Phantom Dancer :: 12:00pm 6th Aug 2024
Wendall Hall was an American country singer, vaudeville artist, songwriter, pioneer radio performer, recording artist and ukulele player. On 4 June 1924, the ‘Red-Headed Music Maker’ marriage ceremony to Marion Martin was the first ever live on radio. He is your Phantom Dancer feature artist this week.
The Phantom Dancer is your weekly non-stop mix of swing and jazz from live 1920s-60s radio and TV every week.
LISTEN to this week’s Phantom Dancer mix (online after 2pm AEST, Tuesday 6 August) and weeks of Phantom Dancer mixes online at, at https://2ser.com/phantom-dancer/
WENDALL
Radio pioneer Wendall Hall was known as the Red-Headed Music Maker and the Pineapple Picador on in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1923, he released the song
His 1923 hit, “It Ain’t Gonna Rain No Mo’,” sold over two million copies in the United States and was the first musical hit on radio.
Hall also collaborated with Carson Robison and Art Gillham writing songs.
Wendall Hall started his music career in 1922 song plugger, travelling around the U.S and to play in music in shops, theatres, and on the wireless.
His first vaudeville act was him singing and playing the xylophone. He found the ukulele to be more portable and quickly became an expert with that instrument.
By 123 is was performing often on Chicago radio, leading in January 1924 to hosting the pioneer commercially sponsored variety program, The Eveready Hour (spruiking batteries) on WEAF in New York.
On November 4, 1924, the program was on a pre-network 18 station “hook-up” to broadcast election returns with entertainers Will Rogers, Carson Robison, Art Gillham, and the Waldorf Astoria Orchestra.
Eveready even painted their batteries with a red top to cash in on Hall’s popularity.
In January, 1929, Hall hosted ‘The Majestic Theatre of the Air’ as producer, program director, and emcee on CBS.
In April of that year he introduced singer Harriet Lee on the show as the “Chicago Nightingale”, leading to her becoming a hit on radio
He hosted ‘Gillette’s Community Sing’ in the early 1930s and made a few musical short films. He wrote commercials for radio and from September 1933 had a program on NBC.
HALL
Wendall Hall performed played standard ukulele, the taropatch ukulele, banjo, banjolele, and the 10-string Martin-style tiple.
He published an instruction book, Wendell Hall’s Ukulele Method, with Forster Music in 1925, that was edited by May Singhi Breen.
Hall also marketed a series of custom ukuleles through the Regal Musical Instrument Company of Chicago, with his picture on the head of The Red Head Ukulele and banjolele with red tuning pegs that have become collectors’ items
Wendall distanced himself from the ukulele when they went out of fashion. However, when Arthur Godfrey brought uke’s back in the 1950s, Hall scored a five days a week radio show and his instruction booklets were updated and republished.
6 August PLAY LIST
Play List – The Phantom Dancer
107.3 2SER-FM Sydney
LISTEN ONLINE Community Radio Network Show CRN #666
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107.3 2SER Tuesday 6 August 2024 |
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Set 1
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Gay Claridge | |
Open + Instrumental
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Gay Claridge Orchestra
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‘One Night Stand’
Chez Paree Chicago
AFRS Re-broadcast 15 Oct 1945 |
I Don’t Want to Love You + Two Again
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Gay Claridge Orchestra (voc) Jack Milton |
‘One Night Stand’
Chez Paree Chicago
AFRS Re-broadcast 15 Oct 1945 |
Dancing with a Dolly | Gay Claridge Orchestra (voc) Guy Claridge |
‘One Night Stand’
Chez Paree Chicago
AFRS Re-broadcast 15 Oct 1945 |
The Way You Look Tonight | Gay Claridge Orchestra |
‘One Night Stand’
Chez Paree Chicago
AFRS Re-broadcast 15 Oct 1945 |
Set 2
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Tadd Dameron | |
Good Bait
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Tadd Dameron with Fats Navarro (tp) |
‘Symphony Sid Show’
Royal Roost WMCA NYC 28 Aug 1948 |
Anthropology
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Tadd Dameron Quintet |
‘Symphony Sid Show’
Royal Roost WMCA NYC 28 Aug 1948 |
The Kitchentte Across the Hall
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Tadd Dameron Quintet (voc) Pancho Kenny Hagood
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‘Symphony Sid Show’
Royal Roost WMCA NYC 28 Aug 1948 |
Rifftide + Jumpin’ with Symphony Sid (theme)
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Tadd Dameron Quintet
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‘Symphony Sid Show’
Royal Roost WMCA NYC 28 Aug 1948 |
Set 3
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Wendall Hall | |
Open + Carolina Rose
