JazzWax List: 10 Singing Boppers

By the late 1940s, bebop was all the rage—thanks largely to radio disc jockeys who hyped the music and artists through the air-play of records on late-night shows. What began in the mid-'40s as a spectacular, secular jazz style flourished by 1948 as more musicians figured out how to play and arrange it for small groups and big bands. [Photo by Herman Leonard/CTSImages.com]

By 1949, more singers were glamorizing bop, giving the novel form a novelty feel. Here are 10 examples of bop vocal recordings in the '40s—before vocalese artists in the early '50s took jazz singing to a new level:

• What's This? (1945)—Dave Lambert and Buddy Stewart with Gene Krupa.
• Charge Account (1946)—Dave Lambert and Buddy Stewart with Red Rodney.
• Lop-Pow (1947)—Babs Gonzales with Three Bips and a Bop.
• Ool-ya-koo (1947)—Kenny Hagood and Dizzy Gillespie.
• I'm Be Boppin' Too (1948)—Dizzy Gillespie.
• Euphoria (1948)—Jackie Cain and Roy Kral with Charlie Ventura. [Pictured: Jackie Cain with Charlie Ventura]
• O'Henry (1949)—Bunny Briggs with Charlie Barnet.
• Bebop Spoken Here (1949)—Dave Lambert, Buddy Stewart and Trudy Richards with Charlie Barnet.
• Hey Pete, Let's Eat Mo Meat! (1949)—Joe Carroll with Dizzy Gillespie.
• Land of Oo-Bla-Dee (1949)—Joe Carroll with Dizzy Gillespie.

JazzWax clip: Here's English accordionist Tito Burns and His Sextet with Burns and Terry Devon sharing the vocal on Bebop Spoken Here, recorded in London in June 1949 ...

Comments

[Bruce Armstrong]

And let's not forget the classic "He Beeped When He Should have Bopped" from Dizzy's late-40s big band. It was a female vocalist on the original recording but Dizzy himself did the vocal on other versions. There are several current videos on YouTube that show Dizzy performing it with the band.

[Steve Provizer]

"Bebop Spoken Here," was co-written by the great Milton DeLugg-eventually of Gong Show fame.

[www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=24903925]

Not to forget Frank Rosolino, Herbie Fields, and maybe Doug Mettome, "Lemondrop"

"Hey Pete Let's Eat Mo' Meat" is scraping the bottom of the barrel, Marc.

[Jery Rowan]

Marc, the photo of the ‘bop city’ marquee reminded me of one of my favorites sightings. It was in Baltimore back in the late ‘50s and the sign read: ONE NIGHT ONLY. STAN KENTON AND HIS ORCHESTRA FEATURING THE LOVELY KAI WINDING.