A com-POSE-r BY ANY OTHER NAME (Part 2 of 2)
I am pleased to announce (as is often said when making an announcement) the proper pairings of birth names with noms de plume listed in Part 1:
a. 2
b. 3
c. 4
d. 5
e. 6
f. 1
g. 10
h. 9
i. 8
j. 7
Next (as is often said when making another announcement), I am pleased to announce that I have selected the following song from the requests made by readers of Part 1 to be played in Part 2, which I am pleased to announce totaled one request, which was a considerable help in deciding the final choice. So, after much soul searching — not to mention weeping and gnashing of my remaining teeth — here is the request winner:
But wait — there’s more! I have my own favorite song from the list. Composed by Eubie Blake with lyrics by Andy Razaf, here is MEMORIES OF YOU, with vocal refrain:
I close with the 1930 instrumental version played by Eubie Blake & His Orchestra:
carmen, and 2 others are discussing. 
The Observation Post 
scifihammy 4:30 am on February 16, 2018 Permalink |
Yay! It was Me! I asked for April in Paris 😀 Thank you for this great Frank clip 🙂
Also really like the Ink Spots Memories of you. No-one seems to be able to sing like this any more!
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mistermuse 8:24 am on February 16, 2018 Permalink |
Growing up, the Ink Spots were my favorite singing group — so much so that I formed my own group to emulate them, called THE STINK SPOTS, but for some reason, we bombed. 😦
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scifihammy 11:35 am on February 16, 2018 Permalink
hahaha 😀
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carmen 11:30 am on February 16, 2018 Permalink |
Mr. Muse,
I am in the middle of Gr. 9 Art class. For a distraction, I checked my emails and – lo and behold! – a hilarious post from your brilliant mind. I’d love to share your ‘artwork’ with these folks, but unfortunately I think it’d be lost on them. . . 🙂
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mistermuse 3:29 pm on February 16, 2018 Permalink |
I’m glad to hear that, when it comes to the art of distraction, my posts are in a class by themselves — which is good, because if they were to be let out among the population at large, I could be locked up. Still, if you wish to share my “artwork” with the Art class, it’s probably just as well that I be the instrument of their disillusion now rather than the ‘real world,’ which will discolor their ideals soon enough.
And on that less than ideal note, I thank you for being your usual gracious self. 🙂
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Don Frankel 8:37 am on February 17, 2018 Permalink |
I didn’t know we could make requests or I would have requested this one by Vladimir Dukelesky.
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mistermuse 12:42 pm on February 17, 2018 Permalink |
Don, this brings up an interesting tale, not of two cities, but of two songs by Vladimir Dukelsky aka Vernon Duke: APRIL IN PARIS (listed in Part 1), and AUTUMN IN NEW YORK. Rather than try to condense the tale, let me relate it as told by author Warren Vaché in THE UNSUNG SONGWRITERS:
APRIL IN PARIS, of course, was a tremendous hit in 1932, but AUTUMN IN NEW YORK, which was introduced in the stage show “Thumbs Up” in 1935, made no such impression.
In 1947, or thereabouts, my [Warren Vaché’s] good friend Ross Doyle, a pianist and composer, was performing double duty as band manager and manager of Tommy Dorsey’s music publishing house. In the latter capacity he was entitled to a tiny office in Manhattan’s Brill Building with a piano and a few chairs. The chairs were usually occupied by song pluggers hopeful of persuading Ross into persuading Tommy to play the latest gem on their push lists. One day I decided to drop in and see Ross, and before long I was in conversation with a man I had never met before about the great songs of the past. During this spirited exchange the man put his heart into a comment that went something like this: “What a great tune APRIL IN PARIS was! I’d give my right arm to have another tune like that one.”
“Yes, it is a great tune,” I agreed, “but Duke wrote another one that I like just as well, and it has been completely forgotten. In fact, it was hardly recorded at all. The only reason I know about it is because I happen to have an old Victor record of it by Richard Himber’s band.”
The man’s head came up like a rabbit sniffing a carrot. “That so?” he asked eagerly. “What’s the name of it?”
“AUTUMN IN NEW YORK.”
He reached into an inside pocket of his jacket and brought out a little black notebook and after running a finger down one of the pages, nodded his head.
“We’ve got it!” he announced delightedly. He stood up, acknowledged my contribution with a quick “thanks” and left.
I never ran into the man again, but shortly afterwards it seemed that AUTUMN IN NEW YORK was being played by every band, recordings were being made by both bands and singers, and all at once the tune attained the hit status it had never achieved in 1935. Which only goes to prove, I guess, that of such chance conversations great hits are made.. I can only hope that Vernon Duke appreciated the revival of his lovely composition, even if he never knew what brought it about.
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Carmen 4:04 pm on February 17, 2018 Permalink
That’s a great story, Mr. Muse! I was going to comment earlier this morning so here goes.
I couldn’t listen to the music on the blog b/c I was at school all week and unable to play the videos. I finally got a chance to listen to all the songs (including yours, Don) this morning as I was cleaning up my kitchen. (I’m one of those cooks who manages to dirty every dish, utensil, and litter all counter-spaces, so the old tunes made my drudgery that much more bearable . . .) I thought to myself, “Is there a theme here?” When I listened to “April in Paris” and “Autumn in New York”, followed by the thought, “That guy got around!” After reading through your story, I thought the same thought – you really did get around, Mr. Muse!! 🙂
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Don Frankel 7:29 pm on February 17, 2018 Permalink
Great story. hey you never know in this life.
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mistermuse 8:07 pm on February 17, 2018 Permalink |
Carmen, speaking of “chance conversations,” which is at the heart of that story, here is a quote on the subject which I know you’ll love:
“A chance remark is anything a man gets a chance to say when two women are talking.” –Evan Esar
See, I told you you’d love it! 😦
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Carmen 8:09 pm on February 17, 2018 Permalink |
Ha, ha, Mr. Muse. (But true!)
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Mél@nie 6:58 am on February 22, 2018 Permalink |
great post, Sir… and I also love “April in Paris”, as I lived there for several years! ❤
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mistermuse 7:01 pm on February 22, 2018 Permalink |
Thank you, Mél@nie. I “lived” in Paris for one day (on a European tour) — it wasn’t in April, but I still loved it!
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