In the sixth volume of
Sepia Records
' chronological series of
Bing Crosby
's commercial recordings called
Through the Years
, the series reached a major re-recording project for
Crosby
, the five-LP box set
Bing Crosby: A Musical Autobiography
, in which he introduced and sang songs from throughout his career to mark the 20th anniversary of
Decca Records
in 1954.
Through the Years, Vol. 7: 1954
is largely given over to more material from the box set.
, accompanied by
Buddy Cole
's organ playing in his spoken reminiscences, then sings over
Cole
's piano trio on evergreens from the '20s and '30s (many of which, in their original versions, were cut for labels other than
Decca
). These often brief renditions are heard in
's relaxed, resonant later style (he celebrated his 51st birthday in this period, though thinking himself only 50). A few new recordings are interspersed with the
Musical Autobiography
tracks, notably a couple from
's upcoming film
White Christmas
with a score by
Irving Berlin
,
"What Can You Do with a General?"
and
"Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep."
As the extensive liner notes by
expert
Malcolm MacFarlane
point out,
's statements in the introductions are not always entirely factual (he gets some dates wrong, for instance), but they have the jocular tone of his radio shows, and, in fact, this disc comes off more like a radio show than a set of commercial tracks, making it an unusual entry in the chronological series. ~ William Ruhlmann