BOB HOWARD AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1932-1935 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1152 (2000) | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

During the years 1935 and 1936, Victor recording star Fats Waller was one of the most popular Afro-American entertainers in the entire industry. His distinctive vocal delivery and infectious small-band swing formula were so successful that other record labels shrewdly advanced their own Fats Waller imitators. Vocalion used Putney Dandridge, a singing pianist whose own talents shone through, and an irritating copycat named Dick Porter who presented nothing original whatsoever and didn't even do a very good job of mimicking Waller. Decca Records presented Bob Howard, a volatile character who began as an impostor but ultimately formed his own ebullient style and left behind a small number of entertaining recordings. Born Howard Joyner on June 20, 1906, in Newton, MA, he recorded a couple of rowdy numbers in 1932 for the Columbia label using his given name. At that time the rising star in Afro-American vocal entertainment was Louis Armstrong, and Howard impersonated Armstrong right down to the laughs. He laughed quite a bit, in fact, guffawing his way through "You Rascal You." Even though this is a close cover of Armstrong's masterpiece of bawdy humor, Howard is such a volcano of hilarity that his performance has merit. If one is moved to ponder what effect this doppelgänger must have had upon Armstrong, the question becomes worrisome when listeners are faced with a series of Fats Waller imitations. Lester Young experienced a personal identity crisis when a full dozen tenor saxophonists began copying his style during the late '40s and early '50s. How many of these fake Fats Waller records did Waller himself encounter? Didn't it steal his thunder? These questions might gnaw at Waller fans, particularly during six songs that were direct covers of Waller's hit records. Howard sounded too much like Waller at first, except during what was apparently the second part of a smart showbiz version of Cole Porter's "You're the Top" by the Decca All Star Review. (Howard's contribution to this rather crowded number was to periodically bellow the song's title at the top of his lungs!) The bands heard on this disc are uniformly excellent, fortified with Benny Carter, Buster Bailey, Ben Webster, Teddy Wilson, and Billie Holiday's father, guitarist Clarence Holiday. Fortunately, Howard also sounded at times like Putney Dandridge, and by May 7, 1935, he really began to sound like his own rowdy self. There is an exceptionally satisfying version of "Corrine Corrina," a cheerful '30s love song called "Ev'ry Day," and a very funny treatment of "I Can't Dance (I Got Ants in My Pants)." On July 10th, Howard cut two sides with a group containing members of Teddy Hill's orchestra. Although "Lulu's Back in Town" was already firmly associated with Fats Waller (and still is), by now Howard's own personality predominates. The final two tracks are equally fine. "I Never Saw a Better Night" is much hipper than the cottony white Bluebird version recorded six days earlier by George Hall & His Taft Hotel Orchestra. "In a Little Gypsy Tearoom," with lively percussion by Cozy Cole, bears a marvelous resemblance to Tampa Red's 1936 masterpiece "When You Were a Girl of Seven." arwulf arwulf  
Tracklist :
1     You Rascal You 3:14
Sam Theard
2     All of Me 3:19
Gerald Marks / Seymour Simons
3     It's Unbelievable 3:01
Palmer / Klages
4     Whisper Sweet 2:56
J.P. Johnson
5     Throwin' Stones at the Sun 2:59
Billy Hueston / Nat Simon
6     You Fit into the Picture 2:51
Bud Green / Jesse Greer    
7     You're the Top (Continued) 2:59
Cole Porter    
8     The Ghost of Dinah 2:54
Jack Little / Joseph Young
9     Pardon My Love 2:54
Milton Drake / Oscar Levant
10     Stay Out of Love 3:05
Gerbach / La Fremiere
11     I'll Never Change 3:01
Gray / Oppenheim
12     (Where Were You) On the Night of June the Third 2:42
Sam H. Stept / Charles Tobias
13     (Looks Like I'm) Breakin' the Ice 2:51
James Cavanaugh
14     Corrine Corrina 2:59
Bo Chatmon / J. Mayo Williams
15     Ev'ry Day 2:51
Sammy Fain / Irving Kahal    
16     A Porter's Love Song to a Chambermaid 2:55
James P. Johnson / Andy Razaf
17     I Can't Dance 2:59
J. Mayo Williams
18     If the Moon Turns Green 2:38
Paul Cates / Bernie Hanighen
19     Lulu's Back in Town 2:45
Al Dubin / Harry Warren
20     In a Little Gypsy Tea Room 2:26
Joe Burke / Edgar Leslie     
21     I Never Saw a Better Night 2:42
Unknown

