Uploaded September 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Spike Jones And His City Slickers – A Serenade To A Jerk
Fox Trot - Vocal refrain by Judy Manners and Red Ingle
Written by Del Porter and Carl Hoefle
78 RPM audio transfer
Spike Jones And His City Slickers – Chloe / A Serenade To A Jerk
Label: Victor – 20-1654
Format: Shellac, 10", 78 RPM
Recorded: January 13, 1945
Released: 1945
Genre: Jazz, Stage & Screen
Style: Comedy
Other side of this record: Chloe
youtu.be/R4xpSHjv7Lw
Band members:
Beauregard Lee, Billy Barty, Carl Grayson, Carl Hoefle, Del Porter, Dick Gardner, Dick Morgan, Don Anderson, Doodles Weaver, Dr. Horatio Q. Birdbath, Freddy Morgan, George Rock, Joe Siracusa, Joe Washburne, John Stanley, King Jackson, Luther Roundtree, Luther Rountree, Red Ingle, Sir Frederick Gas, Spike Jones
Lindley Armstrong Jones, better known as Spike Jones, was born on December 14, 1911, in Long Beach, California. Due to his slender frame, he earned the nickname "Spike." In the 1930s, Jones joined the Victor Young orchestra and appeared on radio shows such as Al Jolson's Lifebuoy Program, Burns and Allen, and Bing Crosby's Kraft Music Hall. Growing tired of playing the same music every night, Jones formed a group of like-minded musicians and began playing parodies of standard songs for their own amusement, recording their weekly performances for their wives. One of these recordings was discovered by an RCA Victor executive, who offered the group a recording contract. Despite his belief that the record's popularity would fade, audiences continued to ask for more, inspiring Jones to create more comic arrangements. From 1937 to 1942, Jones played percussion for the John Scott Trotter Orchestra, and he was part of a backing band for songwriter Cindy Walker. Her song "We're Gonna Stomp Them City Slickers Down" inspired the name for Jones's future band. The original City Slickers lineup included vocalist-violinist Carl Grayson, banjoist Perry Botkin, trombonist King Jackson, and pianist Stan Wrightsman, and they gained a small following after performing publicly in Los Angeles. The band's early records were released on RCA Victor's Bluebird label before moving to the more prestigious Victor label. Jones was given his own radio show on NBC, The Chase and Sanborn Program, in 1945, and formed another group in 1946, Spike Jones and His Other Orchestra, that played lush arrangements of dance hits. However, the paying public preferred the City Slickers, and Hollywood producers hired them as a specialty act for feature films. The band also worked on numerous Soundies. In the early 1950s, the decline of big bands and the rise of rock and roll significantly impacted Jones's repertoire. Unable to parody rock songs in the same way he had parodied other standards, Jones instead used rock music as a source of humor, as seen in his introduction of "the bottom half of Elvis Presley" on television, which featured dwarf actor Billy Barty scampering across the stage in a pair of pants. Jones left RCA Victor in 1955 due to dissatisfaction with management censoring his recordings and other issues, and his later works were released by Verve, Liberty, and Warner Bros. In 1956, he produced a Christmas song album with serious performances. Jones revamped his act for television in 1957, inspired by the success of Lawrence Welk's dance band's television show, with a more straightforward big-band sound and tongue-in-cheek comic moments. He and his band had their own slot on NBC, The Spike Jones Show, during the summers of 1957, 1960, and 1961. Jones, who was a heavy smoker throughout his life, died on May 1, 1965 in Beverly Hills, California at age 53.
Del Porter (April 13, 1902, Newberg, Oregon – October 4, 1977, Los Angeles) was an American jazz vocalist, saxophonist, and clarinetist who, in the 1930s, performed on Broadway, toured with Glenn Miller, and recorded with Bing Crosby, Dick Powell, and Red Nichols, and in the 1940s, led his own big band. Porter was a singer with the Foursome, which came to prominence in the 1930 Broadway hit show, Girl Crazy. Porter co-founded the City Slickers with Spike Jones.
Note: The first 78 RPM record came into existence around 1894, and in 1912, the Gramophone Company established 78 rpm as their recording standard. The production of shellac records continued throughout the 78 rpm era, with "non-breakable" 78 rpm vinyl records being introduced in the 1940s. The popularity of the 33 1/3 rpm "Long Play" record, initially released in 1948, caused the 78 rpm record to become obsolete before the end of the 1950s. As these 78 rpm recordings are quite old, they may contain derogatory language and/or negative stereotypes. It is important to evaluate such recordings within their historical context and consider them as a reflection of the attitudes prevalent at the time. These recordings form an integral part of the historical record and do not represent the views of this poster, channel, or Bowness Arts.
