Whispering - The Hits Collection Vol. 1 1920-27

Paul Whiteman was a violinist who became one of the most successful bandleaders and orchestral directors in the history of popular music. Although his music was essentially middle-of-the-road dance band music in flavour, it had much of the roaring 20s atmosphere, and he was often referred to as “The King Of Jazz”, the phrase that was used as the title of a film about him. So successful was he that he had 220 hits attributed to him from 1920 through to 1954, more than any other artist, we believe. We have chosen to address that career with two 5-CD collections, of which this is the first (“Smoke Gets In Your Eyes - The Hits Collection Vol. 2 1928-54” Acrobat ACFCD7522 is the other one). This 113-track 5-CD set comprises all the titles listed as hits, all of them on the Victor label, from his 1920 debut through to the end of 1927. It includes no less than twenty-three No. 1s including the classic songs “Whispering”, “What’ll I Do”, “Birth of The Blues”, “My Blue Heaven”, “In A Little Spanish Town”, “Somebody Loves Me” and “Among My Souvenirs) The Japanese Sandman”. There are performances by a number of featured vocalists including Bing Crosby, Jack Fulton, Charles Gaylord, Austin Young, Lewis James and more, plus a piano solo by George Gershwin. It’s a substantial and comprehensive overview of the hits from his early career, and a great showcase for his highly successful style.