Battle of the Bands

Blueberry Hill #BoTB showdown

January 15, 2022 /

It’s time to get back to producing two BOTB a month.  That being said, today’s battle has sat in my ‘drafts’ folder for nearly two years.  You know how it goes you get a post together then something chances your mind. Well that’s sort of what happened when this one got lost in the shuffle. Being at a loss for what to do for mid-month, I felt the time was perfect to use this one.  

We all know Fats Domino popularized this 50s classic, Blueberry Hills. Some of y’all even grew up listening to Fats’ version but did you know that he wasn’t the first to record it? My first thought was to find two covers that followed after his famous hit but then I thought why not go backwards using two recordings from 1940 the year the song was first recorded.

Let’s begin with the first recording of ‘Blueberry Hill’ by Swing & Sway with Sammy Kaye.

My second artist has a very similar style as the first but then this was the sound of the 40s.  Try out Glenn Miller and His Orchestra with Ray Eberly.

Update….I corrected this post to reflect the correct name of the second contender from Connee Boswell to Ray Eberly, thanks to Tom’s sharp ears and music knowledge. I should have double checked my videos since this post sat in drafts state forever. Either I didn’t catch it the first go around or the web address got reassigned.

 

Who do you think does Blueberry Hills better Band #1, Swing & Sway with Sammy Kaye or Band #2, Glenn Miller and His Orchestra with Ray Eberle?

 

I invite you to visit BoTBers with showdowns going on today.

*Unless noted, all other participants will present two battles per month on the 1st & 15th

Voting ends midnight (EST), Jan. 21st. Don’t forget to leave your vote in comments!  

 

Be sure to check back next Saturday for the results of this battle.  Join me tomorrow for freedom of music choice on Monday’s Music Moves Me on Sunday! That’s a wrap for now. Have a bandtastic day!  X💋X💋, Cathy



29 Comments

  • Stephen T. McCarthy

    January 19, 2022 at 5:33 pm

    CAThy!

    I’m late, but I’m still great!
    (Well, fashionably tardy, anyway.)

    Hokey-Smoke! Sammy Kaye had that beautiful Glenn Miller sound going for him! Wonderful stuffs!!

    BOTH of these recordings sound terrific, and very similar. But since (let’s face it) Sammy Kaye’s orchestra is doing Glenn Miller’s sound, while Glenn Miller’s Orchestra is doing… the Glenn Miller sound… I pretty much have to bote for Glenn Miller (my favorite musical artist whole the world).

    Lovely music for a quiet afternoon. Thanks!

    ~ D-FensDogG

    • Cathy Kennedy

      January 19, 2022 at 7:06 pm

      Stephen,

      You’ve made a grand entrance to this round of BOTB, my friend. So, glad you were able to join me but as the old saying goes, “Better late than never.”

      I couldn’t agree more, both artists are superb. I’ll chalk up another vote for GLENN MILLER ORCHESTRA FEATURING RAY EBERLY!

      Have a good evening, my friend!

  • Debbie D.

    January 19, 2022 at 3:53 pm

    Yikes! I thought I voted on this already, but don’t see my comment. Maybe I forgot to clcik post?? Anyway, hope I’m not too late. My choice would be Glenn Miller.

  • Marie Moody

    January 16, 2022 at 5:04 am

    Cathy, I just got out of the hospita, we though I had covid. My hand is swollen, an I also have a kidney infection and yes I do hav a small case of covid. I can’t walk I just have al lot of pain walking is just my and I also have a kidney infection. Please I’m sorry, but I have to ask you because I could not find you number please either call me tomorrow and hopefully I will be better by next week. This one idiot tried to find my vein and could not and they kept poking and anyway call me please so we can talk, but it will have to be early afternoon or send me a letter via email. You are my lil’ princess for sure. so please call me and we can talk. You’re the best. My left hip is swollen and so dam sore. So there you go…. love is definitely in my heart for you and as I said please PLEASE call me when you have time. Love, Marie… this evening my hip was so sore and painful I couldn’t even walk. HUGS, MARIE PLEASE SEND ME YOUR NUMBER AND i’LL CALL YOU IF YOU LIKE….. LUV, mARIE i OWE YOU BIG TIME… Anything I mean anything just tell me and consider it done. I owe you so very much… hold down the fort for me… Love, Marie HUGS Having small veins I have my righ hand is so false and a kidney iaffection LOVE YA, MARIE,,,, HUGS

    • Cathy Kennedy

      January 16, 2022 at 1:42 pm

      Marie,

      I’m sorry to learn you haven’t been well. I sent you an email, so look for it. We can talk anytime you want. I hope you’re doing some better now! Sending love, hugs, and prayers to you, my dear!

  • 15andmeowing

    January 15, 2022 at 7:51 pm

    I like Ray Eberlee’s version better. I can picture Richie Cunnignham on Happy Days singing this. 🙂

    • Cathy Kennedy

      January 15, 2022 at 10:32 pm

      Ellen,

      Ha-Ha! I had forgotten how Richie Cunningham would sing “Blueberry Hill” on HAPPY DAYS. 😀 What a good show! Thanks for voting for GLENN MILLER FEATUREING RAY EBERLY!

