Blue Skies (Decca album)

Blue Skies
Studio album by Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire
Released Original 78 album: 1946
Original LP album: 1949
Recorded 1946
Genre Popular
Label Decca
Bing Crosby chronology
Favorite Hawaiian Songs,
Vol. Two
(1946)		 Blue Skies
(1946)		 Bing Crosby – Jerome Kern
(1946)
Fred Astaire chronology
Song Hits from Holiday Inn
(1942)		 Blue Skies
(1946)		 The Astaire Story
(1952)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

Blue Skies is a studio album of phonograph records by Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire released in 1946 featuring songs that were presented in the American musical film Blue Skies. Like Song Hits from Holiday Inn, the entire 78 rpm album would be composed of Irving Berlin songs written specifically for the film. This was the first release of one of Astaire's greatest songs, Puttin' On the Ritz, on shellac disc record.

Reception

Down Beat magazine liked it. "Don’t miss this show album. Any of the complete score albums that Decca turns out have rotten tunes thrown in with the good. This one is no exception - but it does have Crosby, and Astaire in what may very well be his last wax appearance. Astaire may be no singer, but even on wax, his personality comes through.[2]

The album quickly entered Billboard's album charts reaching the No. 2 spot [3] and was also ranked No. 20 of the top selling popular record albums for 1947.[4]

Track listing

These newly issued songs were featured on a 5-disc, 78 rpm album set Decca Album No. A-481.[5] The first four discs are sung by Bing Crosby, while the last disc has Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire dueting on "A Couple of Song and Dance Men" and Astaire soloing on "Puttin' On the Ritz".

Disc 1: (23646)

  1. "Blue Skies", recorded July 18, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra[6]
  2. "(I'll See You In) C-U-B-A", recorded July 24, 1946 with Trudy Erwin and John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra

Disc 2: (23647)

  1. "You Keep Coming Back Like a Song", recorded July 18, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra
  2. "Getting Nowhere", recorded July 18, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra

Disc 3: (23648)

  1. "A Serenade to an Old-Fashioned Girl", recorded July 19, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra
  2. "Everybody Step", recorded July 19, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra

Disc 4: (23649)

  1. "All By Myself", recorded July 18, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra
  2. "I've Got My Captain Working for Me Now", recorded July 18, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra

Disc 5: (23650)

  1. "A Couple of Song and Dance Men", recorded July 24, 1946 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra
  2. "Puttin' On the Ritz", recorded July 24, 1942 with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra

LP release

Eight of the songs were included on the Decca 10" LP Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies" (DL 5042) issued in 1949. The omissions were "A Serenade to an Old-Fashioned Girl" and "Everybody Step".

Track listing

SIDE ONE

  1. Blue Skies"
  2. "(I'll See You In) C-U-B-A"
  3. "You Keep Coming Back Like a Song"
  4. "Getting Nowhere"

SIDE TWO

  1. "All By Myself"
  2. "I've Got My Captain Working for Me Now"
  3. "A Couple of Song and Dance Men"
  4. "Puttin' On the Ritz"

References

  1. ↑ "Blue Skies - Bing Crosby - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic".
  2. ↑ "Down Beat". Down Beat. November 4, 1946.
  3. ↑ Whitburn, Joel. Joel Whitburn's Top LP's, 1945 - 1972. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 39.
  4. ↑ "Billboard". Billboard. January 3, 1948.
  5. ↑ "Blue Skies soundtrack; 5 x 78 rpm" – via Amazon.
  6. ↑ "DECCA (USA) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 23500 - 24000".
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 6/13/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.