Blu-ray
Soundies : the ultimate collection.
Edition
Blu-ray version.
Languages
English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
Performers
Count Basie, Cab Calloway, Hoagie Carmichael, Nat King Cole, Dorothy Dandridge, Doris Day, Duke Ellington, Ricardo Montalban, Spike Jones, Vanita Smythe, Gale Storm, Merle Travis, Fats Waller.
Publication Information
[New York, NY] : Kino Classics, [2023]
Physical Description
4 videodiscs (approximately 600 minutes) : sound, black and white and some color; 4 3/4 in. + 1 booklet (43 pages : illustrations ; 15 cm)
Audience
Not rated.
Summary
Soundies have been called the music videos of the 1940s, but that doesn't begin to describe their cultural importance. It's true that they feature a remarkable range of talent, from big-band luminaries like Duke Ellington and Count Basie to then-emerging stars like Doris Day and Ricardo Montalban, and lesser-known artists of the American nightclub circuit. But Soundies are also a rich, largely overlooked chronicle of American popular culture during and just after World War II. Produced for coin-operated jukeboxes in neighborhood bars and taverns, Soundies has an uncanny way of revealing what Americans were thinking about topics that weren't discussed openly, from sexuality to ethnicity and race. This four-disc collection presents a diverse sampling of 200 shorts--jazz, country-western, folk, and the boogie woogie roots of rock 'n' roll--newly restory from 35mm and 16mm material preserved by the Library of Congress and other archives.
Notes
Contains material originally produced 1940-1946.
Special features: Filmed introductions by series curator Susan Delson and Ina Archer, Media Conservationist, National Museum of African American History and Culture ; "Inside the panorama," a filmed interview with Mark Cantor, author of The soundies: a history and catalog of jukebox film shorts of the 1940s ; "From the vaults," a filmed interview with Matt Barton and Mike Mashon of the Library of Congress.
Contents
- Disc 1. Introducing Soundies. Starting from swing. Jam session (C-blues) / Duke Ellington and His Orchestra
- Dipsy doodle / Larry Clinton and His Orchestra
- Airmail special / Count Basie and His Orchestra featuring Jimmy Rushing
- Swing for sale / The Charioteers
- Jammin' in the Panoram / Stan Kenton and His Orchestra with Helen Huntley
- Let me off Uptown / "The Ace Drummer Man" Gene Krupa and His Orchestra
- Take it and git / Thelma White and Her All-Girl Orchestra with Ellen Connor
- She's crazy with the heat / The Internatiolnal Sweethearts of Rhythm featuring Anna Mae Winburn
- Powered by dance. Hot chocolate ("Cottontail") / Duke Ellington and His Orchestra with Whitey's Lindy Hoppers --The chool song / The King's Men with Collins and Collette
- Maharaja / Hal and Betty Takier
- Breakfast in rhythm (introducing "Be careful") / The Three Chefs
- Mi rumba / Nano Rodrigo and His Orchestra featuring the Lola and Andre Dancers
- Goin' to the barn dance tonight / Carson Robison and His Buckaroos
- May I have the next trance with you / Hal Borne and His Orchestra
- Arthur Murray taught me dancing in a hurry / Hal Borne and His Orchestra
- At the piano. Tiger rag / Walter Liberace with Mildred Hughes and Cecilia Nelson
- Got a penny Benny / The King Cole Trio
- Ain't misbehavin' / Fats Waller
- Adventure in boogie woogie / Robert Crum
- Jealous / Mary Brian with Charles Baron featuring Stan Kenton and Hal Borne
- Harry the hipster / Harry Gibson
- Dispossessed blues / Lynn Albritton and the Four Knobs
- Grand piano and gals / Dorothy Janice and the Mills Piano Quartette
- We'll drink to that. Abercrombie Had a zombie / Liz Tilton and Lee Murray
- Clink! Clink! Another drink / Spike Jones and His City Slickers (featuring Mel Blanc)
- Moonlight cocktail / Nat Brandwynne and His Copacobana Orchestra
- Moonlight cocktail / Hal Borne and His Orchestra
- Bottoms up / The Globe Trotters