BOB HOWARD AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1935-1936 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1121 (2000) | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Bob Howard recorded frequently for Decca during 1935-1938. The Decca label was hoping that his jivey vocal records would duplicate the commercial success of Fats Waller's Rhythm sides for Victor, but Howard remained comparatively obscure. For this classics chronological study, Howard leads six band dates which find his vocals accompanied by such notable swing players as trumpeter Bunny Berigan (who is on eight songs), clarinetists Cecil Scott and Artie Shaw, trombonist Benny Morton, pianists Frank Froeba and Frank Signorelli, and the team of trumpeter Eddie Farley and trombonist Mike Riley. Among the tunes are "Lost My Rhythm, Lost My Music, Lost My Girl," "It's Written in the Stars," "You Hit the Spot," "Spreadin' Rhythm Around," and "Wake Up and Sing." Concluding this CD are four medleys (two or three songs apiece) featuring Howard as a pianist (accompanied by drummer Ronnie Gubertini) recorded in London. Overall, this is one of the best of the Bob Howard collections. Scott Yanow  
Tracklist :
1     Lost My Rhythm, Lost My Music, Lost My Girl 3:07
Brown / Maxwell / Akst
2     I'm Painting the Town Red 2:35
Charles Newman / Sam H. Stept / Charles Tobias
3     It's Funny What a Kiss Can Do 2:28
Unknown Blues Band
4     Sugar Plum 3:02
Arthur Johnson / Arthur Johnston / Gus Kahn
5     It's Written in the Stars 2:35
Jack Little / Fred Rose
6     Give Me a Break, Baby 2:33
Unknown Blues Band
7     Whose Big Baby Are You? 2:50
Ted Koehler / Jimmy McHugh
8     Much Too Much 3:01
Unknown Blues Band
9     Garbo Green 2:29
Fred Fisher
10     You Hit the Spot 2:35
Mack Gordon / Harry Revel
11     Spreadin' Rhythm Around 2:47
Ted Koehler / Jimmy McHugh
12     Wake Up and Sing 2:32
Unknown Blues Band
13     If Love Is Blind 2:38
Cahn / Chaplin / Raye
14     The Best Things Happen at Night 2:35
Unknown Blues Band
15     Public Weakness No. 1 2:56
Fred Rose
16     Let's Not Fall in Love 2:32
Unknown Blues Band
17     Swing It, Bob, Pt. 1: Intro. I Ain't Got Nobody/I Can't Give You ... 2:53
Dorothy Fields / Jimmy McHugh
18     Swing It, Bob, Pt. 2: Intro. Some of These Days/Limehouse ... 2:25
Brooks / Braham / Furber     
19     Swing It, Bob, Pt. 3: Intro. Solitude/Nobody's Sweetheart/St. ... 3:01
Eddie DeLange / Duke Ellington / Irving Mills
20     Swing It, Bob, Pt. 4: Intro. Chinatown My Chinatown/Tiger Rag 2:52
Schwartz / La Rocca

BOB HOWARD AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1936-1937 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1076 (1999) | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Bob Howard did a lot of recording in the mid-'30s for Decca, with the hope that his Fats Waller-influenced jive singing would catch on as Waller's records had for Victor. It did not work out, but Howard did record enough material to fill up three CDs. This particular set has the 21 selections that he cut during five sessions in 1936-1937. Howard, who also played piano, sticks here exclusively to singing and is joined by sextets/septets that often include trumpeter Marty Marsalis, Sid Trucker, or Slats Long on clarinet and Zinky Cohn or Frank Froeba on piano. The music (which includes "Bojangles of Harlem," "Copper Colored Gal," "Me, Myself And I," "Penny Wise and Pound Foolish," and "He's a Gypsy From Poughkeepsie") is pleasing in small doses but a bit too derivative for extensive listening. Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1     Bojangles of Harlem 2:42
Dorothy Fields / Jerome Kern
2     Mendel's Son's Swing Song 2:53
Erard
3     Sing Baby Sing 2:57
Channing Pollack / Jack Yellen
4     Swinging on the Moon 3:16
Mel Tormé / Joseph Young
5     Copper Colored Gal 2:50
J. Fred Coots / Benny Davis
6     That's What You Mean to Me 3:14
J. Fred Coots / Benny Davis
7     Hop, Skip and Jump 2:36
Bloch / Chancer         
8     You're Giving Me a Song and a Dance 2:52
Milton Ager / Marty Symes
9     Me, Myself and I 3:13
Irving Gordon / Alvin Kaufman / Allan Roberts
10     Spring Cleaning 2:27
Teddy Powell / Walter Samuels / Leonard Whitcup
11     You Can't Take It With You 2:50
Wes Hein
12     You're Just a Little Diff'rent 2:37
Mandell / Littau    
13     Bundle of Love 2:55
Joyner     
14     You're Precious to Me 2:56
Ballard / Pellish / Brusiloff
15     Fan My Brow 2:44
Unknown
16     Formal Night Harlem 3:10
Shuman / Faro / Leman     
17     He's a Gyspy from Poughkeepsie 2:49
Bud Green
18     Easy Living 2:44
Ralph Rainger / Leo Robin
19     I'll Take the Key and Lock You Up 2:44
Tinturin /  Lawrence / Howell    
20     Sing and Be Happy 2:36
Akst / Clare
21     Penny Wise and Pound Foolish 2:31
Fred Rose