Spike Jones And His City Slickers – A Serenade To A Jerk
Fox Trot - Vocal refrain by Judy Manners and Red Ingle
Written by Del Porter and Carl Hoefle
78 RPM audio transfer
Spike Jones And His City Slickers – Chloe / A Serenade To A Jerk
Label: Victor – 20-1654
Format: Shellac, 10", 78 RPM
Recorded: January 13, 1945
Released: 1945
Genre: Jazz, Stage & Screen
Style: Comedy
Other side of this record: Chloe
youtu.be/R4xpSHjv7Lw
Band members:
Beauregard Lee, Billy Barty, Carl Grayson, Carl Hoefle, Del Porter, Dick Gardner, Dick Morgan, Don Anderson, Doodles Weaver, Dr. Horatio Q. Birdbath, Freddy Morgan, George Rock, Joe Siracusa, Joe Washburne, John Stanley, King Jackson, Luther Roundtree, Luther Rountree, Red Ingle, Sir Frederick Gas, Spike Jones
Lindley Armstrong Jones, better known as Spike Jones, was born on December 14, 1911, in Long Beach, California. Due to his slender frame, he earned the nickname "Spike." In the 1930s, Jones joined the Victor Young orchestra and appeared on radio shows such as Al Jolson's Lifebuoy Program, Burns and Allen, and Bing Crosby's Kraft Music Hall. Growing tired of playing the same music every night, Jones formed a group of like-minded musicians and began playing parodies of standard songs for their own amusement, recording their weekly performances for their wives. One of these recordings was discovered by an RCA Victor executive, who offered the group a recording contract. Despite his belief that the record's popularity would fade, audiences continued to ask for more, inspiring Jones to create more comic arrangements. From 1937 to 1942, Jones played percussion for the John Scott Trotter Orchestra, and he was part of a backing band for songwriter Cindy Walker. Her song "We're Gonna Stomp Them City Slickers Down" inspired the name for Jones's future band. The original City Slickers lineup included vocalist-violinist Carl Grayson, banjoist Perry Botkin, trombonist King Jackson, and pianist Stan Wrightsman, and they gained a small following after performing publicly in Los Angeles. The band's early records were released on RCA Victor's Bluebird label before moving to the more prestigious Victor label. Jones was given his own radio show on NBC, The Chase and Sanborn Program, in 1945, and formed another group in 1946, Spike Jones and His Other Orchestra, that played lush arrangements of dance hits. However, the paying public preferred the City Slickers, and Hollywood producers hired them as a specialty act for feature films. The band also worked on numerous Soundies. In the early 1950s, the decline of big bands and the rise of rock and roll significantly impacted Jones's repertoire. Unable to parody rock songs in the same way he had parodied other standards, Jones instead used rock music as a source of humor, as seen in his introduction of "the bottom half of Elvis Presley" on television, which featured dwarf actor Billy Barty scampering across the stage in a pair of pants. Jones left RCA Victor in 1955 due to dissatisfaction with management censoring his recordings and other issues, and his later works were released by Verve, Liberty, and Warner Bros. In 1956, he produced a Christmas song album with serious performances. Jones revamped his act for television in 1957, inspired by the success of Lawrence Welk's dance band's television show, with a more straightforward big-band sound and tongue-in-cheek comic moments. He and his band had their own slot on NBC, The Spike Jones Show, during the summers of 1957, 1960, and 1961. Jones, who was a heavy smoker throughout his life, died on May 1, 1965 in Beverly Hills, California at age 53.
Del Porter (April 13, 1902, Newberg, Oregon – October 4, 1977, Los Angeles) was an American jazz vocalist, saxophonist, and clarinetist who, in the 1930s, performed on Broadway, toured with Glenn Miller, and recorded with Bing Crosby, Dick Powell, and Red Nichols, and in the 1940s, led his own big band. Porter was a singer with the Foursome, which came to prominence in the 1930 Broadway hit show, Girl Crazy. Porter co-founded the City Slickers with Spike Jones.
Note: The first 78 RPM record came into existence around 1894, and in 1912, the Gramophone Company established 78 rpm as their recording standard. The production of shellac records continued throughout the 78 rpm era, with "non-breakable" 78 rpm vinyl records being introduced in the 1940s. The popularity of the 33 1/3 rpm "Long Play" record, initially released in 1948, caused the 78 rpm record to become obsolete before the end of the 1950s. As these 78 rpm recordings are quite old, they may contain derogatory language and/or negative stereotypes. It is important to evaluate such recordings within their historical context and consider them as a reflection of the attitudes prevalent at the time. These recordings form an integral part of the historical record and do not represent the views of this poster, channel, or Bowness Arts.
