Ask “Mr. Music”
Jerry Osborne



FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 8, 2004

DEAR JERRY: In 1985, about 30 jazz greats gathered for a concert in New York to celebrate the revival of the legendary Blue Note label.

About a year later, the media reviewed a video made of that show, also noting the release of a four-disc vinyl album edition.

What I would like to know is whether or not this concert has ever been issued on CD? If so, how might it be available?

For the record, I have never even seen the video offered for sale.
—Jim Strasser, Wisconsin Rapids, Wisc.

DEAR JIM: Known as “One Night with Blue Note,” this historic event is indeed available on four compact discs, appropriately titled “One Night with Blue Note,” Volumes 1 through 4.

There are likely other online sources for this set, but I checked only half.com and fould all four discs listed for sale for around $10 each.

You mention the video while not indicating you want it, but this concert is also posted on half.com in both the VHS and DVD formats.

It appears you will have no difficulty adding the sounds and the sights of that momentous get-together to your jazz library.

DEAR JERRY: For as long as I can remember I have been nuts about the music of Joni James. As such, I have amassed quite a collection of her recordings.

When I bought the 45 rpm of her big hit “There Goes My Heart,” it was advertised as MGM's first ever stereo single.

What I would like to know is whether any of the then-new stereo singles sold well? After all, how many folks had a stereo phonograph at the time? We didn't. Also, you could ruin a stereo record if you played it using a mono needle.
—Donny Ames, Metropolis, Ill.

DEAR DONNY: As for using a mono needle on a stereo album, the damage can vary from one stylus-disc combination to another. While total vinyl destruction is not likely, one can easily lose the intended stereo reproduction forever.

Now let's talk about the marvelous Joni James and early stereo singles:

In the late '50s, the primary market for stereo singles was with juke box operators, and most juke historians point to the 1959 Seeburg 222 as the first box designed to play stereo singles.

With major labels like RCA Victor and MGM releasing their first batch of stereo 45s in the fall of '58, the Seeburg 222s were in their locations and ready for stereo spins in a timely manner.

Not many homes had stereo phonographs then, and those that did probably used them only for long playing albums.

All of which means that not many of those early stereo singles — only a smattering of which were hit songs — sold well.

Worth noting is the confusion created by the two different numbers used for “There Goes My Heart.” Thankfully, Wayne Brasler, president of the Joni James International Fan Club and editor of “Joni” magazine, now sorts all of that out for us:

DEAR JERRY: The original selection number for “There Goes My Heart” was SK-12706 and copies were issued both with a special blue label and the regular yellow-and-black MGM label.

The record also sold well because retailers ordered copies to play on the new stereo equipment in their stores, which led to consumers buying copies to take home.

On the strength of its success, MGM decided to continue issuing stereo singles and began a new series for that purpose; the SK-50000 series.

To simplify ordering, "There Goes My Heart" was then reissued as SK-50109. Likewise, the followup Joni James hit, “There Must Be A Way” (SK-12746), was reissued as SK-50111.

Also, here's a interesting note about Seeburg's 222 stereo jukebox:

Throughout Joni's career, the number 22 has popped up over and over in her single and album numbers. For example, her first MGM album was E-222.

There are also a lot of 22s in the number of weeks her singles stayed on the charts and even in matrix numbers on foreign releases.

Of course the 222 coincidence with that Seeburg juke box, which added to further sales of her stereo singles, did not go unnoticed.
—Wayne Brasler, Chicago, Ill.

DEAR WAYNE: Your explanation makes perfect sense, and we thank you very much for sharing it.

DEAR JERRY: Reading your recent discussion of “The Wedding of the Painted Doll,” from the 1929 film “The Broadway Melody,” gives me hope you can answer my question about a song with a similar title.

I am trying to locate information about “Painted Tainted Rose,” and now wonder if the song I'm looking for is also from this film.
—Elia Abra, St. Petersburg, Fla.

DEAR ELIA: There is no connection here. Though both titles have ”Painted” in common, about 34 years separates them. Peter DeAngelis and Jean Sawyer composed “Painted Tainted Rose” in 1963. It quickly became a Top 15 hit that summer for Al Martino (Capitol 5000).

IZ ZAT SO? Stereophonic long-playing albums arrived in the marketplace, as well as on the charts, many months before stereo singles appeared.

The first of the true stereo LPs to reach No. 1 is Frank Sinatra's “Come Fly with Me,” a January 1958 issue of tracks recorded the first week of October 1957.





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