  • messymimi's meanderings

    January 15, 2022 at 6:35 pm

    Aaaarrrrgh! Why are you doing this to me, making me choose between Sammy Kaye and Glenn Miller! That’s like asking me to choose between my husband and my kids! (Well, not really, but almost.)

    Okay, okay, i have to go with Sammy Kaye, and now i feel like i need to turn in my Glenn Miller Fan Club card. Sob!

  • Birgit

    January 15, 2022 at 2:34 pm

    These are sooo close in style but I am giving it to Glen Miller with Ray as the singer. He voice sounds a bit stronger and “cleaner” the the first one. I read what Tom wrote and it is a shame that there are so many errors about who sang this or wrote that. Thank goodness for the knowledge of Tom. i like the version he played here too.

  • Arlee Bird

    January 15, 2022 at 12:29 pm

    Guess my vote went to your spam. I’ve gotta remember not to put my link in my comments on your site. It’s a longtime habit for me though and hard to break.

    • Cathy Kennedy

      January 15, 2022 at 1:34 pm

      Lee,

      Don’t worry about it. Keep adding your link if you want. I’ve gotten good to watch for WP oddities such as this and I will get around to approving all comments as quickly as possible.

  • Arlee Bird

    January 15, 2022 at 12:28 pm

    I don’t hear much difference between the two of these. But I like them both better than Fats Domino. I never much liked the song and Fats was the only version I ever knew. These versions (including the version Tom corrected with) are much better than the fifties update. The real Connee is too slow for me.

    Give my vote to Sammy Kaye and his buds. Nice and bright and fun to listen to.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

    • Cathy Kennedy

      January 15, 2022 at 1:33 pm

      Lee,

      I always find your and others comments that don’t publish right away. Actually WP put yours in my “Pending” folder, not Spam. I agree with you the “real Connee” rendition is a bit too slow to suit me, as well. I’m not sure why I would’ve put her against Sammy Kaye had I originally found the version Tom shared or I just wan’t paying close enough attention to vocals in the second video. Oh well, I really screw up this battle but thankfully Tom helped me to save it by pointing out my big goof. I have you down for SAMMY KAYE!

  • Thomas Anderson

    January 15, 2022 at 7:21 am

    Hi, Cathy!

    I am here for some battle of the bands style Saturday Songsuasion, dear friend!

    Yessum, I well remember Fats Domino’s 1956 version of “Blueberry Hill.” For your first mid-month BOTB of 2002, instead of posting covers released in the years that followed the international hit by Fats, it was an exciting and refreshingly different idea for you to take us back in time and have the 1940 original by Swing And Sway With Sammy Kaye compete against a cover from that same year. by Connee Boswell. Regrettably, I need to point out a problem, which I will get to in a moment.

    The version by Swing And Sway With Sammy Kaye was released in June, 1940, and features the crooning of guest vocalist Tommy Ryan. As was the style during the big band swing years, the band plays for more than a minute before Tommy starts to sing. I enjoyed this version. Connee Boswell’s cover was released two months later in August, 1940.

    “Houston, we have a problem!” I am familiar with Connee Boswell because I posted songs she sang with her famous sibling act The Boswell Sisters in a tribute to Margaret Schneider. I am sorry to let you know that the version you posted here, credited to Connee Boswell, is not Connee. Apparently, multiple YouTube channels have uploaded the incorrect version of the song and listed it as by Connee. The song we are actually hearing in your BOTB is indeed a cover by Glenn Miller, but the vocalist we are hearing is Ray Eberle, not Connee Boswell. I listened to video after video on YouTube, and could only find one vid that seems to have the correct version by Connee Bowell. It is on a 78 rpm with rather poor audio quality:

    So I don’t know what you want to do about this problem, dear friend. It certainly isn’t your fault that so many YouTubers led us astray. To my chagrin, this kind of thing is happening more and more lately. People are uploading songs mistakenly credited to others, or re-recorded versions that they are passing off as originals. It’s unnerving. I will come back later today or in the days ahead to see how you have sorted it out. If you would like us to vote on the Connee Boswell version, the one I posted here, which was not recorded with Glenn Miller but with a piano player and a few other musicians, then my vote would go for Sammy Kaye & Tommy Ryan because they offer a larger orchestra and less muddy sound. However, if you would like us to choose between the two versions you posted, then I am voting for contestant #2, Glenn Miler Orchestra featuring Ray Eberly because it has a more vibrant big band sound and slightly more pleasing vocal. So please assign my vote accordingly, dear friend.

    I wish you a safe and happy weekend, dear Cathy!

    • Cathy Kennedy

      January 15, 2022 at 12:33 pm

      Tom,

      All though this post sat in drafts for a few years I’m fairly certain I had a version with Connee Boswell but I can’t swear to that now. I sure do appreciate you picking up on the mess up and you even went so far to find a version on YT. I fixed the second artist to reflect his correct identity. Thanks for stopping in this morning to cast the first vote for GLENN MILLER FEATURING RAY EBERLY!

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