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise (Larry Young, 1928)
43. June Is Bustin’ Out All Over (Hildegarde with Guy Lombardo’s Orchestra, 1945)
44. You Are Love (1927)
45. Do-Re-Mi (Julie Andrews & Ensemble, 1965)

Beyond the DMDB Top 20%:

46. Getting to Know You (Gertrude Lawrence, 1951)
47. I Have Dreamed (Doretta Morrow with Larry Douglas, 1951)
48. We Kiss in a Shadow (Frank Sinatra, 1951)
49. Out of My Dreams (Joan Roberts, 1943)
50. Happy Talk (Captain Sensible, 1982) #1 UK

Awards:

Sunday, December 27, 1987

50 years ago: Show Boat opened on Broadway

Show Boat

Jerome Kern (music), Oscar Hammerstein II (lyrics)

Cast Album

Recorded/Released: 1928

Charted: --

Peak: --

Sales (in millions): --

Genre: show tunes

Soundtrack

Charted: July 21, 1951

Peak: 1¹⁹ US

Sales (in millions): --

Genre: show tunes

Tracks (Order from Original Show):

Overture
Cotton Blossom
Make Believe
Ol’ Man River
Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man
Life Upon the Wicked Stage
Till Good Luck Comes My Way
I Might Fall Back on You
Queenie’s Ballyhoo
Olio Dance
You Are Love
Act I Finale
At the Chicago World’s Fair
Why Do I Love You?
Bill
After the Ball

Tracks (from 1951 Soundtrack):

Song Title (Performers) [time] Click for codes to singles charts.

Show Boat (Main Title) (M-G-M Studio Orchestra & Chorus, Adolph Deutsch) [1:43]
Cap’n Andy’s Calliope (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [0:44]
Natchez (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsh) [1:03]
Cap’n Andy’s Presentation (M-G-M Studio Orchestra & Chorus, Adolph Deutsch) [2:09]
Cap’n Andy’s Ballyhoo (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [0:55]
Encore on Deck (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [1:21]
Where’s the Mate for Me? (Gambler’s Song) (Howard Keel) [2:48]
Young Romance (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [1:33]
Make Believe (Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel) [4:00]
Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man (Ava Gardner) [3:23]
I Might Fall Back on You (Marge Champion, Gower Champion) [3:17]
Julie Leaves the Boat (M-G-M Studio Orchestra & Chorus, Adolph Deutsch) [1:23]
Ol’ Man River (William Warfield) [3:40]
Ol’ Man River (Reprise) (William Warfield) [2:15]
You Are Love (Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel) [2:34]
Why Do I Love You? (Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel) [3:28]
Ravenal Is Gone (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [4:25]
Bill (Ava Gardner) [3:22]
Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man (Reprise #2) (Kathryn Grayson) [2:29]
Life on the Wicked Stage (Marge Champion, Gower Champion) [5:23]
After the Ball (Kathryn Grayson) [3:09]
Packet Boat (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [1:23]
Natchez Dock (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [2:00]
Make Believe (Reprise) (Howard Keel) [1:30]
Reunion (M-G-M Studio Orchestra, Adolph Deutsch) [1:46]
Ol’ Man River: Finale Ultimo (William Warfield & the M-G-M Studio Chorus) [2:55]

Singles/Hit Songs:

As was common in the pre-rock era, songs from musicals were often recorded by artists not associated with the musical and released as singles. Here are some of the most notable hit singles resulting from Show Boat:

“After the Ball” – George J. Gaskin (#1, 1893), John Yorke Atlee (#1, 1893)
”Ol’ Man River” – Paul Whiteman with Bing Crosby (#1, 1928), Al Jolson (#4, 1928), Paul Robeson with Paul Whiteman (#7, 1928), The Revelers (#10, 1928), Luis Russell (#19, 1934)
”Bill” – Helen Morgan (#4, 1928)
”Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” – Helen Morgan (#7, 1928), Ben Bernie (#19, 1928)
”Make Believe” – Paul Whiteman with Bing Crosby (#7, 1928)
”Why Do I Love You” – Nat Shilkret (#9, 1928)
”You Are Love” – James Melton with Victor Young’s Orchestra (#20, 1932)

Rating:

4.443 out of 5.00 (average of 11 ratings from all versions of Show Boat)

Quotable: “Generally considered to be the first true American ‘musical play’” – Wikipedia

Awards (Cast Album and Soundtrack): (Click on award to learn more).