- Cocktails for two / Bob Hughes and The Mellowaires
- Penthouse party / Gloria Parker
- Beer barrel polka / The Eton Boys
- Outrageously incorrect and sometimes subversive. Ching chong / Maxine Conrad and Muzzy Marcellino
- Honk kong blues / Hoagy Carmichael with Mi Chee
- Lazybones / Hoagy Carmichael with Dorothy Dandridge and Peter Ray
- Ballet dancer's nightmare / The Slate Brothers with Vivien Fay
- Ruff and tuff / Mary Parker and Lou Leonard (Champion Judo Experts)
- Operatin' rhythm / The Three Heat Waves
- Sleep Kentucky babe / Day, Dawn, and Dusk
- Rigoletto / Day, Dawn, and Dusk
- Straight from the Panoram #1: Soundies Miniature Review No. 1012, May 5, 1941. You walk by / Del Casino and His Orchestra with Betty Jane Smith
- Swingin' and the séance / Johnny Long and His Orchestra featuring Helen Young
- St. Louis blues / The Four King Sisters with Alvino Rey and His Orchestra
- Penthouse serenade / David Rose and His Orchestra
- Don't cry / Vincent Lopez and His Orchestra featuring Sonny Skylar
- Swing for your supper / Dorothy Dandridge and Cee Pee Johnson
- Sheherezade / Dave Schooner and His Twenty-One Swinghearts
- Seven beers with the working man / Fran Frey and His Orchestra.
- Disc 2. Life in the Soundies era. Going to war. We'll slap the Japs (Right into the laps of the Nazis) / Ted Fio Rito and His Skylined Music
- Paddy Callahan has joined the Army / John Feeny with Charles Devlin
- G.I. jive / Louis Jordan and His Band
- K.P. serenade / The Hoosier Hot Shots
- Gee! The Jeep jumps / The Kimloo Sisters and Bobby Davis
- Johnny Zero / The Song Spinners
- Goodbye mama (I'm off to Yokohama) / Hal Borne and His Orchestra
- Hey! Tojo, count yo' men / Bob Howard
- The home front. I shut my mouth for Uncle Sam / Harry Brent and His Orchestra
- Keep smiling / The Four Ginger Snaps
- When Hitler kicks the bucket ; Plant a little garden in your own back yard / The Song Spinners
- Ration blues / Louis Jordan and His Orchestra
- Take it off / The Pretty Priorities
- Defend America / The Patriotairs
- When Johnny comes marching home / The Four Ginger Snaps
- On the job. Rosie the riveter / The Smoothies (Babs, Charlie and Little) and Cappy Barra's Harmonica Boys
- Don't be an absentee / Patti Ryan
- On time / Carolyn Ayres
- Stop that dancing up there / Joe Reichman and His Orchestra
- The blacksmith song / Spike Jones and His City Slickers
- Frim Fram Sauce / The Cole King Trio
- Struttin' to Sutton Place / Mary Jane Walsh
- A little jive is good for you / Martha Tilton with the Slate Brothers
- City life. Take the 'A' Train / The Delta Rhythm Boys
- Take me out to the ball game / The Kimloo Sisters
- Tenement symphony / Bob Carroll
- The joint is jumpin' / Fats Waller
- The Kerry dance / Merle Pitt and the Five Shades of Blue
- Give me some skin / The Delta Rhythm Boys
- Navy yard / Toni Lane
- Good-nite all / Toni Lane
- ...And city fashion. Gorgeous / Michael Loring
- Down, down, down / Louis Jordan and His Band
- Beautiful clothes (make beautiful girls) / Harry Langdon
- Jack, you're playing the game / The Delta Rhythm Boys
- A zoot suit / Ted Fio Rito and His Skylined Music
- Glamour girl / Ivan Scott and His Orchestra
- After a while / Danny O'Neil
- Emily Brown / Bob Parrish and Chinky Grimes
- Straight from the Panoram #2: Soundies Miniature Revue no. 1061, March 30, 1942. Deep in the heart of Texas / Van Alexander and His Orchestra with Lew Hearn and Phyllis Kenny
- As Mabel so goes to the Navy / Mary Jane Walsh
- Where has my little dog gone / Claude Thornhill and His Orchestra with Martha Wayne and Buddy Stewart
- Two pairs of shoes / Jean Porter and Larry Stewart
- The skunk song / Cab Calloway and His Orchestra
- Frankie and Johnny / Moore and Revel with the Dixieland Jazz Band
- Farewell blues / Tommy Reynolds and His Orchestra with Sunnie O'Dea
- Drink to me with only thine eyes / Ginger Harmon and Harry Barris.
