the1920sand30s | Ambrose & His Orchestra - The Night Rides (1936) @the1920sand30s | Uploaded August 2022 | Updated October 2024, 2 hours ago.
Performed by: Bert Ambrose & His Orchestra
Full Song Title: The Night Rides
Recorded in: 1936
BBenjamin Baruch Ambrose ( born 15 September 1896 – died 11 June 1971), known professionally as Ambrose or Bert Ambrose, was an popular English bandleader and violinist of the late 1920s and 30s. Ambrose became the leader of a highly acclaimed British dance band, Bert Ambrose & His Orchestra, in the 1930s.
Ambrose was born in Warsaw in 1896 whilst it was part of Russia. At some time after, the family moved to London. They were Jewish; his father being a 'Dealer in rags' in the 1911 UK Census where Ambrose was named as 'Barnett' (a "Violin musician student"). He began playing the violin while young, and traveled to New York with his aunt. He began playing professionally, first for Emil Coleman at New York's Reisenweber's restaurant, then in the Palais Royal's big band. After making a success of a stint as bandleader, at the age of twenty he was asked to put together and lead his own fifteen-piece band. After a dispute with his employer, he moved his band to another venue, where they enjoyed considerable popularity.
Whilst at the Palais Royal, on 5 June 1918, he registered for the Draft (Local Board Division 169, City of NY NY, 144 St Nicholas Ave; Registration 232). He gave: date of birth 11 Sept 1896; place of birth Warsaw, Russia; nationality Russian; father's birthplace Grietza, Russia; place of employment Palais Royal 48 St & Broadway; nearest relative Mrs Becky Ambrose, Mother, 56 "Blaksley" St London England. He signed Bert Ambrose. The registrar recorded: medium height; medium build; brown hair; brown eyes; no physical disability that would render him exempt.
In 1922, he returned to London, where he was engaged by the Embassy Club to form a seven-piece band. Ambrose stayed at the Embassy for two years, before walking out on his employer to take up a much more lucrative job in New York. After a year there, besieged by continual pleas to return from his ex-employer in London, in 1925 he was finally persuaded to go back by a cable from the Prince of Wales: "The Embassy needs you. Come back—Edward".
This time Ambrose stayed at the Embassy Club until 1927. The club had a policy of not allowing radio broadcasts from its premises, however, and this was a major drawback for an ambitious bandleader, largely because the fame gained by radio work helped a band to gain recording contracts (Ambrose's band had been recorded by Columbia Records in 1923, but nothing had come of this). He therefore accepted an offer by the May Fair hotel, with a contract that included broadcasting.
During his time at the Embassy, he married "Kathryn Lucille otherwise Kitty Brady" a 24 y.o. Irish-American, from New Jersey, on 20 January 1924. Oddly, he is named and signed as "Bernard Ambrose" a 27 y.o. "Musical Director" on the certificate. They had two daughters: Patricia S (1931) and Monica J (1933).
Ambrose stayed at the May Fair for six years, during which time the band made recordings for Brunswick Records, HMV and Decca. He teamed up with Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, and an American harmony song trio, the Hamilton Sisters and Fordyce (aka, Three X Sisters) to record songs including "My Heart Stood Still" and other tunes. This period also saw the musical development of the band, partly as a result of Ambrose's hiring of first-class musicians, including Sylvester Ahola, Ted Heath, Joe Crossman, Joe Jeannette, Bert Read, Joe Brannelly, Dick Escott and trumpeter Max Goldberg.
In 1933, Ambrose was asked to accept a cut in pay at the May Fair; refusing, he went back to the Embassy Club, and after three years there (and a national tour), he rejected American offers and returned to the May Fair in 1936. He then went into partnership with Jack Harris (an American bandleader), and in 1937 they bought a club together (Ciro's Club). For three months they even employed Art Tatum there, some think the greatest jazz pianist who ever lived. Ambrose and Harris alternated performances in Ciro's until a disagreement led to the rupture of their partnership. Ambrose then worked at the Café de Paris until the outbreak of World War II, when he again went on tour.
