Record #0857: Night and Day / Just One of Those Things – BING CROSBY

Decca 18887 (original) USA, June 1946
Words & Music by:  Side A – Cole Porter; Side B – Cole Porter
Musicians: Bing Crosby (lead baritone vocals), John Scott Trotter and his orchestra
Recording sessions: Produced by Jack Kapp at Decca Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Side A on 11. February 1944; Side B on 15. January 1945
Highest chart positions:  Side A –US #21; Side B – none

The release achieved only modest success for Bing Crosby, especially compared with his broader record in the 1940s, when he scored 14 US number-one hits.

Cole Porter was notoriously strict about his sophisticated lyrics. He hated it when singers changed even a single syllable of his poetry. Yet, on this February 1944 recording, Crosby audibly rebelled against one of the song's most famous lines. Cole Porter originally wrote the climax of the verse as: "Like the drip, drip, drip of the raindrops / When the summer shower is through...". Crosby reportedly felt that singing the word "drip, drip, drip" sounded clunky and unromantic for his smooth crooner style. Without asking Porter for permission, Crosby stepped up to the microphone and sang: "Like the plash, plash, plash of the raindrops..."

When Porter found out that the biggest recording star in the world had replaced his rhythmic "drip" with "plash," he was allegedly furious. However, because this record was directly tied to the studio promotion of Warner Bros.' upcoming Cole Porter biopic, “Night and Day”, Porter ultimately chose not to block the record's release.

List price: Les Docks lists this at $4-$7. 45cat.com Price Guide sets this at €9. Discogs.com shows a median price of $5,54.

 

Record #0856: Devil or Angel / Hey, Doll Baby – THE CLOVERS

Atlantic 1083 (original) USA, early January 1956
Words & Music by:  Side A – Blanche Carter; Side B – Titus Turner
Musicians: Buddy Bailey (lead tenor) Matthew McQuater (tenor vocals), Harold Lucas (baritone vocals), Harold Winley (bass vocals), Bill Harris (rhythm guitar), Mickey Baker (lead guitar), Sam “The Man” Taylor (tenor sax), Vann “Piano Man” Walls (piano), Lloyd Trotman or Wendell Marshall (bass), Connie Kay (drums)
Recording sessions: Produced by Ahmet Ertegun and Jerry Wexler (and engineered by Tom Dowd) at Capitol Studios, New York, NY, on 11. November 1955
Highest chart positions:  Side A –US R&B #3; Side B – US R&B #8

“Devil or Angel” became a major hit for the Clovers in 1956. Written by an amateur songwriter from Virginia, the song proved to be an unexpected financial success. Its many subsequent cover versions continued to generate substantial royalties for her.

Teen idol Bobby Vee recorded a softer, pop-oriented cover of "Devil or Angel" that broke through internationally. His version peaked at US #6 and crossed the border to become a #2 hit in Canada. It was distributed widely across Europe, making Vee an international singing sensation.

The Everly Brothers covered “Hey, Doll Baby” on their debut album in 1957.

The guitarist Mickey Baker was the first half of recording duo “Mickey & Sylvia”, which had a hit single with “Love Is Strange” in 1956. I recall that was one of Buddy Holly’s favourite songs.

List price: Les Docks lists this at $15-$20. 45cat.com Price Guide sets this at €53. Discogs.com shows a median price of $8,80. I found 22 copies sold in eBay for $20-$66.

 

Record #0855: Lovey Dovey / Little Mama – THE CLOVERS

Atlantic 1022 (original, Monarch pressing) USA, February 1954
Words & Music by:  Side A – Eddie Curtis, Nuggy (Ahmet Ertegun); Side B – Carmen Taylor, Willis Carroll, Jesmet (Ahmet Ertegun & Jerry Wexler)
Musicians: Charlie White (lead vocals on side A, tenor vocals), Buddy Bailey (lead vocals on side B, tenor vocals) Matthew McQuater (tenor vocals), Harold Lucas (baritone vocals), Harold Winley (bass vocals), Bill Harris (guitar), Sam “The Man” Taylor (tenor sax), Vann “Piano Man” Walls (piano), Milt Hinton (bass), Connie Kay (drums)
Recording sessions: Produced by Ahmet Ertegun and Jerry Wexler (and engineered by Tom Dowd) at Atlantic Studios, New York, NY, on 24. September 1953
Highest chart positions:  Side A –US R&B #2; Side B – US R&B #4

The timeline of this recording session was entirely dictated by Uncle Sam. Buddy Bailey, who was the original founding lead singer and the distinctive voice behind The Clovers' earliest chart-toppers like "One Mint Julep" and "Ting-A-Ling", received his official U.S. Army draft notice in the late summer of 1953. Before Bailey had to report to basic training, Atlantic rushed the group into the New York studio for one final marathon session to capture as many tracks with Bailey's voice as possible for future release.

A bit of trivia regarding "Little Mama," is that two completely different versions were accidentally distributed to the public simultaneously in early 1954 due to a mix-up with the master tapes. One version is a more up-tempo take that highlights a roaring saxophone solo by Sam "The Man" Taylor, while the other features a jazz-inflected piano solo by Vann Walls. Because Atlantic was in a rush to ship the hit, the East Coast mostly received the piano version, while the West Coast and the South received the saxophone version. My copy was pressed at Monarch Record Manufacturing in Los Angeles.

List price: Les Docks lists this at $15-$25. 45cat.com Price Guide sets this at €35. Discogs.com shows a median price of $4,81 😊. I found six copies sold in eBay for $19-$30.