Bing Crosby Meets Al Jolson [Import, Original recording remastered]

Bing Crosby | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 12, 2005)
• Original Release Date: 2005
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Import, Original recording remastered
• Label: Sepia Recordings
• ASIN: B000AMUUTE
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #112,792 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #92 in Music > Pop > Oldies > Tin Pan Alley

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. April Showers

2. When the Red, Red Robin Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along

3. Back in Your Own Backyard

4. You Made Me Love You

5. Waiting for the Robert E. Lee

6. I've Got the Sun in the Morning

7. Early Days

8. Ma Blushin' Rosie

9. Swanee

10. Philco Commericial [Goof]

See all 40 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Bye Bye Baby

2. Is It True What They Say About Dixie

3. Chat

4. Carolina in the Morning

5. My Blue Heaven

6. Alabamy Bound

7. Kate

8. Ma Blushin' Rosie

9. Sunbonnet Sue

10. A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody

See all 42 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

When radio was king, Bing Crosby and Al Jolson guested on each other’s shows and attracted millions of listeners. For the first time, their "complete" duets are available on a 2XCD set! Recorded over 12 shows between 1947 and 1950, this set also contains a few solos with a little conversation, all digitally re-mastered.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great companion to Swingin' With Bing!, October 23, 2005

By 

Greg Van Beek "co-editor, BING magazine, publ... (West Bend, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bing Crosby Meets Al Jolson (Audio CD)

If you loved last years' "Swingin' With Bing" radio performance box set on the Shout Factory label, you're sure to love this new 2 CD set on the Sepia label. It contains all of the duets Bing Crosby performed with Al Jolson on radio, from both Bing's shows, circa 1947-50, and Jolson's own 1947-48 KMH, in addition to a healthy dose of solos by each performer. The remastering job is fantastic....you've never heard these old transcriptions sound so fresh, crisp and clear as they do on this new compilation. Ken Barnes and his production team are master craftsman at painstakingly restoring the audio of vintage recordings and correcting them to play back at their proper speed. Kudos once again to Ken and company (who also produced the 3 CD box set "Swingin' With Bing") for a job well done. I heartily recommend it to everyone.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE titans of 20th Century music take to the airwaves!, February 14, 2010

By 

Robert Badgley (St Thomas,Ontario,Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bing Crosby Meets Al Jolson (Audio CD)

Ken Barnes,music writer/producer/historian has done it once again.Those that recall his seminal CD sets of Bing Crosby's entire UA Sessions and the complete London Fred Astaire sessions(both long out of print) will know the man very well.He has a solid rep in the music and entertainment biz and has even created a company that restores music and movies.This 2005 2-CD set is one of his latest projects and offers us up some highly significant and historic recordings.
Presented here are two of the greatest singers(arguably the two GREATEST)ever to grace a stage and enter a recording studio;Al Jolson and Bing Crosby.Jolson was the "greatest entertainer" and was at the dizzying heights of his early career when Bing was just a pup.No one before or since has ever performed with the bravura and energy on stage as did Jolson.He was a force unto himself and engaged his audiences from start to finish.Of course he was also a big name in the early years of recorded sound and sold millions of discs and sheet music and later, in movies.
Crosby was a third of a vocal group called the Rhythm Boys working with Paul Whiteman's famous Orchestra.From there he went solo and in his own unique way slowly but surely carved himself out a monster of a career in show business also through the recording medium and movies.Crosby had idolized Jolson as a youngster but he was no copy cat.He had a style all his own,more rooted in jazz than Jolson,and with his persona of the relaxed and cool crooner,he became a hit with millions of people.His vocal style still influences singers today.
Jolson had done the Kraft Music Hall(the source of most of these recordings)in the early 30s but Bing took it over as host steadily from /36 to /46.After Bing,Jolson took the reigns until 1949.Both men were highly successful during their respective runs at the Hall and these cuts amply demonstrate why these two men were simply the greatest at what they did.Jolsons' voice aged beautifully as time went on and the newer and better recording technology captured the deep richness of his vocal timbre that his earlier recordings had failed to get.Bings' voice also improved as the technology did and Bing also is heard to best advantage on these recordings.
The dates for these songs range from 1946 to 1950 and Ken Barnes has managed to present the material on hand in the best possible way,sonically speaking.You will here the patter and the chatter between,before and after the cuts and they enhance the listening experience as a whole.You can tell both men were relaxed,at their best and seemingly having a ball together.Jolie's phrasing and voice are in superb form and vocally he never drops the ball once.Bing,as always,was in fine form as host and as guest.Also included is a booklet with some info regarding these recordings by Barnes and the complete release and recording info.
Fans of both these men will want to get this CD set for their collections.The Kraft Music Hall performances are quite rare these days on CD and as they showcase the myriad of talent that passed in front of its' microphones like no other,in this case Jolson and Crosby,you have to get while the getting is good.These historic treasures are a definite must have.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Bing Album on the Market, December 10, 2008

By 

Ken - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bing Crosby Meets Al Jolson (Audio CD)

If you want to hear Bing at his best, with some big stars, this is the CD set. Excellent sound quality, top talent, and produced as if it was a special show. Kudos to the people who worked on this and I hope they make more...