The Singing Detective
Encyclopedia
The Singing Detective is a BBC
television miniseries written by Dennis Potter
, which stars Michael Gambon
, and was directed by Jon Amiel
. The six episodes were "Skin", "Heat", "Lovely Days", "Clues", "Pitter Patter" and "Who Done It".
The serial was broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC1
in 1986 on Sunday nights at 8pm from 16 November to 21 December with later PBS
and cable television showings in the United States. PBS at that time considered it too risqué to be shown in prime time, delaying its programming until 11pm. It won a Peabody Award
in 1989. It ranks 20th on the British Film Institute
's list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes
, as voted by industry professionals in 2000. It was included in the 1992 Dennis Potter retrospective at the Museum of Television & Radio
and became a permanent addition to the Museum's collections in New York and Los Angeles. There was co-production funding from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
. It was released on DVD in the US on 15 April 2003 and in the UK on 8 March 2004.
The serial was adapted into a 2003 American film
featuring Robert Downey, Jr. and Mel Gibson
, with the locations changed to the United States.
stage forming lesions and sores over his entire body, and partially cripples his hands and feet. Dennis Potter suffered from this disease himself, and he wrote with a pen tied to his fist much in the same fashion Marlow does in the last episode. Although severe, Marlow's case was intentionally understated compared to Potter's real case: Potter's skin would sometimes crack and bleed.
As a result of constant pain, a fever caused by the condition, and his refusal to take medication, Marlow falls into a fantasy world involving his Chandleresque
novel, The Singing Detective, an escapist
adventure about a detective (also named "Philip Marlow") who sings at a dance hall and takes the jobs "the guys who don't sing" won't take.
The real Marlow also experiences flashback
s to his childhood in rural England, and his mother's life in wartime London. The rural location is presumably the Forest of Dean
, Potter's birthplace and the location for filming, but this is never stated explicitly (though the young Philip's references to his home in "the Forest" come close). The suicide of his mother is one of several recurring images in the series; Marlow uses it (whether subconsciously or not) in his murder mystery, and sometimes replaces her face with different women in his life, real and imaginary. The noir mystery
, however, is never actually solved; all that is ultimately revealed is an intentionally vague plot involving smuggled Nazi war criminals being protected by the Allies and Soviet agents attempting to stop them. This perhaps reflects Marlow's view that fiction should be "all clues and no solutions".
The three worlds of the hospital, the noir
thriller, and wartime England often merge in Marlow's mind, resulting a fourth layer, in which character interactions that would otherwise be impossible (e.g. fictional characters interacting with non-fictional characters) occur. This is evident in that many of Marlow's friends and enemies (perceived or otherwise) are represented by characters in the novel: particularly, one of the boys from his childhood, Mark Binney, becomes conflated with Raymond, Marlow's mother's lover, and appears as the central antagonist
in the "real" and noir worlds (although the "real" Binney/Finney is ultimately a fantasy as well). The use of Binney as a villain stems from an event in his early childhood where Marlow framed the young Binney for defecating on a the desk of a disciplinarian elementary teacher (Janet Henfrey
), a perverse act of vengeance for the affair Marlow has witnessed between his own mother and Binney's father Raymond. The innocent Binney is brutally beaten in front of the student body, and Marlow is lauded for telling the "truth". These events haunt Marlow, as it is revealed that the real Binney eventually ends up in a mental institution. The villainous Binney/Finney character is killed off in both realities.
Some members of the cast each play several different parts: Marlow and his alter-ego, the singing detective, are both played by Gambon. Marlow as a boy is played by Lyndon Davies. Patrick Malahide
plays three central characters - the contemporary Finney, who Marlow thinks is having an affair with his ex-wife Nicola, played by Janet Suzman
; the imaginary Binney, a central character in the murder plot; and Raymond, a friend of Marlow's father who has an affair with his mother (Alison Steadman
). Steadman plays both Marlow's mother, and the mysterious "Lili", one of the murder victims. At the end of the serial Marlow and Nicola appear to have repaired their relationship.
