The Thrasher Sisters, Trio Lescano and The Andrew Sisters, three women harmony vocal trios from the 1940s, are this week’s Phantom Dancer feature artists for your self-isolating pleasure.
The Phantom Dancer produced and presented by 1920s-30s singer and actor Greg Poppleton can be heard online from 12:05pm AEDST Tuesday 17 March at https://2ser.com/phantom-dancer/
More on the Andrew Sisters and Trio Lescano in future Phantom Dancers – your non-stop mix of swing and jazz from live 1920s-50s radio with Greg Poppleton. Today’s story, read on, is about The Thrasher Sisters.
Well, it’s short and sweet and comes from a Billboard record review, 23 March 1946. Here it is…
In this week’s mix you’ll also hear a set of Women Singers and Headliners on 1930s-40s Radio and dance bands from live 1937 radio.
Mary Jane Thrasher’s obit is quoted here for the LA Times. It tells Mary’s story and the story of the sisters,
“January 22, 1924 – February 23, 2014 Mary Jane, a loving big sister and Auntie, as well as a talented singer and painter, passed away peacefully in Monterey Park on February 23, 2014, at the age of 90. Mary Jane’s vitality and positive attitude was truly an inspiration, and her hearty laughter and warm, loving personality will be missed by all who knew her. Challenged with macular degeneration and severe hearing loss, she never complained or let her physical limitations darken her mood or her enjoyment of life. Separated from her two younger sisters and parents due to the challenges of the Depression, Mary Jane was raised by her father’s mother on the plains of South Dakota, along with her younger sister, Betty. Grandma Thrasher instilled the foundation for both Mary Jane and Betty’s inner strength and determination as single women throughout their entire lives. As Mary Jane approached her teen years, the family was reunited, and the Thrasher sisters, including youngest sister, Dee, discovered early on that they had a talent for singing, harmonizing together in the style of their favorite radio vocalists, the Boswell Sisters. In 1938, the Thrasher Sisters were hired by Cincinnati radio station WLW to perform on their very own Sunday morning radio program. For the next four years, Mary Jane, Betty, and Dee appeared on the show every weekend. A sample of the Thrasher Sisters’ exquisite harmonies can be found on YouTube.com (“Fountains of Fun” WLW 1942). In 1942, the family moved to Los Angeles, and the Thrasher Sisters were booked on a number of popular radio and TV programs. In 1949, noted band leader Jerry Fielding offered to mentor them and guide their career. He promptly changed their name to the Morgan Sisters, and booked them for a six-month engagement at the Pearl City Tavern near Honolulu, Hawaii. While on the island, the Morgan Sisters also participated in a number of recording sessions. Two of the songs they recorded in Hawaii can also be heard today on YouTube.com – “My Waikiki Girl” and “Fish and Poi.” In 1954, the Morgan Sisters broke up when youngest sister Dee left the group to marry Danny Barcelona, a young Hawaiian drummer she had met in Honolulu, and who later became a member of Louis Armstrong’s All Stars. In the late 1950’s, Mary Jane and Betty began working at the Los Angeles Times, where they continued to perform over the years at company events until their retirement in 1988. Mary Jane leaves behind her sister, Betty…”
The last hour is all vinyl
Your Phantom Dancer Video of the Week this week is Reg Kehoe and his Marimba Queens. The double bass player is brilliant, using the instrument chordally and percussively at once. Enjoy!
Make sure you come back to this blog, Greg Poppleton’s Radio Lounge, every Tuesday, for the newest Phantom Dancer play list and Video of the Week!
Thank you.