About the Show:

Show Boat “is generally considered to be the first true American ‘musical play’.” ^WK It separated itself from the operettas, light musical comedies, and Follies-type musical revues of the 1890s and early 20th century by telling a dramatic plot-and-character driven story accompanied by music. ^WK

The musical, with music by Jerome Kern and lyrics and book by Oscar Hammerstein II, was based on Ednar Ferber’s 1926 novel of the same name. ^WK The show works in a few songs not by Kern and Hammerstein, including Bill, written by P.G. Wodehouse in 1918, but reworked by Hammerstein for Show Boat. Goodbye, My Lady Love by Joseph Howard and After the Ball by Charles K. Harris have become mainstays in the American stage productions of the show as well. ^WK

The show opened on Broadway on December 27, 1927 at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York, where it ran for a year and a half. The 1928 London cast album was released in England before the United States. Since the U.S. had not started making original cast albums of Broadway shows, there was no album made of the 1927 Broadway cast. ^WK However, for the 1932 revival of the musical, a cast album was made featuring Helen Morgan and Paul Robeson, who were both in the original American and London casts of Show Boat, ^E-C alongside “James Melton, Frank Munn, and Countess Olga Albani” ^WK and an orchestra conducted by Victor Young. ^WK The recordings of “Ol’ Man River and a Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man…are truly authoritative. The…sound is astonishingly good.” ^E-C

The show was revived again in 1946, 1983, and 1994. ^WK Similarly, cast album recordings have been made multiple times, including 1946, 1956, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1971, 1988, and 1994. It was also made into a movie in 1936 with members from the original Broadway and London productions. It was made into a movie again in 1951 although it “was prettied up considerably and reshaped almost beyond recognition. On the other hand, Howard Keel’s baritone is one of the most pleasing voices in movies of that era, and teamed with Kathryn Grayson’s fluttering alto, the results are beguiling on songs like Only Make Believe.” ^E-S It “wasn’t treated too seriously by most purists until the 1990s, when it emerged as a minor classic in its own right.” ^E-S

Resources and Related Links:

^E-C Bruce Eder, All Music Guide (1932 cast)
^E-S Bruce Eder, All Music Guide (1951 soundtrack)
^WK Wikipedia.org

Other Related DMDB Pages:

First posted 8/11/2008; last updated 12/21/2021.

Friday, June 2, 1978

50 years ago: Paul Robeson “Ol’ Man River” charted

Ol’ Man River

Paul Robeson with Paul Whiteman’s Orchestra

Writer(s): Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern (see lyrics here)

Released: April 20, 1928

First Charted: June 2, 1928

Peak: 7 US, 8 GA, 5 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.)

Sales (in millions): --

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.35 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II wrote “Ol’ Man River” for Show Boat, which is hailed as the first musical to abandon the themed revue in favor of a dramatic production with music woven into the story line. Show Boat delved into taboo topics “like interracial sex and unhappy marriages as it followed the exploits of a Mississippi river boat’s primarily white travelers and the black laborers who serviced it. ^LW

Like other songs written about blacks by whites, “Ol’ Man River” is a minstrel tune which used “a caricature of a black Southern dialect” ^LW built on stereotypical images of the day which viewed African-Americans as second-class citizens. Joe, the 1880s dock worker who sings the song, “complains against his position in the world, but ultimately he seems resigned to it.” ^OT The song uses the Mississippi River as “a metaphor for the white man’s indifference: ‘What does he care if the world’s got troubles?/ What does he care if the land ain’t free?’” ^TM

Paul Robeson became “internationally renowned for both his singing and his Shakespearian acting,” ^OT thanks to his role as Joe in Show Boat for the London production, the 1929 Broadway revival, and “James Whale’s definitive 1936 film version.” ^TM Robeson was “a Rutgers football star and Columbia-educated lawyer whose charismatic presence would have propelled him to the top of any entertainment medium not hobbled by racism.” ^TM

As such, it should be no surprise that Robeson did not sing “River” “according to the established minstrel-show archetype.” ^OT Instead, his “delivery is massive, booming and operatic, animated by a barely suppressed anger.” ^OT “If there is a single message that can be abstracted from Robeson’s performance…it is surely that this is not the way the world should be.” ^OT

While Robeson has become most identified with the song, he was not the first to chart with it nor was his the most successful version. The Paul Whiteman Orchestra charted a couple months earlier with a version which was a #1 hit featuring Bing Crosby on vocals. Al Jolson went to #4 with a version which charted a few weeks earlier than Robeson’s. The same week Robeson charted saw the Revelers hit with their #10 version. In 1934, Luis Russell charted with a version which went to #19. ^PM It should also be noted that Jules Beldsoe first introduced the song and sang it in the 1929 film version of Show Boat. William Warfield sang it for the 1951 film version. ^JA

Resources:

^JA David A. Jasen. (2002). A Century of American Popular Music: 2000 Best-Loved and Remembered Songs (1899-1999). Routledge: Taylor & Francis, Inc. Page 150.
^LW Alan Lewens (2001). Popular Song – Soundtrack of the Century. Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 62.
^OT ‘Once Upon a Time’ blog (1/14/2012) Paul Robeson – Ol’ Man River
^TM Time magazine All-TIME 100 Songs (2011)
^TY Don Tyler (1985). Hit Parade 1920-1955. New York, NY: Quill. Page 40.
^PM Joel Whitburn (1986). Pop Memories 1890-1954. Menomonee Falls, WI; Record Research, Inc. Page 372.