Jimmy Parkinson--Laurie Payne--Peter Graves & Pamela Charles--Doris Day--Alma Cogan--John Hanson & Doreen Hume--Spike Jones

 'Tis a secret double wedding with banjo's playing and water gipsies clip a clopping down the aisle !

1. You Can't Be True To Two......Jimmy Parkinson

2. Those Who Have Loved......Jimmy Parkinson

3. Clip Clop (From The Water Gipsies)......Laurie Payne

4. This Is our Secret (From The Water Gipsies)......Peter Graves & Pamela Charles

5. A Woman's Touch.......Doris Day

6. Tis Harry I'm Planning To Marry......Doris Day

7. The Banjo's Back In Town......Alma Cogan

8. Go On By......Alma Cogan

9. Vocal Gems From "Oklahoma"......John Hanson & Doreen Hume

10. Vocal Gems From "Oklahoma"......John Hanson & Doreen Hume

11. I Went To Your Wedding......Spike Jones

12. Lulu Had A Baby......Spike Jones

Jimmy Parkinson was an Australian singer. 19th Dec 1930 - 25th March 2019. Began his career in a coffee lounge at Sydney's Coogee Beach. Worked for the ABC, before moving to England in 1955.

Jimmy, an Australian, started in show business as a 15 year old callboy at a Sydney Theatre. Soon his vocal talents were noticed and it wasn't long before he was singing with local dance bands, moving on to night clubs, radio and records. In fact he became quite a big name "down under" and when in 1955, now a 24 year old, he decided to prove himself by coming to England, he had already notched up over 2,000 broadcasts and quite a stack of records.

Laurie Payne was born on August 17, 1922 in King Island, Tasmania, Australia. He was an actor, known for Rush Hour (1958), Paint Your Wagon (1954) and The Water Gipsies (1955). He was married to Darien Parker, Vickie Climas and Wendy Noel. He died on April 2, 1999 in Walcote, Leicestershire, England.

                                                                       Peter Graves

Peter George Wellesley Graves, 8th Baron Graves (21 October 1911 – 6 June 1994) was an English actor.Born in London, Graves was the son of Henry Algernon Claude Graves, 7th Baron Graves. Admiral Thomas Graves, 1st Baron Graves, was his great-great-great-grandfather. He was educated at Harrow School.
He also appeared in a number of films by Herbert Wilcox, such as the popular musicals Spring in Park Lane (1948) and Maytime in Mayfair (1949), both vehicles for Anna Neagle and Michael Wilding. He also portrayed another royal, Prince Albert, in both Wilcox's The Lady with a Lamp (1951) and Lilacs in the Spring (1954). He also appeared alongside Neagle on stage in the 1953 West End musical The Glorious Days.Educated at Harrow, Graves became an actor and established his reputation as a light comedian and for his roles in musicals.

Pamela Charles was born on June 10, 1930 in Croydon, Surrey, England. She was an actress, known for The Water Gipsies (1955), The Benny Hill Show (1955) and The Ed Sullivan Show (1948). She died on April 18, 2018 in England.

Alma Angela Cohen Cogan (19 May 1932 – 26 October 1966) was an English singer of traditional pop music in the 1950s and early 1960s. Dubbed the "Girl with the Giggle in Her Voice", she was the highest paid British female entertainer of her era.

Cogan's first release was "To Be Worthy of You" / "Would You", recorded on her 20th birthday. This led to her appearing regularly on comedian Dick Bentley's BBC's radio show Gently Bentley, and then becoming the vocalist for the BBC Radio comedy programme Take It From Here, replacing Joy Nichols, from 1953 to the end of its run in 1960.

Many of her recordings were covers of U.S. hits, especially those recorded by Rosemary Clooney, Teresa Brewer, Georgia Gibbs, Joni James and Dinah Shore. Her voice was often compared with Doris Day's. One of these covers, "Bell Bottom Blues", became her first hit, reaching no. 4 on 3 April 1954. Cogan would appear in the UK Singles Chart eighteen times in the 1950s, with "Dreamboat" reaching no. 1. Other hits from this period include "I Can't Tell a Waltz from a Tango", "Why Do Fools Fall in Love", "Sugartime" and "The Story of My Life". Cogan's first album, I Love to Sing, was released in 1958

John Hanson (August 31, 1922 – December 4, 1998) was a Canadian-born British tenor and actor, who starred in several West End musicals during the 1950s and 1960s.

His 1960 album, The Student Prince / The Vagabond King peaked at Number 9 in the UK Albums Chart. Hanson was most famous for his role as the "Red Shadow", the hero of the musical The Desert Song, which enjoyed a record-breaking revival at the Palace Theatre in 1967.

Doreen Hume (born July 14, 1926) is a Canadian soprano soloist who performed in North America and Europe from the 1940s through to the 1970s.

