Programming note: Later today at SteynOnline I'll be here with Part Two of our latest Yuletide Tale for Our Time, Anthony Trollope's Christmas at Thompson Hall.
~On this week's episode of Mark Steyn on the Town, we remember a singer who died far too young, and one who lived to a grand old age. Plus a Sinatra birthday party (that's three-year-old Frank in his finery above).
To listen to the programme, simply click here and log-in.
~Thank you for your kind comments about last week's show. Steve, a First Month Founding Member of The Mark Steyn Club, says:
Mark, Thanks for The Wham of Sam. I always wondered what Mr. Bojangles sounded like in the original Finnish.
And I loved hearing Frank and Sam's shout out to the long departed Jilly's Saloon. Went there a couple times in the 70s. You can see it in a scene in the Manchurian Candidate.
Yeah, I loved Jilly's too, Steve, though I think that I first went there in the Eighties; and the lyric I hear at first mention is not Frank's but Buddy Greco's:
The food at Jilly's is great, no doubt
But she doesn't understand what my motel room's about.
Hard to argue with that.
George, a California Steyn Clubber, writes:
I loved this show. I learned so much more about Sammy. I hear many of Sammy's music on Serenade-Radio.com. Your show on Sammy is the definitive summary.
From Nancy, a Montana member of The Mark Steyn Club:
Sammy must have had extensive voice and articulation input. I always felt he could be just a little too conscious of his vocals (Streisand has the same tendency). Davis Jr's wonderful rendition of 'Joey,Joey,Joey' shows none of that almost overdone style and makes the song a joy to listen to.
There was too much music to draw from Davis Jr's repertoire. I missed 'It Ain't Necessarily So' from Porgy and Bess, and 'Sam's Song' with Dean Martin but hey - I'm not complaining. I'll probably play today's program several times during the week.
Thanks Mark. You did it again!
Barbara also felt there was something missing:
I always look forward to Mark Steyn's programme, his knowledge and personal experiences of Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack is fascinating, the composers, even the breakdown of the lyrics is so interesting, makes you wish you'd been a fly on his shoulder so you could have been there at the time.
The playing of Sammy Davies Jnr was missing one song, my personal favourite. I Gotta be Me. I have never heard it played on serenade Radio but I may be wrong. Hopefully this will be rectified
That was my fault, Barbara. We had your favourite song on the original rundown, but the show came out 2'53 too long – and, as "I Gotta Be Me" is 2'57, that seemed the easiest cut to make. But maybe not the right one.
So apologies for that. In a few years, we'll release the director's cut of the show...
Jake, a Devonshire Steyn Clubber, noticed a subtler absence:
Some great arrangements and vocals on today's show particularly Rockin' the Boat and Birth of the Blues but I started to wonder, where are the standards?
Was Sammy Davis Jnr denied the great love songs because of his skin colour? If so, it would seem particularly cruel given his 'buddy' recorded the entire catalogue.
My highlight was There Ain't Nothing like a Dame featuring some fabulous congas. Why aren't bongos and conga drums featured in more arrangements?
No, Sam recorded "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" and a bunch of other big love ballads, Jake, but, as I said on the show, I never felt he plumbed the full emotional depths on a lot of them.
Gordon, a British Columbia Steyn Clubber, reminded me of another number we failed to get to:
Not having spent any time in Las Vegas night clubs, my exposure to Sammy Davis Jr. was pretty much limited to his periodic appearances on TV. Clearly a dynamic performer, I remember him best for his finger-snapping revival number in Bob Fosse's film Sweet Charity, "The Rhythm of Life".
"Hit the floor and crawl to Daddy." Yeah!
Yeah! Indeed! I'm a big fan of the show Sweet Charity, not so much of the film. But "The Rhythm of Life" is a great moment.
On the Town is my weekly music show on Serenade Radio every Saturday at 5pm Greenwich Mean Time - that's 6pm in western and central Europe or 12 noon North American Eastern. You can listen from almost anywhere in the world by clicking the button at top right here. We also post On the Town at SteynOnline every weekend as a bonus for Mark Steyn Club members. You can find all our previous shows here.
We do enjoy your comments on our weekend programming. Steyn Clubbers are welcome to leave them below. For more on The Mark Steyn Club, now in its ninth year, see here - and don't forget our special Gift Membership, which makes a perfect Christmas present..
Mark Steyn on the Town can be heard on Serenade Radio at its regular times, now recovered from the momentarily misaligned hemispherical time-zones:
Saturday 5pm London time/12 noon New York
Sunday 5am London time/9pm Los Angeles
