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Paper Doll (The Mills Brothers 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 declining sales. It is one of the fewer than 40 all-time singles to have sold 10 million (or more) physical copies worldwide. Author and inspiration The song was written in 1915 (although it was not published until 1930) by Johnny S. Black, whose greatest success would come with his song "Dardanella", which sold 5,000,000 copies in a recording by the bandleader Ben Selvin in 1920 and a further 2,000,000 copies of sheet music. In 1922, Black played "Paper Doll" to the music publisher Edward B. Marks on the violin, after which Marks bought it for $25 in advance royalties. Marks put "Paper Doll" on the market, but it was a flop. In 1936, Johnny Black died after a fight with a customer at hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Mills Brothers
The Mills Brothers, sometimes billed the Four Mills Brothers, and originally known as the Four Kings of Harmony, were an American jazz and traditional pop vocal quartet who made more than 2,000 recordings that sold more than 50 million copies and garnered at least three dozen gold records. The Mills Brothers were the first African-American artists to have their own show on national network radio (on CBS in 1930); they made appearances in film; and were the first to have a No. 1 hit on the ''Billboard'' singles chart, with "Paper Doll" in 1943. They were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998. Early years The Mills Brothers were born into a family of nine in Piqua, Ohio, United States. The quartet consisted of Donald (lead tenor vocals, April 29, 1915 – November 13, 1999), Herbert (tenor vocals, April 2, 1912 – April 12, 1989), Harry (baritone vocals, August 9, 1913 – June 28, 1982), and John Jr. (guitar, double bass, vocals; October 19, 1910 – January 23, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Songs Of The Century
The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc. that aims to "promote a better understanding of America's musical and cultural heritage" in American schools. Hundreds of voters, who included elected officials, people from the music industry and from the media, teachers, and students, were asked in 2001 by the NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) and the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) to choose the top 365 songs (not necessarily by Americans) of the 20th century with historical significance in mind. RIAA selected the voters, and about 15% (200) of the 1,300 selected voters responded. The list The list of the top 25 songs, in the order of votes received. Each song is followed by the name of the artist who made the most notable recording of the song. References {{DEFAULTSORT:Songs Of The Century Century A century is a period of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Two Girls And A Sailor
''Two Girls and a Sailor'' is a 1944 American musical film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring Van Johnson, June Allyson and Gloria DeHaven. Set on the American homefront during World War II, it's about two singing sisters who create a lavish canteen to entertain members of the military, thanks to financial contributions from a mysterious donor. The picture features a host of celebrity performances, including Jimmy Durante doing his hallmark "Inka Dinka Doo", Gracie Allen (in her final film role), and Lena Horne. Richard Connell and Gladys Lehman were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Plot Two sisters, Jean and Patsy Deyo, are born into a vaudeville family, and when they grow up, start an act themselves. One night, they invite a bunch of servicemen to their apartment. They are both attracted to a sailor named Johnny. Jean points out to Johnny an unused nearby warehouse they wish they could make into a canteen to entertain the troops. An anonymous b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Official Charts Company
The Official Charts (legal name: The Official UK Charts Company Limited) is a British inter-professional organization that compiles various "official" record charts in the United Kingdom, Ireland and France. In the United Kingdom, its charts include ones for singles, albums and films, with the data compiled from a mixture of downloads, purchases (of physical media) and streaming. The OCC produces its charts by gathering and combining sales data from retailers through market researchers Kantar, and claims to cover 99% of the singles market and 95% of the album market, and aims to collect data from any retailer who sells more than 100 chart items per week. The OCC is operated jointly by the British Phonographic Industry and the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) (formerly the British Association of Record Dealers (BARD)) and is incorporated as a private company limited by shares jointly owned by BPI and ERA. The Chart Information Network (CIN) took over as compilers of the o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whispering Grass
"Whispering Grass (Don't Tell the Trees)" is a popular song written by Fred Fisher and his daughter Doris Fisher. The song was first recorded by Erskine Hawkins & His Orchestra in 1940. The Ink Spots featuring Bill Kenny also recorded it the same year. A live instrumental version was played and recorded by Johnny Hodges with Duke Ellington and his orchestra in the Cristal Ballroom, Fargo, North Dakota, also in 1940. "Whispering Grass" was a 1975 UK number-one single by Windsor Davies and Don Estelle. Davies and Estelle were actors in the sitcom ''It Ain't Half Hot Mum''. It was number one in the UK Singles Chart for three weeks from 7 June 1975. The record is a comic version of The Ink Spots The Ink Spots were an American pop vocal group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style presaged the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely a ...' 1940 recording, and was sung in char ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
