The Yearly GELT's TOP 1940

Joan Fontaine & Judith Anderson in Rebecca (Alfred Hitchcock, 1940)
Artist of the Year : Frank SINATRA


 Although pampered by his Italian-born parents, the young Francis was anyhow a troublesome boy. Out-of- middle school owing to his bad behavior, he was even arrested still minor together with a married woman, what in that time constituted an offence.
 The fact of missing his lessons had however no effect on his decision to launch into a musical career. He learned by himself to play ukulele whereas his voice already led to foresee real singing abilities. His models were, as for young people of his generation, Bing Crosby and Rudy Vallee. By drawing inspiration from their style, he began performing at night in a bar of Hoboken while working the daytime in a factory or as newspaper boy.
  In 1935, his mother reached to make him hire in a vocal group of the city, the Three Flashes, but despite a first radio hit, he quickly gave up and went back home. His mother picked him up once again a job as waiter at the Rustic Cabin, a big restaurant in Englewood Cliffs (NJ) where he got especially the advantage to liven evenings up.
  He was about to marry Nancy Barbato, the love of his life, when he got pointed out by trumpeter Harry James who attended the place. This one was precisely forming his own band and impressed by the young singer’s talent, he made him sign a first contract in June, 1939 for a series of recordings in Brunswick studios. Sales remained however confidential.

 While performing in November at the Palm House, Chicago, Frank Sinatra met Tommy Dorsey who suggested immediately to hire him to replace his vocalist Jack Leonard, eager to launch into solo career. He did not delay to grab the opportunity and started performing with the band on January 26th, 1940 in Rockford (IL). A particularly prolific year with not less than 40 recorded tracks was soon to follow.

Song of the Year : Time On My Hands performed by Billie Holiday
Music: Vincent Youmans /Lyrics : Harold Adamson & Mack Gordon
It will never enough be said how much Billie Holiday was influential on jazz song. She built at first her musical personality from Bessie Smith, admired for her ability to focus attention, but quickly asserted herself by the unmatched tone of her voice and the way she made the lyrics her own. She got for that rid of the supporting role usually assigned to vocalists by the bandleaders to become prominent on stage.

She also used the microphone to tighten intimate atmosphere, allowing her to strengthen emotion, adding content to the style. She achieved her singer's status by performing as an actress in a drama that she shared, through her voice, with the public.


 #
 Artist
 Title
 CT
VIDEO 
 1 
 Charlie Barnet
 Where Was I feat. Mary Ann  McCall
 (Al Dubin)

 2 
 Benny Goodman
 How High The Moon feat. Helen  Forrest
 (Morgan Lewis/Nancy Hamilton)
 3 
 Billie Holiday
 Time On My Hands
 (Vicent Youmans/Mack Gordon/Harold  Adamson)
 4 
 Jimmy Dorsey
 The Breeze And I feat. Bob Eberly
 (Ernest Lecuona/Al Stillman)
 5
 Ella Fitzgerald & Her  Famous Orchestra
 Baby, Won't You Please Come  Home
 (Charles Warfield/Clarence Williams)
 6
 Artie Shaw
 Whispers In The Night feat. Anita  Boyer
 7
 Glenn Miller
 A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley  Square feat. Ray Eberle
 (Eric Mashwitz/Manning Sherwin)
 8 
 The Andrews Sisters
 Beat Me Daddy Eight To The Bar
 (Don Raye/Ray McKinley)
 9
 Jimmie Lunceford
 That's Your Red Wagon feat. The  Dandridge Sisters
 (Don Raye/Gene DePaul/Richard M. Jones)
 10
 Bing Crosby
 The Moon Comes Over Madison  Square
 (Abe Lyman/Arthur Freed/Gus Arnheim)
 11 
 Tommy Dorsey
 I'll Never Smile Again feat. Frank  Sinatra &The Pied Pipers
 (Ruth Lowe)
 12
 Benny Goodman
 Darn That Dream feat. Mildred  Bailey
 (Eddy DeLange/Jimmy Van Heusen)

 13
 Glenn Miller & His Orchestra
 Shake Down The Stars feat. Ray  Eberle
 (Eddie Delange/Jimmy Van Heusen)
 14 
 Dinah Shore
 Yes, My Darling Daughter
 (Jack Lawrence)

 15
 Cliff Edwards
 When You Wish Upon A Star
 (Leigh Harline/Ned Washington)
 16 
 Jimmy Dorsey
 Amapola feat Helen O'Connell &  Bob Eberly
 (Joseph LaCalle)
 17
 Bing Crosby
 Only Forever
 (James V. Monaco/Johnny Burke)
 18
 Charlie Barnet
 Six Lessons For Mme  LaZonga feat. Mary Ann McCall
 (James V. Monaco/Charles Newman)
 19
 Gene Krupa
 Moments In The Moonlight feat.  Edward Dulany
 (Al Hoffman/Irving Gordon/Richard  Himber)
 20
 Louis Armstrong & The Mills  Brothers
 Marie
 (Irving Berlin)
 21 
 Ella Fitzgerald & Her  Famous Orchestra
 At The Starlit Hour
 (Mitchell Parish/Peter De Rose)
 22
 Jimmie Lunceford
 Watcha Know Joe feat. Trummy  Young
 (Virgil Stamps/Luther G. Presley)
 23
 Billie Holiday
 I'm Pulling Through
 (Arthur Herzog, Jr./Irene Kitchings)
 24
 Glenn Miller
 Give a Little Whistle feat. Marion  Hutton
 (Leigh Harline/Ned Washington)
 25
 The Andrews Sisters
 Ferryboat Serenade
 (La Piccinina)
 26 
 Tommy Dorsey
 Imagination feat Frank Sinatra
 (James Van Heusen/Johnny Burke)
 27 
 Judy Garland
 I'm Nobody's Baby
 (Milton Ager/Benny Davis/Lester Santly)
 28
 Glenn Miller
 Fools Rush In feat. Ray Eberle
 (Johnny Mercer/Rube Bloom)
 29 
 Maxine Sullivan
 The Hour Of Parting
(Gus Kahn/Mischa Spoliansky)

 30
 Fats Waller
 Tain't Nobody's Biz-Ness If I Do
 (Clarence Williams/Percy Grainger/Robert  Prince)
 31
 The Ink Spots
 When The Swallows Come Back To  Capistrano
 (Leon Rene)
 32 
 The Andrews Sisters
 Rhumboogie
 (Don Raye/Hughie Prince)
 33
 Charlie Barnet 
 Thank Your Stars feat. Mary Ann  McCall
 (Abner Silver/Harold Adamson)
 34
 Cab Calloway
 The Worker's Train
 (Arthur Shaftel/Cab Calloway/Sunny Kylar)
 35
 Glenn Miller
 Boog It feat. Marion Hutton
 (Buck Ram/Cab Calloway/Jack Palmer)
 36
 Eddie Howard
 Wrap our Troubles In Dreams
 (Harry Barris/Ted Koehler/Billy Moll)

 37 
  Kay Kyser
 Like The Fella Once Said feat.  Sully Mason, Harry Babbitt,  Ginny  Simms & Chorus
 (Jimmy McHugh/Johnny Mercer)
 38
 Tommy Dorsey
 Love Lies feat. Frank Sinatra
 (Carl Sigman/Joseph Meyer/Ralph Freed)
 39 
 Artie Shaw
 Gloomy Sunday feat. Pauline  Byrne
 (Laslo Javor/Reszö Seres/Sam M. Lewis)
 40 
 Vaughn Monroe
 There I Go
 (E.B. Wallace)

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