. However, all scenes were ultimately shot on film, over Potter's objections. Potter wanted the hospital scenes to maintain the sensibility of sitcom conventions. Although this was tempered in the final script, some character interactions retain this concept. For example, Mr. Hall and Reginald, who are also intended to serve as a mock chorus
for the main action occurring in the hospital.
Originally, the title of the series was "Smoke Rings", and the Singing Detective noir thriller was to be dropped after the first episode; Potter felt it would not hold the audience's attention. The title may have referred to a particular monologue Marlow has in the first episode, referring to the fact that, despite everything else, the one thing he really wants is a cigarette. Marlow's medical and mental progress is subtly gauged by his ability to reach over to his dresser and get his cigarettes.
in Murder, My Sweet
, the 1944 film adaptation of Raymond Chandler's Farewell, My Lovely
, with Dick Powell
as Marlowe. Powell himself would later portray a "singing detective" on radio's Richard Diamond, Private Detective
, serenading his girlfriend, Helen Asher (Virginia Gregg
), at the end of each episode.
A reference is made in the last episode to a novel by Agatha Christie
, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
. This may be meant to suggest that Marlow is an unreliable narrator
.
has credited the serial as the chief inspiration for Cop Rock
(1990), although unlike The Singing Detective, Bochco's drama features specially recorded musical numbers rather than pre-existing work.
is the classic "Peg o' My Heart
", of Ziegfeld Follies
fame. The upbeat music as the theme for such a dark story is perhaps a reference to Carol Reed
's The Third Man
, with a harmonica
in the place of a zither
(The Third Man is indeed referenced in a number of camera shots, according to DVD commentary). Director Jon Amiel compiled and spliced the generic thriller music used throughout the series from 60 library tapes he had brought together.
The following is a chronological soundtrack
listing:
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television miniseries written by Dennis Potter
Dennis Potter
Dennis Christopher George Potter was an English dramatist, best known for The Singing Detective. His widely acclaimed television dramas mixed fantasy and reality, the personal and the social. He was particularly fond of using themes and images from popular culture.-Biography:Dennis Potter was born...
, which stars Michael Gambon
Michael Gambon
Sir Michael John Gambon, CBE is an Irish actor who has worked in theatre, television and film. A highly respected theatre actor, Gambon is recognised for his roles as Philip Marlowe in the BBC television serial The Singing Detective, as Jules Maigret in the 1990s ITV serial Maigret, and as...
, and was directed by Jon Amiel
Jon Amiel
Jon Amiel is an English film director who has since the early 1980s worked in film and television in both the UK and the US.-Early life:...
. The six episodes were "Skin", "Heat", "Lovely Days", "Clues", "Pitter Patter" and "Who Done It".
The serial was broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC1
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
in 1986 on Sunday nights at 8pm from 16 November to 21 December with later PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
and cable television showings in the United States. PBS at that time considered it too risqué to be shown in prime time, delaying its programming until 11pm. It won a Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
in 1989. It ranks 20th on the British Film Institute
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
's list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes
100 Greatest British Television Programmes
The BFI TV 100 is a list compiled in 2000 by the British Film Institute , chosen by a poll of industry professionals, to determine what were the greatest British television programmes of any genre ever to have been screened....
, as voted by industry professionals in 2000. It was included in the 1992 Dennis Potter retrospective at the Museum of Television & Radio
Museum of Television & Radio
The Paley Center for Media, formerly The Museum of Television & Radio and The Museum of Broadcasting, founded in 1975 by William S...
and became a permanent addition to the Museum's collections in New York and Los Angeles. There was co-production funding from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
. It was released on DVD in the US on 15 April 2003 and in the UK on 8 March 2004.
The serial was adapted into a 2003 American film
The Singing Detective (film)
The Singing Detective is a 2003 film based on the BBC serial The Singing Detective, a work by Dennis Potter. It stars Robert Downey, Jr...
featuring Robert Downey, Jr. and Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
, with the locations changed to the United States.
