Sound Beat

There's "hungry" and then there's "Diamond Jim Brady hungry".

A muleskinner’s job was not quite as…grim as it sounds. Still...kinda grim though.

There are a couple different definitions for a blue moon, both of them kind of rare, and neither of them have to do with color of any sort.

The Man of 1,000 Voices...

Is it live, or is it…Edison?

The moon has served as muse for countless numbers of poets, from the unnamed and unknown, to Shelley, Dickinson, and Kerouac. But only one of these had to worry about record label execs. You’re on the Sound Beat. You’re listening to Jack Kerouac reading his poem “The Moon Her Majesty”, on Dot Records' Poetry for the Beat Generation, with piano accompaniment by Steve Allen. The recording is significant in that it was released and then immediately recalled after a label exec heard the content and Kerouac’s, lets say, state of mind. The recall letter came from Bernice Mason: “You will receive a Dot album titled “Poetry for the Beat Generation”. Dot has cancelled the release of the album for obvious reasons. Please do not review it on your publications. Thank you for your cooperation.” 130 copies are believed to have escaped the recall, and this is one of them.

The National Film Board of Canada honored Oscar Peterson with a short film, "Begone Dull Care", in 1949. It was  directed by Norman McLaren and Evelyn Lambart. Using drawn-on-film animation, McLaren and Lambart paint and scratch directly onto film stock to create a visual representation of Oscar Peterson's jazz music. Check it out here!

You’re listening to the Palestrina Choir on a Victor 78 from 1927 And, you’re on the Sound Beat! The choir is singing the Hymn to Apollo, one of the Homeric hymns: a collection of thirty-three anonymous ancient Greek hymns celebrating individual gods. It’s thought to have been written in 522 BC. Apollo is the son of Zeus, God of the Sun and light. His name was selected for NASA’s third spaceflight program by then manager Abe Silverstein because "Apollo riding his chariot across the Sun was appropriate to the grand scale of the proposed program." Grand scale indeed, incorporating President John Kennedy’s stated goal of “"landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth". And though he would never see it, six Apollo missions would land astronauts on the Moon, with twelve men walking on the lunar surface. And every one of them returning home safely.

Charlie Chaplin would become the world’s biggest star, but the first emergence of the Little Tramp played second fiddle to…go-karts.

War of the Worlds…dj style.

The song you hear ”Let Me Call You Sweetheart” by Bing Crosby with Georgie Stoll and His Orchestra was recorded in 1934 on the Decca label. You’re on the Sound Beat. “Let Me Call You Sweetheart“ was originally written by Leo Freidman and Beth Slater Whinston in 1910. The song was a big hit for Author Clough in May 1911 and a #1 hit for Henry Burr and the Peerless Quartet in November 1911 And this version is still popular today. In fact “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” by Bing Crosby was #3 on Apple Music’s top 200 jazz songs in Bolivia on January 27 2019. This episode was written by Ian Coe. Artwork by Omari Odom. Watch a video of their work at Let Me Call You Sweetheart — Sound Beat - Syracuse University Videos

Richard Hollingshead learned a lot from the test run of his big idea.

William James Basie got his start in Harlem, but he wasn’t “Count Basie” ‘til he got to Kansas City.

History’s full of musicians claiming to have made deals with the devil. But only one claimed to have married into one.

That riff can only mean one thing…you’re listening to Chuck Berry…and you’re on the Sound Beat. Okay, two things.

One of the most popular tales in American folk history.

The squeaky landing gear gets the grease

Groovin' on the Beat...

Arthur Godfrey was a 50’s tv and radio icon, an aviator, equestrian…but not such a great tour leader. You’re on the Sound Beat You’re listening to The 1000 Islands Song, a Columbia 78 recorded in 1947. The archipelago lies in the St. Lawrence River, on the US-Canadian border. There are actually about 1800 islands, each passing the stringent criteria of :A. being above water level year-round, B. Having an area greater than one square foot and C. bearing at least one living tree. That island mentioned there, 793, is an actual one, belonging to…Arthur Godfrey. That’s right…it was gifted to him by Grant Mitchell of the 1000 Islands Admiralty in appreciation of the song. Check out more right here. "BoldtCastle aerial" by Teresa Mitchell; levels adjustment by Howcheng. - Licensed under Public domain via Wikimedia Commons

Il Travatore remains one of Guiseppe Verdi’s most popular operas, but it almost had a different name. Two, actually.