by Peter Cates Baritone Oscar Seagle, Soprano Marie Tiffany Baritone Oscar Seagle (1877-1945) was one of the best selling recording stars for Columbia records during the post World War I years of the acoustic era. He recorded two hymns for the label on a 10-inch shellac in 1921 – I Love to Tell the Story […]
by Peter Cates Soundmaps Extended Realities Valeria Zorina, violin and Evgeny Sinaiski, piano Oehms Classics OC 492, CD, recorded May 1-5, 2019, in Madrid, Spain. Although she has not yet set foot in the United States, Moldavian violinist Valeria Zorina has concertized extensively in England and Europe to tremendous and deserved acclaim. The late violinist […]
by Peter Cates Perry Mason Season 4 Season 4 of Perry Mason had a particularly compelling episode, The Case of the Misguided Missile, which was first aired May 6, 1961. It dealt with a missile launch and provided some background footage at Vandenberg Air Force Base, in central California, and now renamed Vandenberg Space Force […]
by Peter Cates How Music Grew in Brooklyn Maurice Edwards; Lanham, Maryland; Scarecrow Press; published 2006; 380 pages. This hefty book of at least 10 pounds could rightfully be considered a coffee table book. A history of the Brooklyn, New York, Philharmonic, it was also a labor of love for its author Maurice Edwards (1922-2020) […]
by Peter Cates Petula Clark I Know a Place Jack and John. Warner Brothers 5612, seven inch 45 vinyl disc, recorded 1965. Now 88, singer Petula Clark achieved fame in England and Europe before hitting paydirt over here. Downtown, This Is My Song, and Don’t Sleep in the Subway are megahits for the best reasons-they […]
by Peter Cates 29 Classics You Should Know Various orchestras; RCA Camden CFL-103, six lps of reissues from Victor 78s. This bargain priced mid-’50s set contained very good performances and, for their day, quite decently recorded sound. The list of orchestras on the record labels contain the actual names for some pieces, and pseudonyms, due […]
by Peter Cates Connie Francis Now 83 years old but still active, Connie Francis is a living legend in pop music. Her 1957 megahit, the lovely Bert Kalmar/Harry Ruby Who’s Sorry Now, was one truly fine song, made extra special by CF’s totally sincere rendition, even if a tad smothered by sentimentality. That year, American […]
by Peter Cates Robert P. Tristram (continued…) Up until a few weeks ago, I was offering weekly paragraphs from Robert P. Tristram Coffin’s essay Kennebec Crystals, which is contained in the 1989 Maine Literature Project anthology, Maine Speaks. To briefly summarize previously offered information Professor Coffin (1892-1955) wrote 40 books that included poetry, novels and […]
by Peter Cates Record rescue operation I have been receiving avalanches of free 78s the last few Sundays from a friend who needs to empty his locker. I call it a rescue operation of these records. Otherwise they end up in dumpsters because too many folks want everything modernized. As far as I am concerned, […]
by Peter Cates Against All Odds Soundtrack- composed by Michel Colombier; Atlantic 80152-1-E, stereo LP, recorded 1984. I have never seen this Jeff Bridges/ Rachel Ward thriller but, having read the Wiki synopsis, am now curious. The soundtrack itself is a first class mishmash of instrumentals underscoring the action and individual tracks by Peter Gabriel, […]