Plot
Mystery writer Philip E. Marlow is suffering writer's block and is hospitalised because his psoriatic arthritis, a skin and joint disease, is at a chronicChronic (medicine)
A chronic disease is a disease or other human health condition that is persistent or long-lasting in nature. The term chronic is usually applied when the course of the disease lasts for more than three months. Common chronic diseases include asthma, cancer, diabetes and HIV/AIDS.In medicine, the...
stage forming lesions and sores over his entire body, and partially cripples his hands and feet. Dennis Potter suffered from this disease himself, and he wrote with a pen tied to his fist much in the same fashion Marlow does in the last episode. Although severe, Marlow's case was intentionally understated compared to Potter's real case: Potter's skin would sometimes crack and bleed.
As a result of constant pain, a fever caused by the condition, and his refusal to take medication, Marlow falls into a fantasy world involving his Chandleresque
Raymond Chandler
Raymond Thornton Chandler was an American novelist and screenwriter.In 1932, at age forty-five, Raymond Chandler decided to become a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive during the Depression. His first short story, "Blackmailers Don't Shoot", was published in...
novel, The Singing Detective, an escapist
Escapism
Escapism is mental diversion by means of entertainment or recreation, as an "escape" from the perceived unpleasant or banal aspects of daily life...
adventure about a detective (also named "Philip Marlow") who sings at a dance hall and takes the jobs "the guys who don't sing" won't take.
The real Marlow also experiences flashback
Flashback (psychological phenomenon)
A flashback, or involuntary recurrent memory, is a psychological phenomenon in which an individual has a sudden, usually powerful, re-experiencing of a past experience or elements of a past experience. These experiences can be happy, sad, exciting, or any other emotion one can consider...
s to his childhood in rural England, and his mother's life in wartime London. The rural location is presumably the Forest of Dean
Forest of Dean
The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. The forest is a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.The...
, Potter's birthplace and the location for filming, but this is never stated explicitly (though the young Philip's references to his home in "the Forest" come close). The suicide of his mother is one of several recurring images in the series; Marlow uses it (whether subconsciously or not) in his murder mystery, and sometimes replaces her face with different women in his life, real and imaginary. The noir mystery
Mystery fiction
Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...
, however, is never actually solved; all that is ultimately revealed is an intentionally vague plot involving smuggled Nazi war criminals being protected by the Allies and Soviet agents attempting to stop them. This perhaps reflects Marlow's view that fiction should be "all clues and no solutions".
The three worlds of the hospital, the noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
thriller, and wartime England often merge in Marlow's mind, resulting a fourth layer, in which character interactions that would otherwise be impossible (e.g. fictional characters interacting with non-fictional characters) occur. This is evident in that many of Marlow's friends and enemies (perceived or otherwise) are represented by characters in the novel: particularly, one of the boys from his childhood, Mark Binney, becomes conflated with Raymond, Marlow's mother's lover, and appears as the central antagonist
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
in the "real" and noir worlds (although the "real" Binney/Finney is ultimately a fantasy as well). The use of Binney as a villain stems from an event in his early childhood where Marlow framed the young Binney for defecating on a the desk of a disciplinarian elementary teacher (Janet Henfrey
Janet Henfrey
Janet E. A. Henfrey is a British stage and television actress. Best known in the USA for playing Mrs. Bale on As Time Goes By, which is still rerun weekly on PBS stations, and for her role as the schoolteacher in the 1986 BBC Dennis Potter serial The Singing Detective...
), a perverse act of vengeance for the affair Marlow has witnessed between his own mother and Binney's father Raymond. The innocent Binney is brutally beaten in front of the student body, and Marlow is lauded for telling the "truth". These events haunt Marlow, as it is revealed that the real Binney eventually ends up in a mental institution. The villainous Binney/Finney character is killed off in both realities.
Some members of the cast each play several different parts: Marlow and his alter-ego, the singing detective, are both played by Gambon. Marlow as a boy is played by Lyndon Davies. Patrick Malahide
Patrick Malahide
Patrick Malahide is a British actor, who has played many major film and television roles.-Personal life:Malahide, real name Patrick Gerald Duggan, was born in Reading, Berkshire, the son of Irish immigrants, a cook mother and a school secretary father...
plays three central characters - the contemporary Finney, who Marlow thinks is having an affair with his ex-wife Nicola, played by Janet Suzman
Janet Suzman
Dame Janet Suzman, DBE is a South African-born-British actress and director.-Early life:Janet Suzman was born in Johannesburg to a Jewish family, the daughter of Betty and Saul Suzman, a wealthy importer of tobacco....