After a short period back at the May Fair Hotel, he retired from performing in 1940 (though he and his orchestra continued to make records for Decca until 1947). Several members of his band became part of the Royal Air Force band, the Squadronaires, during the war.
On 11 June 1971 during the recording of one of Kirby's television programmes (at the Yorkshire Television studios) Ambrose collapsed, dying later the same night in Leeds General Infirmary. He was buried in the Bushey Jewish Cemetery, Hertfordshire.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I have.
Best wishes,
Stu
______________________
Please Note: I do not claim copyright or ownership of the song played in this video. All copyrighted content remains property of their respective owners.
Performed by: Bert Ambrose & His Orchestra
Full Song Title: The Night Rides
Recorded in: 1936
BBenjamin Baruch Ambrose ( born 15 September 1896 – died 11 June 1971), known professionally as Ambrose or Bert Ambrose, was an popular English bandleader and violinist of the late 1920s and 30s. Ambrose became the leader of a highly acclaimed British dance band, Bert Ambrose & His Orchestra, in the 1930s.
Ambrose was born in Warsaw in 1896 whilst it was part of Russia. At some time after, the family moved to London. They were Jewish; his father being a 'Dealer in rags' in the 1911 UK Census where Ambrose was named as 'Barnett' (a "Violin musician student"). He began playing the violin while young, and traveled to New York with his aunt. He began playing professionally, first for Emil Coleman at New York's Reisenweber's restaurant, then in the Palais Royal's big band. After making a success of a stint as bandleader, at the age of twenty he was asked to put together and lead his own fifteen-piece band. After a dispute with his employer, he moved his band to another venue, where they enjoyed considerable popularity.
Whilst at the Palais Royal, on 5 June 1918, he registered for the Draft (Local Board Division 169, City of NY NY, 144 St Nicholas Ave; Registration 232). He gave: date of birth 11 Sept 1896; place of birth Warsaw, Russia; nationality Russian; father's birthplace Grietza, Russia; place of employment Palais Royal 48 St & Broadway; nearest relative Mrs Becky Ambrose, Mother, 56 "Blaksley" St London England. He signed Bert Ambrose. The registrar recorded: medium height; medium build; brown hair; brown eyes; no physical disability that would render him exempt.
In 1922, he returned to London, where he was engaged by the Embassy Club to form a seven-piece band. Ambrose stayed at the Embassy for two years, before walking out on his employer to take up a much more lucrative job in New York. After a year there, besieged by continual pleas to return from his ex-employer in London, in 1925 he was finally persuaded to go back by a cable from the Prince of Wales: "The Embassy needs you. Come back—Edward".
This time Ambrose stayed at the Embassy Club until 1927. The club had a policy of not allowing radio broadcasts from its premises, however, and this was a major drawback for an ambitious bandleader, largely because the fame gained by radio work helped a band to gain recording contracts (Ambrose's band had been recorded by Columbia Records in 1923, but nothing had come of this). He therefore accepted an offer by the May Fair hotel, with a contract that included broadcasting.
During his time at the Embassy, he married "Kathryn Lucille otherwise Kitty Brady" a 24 y.o. Irish-American, from New Jersey, on 20 January 1924. Oddly, he is named and signed as "Bernard Ambrose" a 27 y.o. "Musical Director" on the certificate. They had two daughters: Patricia S (1931) and Monica J (1933).
Ambrose stayed at the May Fair for six years, during which time the band made recordings for Brunswick Records, HMV and Decca. He teamed up with Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, and an American harmony song trio, the Hamilton Sisters and Fordyce (aka, Three X Sisters) to record songs including "My Heart Stood Still" and other tunes. This period also saw the musical development of the band, partly as a result of Ambrose's hiring of first-class musicians, including Sylvester Ahola, Ted Heath, Joe Crossman, Joe Jeannette, Bert Read, Joe Brannelly, Dick Escott and trumpeter Max Goldberg.