BOB HOWARD AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1937-1947 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1055 (1999) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

By September of 1937, Bob Howard had begun to outgrow his annoying habit of imitating Fats Waller's every nuance. Think of it -- as a Decca recording artist Howard was placed in the uncomfortable position of competing with Waller, Victor's hugely successful vocalist, pianist, and master of small-group swing. Earlier Howard recordings possess the power to drive Waller fans up the wall with irritation. Here, happily, the problem seems to have been (mostly) resolved, as Howard sounds more or less like himself, even when covering songs that were and still are almost entirely associated with Thomas Waller ("Beat It Out," "I'm Sorry I Made You Cry," and "She's Tall, She's Tan, She's Terrific"). When forging ahead into songs that seemed ripe for the Waller treatment (although, sadly, Waller never lived long enough to record them), Howard delivers the goods in a perfect combination of his own and Waller's styles. Most of the material packed into this portion of the Bob Howard chronology features the singer standing well away from the piano so as to be able to concentrate on singing his little heart out. Decca lined him up with consistently excellent players like trumpeter Eddie Farley, tenor saxophonist Babe Russin, guitarist Teddy Bunn, drummers O'Neill Spencer and Stan King, and pianists Frank Froeba and Billy Kyle. The winning combination of Kyle and Spencer makes some of this stuff sound a bit like a bracing preview of the John Kirby Sextet. There is a delightful treatment of "Casey Jones" and a perfectly reasonable rendering of Waller's "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now," constituting a rare example of Bob Howard/Decca paying composer royalties to Fats Waller/Victor. A reference to marijuana usage during "There Ain't Gonna Be No Doggone Afterwhile" seems to presage Howard's version of Stuff Smith's full-blown hymn to cannabis indulgence, "If You're a Viper." Legend has it that Fats Waller & His Rhythm also waxed a version of this happy opus in 1938, but the master recording was actually destroyed by a naïve and apparently brainwashed record company employee who panicked after apparently overdosing on Harry J. Anslinger/J. Edgar Hoover-inspired vice squad propaganda. Waller had his revenge when he cut a particularly lascivious rendition of the song for the Armed Forces' V-Disc label shortly before his early demise in 1943. This fascinating bundle of rare novelty swing closes with two rather scratchy sides recorded for the Atlantic label in 1947. Howard, back at the piano in the company of Everett Barksdale, John Simmons, and Cozy Cole, rendered up a delightful paean to "Mo'lasses" and a version of "Button Up Your Overcoat" that Ruth Etting certainly never dreamt of. This excellent disc is packed with tasty performances that are far superior to Bob Howard's earlier work. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1    Beat It Out    2:49
2    I'm Sorry I Made You Cry    2:44
3    What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For    2:31
4    She's Tall, She's Tan, She's Terrific    2:38
5    There Ain't Gonna Be No Doggone Afterwhile    2:30
6    If You're A Viper    2:22
7    Baby And It Must Be Love    2:46
8    Raggedy But Right    2:52
9    In My Miz    2:26
10    Toodle-Oo    2:47
11    Just About The Time    2:26
12    Talk To Me    2:45
13    I Can Tell By Looking In Your Eyes    2:29
14    You Better Come Back    2:42
15    Dapper Dan    2:51
16    Southern Casey Jones    3:10
17    I Used To Love You    2:46
18    Keepin' Out Of Mischief Now    2:44
19    Sweet Emalina, My Gal    2:55
20    Beale Street Mama    2:37
21    You're Lucky In Kentucky Sure As You're Born    2:54
22    Any Rags    2:42
23    On Revival Day    2:37
24    Mo'lasses    2:40
25    Button Up Your Overcoat    2:50
Credits
Bass – Haig Stephens (tracks: 1 to 23), John Simmons (tracks: 24, 25)
Clarinet – Slats Long (tracks: 1 to 4)
Drums – Cozy Cole (tracks: 24, 25), O'Neil Spencer (tracks: 5 to 23), Stan King (tracks: 1 to 4)
Guitar – Everett Barksdale (tracks: 24, 25), Frank Victor (tracks: 1 to 4), Teddy Bunn (tracks: 5 to 23)
Piano – Billy Kyle (tracks: 13 to 23), Bob Howard (tracks: 24, 25), Frank Froeba (tracks: 1 to 12)
Tenor Saxophone – Babe Russin (tracks: 1 to 4)
Trumpet – Eddie Farley (tracks: 1 to 4)
Vocals – Bob Howard