; the imaginary Binney, a central character in the murder plot; and Raymond, a friend of Marlow's father who has an affair with his mother (Alison Steadman
Alison Steadman
Alison Steadman OBE is an English actress. She established her career with roles such as Beverley in Abigail's Party and Candice Marie in Nuts in May for the director Mike Leigh, to whom she was once married. In addition to her stage and radio work, she has had lead roles in The Singing Detective,...
). Steadman plays both Marlow's mother, and the mysterious "Lili", one of the murder victims. At the end of the serial Marlow and Nicola appear to have repaired their relationship.
Production
In Potter's original script, the hospital scenes and noir scenes were to be shot with television (video) and film cameras respectively, with the period material (Marlow's childhood) filmed in black-and-whiteBlack-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
. However, all scenes were ultimately shot on film, over Potter's objections. Potter wanted the hospital scenes to maintain the sensibility of sitcom conventions. Although this was tempered in the final script, some character interactions retain this concept. For example, Mr. Hall and Reginald, who are also intended to serve as a mock chorus
Greek chorus
A Greek chorus is a homogenous, non-individualised group of performers in the plays of classical Greece, who comment with a collective voice on the dramatic action....
for the main action occurring in the hospital.
Originally, the title of the series was "Smoke Rings", and the Singing Detective noir thriller was to be dropped after the first episode; Potter felt it would not hold the audience's attention. The title may have referred to a particular monologue Marlow has in the first episode, referring to the fact that, despite everything else, the one thing he really wants is a cigarette. Marlow's medical and mental progress is subtly gauged by his ability to reach over to his dresser and get his cigarettes.
Sources
Borrowing portions of his first novel, Hide and Seek (1973), Potter added autobiographical aspects (or, as he put it, deeply "personal" aspects), along with 1940s popular music and the aforementioned film noir stylistics. The result is regarded by some as one of the peaks of 20th-century drama. Marlow's hallucinations are not far from the Philip MarlowePhilip Marlowe
Philip Marlowe is a fictional character created by Raymond Chandler in a series of novels including The Big Sleep and The Long Goodbye. Marlowe first appeared under that name in The Big Sleep published in 1939...
in Murder, My Sweet
Murder, My Sweet
Murder, My Sweet is a 1944 American film noir directed by Edward Dmytryk, and starring Dick Powell, Claire Trevor, and Anne Shirley. The film was released in the United Kingdom under the title Farewell, My Lovely, which is the title of the 1940 Raymond Chandler novel it is based on, and also the...
, the 1944 film adaptation of Raymond Chandler's Farewell, My Lovely
Farewell, My Lovely
Farewell, My Lovely is a 1940 novel by Raymond Chandler, the second novel he wrote featuring Los Angeles private eye Philip Marlowe. It was adapted for the screen three times.-Plot summary:...
, with Dick Powell
Dick Powell
Richard Ewing "Dick" Powell was an American singer, actor, producer, director and studio boss.Despite the same last name he was not related to William Powell, Eleanor Powell or Jane Powell.-Biography:...
as Marlowe. Powell himself would later portray a "singing detective" on radio's Richard Diamond, Private Detective
Richard Diamond, Private Detective
Richard Diamond, Private Detective is an American detective drama which aired on radio from 1949 to 1953, and on television from 1957 to 1960.-Radio:...
, serenading his girlfriend, Helen Asher (Virginia Gregg
Virginia Gregg
Virginia Gregg Burket was an American actress best known for her many roles in radio dramas.Born in Harrisburg, Illinois, Virginia Gregg was the daughter of musician Dewey Alphaleta and businessman Edward William Gregg.-Radio:Gregg was a prolific radio actor, heard on such programs as The...
), at the end of each episode.
A reference is made in the last episode to a novel by Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by William Collins & Sons in June 1926 and in the United States by Dodd, Mead and Company on the 19th of the same month. It features Hercule Poirot as the lead detective...
