| Bing: A Musical Autobiography | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1954 | |||
| Recorded | April 21–June 19, 1954 | |||
| Genre | Vocal | |||
| Length | 3:43:20 | |||
| Label | Decca | |||
| Producer | Buddy Cole | |||
| Bing Crosby chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   link |
Bing: A Musical Autobiography was Bing Crosby's fourth Decca vinyl LP, recorded and released in 1954.
Ready to retire by 1954, Crosby assembled Buddy Cole and his Trio, a small group formed from members of the John Scott Trotter Orchestra, and re-recorded many of his early hits between April and June 1954. The Decca masters were used for his hits, starting with the 1938 recording of "Small Fry"[1] Most of the new recordings were done at the American Legion Hall in Palm Springs, California.[2]
Crosby's memoir, Call Me Lucky, was published in June 1953 by Simon & Schuster. It was written with Pete Martin.[3]
Starting in 1958, Decca released the LPs separately.[4]
The LPs were issued as automatic couplings which would enable the five LPs to be played on an autochanger record player in chronological sequence. For instance, within album set DX-151, LP no. DL 8072 contained sides 1 and 10, DL 8073 sides 2 and 9, DL 8074 sides 3 and 8, DL 8075 sides 4 and 7, DL 8076 sides 5 and 6.
The Musical Autobiography tracks were reissued as a four-CD set in Japan in 1992 without change from the original five LPs (MCA (Japan). Avid Entertainment in the UK released a four disc set in 2005 but with the addition of soundtrack and film promotional material from the 1930s.[1]
In an enthusiastic review of the set, John S. Wilson wrote in The New York Times, "The first half of the program in which Crosby talks about his early days and sings his early hits is an unalloyed joy, a field day for nostalgians. In view of complaints that have been made off and on for the past fifteen years that the Crosby voice was gone, that he no longer had the old touch, it is a particular pleasure to hear these early songs recorded within the past year, sung with all the old Crosby ease and charm...This is an exceptional collection of recordings, the summation of a landmark in American popular music and well worth the asking price."[5]
At Allmusic John Bush called A Musical Autobiography "the most laborious exercise in Crosby's entire career, narrating a career history and re-recording dozens of songs." It was also issued to commemorate Decca's 20th anniversary.
Billboard reported, "Decca's merchandising displays consist of a lifelike window or floor display of Bing Crosby, mounted on an easel and with Crosby holding a copy of his musical autobiography titled simple, 'Bing.' This set...is the firm's big push for the fall."[4]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Muddy Water" | Peter DeRose, Harry Richman, Jo Trent | April 24, 1954 | 1:58 |
| 2. | "Mississippi Mud" | James Cavanaugh, Harry Barris | April 24, 1954 | 2:19 |
| 3. | "My Kinda Love" | Trent, Louis Alter | April 24, 1954 | 1:35 |
| 4. | "I Surrender Dear" | Gordon Clifford, Barris, Crosby | April 24, 1954 | 2:37 |
| 5. | "It Must Be True" | Barris, Gus Arnheim, Clifford | April 21, 1954 | 1:13 |
| 6. | "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" | Ted Koehler, Barris, Billy Moll | April 21, 1954 | 2:34 |
| 7. | "Out of Nowhere" | Edward Heyman, Johnny Green | June 16, 1954 | 1:53 |
| 8. | "Just One More Chance" | Arthur Johnston, Sam Coslow | April 21, 1954 | 2:12 |
| 9. | "Stardust" | Hoagy Carmichael, Mitchell Parish | June 16, 1954 | 2:09 |
| 10. | "Sweet and Lovely" | Harry Tobias, Jules LeMare, Arnheim | April 21, 1954 | 1:57 |
| 11. | "Where the Blue of the Night (Meets the Gold of the Day)" | Fred E. Ahlert, Roy Turk, Crosby | April 21, 1954 | 1:43 |
| 12. | "Paradise" | Nacio Herb Brown, Clifford | April 21, 1954 | 1:42 |
| Total length: | 23:52 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Please" | Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin | April 21, 1954 | 2:04 |
