Debra—this is taking on shades of who’s on first. The photos show all three female singers including the female Pied Piper! But finally I see and hear who Connie is. Phew. Not to mention that the last number, Cutie Little Snootie, is hilarious!
Yes, "Cutie Little Snootie" was new to me. What a hoot. Last night I had to segue into Sacred music to rehearse hymns for today with our son and organize his sheet music, then finish and print the music selections for the congregation. We go to church at 3 for a run through before the Mass at 4 PM. So on the weekends often I DON'T KNOW Who's on first! Ha ha.
I knew the song, too, but some of the lyrics just went by me. Very clever, weren't they? What impressed me was the great quality of Frank Sinatra's voice, even then. My mother always said that she liked his later voice better. I agree, but his vocal control was impeccable, and his phrasing, from the start.
Amy, of course Tommy's instrument was the trombone, but I wasn't able to find out exactly which trumpeter played the fancy stuff in this recording. Benny had four at that time: Bunny Berigan, Ray Linn, Jimmy Blake, and Clyde Hurley. And notably, Buddy Rich was his drummer. There was no lack of talent in that orchestra!
Amy, I'm not sure if those notes are right. Jo Stafford did a recording with Dorsey with The Pied Pipers, and then there was this "doublet," with (I thought) Stafford and Sinatra. Later they both recorded the song as singles, along with about everyone you can think of. I'd have to do more research to say any more. I could be wrong, and that Connie came in on the bit with Frank.
Amy, you really got my curiosity up, I'll have to say! I checked, and read online that both Connie Haines and Jo Stafford recorded the song with Sinatra while each was part of The Pied Pipers. Here is a recording of Sinatra singing a different song with Connie, however, and her voice is extremely unlike that of the rich alto, Jo Stafford. I tried to find liner notes from actual albums and couldn't. If what I read was correct, Connie didn't come on with Dorsey until about 1942. By then Sinatra had already recorded his 80 songs with Dorsey, including "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off" and was busy trying to get out of the horrible contract he had signed with Dorsey. If you see photos of the Pied Pipers when Frank sang with them, you'll see that Jo Stafford was taller than he was. Connie Haines was a peanut, under 5 ft. tall. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3OSi-fWPVM
It was the difference in the two voices (your first clip) that made me wonder who was who. Also, the female who was apparently part of the Pied Pipers is neither Stafford nor Haines. So I was confused again. The fact is that I’ve always heard of Jo Stafford and thought, with this post, now I’ll finally see who she is. Then she had two voices! 😆.
Well, I think I goofed and put up the wrong version. I had one I wanted, and couldn't find it again at "press time!" Alas. Jo Stafford is a lovely singer. I covered her for my very first Sometimes a Song here with Gordon MacRae: https://open.substack.com/pub/anthonyesolen/p/loves-old-sweet-song?r=nweob&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false . I think I covered her version of "You Belong to Me," which was my mother and father's "song," as they used to say, but I can't find it. So I must have done that in my imagination. But I probably heard Jo Stafford singing THAT song before I was born! Anyway, there was some confusion, and I wish I could find again the original recording that I wanted to use!
Debra, true to form, Word and Song opens doors! Now I not only know who Jo Stafford is and what her voice sounds like, I also know Connie Haines, the Pied Pipers and some new songs like Cutie Little Snootie or Snootie Little Cutie, whichever it is, it’s the bomb!
Oh for the chance to see classics in the movie theater! I recently looked around for something similar near us and there are theaters that do monthly or bi-monthly classics, but they aren’t usually the ones I want to see. Thanks for another great post!
We saw "It's a Wonderful Life" on the big screen, and some silly movies, too. And the same theater sometimes ran big features such as "The Wizard of Oz" and "Singing in the Rain," and "White Christmas" and even "The Sound of Music." The same theater ran films for Fantom, and so Jessica and Davey saw "Oklahoma!" that way and "To Kill a Mockingbird," and a bunch of others. Nowadays, however, Fantom's "classics" are not always classics, and we don't live near enough here in NH to see any theater that runs Fantom selections anyway. A big theater in Providence, RI, ran occasional silent films, accompanied by "the Wonderful Wurlitzer," and we got to see some Harold Lloyd films there. We were fortunate for ourselves and our kids to have access to these great old films on big screen!
Debra—this is taking on shades of who’s on first. The photos show all three female singers including the female Pied Piper! But finally I see and hear who Connie is. Phew. Not to mention that the last number, Cutie Little Snootie, is hilarious!