. This may be meant to suggest that Marlow is an unreliable narrator
Unreliable narrator
An unreliable narrator is a narrator, whether in literature, film, or theatre, whose credibility has been seriously compromised. The term was coined in 1961 by Wayne C. Booth in The Rhetoric of Fiction. This narrative mode is one that can be developed by an author for a number of reasons, usually...
.
Influence
Although The Singing Detective did not meet with spectacular viewing figures, it proved influential within the television industry. The serial met with considerable critical praise in America. Steven BochcoSteven Bochco
Steven Ronald Bochco is a US television producer and writer. He has developed a number of popular television hits including Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law, and NYPD Blue, as well as some notable flops such as Cop Rock....
has credited the serial as the chief inspiration for Cop Rock
Cop Rock
Cop Rock is an American musical police drama series that aired on ABC in 1990. The show, a police drama presented as a musical, was co-created by Steven Bochco, who also served as executive producer...
(1990), although unlike The Singing Detective, Bochco's drama features specially recorded musical numbers rather than pre-existing work.
Music
As well as its dark themes, the series is notable for its use of 1940s-era music, often incorporated into surreal musical numbers. This is a device Potter used in his earlier miniseries Pennies from Heaven. The main theme musicTheme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
is the classic "Peg o' My Heart
Peg o' My Heart
"Peg o' My Heart" is a popular song written by Alfred Bryan and Fred Fisher. It was published on March 15, 1913 and it featured in the 1913 musical Ziegfeld Follies. The song was first performed publicly by Irving Kaufman in 1912 at The College Inn in New York City after he had stumbled across a...
", of Ziegfeld Follies
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
fame. The upbeat music as the theme for such a dark story is perhaps a reference to Carol Reed
Carol Reed
Sir Carol Reed was an English film director best known for Odd Man Out , The Fallen Idol , The Third Man and Oliver!...
's The Third Man
The Third Man
The Third Man is a 1949 British film noir, directed by Carol Reed and starring Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, and Trevor Howard. Many critics rank it as a masterpiece, particularly remembered for its atmospheric cinematography, performances, and unique musical score...
, with a harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
in the place of a zither
Zither
The zither is a musical string instrument, most commonly found in Slovenia, Austria, Hungary citera, northwestern Croatia, the southern regions of Germany, alpine Europe and East Asian cultures, including China...
(The Third Man is indeed referenced in a number of camera shots, according to DVD commentary). Director Jon Amiel compiled and spliced the generic thriller music used throughout the series from 60 library tapes he had brought together.
The following is a chronological soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
listing:
- "Peg o' My HeartPeg o' My Heart"Peg o' My Heart" is a popular song written by Alfred Bryan and Fred Fisher. It was published on March 15, 1913 and it featured in the 1913 musical Ziegfeld Follies. The song was first performed publicly by Irving Kaufman in 1912 at The College Inn in New York City after he had stumbled across a...
" - Max HarrisMax Harris (composer)Max Harris was a British film and television composer and arranger. He played the piano and piano accordion....
& his Novelty Trio (theme song; instrumental) - "I've Got You Under My SkinI've Got You Under My Skin"I've Got You Under My Skin" is a song by Cole Porter.I've Got You Under My Skin may also refer to:* "I've Got You Under My Skin" , a 1998 episode of the television series Charmed...
" - The BBC Dance Orchestra directed by Henry HallHenry Hall (bandleader)Henry Hall was a British bandleader. He played from the 1920s to the 1950s.-Biography:Henry Hall was born in Peckham, South London and served in both the Salvation Army and the British Army... - "Blues in the NightBlues in the Night"Blues in the Night" is a popular song which has become a pop standard and is generally considered to be part of the Great American Songbook. The music was written by Harold Arlen, the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, for a 1941 film begun with the working title Hot Nocturne, but finally released as Blues...
" - Anne Shelton - "Dry BonesDem BonesDem Bones, Dry Bones or Dem Dry Bones is a well-known traditional spiritual song, used to teach basic anatomy to children. The melody was written by African-American author and songwriter James Weldon Johnson . Two versions of this traditional song are used widely, the second an abridgment of the...