| 2. | "Just An Echo in the Valley" | Jimmy Campbell and Reg Connelly, Harry M. Woods | April 21, 1954 | 1:47 |
| 3. | "I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance" | Ned Washington, Victor Young, Crosby | April 21, 1954 | 1:51 |
| 4. | "Learn to Croon" | Johnston, Coslow | April 21, 1954 | 1:33 |
| 5. | "Down the Old Ox Road" | Johnston, Coslow | May 3, 1954 | 1:20 |
| 6. | "Thanks" | Johnston, Coslow | April 21, 1954 | 2:08 |
| 7. | "Black Moonlight" | Johnston, Coslow | May 3, 1954 | 2:34 |
| 8. | "The Day You Came Along" | Johnston, Coslow | May 3, 1954 | 1:57 |
| 9. | "After Sundown" | Brown, Arthur Freed | May 3, 1954 | 1:44 |
| 10. | "Temptation" | Brown, Freed | May 3, 1954 | 2:07 |
| 11. | "Love Thy Neighbour" | Harry Revel, Mack Gordon | May 3, 1954 | 1:35 |
| 12. | "May I?" | Revel, Gordon | May 3, 1954 | 1:47 |
| 13. | "Love in Bloom" | Rainger, Robin | May 3, 1954 | 1:45 |
| Total length: | 24:12 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Love You Truly" | Carrie Jacobs Bond | May 3, 1954 | 1:56 |
| 2. | "June in January" | Rainger, Robin | May 3, 1954 | 1:45 |
| 3. | "Love Is Just Around the Corner" | Robin, Lewis E. Gensler | May 3, 1954 | 1:10 |
| 4. | "It's Easy to Remember" | Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart | May 3, 1954 | 2:16 |
| 5. | "Soon" | Rodgers, Hart | June 16, 1954 | 2:00 |
| 6. | "I Wished on the Moon" | Dorothy Parker, Rainger | May 3, 1954 | 2:03 |
| 7. | "Silent Night" | Joseph Mohr, Franz Gruber | May 3, 1954 | 1:39 |
| 8. | "I'm an Old Cowhand" | Johnny Mercer | May 3, 1954 | 1:22 |
| 9. | "I Can't Escape from You" | Richard A. Whiting, Robin | June 19, 1954 | 1:49 |
| 10. | "Song of the Islands" | Charles E. King | May 3, 1954 | 1:33 |
| 11. | "Pennies from Heaven" | Johnny Burke, Johnston | June 19, 1954 | 1:52 |
| 12. | "Sweet Leilani" | Harry Owens | May 3, 1954 | 1:36 |
| 13. | "Blue Hawaii" | Rainger, Robin | May 3, 1954 | 2:15 |
| 14. | "The One Rose (That's Left in My Heart)" | Del Lyon, Lani McIntyre | June 16, 1954 | 1:45 |
| Total length: | 25:01 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "There's a Gold Mine in the Sky" | Charles Kenny, Nick Kenny | June 16, 1954 | 2:33 |
| 2. | "My Heart Is Taking Lessons" | James V. Monaco, Burke | June 16, 1954 | 1:30 |
| 3. | "I've Got a Pocketful of Dreams" | Monaco, Burke | June 16, 1954 | 1:24 |
| 4. | "Small Fry" (with Johnny Mercer) | Frank Loesser, Carmichael | July 1, 1938 | 3:35 |
| 5. | "Mexicali Rose" | Helen Stone, Jack Tenney | June 16, 1954 | 2:05 |
| 6. | "That Sly Old Gentleman" | Monaco, Burke | June 16, 1954 | 1:43 |
| 7. | "Allá en El Rancho Grande" | Emilio D. Uranga, Bartley Costello | June 16, 1954 | 1:01 |
| 8. | "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" | Bob Nolan | June 16, 1954 | 2:05 |
| 9. | "Only Forever" | Monaco, Burke | June 16, 1954 | 2:04 |
| 10. | "Did Your Mother Come from Ireland?" | Michael Carr, Jimmy Kennedy | June 16, 1954 | 2:03 |
| 11. | "Yes Indeed!" (with Connee Boswell) | Sy Oliver | December 13, 1940 | 3:29 |
| 12. | "Brahms' Lullaby" | Natalia Macfarren, Johannes Brahms | June 16, 1954 | 1:27 |
| Total length: | 24:59 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You Are My Sunshine" | Jimmie Davis, Charles Mitchell | July 8, 1941 | 3:03 |
| 2. | "The Waiter and the Porter and the Upstairs Maid" (with Mary Martin and Jack Teagarden) | Johnny Mercer | May 26, 1941 | 3:35 |
| 3. | "Deep in the Heart of Texas" | Don Swander, June Hershey | January 18, 1942 | 3:01 |
| 4. | "Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie" (with Mary Martin) | Andrew B. Sterling, Harry von Tilzer | March 13, 1942 | 2:57 |
| 5. | "Walking the Floor over You" | Ernest Tubb | May 27, 1942 | 3:30 |
| 6. | "White Christmas" | Irving Berlin | May 29, 1942 | 3:20 |
| Total length: | 19:26 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Moonlight Becomes You" | Jimmy Van Heusen, Burke | June 12, 1942 | 3:33 |
| 2. | "Road to Morocco" (with Bob Hope)) | Van Heusen, Burke | December 8, 1944 | 2:49 |