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Wendall Hall
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‘The Pineapple Picador’ WTMJ NBC Milwaukee
4 Feb 1931 |
Whispering Breeze + Roly-Poly Baby
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Wendall Hall
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‘The Pineapple Picador’ WTMJ NBC Milwaukee
4 Feb 1931 |
Mellow Moon + Your Eyes
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Wendall Hall
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‘The Pineapple Picador’ WTMJ NBC Milwaukee
4 Feb 1931 |
Lonely Lane + Land of My Sunset Dreams
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Wendall Hall
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‘The Pineapple Picador’ WTMJ NBC Milwaukee 4 Feb 1931 |
Melancholy Moon | Wendall Hall | ‘The Pineapple Picador’ WTMJ NBC Milwaukee 4 Feb 1931 |
Ain’ Goona Rain No Mo’ + Aloha Oe
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Wendall Hall
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‘The Pineapple Picador’ WTMJ NBC Milwaukee
4 Feb 1931 |
Set 4
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Rock’n’Roll Dance Party | |
Open + Take 1
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Sam ‘The Man’ Taylor Big Band
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‘Rock’n’Roll Dance Party’
WCBS CBS NYC 10 Jul 1956 |
Headin’ Home
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Della Reese
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‘Rock’n’Roll Dance Party’
WCBS CBS NYC 10 Jul 1956 |
Money Honey
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Clyde McPhatter
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‘Rock’n’Roll Dance Party’
WCBS CBS NYC 10 Jul 1956 |
Wailin’ + Close
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Sam ‘The Man’ Taylor Big Band with Al Sears
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‘Rock’n’Roll Dance Party’ WCBS CBS NYC 10 Jul 1956 |
Set 5
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Duke Ellington | |
Diminuendo in Blue
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Duke Ellington Orchestra | ‘A Date with the Duke’ ABC Toledo OH 9 Jun 1945 |
Rocks in My Bed
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Duke Ellington Orchestra (voc) Bette Roche
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‘A Date with the Duke’
ABC Toledo OH 9 Jun 1945 |
Crescendo in Blue |
Duke Ellington Orchestra
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‘A Date with the Duke’
ABC Toledo OH 9 Jun 1945 |
Teardrops in the Rain
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Duke Ellington Orchestra |
‘A Date with the Duke’
ABC Toledo OH 9 Jun 1945 |
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Set 6
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Benny Goodman | |
Time Was
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Benny Goodman Orchestra (voc) Tommy Tucker
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Meadowbrook Ballroom
Cedar Grove NJ WABC CBS NYC 20 Sep 1941 |
Tuesday at Ten
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Benny Goodman Orchestra
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Meadowbrook Ballroom
Cedar Grove NJ WABC CBS NYC 20 Sep 1941 |
Intermezzo
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Benny Goodman Orchestra
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Meadowbrook Ballroom
Cedar Grove NJ WABC CBS NYC 20 Sep 1941 |
Benny Rides Again
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Benny Goodman Orchestra
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Meadowbrook Ballroom
Cedar Grove NJ WABC CBS NYC 20 Sep 1941 |
Set 7
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Woody Herman | |
Cuban Holiday
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Woody Herman Orchestra
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‘Woody Herman Show’
WWL CBS New Orleans 10 Nov 1951 |
The Nearness of You
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Woody Herman Orchestra |
‘Woody Herman Show’
WWL CBS New Orleans 10 Nov 1951 |
Businessman’s Bounce
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Woody Herman Orchestra
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‘Woody Herman Show’
WWL CBS New Orleans 10 Nov 1951 |
I Won’t Cry Anymore
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Woody Herman Orchestra (voc) Dolly Houston
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‘Woody Herman Show’
WWL CBS New Orleans 10 Nov 1951 |
Set 8
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Charlie Parker | |
This Time the Dream’s on Me | Charlie Parker | ‘Symphony Sid Show’ Birdland WJZ ABC NYC 30 Jun 1950 |
Little Wille Leaps | Charlie Parker |
‘Symphony Sid Show’
Birdland WJZ ABC NYC 30 Jun 1950 |
I Remember April/52nd Theme | Charlie Parker | ‘Symphony Sid Show’ Birdland WJZ ABC NYC 30 Jun 1950 |