" - Fred Waring and His PennsylvaniansFred WaringFredrick Malcolm Waring was a popular musician, bandleader and radio-television personality, sometimes referred to as "America's Singing Master" and "The Man Who Taught America How to Sing." He was also a promoter, financial backer and namesake of the Waring Blendor, the first modern electric... - "Rockin' in Rhythm" - The Jungle Band (Duke EllingtonDuke EllingtonEdward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
and his Famous Orchestra) - "Cruising Down the RiverCruising Down the RiverCruising Down the River is a 1946 popular recording song.Words and music were by Eily Beadell and Nell Tollerton, two middle-aged women who wrote the song in 1945. It became the winner of a public songwriting competition held in the UK...
" - Lou Preager Orchestra - "Don't Fence Me InDon't Fence Me InDon't Fence Me In is the fifth episode of the fourth series of the British comedy series Dad's Army that was originally transmitted on Friday 23 October 1970.-Synopsis:...
" - Bing CrosbyBing CrosbyHarry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
& The Andrews SistersThe Andrews SistersThe Andrews Sisters were a highly successful close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews , soprano Maxene Angelyn Andrews , and mezzo-soprano Patricia Marie "Patty" Andrews... - "It Might as Well Be SpringIt Might as Well Be Spring"It Might as Well Be Spring" is a song from the 1945 film, State Fair. With music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, it won the Academy Award for Best Original Song that year. State Fair was the only original film score by Rodgers and Hammerstein. In the film the song was...
" - Dick HaymesDick HaymesRichard Benjamin "Dick" Haymes was an Argentine actor and one of the most popular male vocalists of the 1940s and early 1950s. He was the older brother of Bob Haymes, who was an actor, television host, and songwriter.... - "Frühlingsrauschen (Rustle of Spring) Op. 32 No. 3" - SindingChristian SindingChristian August Sinding was a Norwegian composer.-Personal life:He was born in Kongsberg as a son of mine superindendent Matthias Wilhelm Sinding and Cecilie Marie Mejdell . He was a brother of the painter Otto Sinding and the sculptor Stephan Sinding...
- "Bird Song at Eventide" - Ronnie RonaldeRonnie RonaldeRonnie Ronalde is a British music hall singer and siffleur. Ronalde is famous for his voice, whistling, yodelling, imitations of bird song and stage personality...
with Robert Farnon and his Orchestra - "Paper DollPaper Doll (song)"Paper Doll" was a hit song for the Mills Brothers. In the United States it held the number-one position on the Billboard singles chart for twelve weeks, from November 6, 1943, to January 22, 1944. The success of the song represented something of a revival for the group, after a few years of...
" - The Mills Brothers - "Bei Mir Bist Du SchoenBei Mir Bist Du Schoen"Bei Mir Bistu Shein" is a popular Yiddish song composed by Jacob Jacobs and Sholom Secunda for a 1932 Yiddish musical, I Would If I Could , that closed after one season...
" - Al BowllyAl BowllyAlbert Allick Bowlly was a Southern-African singer, songwriter, composer and band leader, who became a popular Jazz crooner during the 1930s in the United Kingdom and later, in the United States of America. He recorded more than 1,000 records between 1927 and 1941...
with The Ray NobleRay Noble (musician)Ray Noble was an English bandleader, composer, arranger and actor. Noble studied music at the Royal Academy of Music and became leader of the HMV Records studio band in 1929. The band, known as the New Mayfair Dance Orchestra, featured members of many of the top hotel orchestras of the day...
Orchestra - "Lili Marlene" - Lale AndersenLale AndersenLale Andersen was a German chanson singer-songwriter born in Bremerhaven, Germany. She is best known for her interpretation of the song "Lili Marleen" in 1939, which became tremendously popular on both sides during the Second World War.- Early life :She was born in Lehe and baptized Liese-Lotte...
- "I Get Along Without You Very Well" - Lew Stone Band
- "Do I Worry?" - The Ink SpotsThe Ink SpotsThe Ink Spots were a popular vocal group in the 1930s and 1940s that helped define the musical genre that led to rhythm and blues and rock and roll, and the subgenre doo-wop...
- "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the PositiveAc-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive"Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" is a popular song. The music was written by Harold Arlen and the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, and it was published in 1944. It is sung in the style of a sermon, and explains that accentuating the positive is key to happiness...