- Disc 3. Musical evolutions. Stirring up the melting pot. I'm an old cowhand / Gus Van
- Ta Ha Wa Hu Wa (Hawaiian war chant) / Lani McINnyre and His Orchestra
- Pete the piper / Susan Miller and Danny Hoctor
- Kazbek / Yasha Davidoff with Simeon Karavaeff, Lalla Zalipskaya, Nadia Veralle, Russian Balalaika Orchestra
- Wilile Willie / Sam Manning and Belle Rosette
- There's nothing like the smile of the Irish / Lanny Rose
- Swinging in a harem / Marian Lawrence and Her Dancers
- Dance, baby, dance ("Tanze babele") / The Mel-Tones
- Hillbilly to country western. I wanna go back to West Virginia / Slim Andrews and The Fashionaires with Sybil Rae
- There's a hole in the old oaken bucket / Florence Gill, Redd Harper and The Sells
- Pass the biscuits, Mirandy / Spike Jones and His City Slickers
- Back in the saddle again / Dick Thomas
- Montana plains / Emerson's Mountaineers
- Along the Navajo Trail / John "Shadrach" Horace and Johnny Moore's 3 Blazers
- Why did I fall for Abner / Merle Travis and Carolina Cotton (with the Glee Gates Trio and other musicians)
- Horse hairs / Ginger Dulo
- Latin to Staten Island. Rhumba New York / Caridad Garcia with Gerald Marks and His Orchestra
- Dark velvet night / Sergio De Karlo with Patricia Hall
- Pumpa pumpa / The DeCastro Sisters
- Paran-pan-pan / Maya's Pan-American Orchestra with Carlos and Zedra
- Chi-chi castenango / Marilyn Hare and the Paragons
- Havin' a time in Havana / Ricardo Montalban, Gus Van
- Heading toward rock n' roll. Wham / The Four Ginger Snaps
- Rock it for me / Maurice Rocco
- Opus 12eee / Harry Gibson
- Shoo shoo baby / The Les Paul Trio and Carolyn Grey
- Four or five times / Lucky Millinder and His Orchestra featuring Sister Tharpe
- The lonesome road / Lucky Millinder and His Orchestra featuring Sister Tharpe
- Jumpin' at the jubilee / Louis Jordan and His Band with The Swing Maniacs
- 47th street jive / June Richmond with Roy Milton and His Band
- Latin boogies & other hybrids. Rhumboogie / Maurice Rocco and His Rockin' Rhythm
- Hula rumba / Gloria King and Bernie Kaai with Kuaana's Dream Islanders
- Jive, little gypsy, jive / Bobby Sherwood's Orchestra, The Three Cheers, Diana Castillo
- Jitterbug señorita / Vincent Lopez and His Orchestra featuring Anne Barrett
- Rhumba swing / Leona Fredericks and Irving Felds Trio
- Yodel / Rosalie Allen
- Cowboy calypso / The Cactus Cowboys with Bobby Gregory
- Cow cow boogie / Dorothy Dandridge with Dudley Dickerson
- Straight from the Panoram #3: Soundies Parade of Hits no. 1137, October 11, 1943. Au reet / Jimmy Dorsey and His Orchestra with Helen O'Connell
- They're going to build a monument / The Delegates (Elmer, Sonny, and Glen)
- Boxcar rhapsody / Borrah Minevitch and His Harmonica Rascals
- Strolling through the park / Kaye Popp, Stanley Catron, Jack Baker, Betty Heather, Benny de Sio, Margie Jackson
- International revue / Jack Hylton and His Band
- My reverie / Larry Clinton and His Orchestra
- There's a Pampas moon on the campus / Hal Borne and His Orchestra
- Do I worry? / Patterson and Jackson.
