Saturday, May 27, 2006

 

A Memorial Day Marching Salute

As we come up to the Memorial Day holiday in the US, I had a few 78s in reserve that I was going to hold for a 'special occasion'... and Memorial Day seems like a good enough one for me.

We'll start the martial madness with a few recordings of the immortal Prince's Band, all on acoustically recorded Columbia discs. The All-American March seems like a good enough place to start... unfortunately I don't have the disc in front of me at the moment, but I'll insert composer info when I do find the disc again. On the back side of this 78 is Prince's Band playing John Phillip Sousa's Directorate March. Not as well known, but still very capably performed. Next up, we have a Medley of Patriotic Airs, arranged by Maurice Smith for Prince's Band. Stirring! We conclude with Meacham's American Patrol March. Wow. Break out the flags and rally 'round 'em boys!

We'll move way up the timeline to some more modern recordings that I found by The Goldman Band. These are some REALLY nice recordings, especially for the time, and ESPECIALLY since they're on Decca (albeit late 40s-early 50s Decca). There were 8 sides in the set, but I only had 3 discs, so, once again, 2 sides are missing... maybe one day I can get the last missing sides of this, but for now, here are the 6 sides I have:
Boston Commandery, written by T M Carter
2nd Regimental Connecticut National Guard March wriiten by B W Reeves
Colonel Bogey March, written by K J Alford
Our Flirtation, written by J P Sousa
National Emblem March, written by E E Bagley
Stepping Along, written by E F Goldman

The last one was written by the conductor, by the way. Nice stuff for a parade!

Well, I wish you all a very Blessed and safe holiday weekend, I'll be watching fast cars try and negotiate Monaco, Indianapolis, and Charlotte Motor Speedway all day tomorrow, if the motorsport gets boring, I'll encode some more!

Brad

Comments:
Since there can no longer be a march in which no one is injured, I suggest you also post one of Charles Ives' great town square marching band collisions. That way, we can honor the dead and vow never to be as ready as they were to march off to war. I say all this because there is an exhibit of 2,000 graves in downtown Philadelphia today to honor America's needlessly fallen in Iraq. Instead of playing marches, play Bruce Spingsteen's new record of "We Shall Overcome," then pray without ceasing in the aching silence that follows.
 
......or drop a massive amount of John Cage Prepared Pianos upon the heads of the Corporate Facists that are bringing the United States to its' knees.

I'm definately not in favor of this occupation and war-mongering... that's what the Blog of the Impaler is all about.

This blog (and the other two, AudiOddities and MoodieToonz) are for the music.

I'm a Veteran as well, and what the Globalists are doing to a country I was proud of makes me violently ill.
 
Brad, No accusations meant. I saw a Chinese film called "Mountain Patrol" the other night about an intrepid band of Tibetan Buddhists who take up arms againts poachers in a doomed fight to save antelopes. For them, an earth bereft of these animals was not worth inhabiting because we are stewards first and foremost. And to fail in our obligation to sustain and preserve life is simply unconscionable as well as unbearable. What was incredible for me is how these 'resistance fighters' were so vastly outnumbered by fellow natives who had turned to poaching. Is American so very different? Do our leaders stand for anything but greed disguised by self-righteousness and hypocrisy? What I'm trying to say is this: I was in no mood for marches or marching yesterday or today. And I'll be in no mood tomorrow. Those Buddhists taught me the meaning of true patriotism. And the songs they sang were all prayers to the Great Mother. No one has ever invoked her name before dropping bombs and killing. For that, they have the names of Jesus and Muhammed.
 
Agreed on that point. I pray to my Goddess for balance and wisdom daily... killing in the name of Jesus and Mohammed sickens me.

Rest assured there will be True Patriots, much like those Buddhists, that will take up arms in defense of the Republic and the COnstitution, and the freedoms guaranteed by that blessed document. I'll be with 'em.

Unfortunately, I don't have many recordings from the shellac era that would typify that... I *do* have a bunch of jingoist recordings that I would label as 'propoganda material'... maybe I should do a series of postings on that subject? Of course, very few of them would be 'politically correct' but when has THAT ever stopped me :)
 
I, myself, have resisted the urge to post such records. I'm torn between presenting history as it happened and between not wanting to offend anyone. (I think that's called being a record collector.)

I imagine even Spike Jones' great goof on the Nazis (which Hitler didn't care for, I've read) would be un-P.C. today....

Then again, no one said a word about "Hubba-Hubba-Hubba," the 1945 Perry Como hit I posted recently:

"A friend of mine in a B-29 dropped another load for luck...."



Lee
 
Hi Brad & everybody,
Came up an interesting article in yesterday's issue of the International Herald Tribune. Don't know whether it will stay on line very long, though:
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/05/30/features/neorock.php
and:
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/05/29/arts/web.0529top50.php
What do you think of it?
 
The Conservative's Top 50? Interesting...
 
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