The Best of Kay Kyser & His Orchestra

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There was no other band like it!
Kay Kyser took his college swing band and developed it into one of the best "sweet" big bands in the nation. Having Kay Kyser in your collection is just as important as Goodman, Miller or Dorsey. These guys played a broad range of mellow tunes that relied heavily on the individual singing talent of the entire band. Ginny Simms, Harry Babbit and Sully Mason were the main vocalists; buy their CD's too! They have a few numbers that cook but most are tunes your mom and dad or maybe your grandparents danced to.

Boop-Boop, Diddem-Daddem
I bought this collection for "Three Little Fishies", which song a friend of mine from college had included on a mix tape he made for me back in the mid-70s (which tape has long since disintegrated), and which had been stuck in a corner of my brain like a wad of gum for over 30 years. I didn't really know much about Kyser; but apparently, he was known for wearing a mortarboard onstage (as the professor of his "Kollege of Musical Knowledge"); for the musical trademark of having one line of the song sung at the beginning of the record, before the band took a verse and chorus; for having a veritable army of band singers all at once (including Ginny Simms, "Handsome" Harry Babbitt, and someone or something called Ish Kabibble); and for launching the career of Mike Douglas. Over the course of the 1930s and 40s, the Kyser outfit went from a "sweet" band (sort of Guy Lombardo-ish) to a "hot" swing band, all the while leaning towards novelty (witness "Who's Yahoodi", "Alexander the Swoose (Half-Swan Half-Goose)", and the aforementioned "Three Little Fishies") . Their music is workmanlike, if wholly unremarkable throughout, which is not to say it isn't fun -- it definitely is. Even swing fans will likely only need one Kay Kyser collection in their lives. I recommend this one.

This is how a "Best Of" should be...
I'm trying to enhance my collection of recorded music from the period, but the 30s and 40s are a little before my time. So, I'm using Joel Whitburn's "Pop Memories" to guide me as I go about collecting this music.31 of the 36 tracks on these two discs are listed in Whitburn's book - a huge track-count and an admirable percentage of ORIGINAL, "Best Of" recordings. (It really bugs me if a recording isn't "the original".)Plus, Kyser and company's popularity at the time makes this one of the best musical investments I ever made.

Kay Kyser's Best Really IS...
As a Kyser collector for 11 years, this double CD IS the most comprehensive collection I've seen yet from the Ol' Professor of Swing. What most people don't realize is many of the tracks here are alternate takes, which makes this even better! From his early recordings on Brunswick to later Columbia hits, Kay, Ish Kabibble and the other featured vocalists are well represented here. For more info on this once hugely popular, but almost forgotten Big Bandleader, go to kaykyser.net C'mon chillen, Yess Dance!

The Ol' Perfesser ...
Not just PURE corn, this compilation contains many serious renditions of classics (Ole Buttermilk Sky, On a Slow Boat to China, etc.). The novelty tunes, frankly the reason that I bought the CD, cover the gamut of silliness. We all know "Three Little Fishies" but how many can say that they have a copy of "Horses don't Bet on People"! With 36 songs, on two CD's, you can be assured that you'll know all there is to know about Kay Kyser, avoiding any remedial Klasses at Kollege. (and Mike Douglas! He didn't have a voice when I watched his TV show as a kid. Apparently he DID when he worked with Kay.)