24 MARCH PLAY LIST
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Play List – The Phantom Dancer
107.3 2SER-FM Sydney, Live Stream, Digital Radio
Community Radio Network Show CRN #429 |
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107.3 2SER Tuesday 24 March 2020 |
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Set 1
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Swing Bands on mid-1940s Radio | |
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Poinciana (Open) + Rise and Shine/I Want To Be Happy
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Garwood Van Orchestra
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Starlight Room
Hotel Chase St Louis Mutual Network 9 Aug 1944 |
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Walking Stick
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Claude Thornhill Orchestra
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Cafe Rouge
Hotel Pennsylvania WJZ ABC NYC 22 Sep 1947 |
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I Hear You Screaming + Moonlight Serenade (close)
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Tex Beneke and the Glenn Miller Orchestra
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Palladium Ballroom
KNX CBS Los Angeles 2 Oct 1946 |
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Set 2
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Swing Bands on 1959-1961 Radio | |
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It Took Ten Days Blues
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Jerry Gary and his Band of Today
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Palladium Ballroom
KFI NBC Los Angeles 30 Oct 1959 |
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Redskin Rhumba (Open) + Skyliner
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Charlie Barnet Orchestra
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Palladium Ballroom
KFI NBC Los Angeles 12 Sep 1959 |
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Two O’Clock Jump
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Harry James Orchestra
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El Patio Ballroom
KCBS CBS San Francisco 20 May 1961 |
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Set 3
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Early Radio Music | |
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All Muggled Up
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Blue Steele Orchestra
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Comm Rec
Memphis 15 May 1930 |
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Ooh That Kiss
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The Nehi Quartet
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’Nehi Program’
Radio Transcription New York City 1931 |
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Land of Sunset Dreams + Melancholy Moon + It Ain’t Gonna Rain No More (theme)
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Wendall Hall
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’The Pineapple Picador’
KTSP NBC Minneapolis 2 Apr 1931 |
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Set 4
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Women Singers in 1938-39 New York City Swing Bands | |
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Bluebirds in the Moonlight
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Marion Hutton (voc) Glenn Miller Orchestra
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Meadowbrook Ballroom
Cedar Grove NJ WJZ NBC Blue 7 Dec 1939 |
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East of the Sun
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Bea Wain (voc) Larry Clinton Orchestra
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’RCA Campus Club’
Glen Island Casino New Rochelle NY WEAF NBC Red NY 13 Feb 1940 |
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When I Go A-Dreaming
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Helen Forrest (voc) Artie Shaw Orchestra
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Blue Room
Hotel Lincoln WEAF NBC Red NY 1 Dec 1938 |
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Set 4
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Women Vocal Trios On Air | |
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Il Pinguino Innimorato
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Trio Lescano and Silvana Fires (voc) Pippo Barzizza Orchestra
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Cetra, Rome
1940 |
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I’ve Got No Strings
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Andrew Sisters (voc) Glenn Miller Orchestra
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’Chesterfield Show’
WABC CBS NY 13 Feb 1940 |
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Shoo Shoo Baby
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Thrasher Sisters (voc) Phil Davis Orchestra
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’Fountain Of Fun’
WLW Cincinnati 21 Nov 1943 |
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Set 5
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Women Singers and Headliners on 1930s-40s Radio | |
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I Wish I Were Twins
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Valaida Snow (voc) Billy Mason Orchestra
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Comm Rec
London 18 Jan 1935 |
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From The Land of the Sky Blue Water
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Mildred Bailey (voc) Paul Baron Orchestra
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’Music Till Midnight’
WABC CBS NY 1944 |
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It’s Funny To Everyone But Me
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Helen Ward (voc) Bob Crosby Orchestra
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’Camel Caravan’
WABC CBS NY 18 Jul 1939 |
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My Baby Said Yes
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Irene Day (voc) Charlie Spivak Orchestra
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’One Night Stand’
Century Room Commodore Hotel AFRS Re-broadcast 25 Feb 1945 |
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Set 6
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Swing on 1937 Radio | |
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Cosmic Rhythm
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Seger Ellis and his Choirs of Brass
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Radio Transcription
New York City 1937 |
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Russian Swing
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Benny Goodman Orchestra (voc) Marek Windheim and Alexander Chorus
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’Camel Caravan’
WABC CBS NY 17 Aug 1937 |
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St Louis Blues
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Louis Armstrong Orchestra
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’Norge Program’
Radio Transcription New York City 1937 |
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Swing It, Brother, Swing
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Count Basie Orchestra (voc) Billie Holliday
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Savoy Ballroom
Aircheck NYC 30 Jun 1937 |
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Set 7
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Early 1930s Radio Jazz and Dance Bands | |
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Cheer Up and Ballyhoo
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Eddie Cantor (voc) Phil Spitalny’s Music, Bob Effros (tp) Joe Venuty (violin)
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Hit of the Week Record
New York City Oct 1931 |
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Dinah
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Freddy Rich Orchestra (voc) Bob Effros (tp)?
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’Friendly Five Footnotes’
Radio Transcription New York City 1932 |
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Do The New York
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Gus Arnheim Orchestra
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’Cocoanut Grove’
TRANSCO Radio Transcription Los Angeles 1931 |
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You’re Driving Me Crazy
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Paul Whiteman Orchestra (1920s and 1940s version)
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’Forever Pops’
ABC Chicago 1950 |
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Set 8
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Bop on Radio | |
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Katzenjammer’s Ball
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Jack Allen’s Original Katzenjammers
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Comm Rec
Sydney 23 Feb 1950 |
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Lullaby of Birdland (theme) + Three Little Words
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Lester Young Quintet
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Birdland
WABC ABC NY 5 Sep 1956 |
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Cheryl
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Charlie Parker Quintet
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’Symphony Sid Show’
Royal Roost WMCA NY 1 Jan 1949 |
Actor - Singer - Voiceover 