In 1933, Ambrose was asked to accept a cut in pay at the May Fair; refusing, he went back to the Embassy Club, and after three years there (and a national tour), he rejected American offers and returned to the May Fair in 1936. He then went into partnership with Jack Harris (an American bandleader), and in 1937 they bought a club together (Ciro's Club). For three months they even employed Art Tatum there, some think the greatest jazz pianist who ever lived. Ambrose and Harris alternated performances in Ciro's until a disagreement led to the rupture of their partnership. Ambrose then worked at the Café de Paris until the outbreak of World War II, when he again went on tour.
After a short period back at the May Fair Hotel, he retired from performing in 1940 (though he and his orchestra continued to make records for Decca until 1947). Several members of his band became part of the Royal Air Force band, the Squadronaires, during the war.
On 11 June 1971 during the recording of one of Kirby's television programmes (at the Yorkshire Television studios) Ambrose collapsed, dying later the same night in Leeds General Infirmary. He was buried in the Bushey Jewish Cemetery, Hertfordshire.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I have.
Best wishes,
Stu
______________________
Please Note: I do not claim copyright or ownership of the song played in this video. All copyrighted content remains property of their respective owners.
![Grammophon Orchester - Onkelchen sei doch nicht böse [ Uncle dont be angry ] (1916)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/iC12eG3PCBU/hqdefault.jpg "Grammophon Orchester - Onkelchen sei doch nicht böse [ Uncle dont be angry ] (1916)
Performed by: Grammophon Orchester
Vocalist: Unknown
Full Song Title: Onkelchen sei doch nicht böse
Recorded in: 1916 , Berlin Germany
The Grammophon-Orchester, also known as the Gramophone Orchestra, was a collective term used to refer to various artists that recorded for the record label Deutsche Grammophon Aktiengesellschaft Berlin. Deutsche Grammophon, founded in 1898, is a German music label that has played a significant role in the recording and distribution of shellac music in the early 20th century.
The Grammophon-Orchester played a vital role in Deutsche Grammophons recording activities, providing the musical accompaniment for numerous artists and soloists who recorded under the label. These orchestras were carefully selected and constituted some of the finest ensembles in Germany. They were renowned for their high level of musicianship, precision, and interpretation of the German folk repertoire. But unfortunately they are mostly not acknowledged on the records. This makes it very difficult to find out more about the artists and the lives they lived.
This song is from Das Fräulein vom Amt (The Miss from the Office) by Jean Gilbert, Okonkowski Georg and Franz Arnold. Premiered in 1915 at the Theater des Westens at Kantstraße 12 in Berlin, Germany.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I have.
Best wishes,
Stu
Please Note: I do not claim copyright or ownership of the song played in this video. All copyrighted content remains property of their respective owners.")
![Jean Lumière - La Petite Église [The Little Church] (1933)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/idSWNS2abJw/hqdefault.jpg "Jean Lumière - La Petite Église [The Little Church] (1933)
Performed by: Jean Lumière
Full Song Title: La Petite Église
Recorded in: 1933
Jean Lumière (born August 20, 1895 in Marseille and died April 2, 1979 in Paris) was a popular French singer and Grand Prix du Disque winner of the 1930s.
His real name was Jean Anezin, he was born into a family of music-loving merchants. He first considered an acting career, but then changed his mind and began singing in Nice and Marseille. Following a meeting with the singer Esther Lekain, he made his debut in 1930 in Paris at the Théâtre de lEuropéen. Esther Lekain urged him to change his name and allegedly chose his pseudonym for him: Your voice is clear, you are from the South, your name will be Jean Lumière.
In 1934, he had great success with Paul Delmets song La Petite Église , winning the Grand Prix du Disque, pursuing a remarkable career in Europe, the Middle East, and South America. He is notably the first performer of the French version of the song taken from the animated feature film Pinocchio from Disney studios released in 1946: Quand on prie la bonne étoiles (When You Wish upon a Star).
Long considered to have the best radio voice, Jean Lumière left the stage in 1960 to become a singing teacher. His students include Marcel Amont, Gloria Lasso, Cora Vaucaire, Diane Dufresne, Mireille Mathieu.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I have.
Best wishes,
Stu
Please Note: I do not claim copyright or ownership of the song played in this video. All copyrighted content remains property of their respective owners.")
