Stardust Ballroom: The Very Best of The Sweet Bands [Reader's Digest 4 CD Set] [2001] Reader's Digest Music SST103505

When swing became popular and the big-band craze first landed in the '30s, not every American -- nor every fan of music -- was ready for the hard-swinging style led by Fletcher Henderson and Benny Goodman. The sweet bands, often derided and unfairly compared to those swing bands also active during the 1930s and '40s, came out of a different tradition entirely. Though similarly influenced by jazz maestros from Duke Ellington to Louis Armstrong, the sound of the sweet band was simply an outgrowth from the society orchestra of the 1910s and '20s. Based mostly in New York, hundreds of society bands fanned out across the metropolis each weekend, playing easily recognizable versions of the hits-of-the-day for light dances and debutante balls. The major early sweet bands, Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians and Les Brown & His Band of Renown, paved the way for the most popular band of the World War II era, the Glenn Miller Orchestra. And even after large orchestras became unfeasible after the war, the sound of the sweet bands lived on for decades via The Lawrence Welk Show and various big-band tours.

Tracklist: 

Disc 1 : 

Glenn Miller and His Orchestra

01 A String of Pearls 

02 Tuxedo Junction 

03 Dearly Beloved - Tony Martin and The Glee Club, Vocals 

04 Moonlight Serenade 

05 All The Things You Are

 

Eddy Howard and His Orchestra, Eddy Howard, Vocal

06 To Each His Own 

07 You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby 

08 Our Love Is Here To Stay 

09 A Dreamer's Holiday 

10 These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)

 

Jimmy Dorsey and His Orchestra

11 So Rare - The Arthur Malvin Singers, Vocals

12 Fools Rush In (Where Angels Fear To Tread) - Bob Eberly, Vocal

13 I'm Stepping Out With A Memory Tonight - Helen O'Connell, Vocal 

14 The Nearness of You - Bob Eberly, Vocal

15 A June Night (And You) - The Arthur Malvin Singers, Vocals

Jan Garber and His Orchestra

16 Whispering 

17 Somebody Loves Me - Lee Bennett, Vocal

18 My Dear 

19 Because of You - Lee Bennett, Vocal

20 I'll See You In My Dreams 

Disc 2: 

Harry James and His Orchestra

01 Where Or When - Helen Ward, Vocal 

02 All Or Nothing At All - Frank Sinatra, Vocal

03 I Had The Craziest Dream - Helen Forrest, Vocal 

04 When You Wish Upon A Star - Dick Haymes, Vocal

05 I'm Beginning To See The Light - Kitty Kallen, Vocal

Sammy Kaye and His Swing 'N' Sway Orchestra  

06 Candy - Nancy Norman, Vocal

07 Daddy - The Band, Vocals 

08 Saturday Night (Is The Loneliest Night of The Week) - Nancy Norman, Vocal

09 Powder Your Face With Sunshine - Three Kaydetts, Vocals 

10 I Can't Begin To Tell You - Nancy Norman, Vocal 

Freddy Martin and His Orchestra 

11 Dancing In The Dark 

12 Bewitched - Merv Griffin, Vocal

13 Smoke Gets In Your Eyes 

14 Dream - Arlie Wayne With The Martin Men, Vocals 

15 The Way You Look Tonight 

Charlie Spivak and His Orchestra 

16 Serenade In Blue 

17 Tenderly 

18 Cuddle Up A Little Closer - Irene Daye, Vocal

9 Blue Velvet 

20 Laura 

Disc 3:

Artie Shaw and His Orchestra

01 They Say - Helen Forrest, Vocal

02 What Is This Thing Called Love 

03 I Can't Give You Anything But Love - Tony Pastor, Vocal

04 Stardust 

05 Thanks For Everything - Helen Forrest, Vocal

Benny Goodman and His Orchestra

06 After You're Gone 

07 Body and Soul 

08 It's The Talk of The Town - Art Lund, Vocal

09 Rose Room 

10 Oh, Lady Be Good 

Larry Clinton and His Orchestra

11 The Dipsy Doodle - Bea Wain, Vocal 

12 You Go To My Head - Bea Wain, Vocal  

13 Martha - Bea Wain, Vocal  

14 Whistle While You Work - Bea Wain, Vocal  

15 I Double Dare You - Bea Wain, Vocal  

Disc 4:

Les Brown and His Band of Renown

01 Sentimental Journey - Doris Day, Vocal

02 I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm 

03 September In The Rain - Julie London, Vocal

04 A Kiss To Remember - Doris Day, Vocal

05 Willow Weep For Me - June Christy, Vocal

Russ Morgan and His Orchestra 

06 Does Your Heart Beat For Me 

07 Just As Though You Were Here - Russ Morgan, Vocal

08 With The Wind and The Rain In Your Hair 

09 Boo Hoo - The Mullen Sisters, Vocal 

10 So Long 

Glen Gray and His Orchestra

11 Smoke Rings 

12 The Continental 

13 Meet Me Tonight In Dreamland 

14 Memories of You 

15 Maybe 

Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians

16 I'll Walk Alone - Kenny Gardner, Vocal

17 This Can't Be Love - The Lombardo Trio, Vocal

18 You Were Meant For Me - Don Rodney, Vocal

19 Embraceable You - The Lombardo Trio, Vocal

20 Nevertheless (I'm In Love With You) - Kenny Gardner, Vocal