Classic Recordings

There have been many great recordings over the years. Many of them were big hits and made you crank them up when they came on the radio. However, only a few can be called classics.

What do I mean by a classic here? I don’t mean it had to be a number one hit. I don’t mean that it had a catchy tune that you can’t get out of your head. By classic, I mean a song that grabs hold of your soul and won’t let go. It takes you into the depths of feeling and holds you there.

In roughly chronological order, here is a list of such great recordings. Where I could find them on YouTube, I added links to the original recordings.

1. Stardust – Artie Shaw (1940) Stardust is one of the most recorded songs in history. It was written in 1927 by Hoagie Carmichael as an up-tempo number. It was in 1929, when Mitchell Parish wrote the lyrics, that the song became the song we know today. While Nat King Cole has a very moving vocal version (it reportedly brought Walter Winchell to tears), the absolute best recording is Artie Shaw’s 1940 recording. It starts with a bar of Billy Butterfield’s plaintive solo trumpet. From there, you are hooked. Next comes Shaw's clarinet solo, followed by Jack Jenney's tremendous trombone solo. In the 1940’s, RCA Records wanted to issue a double-sided record of Stardust: Shaw’s version on one side, Tommy Dorsey’s version on the other. When Dorsey – who was quite an egotist – heard Shaw’s version, he begged RCA to abandon the idea. He knew his version would pale by comparison, and he didn’t want the embarrassment.

2. Mr. Bojangles – Jerry Jeff Walker (1968) If all you know is the 1970 version by the Nitty Gritty Dirt band, then you have missed a great song. The Dirt Band’s version is an exercise in bubble gum. With the original version, you feel as though you are listening to the guy who shared the jail cell with Mr. J. It is a sad song of a life unfulfilled. Listen to this, and you just have to say, “Damn.”

3. Rainy Night in Georgia – Brook Benton (1970) It seems incongruous, but this song was written in 1962 by Tony Joe White. While I enjoy that song, is hard to imagine that the person who wrote such a swamp-rocker as Polk Salad Annie could write such a tender ballad as Rainy Night in Georgia. The beautiful arrangement combined with the exceptional vocal by Brook Benton makes this a haunting recording. You just know it is raining all over the world.

4. The Band Played Waltzing Matilda – Liam Clancy (197?) My father was a professional soldier. He knew war. He hated war. He knew that, sometimes, war was necessary. The song is Australian. In fact, the Australian Performing Right Association declared in May 2001 that the song was one of the top thirty Australian songs of all time. My father loved Irish music, and he loved the Clancy Brothers. That is why he knows this recoding. That is why I know this recording. While a professional soldier knows war and is willing to fight it, he also knows and hates war the most. But he also knows the price of not fighting war, and he is unwilling to pay that price.

5. Sultans of Swing – Dire Straits (1979) With the opening line, you can’t help but get that shiver in the dark. You are in London. Your mind’s eye sees the entire story as described by Mark Knopfler. George and Harry are old friends of yours. You just hate it when the time bell rings, because you know that the night – and the song – is almost over.

6. Fast Car – Tracey Chapman (1988) This song has a musical motif that carries through most of the song. That motif reflects the drudgery of the life of the protagonist. Several times in the song there is an optimistic air. Other than that, it is a song that touchingly reflects a life of happiness never found.

I am a sucker for a great story song. Such a song does not even have to have words, as Mr. Shaw demonstrated. If you can find the original recordings of any of these songs, listen to them. You will not be disappointed.