It Ain't Half Hot Mum
''It Ain't Half Hot, Mum'' is a BBC television sitcom about a Royal Artillery concert party based in Deolali in British India and the fictional village of Tin Min in Burma, during the last months of the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who had both served in similar roles in India during that war. Fifty-six episodes were broadcast across eight series on BBC1 between 1974 and 1981. Each episode ran for thirty minutes. The title comes from the first episode, in which young Gunner Parkin ( Christopher Mitchell) writes home to his mother in England. In 1975, a recording of "Whispering Grass" performed by Don Estelle and Windsor Davies in character as Gunner "Lofty" Sugden and Sergeant Major Williams, reached number 1 on the UK Singles Chart and remained there for three weeks. The series, which attracted up to seventeen million viewers in its heyday, has been accused of racism, homophobia and a pro-imperialist attitude. One specific criticism has been ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Windsor Davies
Windsor Davies (28 August 1930 – 17 January 2019) was a British actor. He is best remembered for playing Battery Sergeant Major Williams in the sitcom ''It Ain't Half Hot Mum'' (1974–1981) over its entire run. The show's popularity resulted in Davies and his co-star Don Estelle achieving a UK number one hit with a version of "Whispering Grass" in 1975. He later starred with Donald Sinden in ''Never the Twain'' (1981–1991), and his deep Welsh-accented voice was heard extensively in advertising voice-overs. Early life Davies was born on 28 August 1930 in Canning Town, East London, to Welsh parents. In 1940 they returned to their native village of Nant-y-moel, Bridgend. Davies studied at Ogmore Grammar School and worked as a coal miner. He performed his National Service in Libya and Egypt, with the East Surrey Regiment, between 1950 and 1952. Following teacher training at Bangor Teacher Training College, he taught English and Maths at Leek in Staffordshire, and at a school ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don Estelle
Don Estelle (22 May 1933 – 2 August 2003) was an English actor and singer, best known as Gunner "Lofty" Sugden in ''It Ain't Half Hot Mum''. Early life Born Ronald Edwards in Crumpsall, Manchester (historically part of Lancashire), he was brought up in a house on Russell Street in the area. During the Second World War, at the age of eight, he was evacuated to Darwen, Lancashire to escape the Manchester Blitz. It was there he found his voice as a Boy soprano at the local Holy Trinity Parish Church, and on returning home after the war, he continued singing at St Mary's Church, Crumpsall. He later joined a charity group, the Manchester Kentucky Minstrels, and with them, performed "Granada" in the 1954 talent show ''What Makes a Star?'' at BBC Radio's northern studios in Manchester. Career Estelle gained experience by singing one song 12 times a week in the show ''The Backyard Kids'' at the Hulme Hippodrome in Manchester. He met the actor Windsor Davies in 1962 at the Garri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pat Boone
Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer and actor. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He sold more than 45 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and appeared in more than 12 Hollywood films. According to ''Billboard'', Boone was the second-biggest charting artist of the late 1950s, behind only Elvis Presley, and was ranked at No. 9 in its listing of the Top 100 Top 40 Artists 1955–1995. Until the 2010s, Boone held the ''Billboard'' record for spending 220 consecutive weeks on the charts with one or more songs each week. At the age of 23, Boone began hosting a half-hour ABC variety television series, ''The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom'', which aired for 115 episodes (1957–1960). Many musical performers, including Edie Adams, Andy Williams, Pearl Bailey, and Johnny Mathis, made appearances on the show. His cover versions of rhythm and blues hits had a noticeable effect on the development of the broa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Come Swing With Me!
''Come Swing with Me!'' is an album by American singer Frank Sinatra, released in 1961. The album is Sinatra's final swing session with Capitol Records, as his next album, ''Point of No Return'', would be composed mainly of torch songs. In 1971 it was re-issued as a ten-track album under the name ''Sentimental Journey''. This album is possibly unique for the orchestral arrangement and stereophonic set-up by Billy May. Due to Capitol's signature "full-spectrum Stereo sound," the audience can distinctly hear the placement of specific orchestral pieces in the studio at the time of the recording (i.e., differences in brass sections from left, to right, to all together in the center). This is most apparent to the apt listener in the album's opening hit, " Day by Day". Track listing #" Day by Day" (Axel Stordahl, Paul Weston, Sammy Cahn) – 2:39 #" Sentimental Journey" ( Les Brown, Ben Homer, Bud Green)* – 3:26 #" Almost Like Being in Love" ( Frederick Loewe, Alan Jay Lerner) – ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. He is among the List of best-selling music artists, world's best-selling music artists with an estimated 150 million record sales. Born to Italian immigrants in Hoboken, New Jersey, Sinatra was greatly influenced by the intimate, easy-listening vocal style of Bing Crosby and began his musical career in the swing era with bandleaders Harry James and Tommy Dorsey. He found success as a solo artist after signing with Columbia Records in 1943, becoming the idol of the "Bobby soxer (music), bobby soxers". Sinatra released his debut album, ''The Voice of Frank Sinatra'', in 1946. When his film career stalled in the early 1950s, Sinatra turned to Las Vegas, where he became one of its best-known concert ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
