The four middle years of the 1930s are treated in the fourth volume of
The History of Pop Radio, a 15-CD box set issued by the History label from Germany. The title notwithstanding, this volume, like earlier ones, seems to consist of original studio recordings (transferred from vinyl records) and excerpts from movie soundtracks rather than Airchecks. The mid-'30s was a period when the movie musical was flourishing and when swing music gained prominence, and both of these trends are reflected in the 20 selections on the disc. Previous volumes have contained a smattering of popular hits, and this one has the smallest complement of them.
The Tommy Dorsey Orchestra's recording of "The Music Goes Round and Round" (here credited to vocalist
Edythe Wright) was a big hit in 1934, and
Bing Crosby's "Pennies From Heaven" was the top song of 1936, but otherwise the songs here were not hits or the biggest hit versions are not included. On the other hand, there are many soundtrack recordings, particularly from the popular
Fred Astaire-
Ginger Rogers films of the period. "Music Makes Me" and "Flying Down to Rio" are from the duo's first pairing, Flying Down to Rio, "Cheek to Cheek" (the biggest hit of 1935) is from Top Hat, and "I'll Be Hard to Handle" is from Roberta. "Heigh-Ho the Gang's All Here," meanwhile, is drawn from
Astaire's movie debut, Dancing Lady. Whether in soundtrack or studio recordings, several other film stars are represented, among them
Gene Autry,
Mae West,
Helen Morgan,
Shirley Temple,
Dick Powell, and
Jeanette MacDonald &
Nelson Eddy. But the emergence of swing is also acknowledged with the inclusion of tracks by bandleaders
Eddy Duchin (whose "I Only Have Eyes for You" is credited to vocalist
Lew Sherwood),
Gene Krupa, and
Bunny Berigan. The result is a somewhat idiosyncratic collection of '30s material, but one that catches some of the highlights of the period. ~ William Ruhlmann