Harry Reser and his kah-raaaaaazy tunes!
June 25, 2013 7:29 AM Subscribe
There are two kinds of people in the world: those who, upon hearing Harry Reser's 1926 recording of OH! HOW I LOVE BULGARIANS will cover their ears and run as far as they can possibly get from the Victrola, and those who will, um... want to hear more? For those in the latter category, then, there's...
TURKISH TOWEL
HONOLULU MOON
SAY IT AGAIN
MY CUTEY'S DUE AT TWO TO TWO TO-DAY
A TREE IN THE PARK
and about A KAZILLION MORE WACKY TUNES
Harry Reser was wildly prolific (often recording under a variety of pseudonyms), as you can see.
Harry Reser previously.
TURKISH TOWEL
HONOLULU MOON
SAY IT AGAIN
MY CUTEY'S DUE AT TWO TO TWO TO-DAY
A TREE IN THE PARK
and about A KAZILLION MORE WACKY TUNES
Harry Reser was wildly prolific (often recording under a variety of pseudonyms), as you can see.
Harry Reser previously.
It's like the soundtrack to Fallout: Disneyworld.
posted by Groundhog Week at 7:46 AM on June 25, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Groundhog Week at 7:46 AM on June 25, 2013 [1 favorite]
And here I only knew him for his wacky work on 60 Minutes.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 8:21 AM on June 25, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 8:21 AM on June 25, 2013 [1 favorite]
That is probably the best song title I will ever see today.
If only I still had one wish left in my magic lantern, I would wish for an alternate reality where that was the national anthem of Bulgaria and Walt Disney, in a suit and mask of iron, was her forcibly beloved despot.
posted by honestcoyote at 8:36 AM on June 25, 2013
If only I still had one wish left in my magic lantern, I would wish for an alternate reality where that was the national anthem of Bulgaria and Walt Disney, in a suit and mask of iron, was her forcibly beloved despot.
posted by honestcoyote at 8:36 AM on June 25, 2013
Interesting stuff, indeed.
Sometimes digging through old 78s can be pretty frustrating. That trend of music of the Victrola era where the lyrics don't start until a third or even halfway into the song has always struck me as odd. There's been so many times that bad lyrics wreck a good instrumental song, or a song with good lyrics makes me impatiently look at my watch after a minute or so and think "get on with it!" until the lyrics finally start, and by then, the song is halfway over anyways, or I find a song with a reasonably clever or witty title that seems to promise a fun story and I'm let down that it's only an instrumental track.
My theory on why arrangements were set up that way was that getting people up and dancing/grooving out was more important than the lyrics, so the 'hooks' seemed to be separated into two distinct layers - the instrumental hook, which came first, then the lyrical hook which built on the previously introduced melodies. I would also assume that this arrangement scheme carries over from musicals of the time as well, but I don't know for sure. This particular form of arrangement seems to be much less prevalent in love/sad songs, which seem to me to be closer to contemporary arrangement styles that seem to have been pretty much locked in by the 40s.
I claim no expertise in this field of knowledge, these are just my conclusions from what I've listened to over the years.
posted by chambers at 9:05 AM on June 25, 2013 [1 favorite]
Sometimes digging through old 78s can be pretty frustrating. That trend of music of the Victrola era where the lyrics don't start until a third or even halfway into the song has always struck me as odd. There's been so many times that bad lyrics wreck a good instrumental song, or a song with good lyrics makes me impatiently look at my watch after a minute or so and think "get on with it!" until the lyrics finally start, and by then, the song is halfway over anyways, or I find a song with a reasonably clever or witty title that seems to promise a fun story and I'm let down that it's only an instrumental track.
My theory on why arrangements were set up that way was that getting people up and dancing/grooving out was more important than the lyrics, so the 'hooks' seemed to be separated into two distinct layers - the instrumental hook, which came first, then the lyrical hook which built on the previously introduced melodies. I would also assume that this arrangement scheme carries over from musicals of the time as well, but I don't know for sure. This particular form of arrangement seems to be much less prevalent in love/sad songs, which seem to me to be closer to contemporary arrangement styles that seem to have been pretty much locked in by the 40s.
I claim no expertise in this field of knowledge, these are just my conclusions from what I've listened to over the years.
posted by chambers at 9:05 AM on June 25, 2013 [1 favorite]
My theory on why arrangements were set up that way was that getting people up and dancing/grooving out was more important than the lyrics,
As I understand it, yes. And I prefer it that way. Minimal singing please.
posted by bongo_x at 9:10 AM on June 25, 2013
As I understand it, yes. And I prefer it that way. Minimal singing please.
posted by bongo_x at 9:10 AM on June 25, 2013
For those who can't get enough of these snappy tunes, archive.org to the rescue.
Thanks for posting these. This is gold to my ears.
posted by the sobsister at 4:28 PM on July 1, 2013 [1 favorite]
Thanks for posting these. This is gold to my ears.
posted by the sobsister at 4:28 PM on July 1, 2013 [1 favorite]
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posted by Ululator at 7:38 AM on June 25, 2013