She recorded 10 albums of light music and musical comedy, beginning in 1958, for the Philips Fontana, Epic and Rondolette labels. 

Lindley Armstrong "Spike" Jones (December 14, 1911 – May 1, 1965) was an American musician and bandleader specializing in spoof arrangements of popular songs and classical music. Ballads receiving the Jones treatment were punctuated with gunshots, whistles, cowbells, hiccups, burps and outlandish and comedic vocals. Jones and his band recorded under the title Spike Jones and His City Slickers from the early 1940s to the mid-1950s, and toured the United States and Canada as "The Musical Depreciation Revue".

          1. You Cant Be True To Two

Vic Damone--The Hilltoppers--Stubby Kaye--Slim Whitman--Frank Sinatra--Caterina Valente

  This selection contains my all time favourite singer and song !!....Can't get enough of the wind !!..in 78.45. 33 and Mp3 !!

1. Eternally...... Vic Damone

2. Simonetta...... Vic Damone

3. Only You......The Hilltoppers

4. Untill The Real Thing Comes Along......The Hiltoppers

5. The More You Laugh......Stubby Kaye

6. Cheers......Stubby Kaye

7. Rose Marie......Slim Whitman

8. We Stood At The Altar......Slim Whitman

9. S'posin......Frank Sinatra

10. How Deep is The Ocean......Frank Sinatra

11. The Breeze And I......Caterina Valente

12. Jealousy......Caterina Valente

Bernard Solomon Kotzin (November 11, 1918 – December 14, 1997), known as Stubby Kaye, was an American actor, comedian, vaudevillian, and singer, known for his appearances on Broadway and in film musicals.Kaye originated the roles of Nicely Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls and Marryin' Sam in Li'l Abner, introducing two show-stopping numbers of the era: "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" and "Jubilation T. Cornpone." He reprised these roles in the movie versions of the two shows. Other well-known roles include Herman in Bob Fosse's Sweet Charity, Sam the Shade in Cat Ballou, and Marvin Acme in Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

Caterina Valente (born 14 January 1931) is a French-Italian multilingual singer, guitarist, dancer, and actress. Valente is a polyglot; she speaks six languages, and sings in eleven. While she is best known as a European performer, Valente also spent part of her career in the United States, where she performed alongside Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Perry Como, and Ella Fitzgerald, among others.

Over the years, she has recorded or performed with many international stars, including Louis Armstrong, Chet Baker, Perry Como, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Goodman, Woody Herman, Claus Ogerman, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Sy Oliver, Buddy Rich and Edmundo Ros.

In the twentieth century she was the typical example of a cosmopolitan artist: born in Paris to Italian parents, married firstly to a German and second to an Englishman, international awards, audience on every continent, more than 1 500 pieces of music recorded in twelve different languages (for this reason it enters the Guinness Book of Records) of which at least six are spoken fluently, and more than 18 million records sold all over the globe.

1954 is also the year of her first record, Istanbul, recorded for the Brunswick label with Kurt Edelhagen's orchestra. The same director will take her to the second edition of the Frankfurt Jazz Festival and in 1955 to the Salon du Jazz in Paris, where she began to be talked about in the press, and where some journalists hailed her as a real revelation. The first recording successes date back to 1954 when Caterina signed a contract with Polydor Records.

The first single is O mama o mama o mamajo, followed by Malagueña and The breeze and I, composed by the famous Cuban musician Ernesto Lecuona and arranged by Werner Müller. His version of Malagueña, although sung in German, managed to reach the US charts and seventh position in Flanders in Belgium as well as The breeze and I (sung in English) which remained there for 14 weeks. In 1956 she recorded the single Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye with Chet Baker and received the first gold record for four million single records sold.

          11. The Breeze And I

          12. Jealousy

David Whitfield--Jimmy Shand--Frank Sinatra--Lawrence Tibbett--Dean Martin--Bernard Bresslaw

Two Black Capitol's two purple one's Two Red HMV's and two Blue one's PLUS a Decca And a Parlophone !!!...makes for an interesting diverse selection !!

1. Cara Mia......David Whitfield

2. Love Tears And Kisses......David Whitfield

3. The Gay Gordons.....Jimmy Shand And His Band

4. Rouken Glen.....Jimmy Shand And His Band

5. Witchcraft......Frank Sinatra

6. Tell Her You Love Her.......Frank Sinatra

7. Without A Song......Lawrence Tibbett

8. Life Is A Dream......Lawrence Tibbitt

9. I'm Gonna Paper All My Walls With Your Love Letters......Dean Martin

10. I'll Always Love You......Dean Martin

11. Mad Passionate Love......Bernard Bresslaw

12. You Need Feet......Bernard Bresslaw

David Whitfield (2 February 1925 – 15 January 1980) was a popular British male tenor vocalist from Hull. He became the first British artist to have a UK No.1 single in the UK and in the United States with "Cara Mia", featuring Mantovani and his orchestra. He died from a brain haemorrhage in Sydney, Australia, while on tour at the age of 54.

