The Ramblers In Brussel 1945-1948 Rue Des Radis

 

The Ramblers were a Dutch dance orchestra, formed in 1926 by Theo Uden Masman. They were very popular in The Netherlands with a repertory of jazz and popular tunes, and recorded backing Coleman Hawkins in 1935 and 1937, Benny Carter in 1937 and Freddy Johnson  in 1937-1938.

In 1942 German law forced the group to change its name to Het Dansorkest. The group continued to be led by Masman until 1964, when it changed its name to VARA-Dansorkest (VARA after Verenigde Arbeiders Radio, on which it played) and its repertoire consisted entirely of popular music. In the mid-1980's they were led by Marcel Thielemans.

Other spin-offs of The Ramblers included Het Ramblers Quintet and Het Ramblers Tonette Trio.

The Ramblers In Brussel

Swingin' at the Speakeasy..The Sound of the Roaring 20's and 30's

Leaving aside a blatant error in the sub-title (roaring 20's yes, but the 30's were the depression era), this is a fascinating and fantastic collection. Many of these songs have stood the test of time well.

As with all music this old, it cannot be technically perfect. Some tracks have crackles and hiss, but this is often how these records sounded to listeners back then. When recorded music was a novelty, people tolerated the imperfections. 

There are more recent covers of many of these songs, and the compilers have included some here, which emphasize the limitations of the original ancient recordings. For example, the Puppini Sisters and the Temperance Seven, while these 20's/30's revivalists have made some excellent music, their inclusion here is debatable. Still, if their presence means more people discover the original music here, that's a good thing.

There are other less obvious later covers too, including the Ella / Louis cover of Dream A Little Dream of Me, which they recorded in 1950. This song dates from the thirties, but was revived in the sixties, first by the Shirelles and later by Mama Cass.

Despite some songs being later covers, most of the recordings are genuine recordings from the 20's and 30's, which capture the spirit of the music superbly. 

Whether you are just getting curious about this type of music or you have some already, this is an excellent compilation. (text from Amazon review)

Swingin' at the Speakeasy 1 

Swingin' at the Speakeasy 2 

Swingin' at the Speakeasy 3 

The Great London Dance Bands...Soft Lights and Sweet Music..22 Classic Recordings 1932-1937

soft lights and sweet music

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The Palm Court Theatre Orchestra..."Puttin' On the Ritz"

The Palm Court Theatre Orchestra originally formed in 1978 and were an internationally acclaimed company of top musicians who specialized in performing authentic arrangements of Salon, Theatre and Dance Orchestra music from the era of 1900-1945.

Their music was not only sweet and sentimental but unexpectedly robust, syncopated, sparkling and humorous. They also displayed a talent for singing, whistling, tap dancing, very dramatic acting, fox trotting and wicked tangoing.

"Puttin On the Ritz" was released in 1986 and the arrangements of the songs are all genuinely from the 1920's and 1930's using a violin trio, as well as saxophones and brass, that give that unique, evocative period sound of the Great Dance Band days.

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