Yes, "Cutie Little Snootie" was new to me. What a hoot. Last night I had to segue into Sacred music to rehearse hymns for today with our son and organize his sheet music, then finish and print the music selections for the congregation. We go to church at 3 for a run through before the Mass at 4 PM. So on the weekends often I DON'T KNOW Who's on first! Ha ha.
☺️
Great post. I never paid attention to the song!
I knew the song, too, but some of the lyrics just went by me. Very clever, weren't they? What impressed me was the great quality of Frank Sinatra's voice, even then. My mother always said that she liked his later voice better. I agree, but his vocal control was impeccable, and his phrasing, from the start.
The lyrics are extremely clever.
And who’s the trumpeter?!
Amy, of course Tommy's instrument was the trombone, but I wasn't able to find out exactly which trumpeter played the fancy stuff in this recording. Benny had four at that time: Bunny Berigan, Ray Linn, Jimmy Blake, and Clyde Hurley. And notably, Buddy Rich was his drummer. There was no lack of talent in that orchestra!
So are there two versions on this clip? The notes only say that it’s Connie Haines singing with Frank.
Amy, I'm not sure if those notes are right. Jo Stafford did a recording with Dorsey with The Pied Pipers, and then there was this "doublet," with (I thought) Stafford and Sinatra. Later they both recorded the song as singles, along with about everyone you can think of. I'd have to do more research to say any more. I could be wrong, and that Connie came in on the bit with Frank.
Just curious given the notes. I know the name Jo Stafford but really wouldn’t be able to identify her voice. Connie Haines is a new name to me.
Amy, you really got my curiosity up, I'll have to say! I checked, and read online that both Connie Haines and Jo Stafford recorded the song with Sinatra while each was part of The Pied Pipers. Here is a recording of Sinatra singing a different song with Connie, however, and her voice is extremely unlike that of the rich alto, Jo Stafford. I tried to find liner notes from actual albums and couldn't. If what I read was correct, Connie didn't come on with Dorsey until about 1942. By then Sinatra had already recorded his 80 songs with Dorsey, including "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off" and was busy trying to get out of the horrible contract he had signed with Dorsey. If you see photos of the Pied Pipers when Frank sang with them, you'll see that Jo Stafford was taller than he was. Connie Haines was a peanut, under 5 ft. tall. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3OSi-fWPVM
It was the difference in the two voices (your first clip) that made me wonder who was who. Also, the female who was apparently part of the Pied Pipers is neither Stafford nor Haines. So I was confused again. The fact is that I’ve always heard of Jo Stafford and thought, with this post, now I’ll finally see who she is. Then she had two voices! 😆.
Well, I think I goofed and put up the wrong version. I had one I wanted, and couldn't find it again at "press time!" Alas. Jo Stafford is a lovely singer. I covered her for my very first Sometimes a Song here with Gordon MacRae: https://open.substack.com/pub/anthonyesolen/p/loves-old-sweet-song?r=nweob&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false . I think I covered her version of "You Belong to Me," which was my mother and father's "song," as they used to say, but I can't find it. So I must have done that in my imagination. But I probably heard Jo Stafford singing THAT song before I was born! Anyway, there was some confusion, and I wish I could find again the original recording that I wanted to use!
Debra, true to form, Word and Song opens doors! Now I not only know who Jo Stafford is and what her voice sounds like, I also know Connie Haines, the Pied Pipers and some new songs like Cutie Little Snootie or Snootie Little Cutie, whichever it is, it’s the bomb!
Oh for the chance to see classics in the movie theater! I recently looked around for something similar near us and there are theaters that do monthly or bi-monthly classics, but they aren’t usually the ones I want to see. Thanks for another great post!
We saw "It's a Wonderful Life" on the big screen, and some silly movies, too. And the same theater sometimes ran big features such as "The Wizard of Oz" and "Singing in the Rain," and "White Christmas" and even "The Sound of Music." The same theater ran films for Fantom, and so Jessica and Davey saw "Oklahoma!" that way and "To Kill a Mockingbird," and a bunch of others. Nowadays, however, Fantom's "classics" are not always classics, and we don't live near enough here in NH to see any theater that runs Fantom selections anyway. A big theater in Providence, RI, ran occasional silent films, accompanied by "the Wonderful Wurlitzer," and we got to see some Harold Lloyd films there. We were fortunate for ourselves and our kids to have access to these great old films on big screen!
As always, great backstory! Thanks, Debra.
I'm glad you enjoyed it, Anne! The backstories -- so many backstories! -- never cease to amaze me.