" - Bing CrosbyBing CrosbyHarry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
& The Andrews SistersThe Andrews SistersThe Andrews Sisters were a highly successful close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews , soprano Maxene Angelyn Andrews , and mezzo-soprano Patricia Marie "Patty" Andrews... - "The Umbrella Man" - Sammy KayeSammy KayeSammy Kaye , born Samuel Zarnocay, Jr., was an American bandleader and songwriter, whose tag line, "Swing and sway with Sammy Kaye", became one of the most famous of the Big Band Era.-Biography:...
and his Orchestra - "You Always Hurt the One You LoveYou Always Hurt the One You Love"You Always Hurt the One You Love" is a pop standard, words by Allan Roberts and music by Doris Fisher. It has been performed by many artists over the years, such as The Mills Brothers, Connie Francis , Fats Domino, The Impressions,Frankie Laine, Richard Chamberlain , Peggy Lee, Maureen Evans,...
" - The Mills Brothers - "After You've GoneAfter You've GoneAfter You've Gone was a British comedy that aired on BBC One from 12 January 2007 to 21 December 2008. Starring Nicholas Lyndhurst, Celia Imrie, Dani Harmer and Ryan Sampson, After You've Gone was created by Fred Barron, who also created My Family. The writers include Barron, Ian Brown, Katie...
" - Al JolsonAl JolsonAl Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
with Matty MalneckMatty MalneckMatty Malneck was an American jazz violinist, violist and songwriter.Malneck's first professional gigs as a violinist began when he was age 16. He worked with Paul Whiteman from 1926 to 1937, and also recorded in the same period with Frank Signorelli, Frankie Trumbauer, Bix Beiderbecke, and...
's Orchestra and The Four Hits and a Miss - "It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow" - Jack PayneJack PayneJack Payne was a British dance music bandleader.-Career:John Wesley Vivian Payne was born in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, the only son of a music warehouse manager...
and his Orchestra - "Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall" - Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
& The Ink SpotsThe Ink SpotsThe Ink Spots were a popular vocal group in the 1930s and 1940s that helped define the musical genre that led to rhythm and blues and rock and roll, and the subgenre doo-wop... - "The Very Thought of YouThe Very Thought of You"The Very Thought of You" is a pop standard published in 1934, with music and lyrics by Ray Noble. In addition to Noble's own hit recording of the song with his orchestra, featuring the vocals of Al Bowlly, there was also a popular version recorded that same year by Bing Crosby. A decade later, the...
" - Al BowllyAl BowllyAlbert Allick Bowlly was a Southern-African singer, songwriter, composer and band leader, who became a popular Jazz crooner during the 1930s in the United Kingdom and later, in the United States of America. He recorded more than 1,000 records between 1927 and 1941...
& The Ray NobleRay Noble (musician)Ray Noble was an English bandleader, composer, arranger and actor. Noble studied music at the Royal Academy of Music and became leader of the HMV Records studio band in 1929. The band, known as the New Mayfair Dance Orchestra, featured members of many of the top hotel orchestras of the day...
Orchestra - "The Teddy Bear's PicnicTeddy bears' picnic"Teddy Bears' Picnic" is a song consisting of a melody by American composer John Walter Bratton, written in 1907, and lyrics added by Irish songwriter Jimmy Kennedy in 1932. It remains popular as a children's song, having been recorded by numerous artists over the decades. Kennedy lived at...
" - The Henry HallHenry Hall (bandleader)Henry Hall was a British bandleader. He played from the 1920s to the 1950s.-Biography:Henry Hall was born in Peckham, South London and served in both the Salvation Army and the British Army...
Orchestra - "We'll Meet AgainWe'll Meet Again (song)"We'll Meet Again" is a 1939 song made famous by British singer Vera Lynn with music and lyrics written by Ross Parker and Hughie Charles ....
" - Vera LynnVera LynnDame Vera Lynn, DBE is an English singer-songwriter and actress whose musical recordings and performances were enormously popular during World War II. During the war she toured Egypt, India and Burma, giving outdoor concerts for the troops...