| 3. | "Sunday, Monday or Always" | Van Heusen, Burke | July 2, 1943 | 2:54 |
| 4. | "Pistol Packin' Mama" (with The Andrews Sisters) | Al Dexter | September 27, 1943 | 3:18 |
| 5. | "San Fernando Valley" | Gordon Jenkins | December 29, 1943 | 3:24 |
| 6. | "I'll Be Seeing You" | Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal | February 17, 1944 | 3:08 |
| Total length: | 19:06 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Swinging on a Star" | Van Heusen, Burke | February 7, 1944 | 2:51 |
| 2. | "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's an Irish Lullaby)" | James Royce Shannon | July 17, 1945 | 3:30 |
| 3. | "Don't Fence Me In" (with The Andrews Sisters) | Cole Porter | July 25, 1944 | 3:32 |
| 4. | "Yah-Ta-Ta, Yah-Ta-Ta (Talk, Talk, Talk)" (with Judy Garland) | Van Heusen, Burke | March 9, 1945 | 3:31 |
| 5. | "It's Been a Long, Long Time" | Jule Styne, Sammy Cahn | July 12, 1945 | 3:26 |
| 6. | "The Bells of St. Mary's" | A. Emmett Adams, Douglas Furber | September 10, 1945 | 3:27 |
| 7. | "Put It There, Pal" (with Bob Hope) | Van Heusen, Burke | December 8, 1945 | 2:48 |
| Total length: | 23:05 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "McNamara's Band" | Shamus O'Connor, John J. Stamford | December 6, 1945 | 2:59 |
| 2. | "Sioux City Sue" | Ray Freedman, Dick Thomas | December 27, 1945 | 3:00 |
| 3. | "Begin the Beguine" | Cole Porter | May 3, 1944 | 4:08 |
| 4. | "South America, Take It Away" (with The Andrews Sisters) | Harold Rome | May 11, 1946 | 3:26 |
| 5. | "Blue Skies" | Berlin | July 11, 1946 | 3:38 |
| 6. | "Alexander's Ragtime Band" (with Al Jolson) | Berlin | March 27, 1947 | 3:21 |
| Total length: | 20:32 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Whiffenpoof Song" | Rudyard Kipling, Guy H. Scull, Meade Minnigerode, George S. Pomeroy | May 5, 1947 | 3:18 |
| 2. | "Now Is the Hour" | Clement Scott, Maewa Kaihau, Dorothy Stewart | November 8, 1947 | 3:23 |
| 3. | "Galway Bay" | Arthur Colahan | November 27, 1947 | 3:20 |
| 4. | "Far Away Places" | Joan Whitney Kramer, Alex Kramer | November 25, 1948 | 3:24 |
| 5. | "Mule Train" | Johnny Lange, Hy Heath, Ramblin' Tommy Scott, Fred Glickman | October 26, 1949 | 3:14 |
| 6. | "Dear Hearts and Gentle People" | Sammy Fain, Bob Hilliard | October 26, 1949 | 3:04 |
| 7. | "Rock of Ages" | Augustus Toplady | May 6, 1949 | 3:17 |
| Total length: | 23:00 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Sunshine Cake" (with Carol Richards) | Van Heusen, Burke | May 10, 1949 | 3:28 |
| 2. | "Play a Simple Melody" (with Gary Crosby) | Berlin | May 23, 1950 | 3:16 |
| 3. | "Sam's Song" (with Gary Crosby) | Lew Quadling, Jack Elliott | May 23, 1950 | 3:11 |
| 4. | "Gone Fishin'" (with Louis Armstrong) | Nick Kenny, Charles Kenny | April 25, 1951 | 2:52 |
| 5. | "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" (with Jane Wyman) | Carmichael, Johnny Mercer | June 20, 1951 | 3:43 |
| 6. | "Y'All Come" | Arlie Duff | November 14, 1953 | 2:41 |
| 7. | "Bing Crosby signs off" | 0:56 | ||
| Total length: | 20:07 | |||
When Bing: A Musical Autobiography was re-released as a 4-CD set in 2005, the label added bonus tracks that had no connection with the original album. These tracks were sourced from Bing Crosby's radio shows, publicity discs, and his short film soundtracks.
Paris Honeymoon selection (from Kraft Music Hall, June 28, 1945):[6]
The Star Maker selection (from Kraft Music Hall, April 19, 1945):[6]
I Surrender Dear 1931 film soundtrack selection:
One More Chance 1931 film soundtrack selection:
Dream House 1931 film soundtrack selection:
Billboard Girl 1931 film soundtrack selection:
Sing, Bing, Sing 1932 film soundtrack selection:
Blue of the Night 1932 film soundtrack selection:
From The Big Broadcast publicity discs:
Please film soundtrack selection:
From She Loves Me Not publicity discs:
From Two for Tonight publicity discs:
From Doctor Rhythm publicity discs:
From Birth of the Blues publicity discs:
From The Big Broadcast publicity discs:
