Ozzie Nelson
was no
Benny Goodman
or
Jimmy Dorsey
, and his band wasn't up to those standards, but they were one of the most popular radio orchestras of their era. This collection of 16 songs, assembled from radio transcription recordings done in 1937, shows why -- they had a subtle but compelling way with a beat, and a mix of elegance and jauntiness that does indeed, as the long-ago
Downbeat
writer observed, get under your skin. His singing wasn't bad either, a fresh-faced tenor voice, expressive and cheerful in the manner of his idol
Rudy Vallee
, though by 1937 he'd outgrown
Vallee's
influence.
"Head Over Heels In Love"
and "Whirligig" are the best numbers here, but "Swing, Swing Dear Mother-in-Law," "Poor Robinson Crusoe," and "Sophisticated Swing," as well as just about everything else here, has something to recommend it.
Charlie Buebeck's
baritone and sax and clarinet are highlights among the players, but this was a solid band all the way through. ~ Bruce Eder