It took an accident of Fate to create this week's theme and a very happy accident at that. While doing those required honey-do lists and cleaning out a closet, I came across n old memory. It was in the form of an old cassette tape case, the cassette inside I knew was worn and stretched because it had been played to death over a decade ago.
The cassette was an old swing music album, The Kings of Swing. Now, it wasn't so much the album itself that caught my attention. The memory associated with it returned to the top of my mind and made me smile.
To get to the heart of the matter, this was the very first piece of music that my wife and I bought together, almost 20 years ago. We were in an old bookstore in South Atlanta, browsing as we loved to do. There were model trains on display, and World War 2 airplanes and tanks as well. Either Artie Shaw or Benny Goodman was emanating from the speakers of an old boom-box, Near the register was a spinner rack and on it (along with many varieties of music) was this album. My new wife said how much she loved this type of music, and it was right then I was reminded why I fell in love with her and how much we had in common.
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| Sweet Lisa and TC - what a couple! |
So I bought that cassette for her, and we played it over and over again until it wore out. I don't think a silly collection of music has ever been more loved. I replaced the cassette with a CD version I found in a music store about a decade ago. Same title, same album cover, but now on the LaserLight discount label.
Thinking back over that day - not only did I reaffirm my love for my wife, but I also realized that at that moment this radio show was born. Not in it's finished polished form, of course, but the germ was planted. My wife, and that old cassette, were the reasons for this show to come into development.
Looking over the collection of artists represented on this album I knew I could put together an amazing playlist for you - my wonderful audience. I told Bobby Marlette (musical director for The Swing Shift Radio Show) to take the week off, that I had this one. Finding that old cassette made me realize that I had also found my theme – and a dedication for this episode. For my dear wife of nearly twenty years, the rose in my garden, the thorn in my side, the sunshine on my cloudy days – here is to that day so long ago; some of your favorite music.
- I’ve got a gal in Kalamazoo - Glenn Miller
- In The Mood – Glenn Miller
- Hey – Bah-bah-Re-Bop! Tex Beneke w/ the Glenn Miller Orchestra
- Jumpin’ at The Woodside – Count Basie
- One O’clock Jump – Count Basie
- It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing) – Duke Ellington w/ Ivey Anderson Vocals
- Blue Skies – Duke Ellington
- Sunny Side of the Street – Tommy Dorsey w/ The Pied Pipers and Jo Stafford
- Opus One – Tommy Dorsey
- Sing, Sing, Sing – Benny Goodman
"It's Martini Time" this week was an old fashioned favorite of the age of Swing, a perfect accompaniment to the musical selection, the classic Gin Fizz.
That's about all for this update - if you want to have an input into our show, you can request a particular bartender/bar/restaurant/potable for "It's Martini Time", choose a theme or suggest a song/artist for us to highlight. Just email me at TommyCage@SwingShiftRadio.com
Tommy Cage
your host for The Future of Retro-Radio
on The Swing Shift Radio Show!
