The Shellac Stack

Shellac Stack No. 149 remembers Rich Conaty with an hour of “’20s and ’30s records.” From Annette Hanshaw to Charlie Palloy; from Guy Lombardo to Nat Shilkret, Paul Whiteman and Gus Arnheim; from Miff Mole to Vaughn De Leath, we’ve got a pleasing variety of jazz and pop.

Shellac Stack No. 148 wishes you a cheerful holiday season with a variety of Christmas records, ranging from well-loved carols to oddball novelty songs. We hear from Mel Blanc, Leon McAuliffe, Eddy Howard, Vaughn De Leath, Will Bradley, Marek Weber, Mark Andrews, and many others.

Shellac Stack No. 147 dances with ghosts and “potted” puppets! In this Halloween-themed program, we hear performances by Pete Daily’s Chicagoans, Bobby Sherwood’s Orchestra, Bing Crosby, Hazel Scott, Frank Westphal, Wayne King, Brother Bones and His Shadows, and many more.

Shellac Stack No. 146 plays ball! In this program, we’ve got sanctified singing from Rev. J. M. Gates and Elder Lightfoot Solomon Michaux, dance tunes from Harold Leonard’s Red Jackets, Nathan Glantz, Philip Spitalny, vaudeville jazz from Al Bernard, a bit of Chopin with pianist Egon Petri, and much more.

Shellac Stack No. 145 joins the leaves in bidding the trees good-bye. After a few autumn-themed songs by the Cook Sisters, Aileen Stanley, Billy Murray, Olive Kline, and others, we hear some spectacular piano from Eadie and Rack and Cliff Jackson, some hot dance from Ted Weems, revisit a children’s classic with Vernon Dalhart, and … Continue reading »

Shellac Stack No. 144 only has eyes for you! We look over a four-leaf clover with Jean Goldkette, hear from Eddie Cantor and Andy Griffith, shuffle with Tiny Hill’s Orchestra, and listen to a rare solo record by trumpeter Sylvester Ahola. It’s another musical variety hour on the Shellac Stack!

Shellac Stack No. 143 reminisces just a bit. We hear records by Jane Green, Pietro Deiro, Jimmy Durante, Aileen Stanley, Pinky Tomlin, Henry Busse, and many more. From ragtime to western swing to vaudeville vocals, it’s another musical variety hour on the Shellac Stack!

Shellac Stack No. 142 reminds you that “you can wander anywhere, but you have to go to Italy to roam.” (Ouch!) From the Happiness Boys to Georgia Gibbs; from Bing Crosby to Jerry Colonna; from Joseph Samuels to Jay Wilbur; it’s another 78 rpm variety hour, full of delightfully unexpected musical twists and turns. A … Continue reading »

Shellac Stack No. 141 walks with music! It’s another variety assortment this time, from a banjo-accordion duet (Gardoni and Puig) to vocalists Tommy Lyman and Vaughn De Leath, to pianists Johnny Wittwer, Jelly Roll Morton, and Frankie Carle. We eavesdrop on a live concert by the Associated Glee Clubs of America in 1926 and dance … Continue reading »

Shellac Stack No. 140 listens to the music of the one man band with Ted Weems! The Whispering Three take us to a Persian Market, the Taskiana Four bring joy to our souls, and the enthusiastic Tony Short treats us to a solo piano rendition of the “Dipper Mouth Blues.” We hear also from Yerkes’ … Continue reading »

Shellac Stack No. 139 cozies up with Armand Hug for some fine ragtime piano and shakes with the Dixieland Jug Blowers! We hear from the Coon-Sanders Orchestra, Joe Haymes, Ruby Newman, Coleman Hawkins, Ukulele Ike (Cliff Edwards), and many more on this program that is at times hot and at times coolly at ease.

Shellac Stack No. 138 lets itself go with songs from Fred Astaire films. We hear from the man himself, plus performances by Lud Gluskin, Dennis Day, Johnny Johnson, the Andrews Sisters, Johnny Guarnieri, Nat Brandwynne, and others.

