Today we’ll be listening to a selection of recordings made in the 1940s and 1950s for the Capitol Record label. This was a recording company set up in 1942 by singer-songwriter Johnny Mercer which went on to become one of the leading record labels in the music field. In the 40s and 50s it featured most of the big names in jazz and popular music. Johnny Mercer, who was an experienced songwriter, and a singer with a number of records to his name, was particularly qualified to run the company and invite leading artists to its recording studios. The first recording session took place in April 1942, and the label opened its first office in June of that year. On July 1, Capitol Records released its first nine records, and went on from there to become one of the leading record labels in the world. We listen today to recordings from artists like Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, Margaret Whiting and some of the many jazz groups that passed through its studios in its first two decades.
Artist | Year | Song | Time
1. Johnny Mercer 1950 Thirteenth Street Rag 2:52
2. Paul Whiteman 1942 (I’ve Got a Gal in) Kalamazoo 3:12
3. Margaret Whiting 1942 My Ideal 2:51
4. Ray Bauduc and his Bobcats 1947 Down in Honky Tonk Town 3:03
5. Kay Starr 1947 Don’t Let Your Love Go Wrong 2:55
6. Nappy Lamare & Eddie Miller 1945 At The Jazz Band Ball 2:47
7. Peggy Lee 1949 As Long As I’m Dreaming 2:10
8. Nat King Cole Trio 1956 What Is There To Say 3:36
9. Frank Sinatra 1955 It Never Entered My Mind 2:43
10. Bobby Hackett 1957 Wonderful One 3:01
11. Harry James 1955 It’s Been a Long, Long Time 3:08
12. Woody Herman 1950 The Nearness Of You 3:04
13. Anita O’Day 1945 I Can’t Believe That You’re in Love with Me 2:49
14. Capitol Jazzmen 1944 Clambake in B Flat 2:52