- Disc 4. Women, sexuality, and gender. Is it love or is it conscription? Heterosexuality and World War II. Goodbye dear, I'll be back in a year / The Landy Trio
- Is it love or is it conscription? / Les Brown and His Orchestra featuring Doris Day
- Love's gonna be rationed / The Song Spinners
- Pin-ups on parade / Lee Sullivan and the Dream Dolls
- Paper doll / The Mills Brothers and Dorothy Dandridge
- But what are these? / Gracie Barrie
- Lackadaisical lady / Jimmie Dodd
- I'd love to get to know you better / Gayle Mellot and Ralph Young
- Anxities, bickering, and heartbreak. Is you is or is you ain't my baby / Ida James and the King Cole Trio
- Better not roll those eyes / Harry Barris and Jean Porter
- You're unfair to me / The David Rose Orchestra
- Buzz me / Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five
- Mailman blues / Nita Norman
- Low down Dog / Meade (Lux) Lewis and Dudley Dickerson with Avanelle Harris, Leonard Bluett
- The story of two cigarettes / Vickee Richards and Don De Leo
- I'm tired / Apus and Estrellita
- Playing with expectations: Loosening & upending 1940s stereotypes of women. Does you or does you don't / Vanita Smythe
- He plays gin rummy / Gale Storm and Iris Dawn
- The blushing bride / Jackie Gately
- I've got to get hot / Gracie Barrie
- Bearcat mountain gal / Cindy walker
- Time takes care of everything / June Richmond
- Stone cold dead in the market / Gracie Barrie
- Minnie from Trinidad / Luba Malina
- Jumping into gender play. Ma, he's making eyes at me / Ted Fio Rito and His Skylined Music featuring Candy Candido
- Faust / Day, Dawn, and Dusk
- Shy Anne from Old Cheyenne / Denver Darline and His Texas Cowhands
- On the boulevard / Carolyn Grey and Jimmie Dale
- Too many sailors / The Burch Mann Dancers
- The better half / Leila Moore
- You never know! / The Harem Trio and Arica Wild
- Shoeshiners and headliners / Florence Pepper
- Dorothy Dandridge and Gale Storm. I'm a shy guy / Ivan Scott and His Orchestra
- Yes, indeed! / Dorothy Dandridge and The Five Spirits
- Let's get away from it all / Johnny Downs with Gale Storm
- Blackbird fantasy / Dorothy Dandridge with Billy Mitchell
- I know somebody who loves you / Gale Storm with The Fashionaires
- Jungle jig / Dorothy Dandridge and Cee Pee Johnson
- The merry-go roundup / Gale Storm and the Dorn Brother and Mary with The Palladium Handicap Girls
- Straight from the Panoram #4: Soundies Parade of Hits No. 1189, November 20, 1944. Canine capers / Max and His Gang
- The line is busy / [Unknown performers]
- Tea on the terrace / Ted Fio Rito and His Skylined Music
- Side by side / Nick Lucas
- Paris is gay again / Joan Marshall and James Alexander
- Dance impressions / Bobby Davis
- Ja da / The Dixieland Jazz Band
- Ain't she pretty / The Three Peppers
- Clebrating the chorus line. Backstage blues / Lynn Albritton, Lou Ellen (Llewelyn Crawford) and the Harlem Cuties
- Born to swing / Ginger Harmon
- Brazil / Nilo Menendez and His Orchestra with Maria Del Rey and Raul Martinez
- Give this little girl a great big hand / Ann Pennington
- Chatter / Cook and Brown and the Sepia Steppers
- Pan-Americonga / Rita Rio (aka Dona Drake) with Allan Baldwin and Theodore
- There'll be some changes made / Ginger Harmon
- Everybody's jumpin' now / Noble Sissle and His Orchestra with Mabel Lee.