Shellac Stack No. 137 squats at the grotto with George Van Eps and toots through the roof with Duke Ellington. Don’t think about that too hard. We’ve got records by Jack Teagarden, Eddy Howard, Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, John Kirby, and many more in this hour that’s perfect for dancing or listening.

Shellac Stack No. 136 shakes the tree with Pearl Bailey! We hear some top-shelf British dance bands (Jerry Hoey, Jay Whidden, and Joe Brannelly), explore some early polyphony with the English Singers, boogie with J. H. Shayne, and smile with Eddie Cantor. There’s plenty more too…

Shellac Stack No. 135 promises you a good time with its assortment of fine 78s: from hot jazz with Carl Halen to nostalgic piano with Carroll Gibbons to relaxing vocals by Jon and Sondra Steele — we even hear a famous melody from a comic opera that had its debut in Chicago in 1890.

Shellac Stack No. 134 sings in the bathtub and does “The Kinkajou”! We stay in the 1920s and ’30s this time for some terrific pop and dance band records from the likes of Johnny Green, Ruth Etting, Henry Hall, Cass Hagan, Smith Ballew, Nat Shilkret, Johnny Hamp, and others.

Shellac Stack No. 133 rides with the Sunday Drivers, courtesy of the Billy Murray Trio. We hear some fine boogie woogie piano from 18-year-old Deryck Sampson (at the time of recording), shuffle along with Bennie Moten’s Kansas City Orchestra, and “feel like a million” with Blue Barron. Lots more too!

Shellac Stack No. 132 salutes the girls! From Glorianna to Isabelle to Evelina to Madelaine and Julia, we’ve got more than a dozen songs named after girls. Performers this time include the Ipana Troubadours, Ted Lewis, Mildred Bailey, Teddy Wilson, Ina Ray Hutton, Eddy Duchin, and many others.

Shellac Stack No. 131 doubles your pleasure with back-to-back versions of the same song. How does John Baltzell’s rendition of “Turkey in the Straw” compare with O’Leary’s Irish Minstrels’? How does Charles Kellogg’s whistling solo of “Narcissus” sound next to the duo-piano version by Muriel Pollock and Vee Lawnhurst? We take these and six other … Continue reading »

Shellac Stack No. 130 simmers on a summer day with records by Irish fiddler Frank Quinn, bandleader Mark Warnow, singer Dick Robertson, and others. From Lee Wiley to Jimmie Lunceford to Arthur Gibbs to Thelma Carpenter and George Hamilton Green, it’s another musical variety hour on the Shellac Stack!

Shellac Stack No. 129 rides around in the rain — but don’t let that dampen your spirits! We’ve got hot records by Brian Lawrance, Hazel Scott, Arthur (Guitar Boogie) Smith, and the High Steppers alongside sweeter things by Johnny Johnson’s Orchestra, Gene Austin, and Bill Krenz. “Come on with the rain, I’ve a smile on … Continue reading »

Shellac Stack No. 128 parades and polkas to victory! Alongside some terrific jazz from Benny Carter, Mel Powell, and Fats Waller, we hear some very good vocals from Helen Richards and Betty Hutton. The jury’s still out on Florence Foster Jenkins. We also do a bit of sleuthing into a mysterious record by the “Reno … Continue reading »

Shellac Stack No. 127 wishes a happy 105th birthday to Irene! We hear more than a dozen hit songs from 1921-1930, including performances by Bix Beiderbecke, Ethel Waters, Billy Jones and Ernest Hare, Henry Burr, Paul Whiteman’s Orchestra, Prince’s Orchestra, and more.

Shellac Stack No. 126 goes bananas! In this “fruit salad” edition, we hear records by Dick Robertson, Van and Schenck, Earl Burtnett, Gus Arnheim, Russ Columbo, Jay Whidden, Vaughn De Leath, Sharkey Bonano, and many others. How refreshing!

Shellac Stack No. 125 spans more than 40 years to bring you an Irish waltz by Frank Quinn, a big band classic from Kenny Baker’s All Star Orchestra, a violin solo by Charles D’Almaine, jazz organ by Fats Waller, a tango played by a marimba band, and a Jimmie Rodgers soundalike. We’ve got lots more … Continue reading »