![Aldo Masseglia & Meme Bianchi - Che Bel Romanzo Damore [What a beautiful romance] (1936)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/j_xInjn08Dw/hqdefault.jpg "Aldo Masseglia & Meme Bianchi - Che Bel Romanzo Damore [What a beautiful romance] (1936)
Performed by: Aldo Masseglia & Meme Bianchi
Full Song Title: Che Bel Romanzo Damore
Recorded in: 1936
Some of you may recognize this iconic song, this is a cover of Fred Astaires & Ginger Rogerss - A Fine Romance from the movie Swing Time (1936).
You can hear Freds and Gingers original here: https://youtu.be/sRqK-KxNLAY
Aldo Masseglia (La Spezia, 5 October 1903 - Lodi, 2 September 1978) was a popular Italian singer of the 1930s.
He began his career in the early thirties as a violinist, playing in various orchestral formations, until he revealed good singing skills that allowed him to enter the EIAR in Turin in 1936, in the Barzizza orchestra.
Here he met and married the Milanese singer Nuccia Natali, from whom, in 1943, he had a daughter, Rosella Masseglia Natali, who was an appreciated pop singer in the sixties.
He also participated in the famous radio broadcasts The Four Musketeers, where he played the role of Athos, and The Phantom Microphone, both conceived by Nizza and Morbelli.
In 1938 he left the radio to devote himself to musical performances, giving way to Alberto Rabagliati.
His most significant interpretations are: Cuore A Cuor, Tu che ti chiami amor, Vele, Cinquantanni fa, Gioventù, Lasciati andare, Villanella, Faccetta nera, Francescamaria, Me ne frego, Ritorna il legionario, Bandiere al sole e Ti saluto and e vado in Abissinia.
Meme Bianchi, born Magda Merope Bianchi (Porto Ceresio, April 26, 1907 - Milan, October 25, 2000), was a popular Italian singer of the 1930s.
She inherited the ability to sing from her mother, Ida Viale, an opera singer, and from her grandmother, Merope Bavestrelli Bianchi, also an opera singer. From her grandmother she also inherited her middle name, which as a child she could not pronounce, she used to pronounce Merope as Meme and from thereon Meme became her nickname.
She grew up in Porto Ceresio and obtained a primary school teacher diploma, but her father did not want her to take up the teaching profession, so as a young woman she began to work in her fathers customs office at the train station.
In the years between the word war one and world war two, some of her family members in Porto Ceresio had started a theater company and in the summer they performed stage plays in the newly built theater. At the end of the show, the audience asked Meme to sing and one evening in 1933, a talent scout for a record label, offered her to audition in Milan. Under the pretext of running some errands, Meme auditioned and got a record deal thanks to her great vocal range, her soft voice and her clear diction.
She recorded hundreds of records, many under the orchestral direction of Mario Mariotti, who would later become her husband. She becomes the first singer of EIAR, performing with the famous orchestras of Petralia and Barzizza. On the radio she played operettas such as Al Cavallino Bianco and The Four Musketeers, the famous broadcast show with Nunzio Filogamo linked to a prized competition.
She also made numerous recordings with the orchestra of Maestro Enzo Ceragioli for the Odeon label.
In 1936 she was with the group Schwarz. Singer/actress in the Bertoldissimo stage play. In Greece she inaugurated Radio Athens and in Switzerland Radio Monteceneri; she went on many tours throughout Italy and abroad with the group I Divi del Microphone.
In 1939, at the church of SantAmbrogio in Porto Ceresio, she married maestro Mario Mariotti (1889-1975), composer, arranger and director of the Odeon record label, for whom she recorded at the time.
At the outbreak of the war she continued to perform in the theater and for soldiers she gave recitals accompanied by a single accordion, one of such performances was on the destroyer Grecale. As a thank you, the sailors lined up in a row in front of her and they gave her their rations of coffee.
In 1958 she retired to her hometown, resuming her job at her fathers customs office at the the train station.She passed away in Milan on 25 October 2000.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I have.
Best wishes,
Stu
Please Note: I do not claim copyright or ownership of the song played in this video. All copyrighted content remains property of their respective owners.")