His first recording to reach the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart in October 1953 was "Bridge of Sighs", written by Billy Reid. "Answer Me" (later recorded with different lyrics as "Answer Me, My Love") reached number one in the UK. Both versions have appeared on CD.

Whitfield had other hits in the 1950s, and was the most successful British male singer in America during that period. In addition, he was the first British male vocalist to earn a gold disc. He was also the first to reach the Top Ten of the Billboard Top 100, and the first artist from Britain to sell over a million copies of a record in the US.

Sir James Shand MBE (28 January 1908 – 23 December 2000) was a Scottish musician who played traditional Scottish dance music on the accordion. His signature tune was "The Bluebell Polka".

He failed an audition for the BBC because he kept time with his foot. At a time when gramophones were very much luxury items he made two records for the Regal Zonophone label in 1933. His career took off when he switched to making 78s for the Beltona label (1935–1940). Most of the Beltona recordings were solo, but he experimented with small bands. This boosted sales. On New Year's Day morning in 1945 he made his first broadcast with "Jimmy Shand and his Band". This was the first of many such BBC radio and television appearances.

Soon after the war he became a full-time musician, and adopted a punishing life-style,He would play Inverness one night, London the next night and still drive the van back to bed in Dundee. He took his trademark bald head, Buddy Holly spectacles and full kilted regalia, Scottish reels, jigs and strathspeys to Australia, New Zealand and North America, including Carnegie Hall in New York .His only top 20 hit in the UK Singles Chart – "The Bluebell Polka" (1955). It was produced by George Martin. He was awarded an MBE in 1962.

Bernard Bresslaw (25 February 1934 – 11 June 1993) was an English comic actor, best remembered as a member of the Carry On film franchise team, but also worked on television and stage, did recordings and wrote a series of poetry.

Bresslaw's catchphrase, in his strong Cockney accent, was "I only arsked" , first used in The Army Game, and later revived in Carry On Camping (1969). 

His song "You Need Feet" (a parody of "You Need Hands" by Max Bygraves) was used in the Rutles' TV special, accompanying the Yoko Ono film parody "A Thousand Feet of Film". This was cut from the syndicated version and the original DVD release, but was restored (along with other cut footage) in later DVD releases.

          11. Mad Passionate Love

The Kaye Sisters--Lawrence Tibbett--Vera Lynn--Frank Sinatra--Eddie Fisher--Arthur Godfrey

 Family is the name of the Game ! Father, Son, with Boy walking behind Alone !

1. Alone......The Kaye Sisters

2. Shake Me I Rattle......The Kaye Sisters

3. None But The Lonely Heart......Lawrence Tibbett

4. Myself When Young......Lawrence Tibbett

5. My Son My Son......Vera Lynn

6. Our Heaven On Earth......Vera Lynn

7. That Old Feeling......Frank Sinatra

8. Nature Boy......Frank Sinatra

9. I'm Walking Behind You......Eddie Fisher

10. Hold Me......Eddie Fisher

11. If I Had You on A Desert Island......Arthur Godfrey

12. If it Wasn't For You Father......Arthur Godfrey

                                                          Lawrence Tibbett

 

Lawrence Mervil Tibbett (November 16, 1896 – July 15, 1960) was an American opera singer and recording artist who also performed as a film actor and radio personality. A baritone, he sang leading roles with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City more than 600 times from 1923 to 1950. He performed diverse musical theatre roles, including Captain Hook in Peter Pan in a touring show.

Tibbett made his first recordings for the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1926. In the early 1930s, Tibbett also appeared in movies.

His first film, The Rogue Song, a 1930 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer production with Laurel & Hardy, shot in two-color Technicolor (only a few minutes of footage of the film, as well as the complete soundtrack, is known to survive today). Soon after, he starred in another MGM musical film, New Moon, opposite Grace Moore and The Cuban Love Song (1931), with Lupe Vélez.

Dame Vera Margaret Lynn ( 20 March 1917 – 18 June 2020) was an English singer and entertainer whose musical recordings and performances were very popular during the Second World War. She is honorifically known as the "Forces' Sweetheart", having given outdoor concerts for the troops in Egypt, India and Burma during the war as part of the Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA). The songs most associated with her include "We'll Meet Again", "(There'll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover", "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" and "There'll Always Be an England".She remained popular after the war, appearing on radio and television in the United Kingdom and the United States, and recording such hits as "Auf Wiederseh'n, Sweetheart" and her UK number-one single "My Son, My Son". 

