Fred Rich was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1898 who began recording as a bandleader in 1925 with his Hotel Astor Orchestra, which he led from 1922 – 1928. By the time of this recording, he had recorded quite prolifically. However – fun fact – at the time of this recording, Mr. Rich was still not yet a U.S. citizen. He did not become one until 1934.
This deep depression cut was pressed on the “Hit of the Week” label – made not of shellac but on a paper base coated with Durium – a synthetic resin. They were sold at newsstands for 15 cents apiece.
Unfortunately, the brief “Auld Lang Syne” track contained a needle dig (visible in the label scan around two o’clock) that rendered it unplayable due to skips. Even so, the longer format of these discs fit nearly five minutes of music on each side – so the sweet ballad “You Call It Madness” still clocks in at nearly four minutes long.
Though the tune is a slow dance tune, it does feature some jazz players such as Venuti & Lang, Bunny Berigan, Joe Tarto, and others. A brief piano solo is heard at 3:15.
I’m not always a fan of the schmaltz – but something about this track is quite lovely. Perhaps it is the voice of Helen Hannah Rubin (performing as Helen Rowland), who had been featured on the radio singing for NBC a few times that year.
Recorded in New York City circa November 1931.
Released as Hit of the Week M2.
Credits:
Bunny Berigan, Tommy Gott (?) – trumpet
Tommy Dorsey (?), Charlie Butterfield – trombone
Elmer Feldkamp, Tony Parenti – clarinet, alto sax
Joe Venuti – violin
Walter Gross – piano
Cornell Smelser – pac
Eddie Lang – guitar
Joe Tarto or Hank Stern – tuba
Helen Rowland – vocals
Unknown Artists – trumpet, tenor sax (x2), drums
Sources:
Helen Rubin – Radio Singer, by Neal R. Simpson, Vintage Jazz Mart
https://www.vjm.biz/174-helen.pdf
American Dance Band Discography, Vol. 2, Brian Rust
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