 In 2009, at the age of 92, she became the oldest living artist to top the UK Albums Chart with the compilation album We'll Meet Again: The Very Best of Vera Lynn. In 2014, she released the collection Vera Lynn: National Treasure and in 2017, she released Vera Lynn 100, a compilation album of hits to commemorate her centenary—it was a No. 3 hit, making her the first centenarian performer to have a Top 10 album in the charts.

Edwin Jack Fisher (August 10, 1928 – September 22, 2010) was an American singer and actor. He was one of the most popular artists during the first half of the 1950s, selling millions of records and hosting his own TV show. Fisher divorced his first wife, actress Debbie Reynolds, to marry Reynolds' best friend, Elizabeth Taylor, after Taylor's husband, film producer Mike Todd, was killed in a plane crash. By 1946, Fisher was crooning with the bands of Buddy Morrow and Charlie Ventura. 

Fisher's good looks and strong and melodious tenor voice made him a teen idol and one of the most popular singers of the early 1950s. He had 17 songs in the Top 10 on the music charts between 1950 and 1956 and 35 in the Top 40. In 1957 he signed a then record $1 million deal with the newly opened Tropicana Las Vegas to appear there a minimum of 4 weeks a year for 5 years.

Arthur Morton Godfrey (August 31, 1903 – March 16, 1983) was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer who was sometimes introduced by his nickname The Old Redhead. At the peak of his success, in the early-to-mid 1950s, Godfrey was heard on radio and seen on television up to six days a week, sometimes for as many as nine separate broadcasts for CBS. His programs included Arthur Godfrey Time (Monday-Friday mornings on radio and television), Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts (Monday evenings on radio and television)

          12. If It Wasn't For Your Father

The Hilltoppers--The King Brothers--Frank Sinatra--Joe Loss--Jack Payne--Tennessee Ernie

 We have the Blues an Echo a Cry and a Light for Miss Otis & Marianne !... time warp alert !!(Rag & Bone Man) circa 2022

1. Marianne......The Hilltoppers

2. Your Wasting Your Time......The Hilltoppers

3. Miss Otis Regrets......The King Brothers

4. The Light In The Window......The King Brothers

5. Love And Marriage......Frank Sinatra

6. Look To Your Heart.....Frank Sinatra

7. Rag Mop......Joe Loss & His Orchestra

8. Dry Bones......Joe Loss & His Orchestra

9. Just An Echo In The Valley......Jack Payne & His Orchestra

10. Ich Liebe Dich......Jack Payne & His Orchestra

11. The Cry Of The Wild Goose......Tennessee Ernie

12. Anticipation Blues......Tennessee

The Hilltoppers were a pop vocal quartet that lit up the hit list in the early 50’s to the tune of 25 charters in five and a half years, but in early 1952 Jimmy Sacca (23, lead), Seymour Spiegelman (21, tenor), and Don McGuire (21, bass) were just three students at Western Kentucky State College.

They sang barbershop harmony at the Goal Posts, the campus candy store and hangout. What turned the barbershop banter into serious singing was Jimmy’s association with a piano player in the Ace Dining band, Billy Vaughn. The college was located in Bowling Green where Ace’s band played, and Jimmy would occasionally sit in.

Joe Loss was the son of Russian immigrants. He proved to be a gifted violinist, learning the instrument at the Hackney Academy of Music. He received scholarships to Trinity College of Music and the London School of Music. He founded his first dance band as a teenager, his first professional steps as a musician he made as a silent film accompaniment in the cinema.

Loss played in various dance orchestras and from 1930 had his first own seven-member group, which played in London's Astoria Ballroom. Three years later, the first radio appearance followed. As a result, the Joe Loss Orchestra became one of the most popular British dance orchestras.

The Joe Loss Orchestra was one of the most successful acts of the big band era in the 1940s, with hits including "In the Mood". In 1961 they had a hit with "Wheels—Cha Cha", a version of the String-A-Longs' hit "Wheels". Other hits included David Rose's "The Stripper" in 1958, "Sucu Sucu", "Must Be Madison", "The Theme from Maigret" and "March of the Mods (The Finnjenka Dance)" of 1964.

John Wesley Vivian "Jack" Payne (22 August 1899 – 4 December 1969) was a British dance music bandleader who established his reputation during the British dance band era of the 1930s.

While serving in the Royal Flying Corps, he played the piano in amateur dance bands. After the RFC became the Royal Air Force towards the end of World War I, Payne led dance bands for the troops. Prior to joining the Royal Air Force, he was part of "The Allies" concert party. This voluntary group performed to wounded soldiers convalescing around Birmingham.

He played with visiting American jazz bands at the Birmingham Palais during the early 1920s, including the Southern Rag-a-Jazz Orchestra in 1922, before moving to London in 1925.

          7. Rag Mop