Spike Jones was a popular American musician and bandleader specializing in performing satirical arrangements of popular songs. Ballads and classical works receiving the Jones treatment would be punctuated with gunshots, whistles, cowbells, and outlandish vocals. Through the 1940s and early 1950s, the band recorded under the name "Spike Jones and his City Slickers" and toured the United States and Canada under the title "The Musical Depreciation Revue."
His musical madness is distilled down to an essential 12 tracks...
- Cocktails for Two
- William Tell Overture
- Chloe
- My Old Flame
- The Glow Worm
- None But the Lonely Heart (A Soaperetta)
- Laura
- The Man on the Flying Trapeze
- You Always Hurt the One You Love
- Der Fuehrer's Face
Originally written for Walt Disney's 1943 Oscar-winning propaganda cartoon (first titled "Donald Duck in Nutzi Land"), the success of this Spike Jones recording prompted Disney to re-title the animated cartoon after the song. - Dance of the Hours
- Hawaiian War Chant
Spike Jones...
Related Scanning WWII dates...
Swing, Jazz & Big Band...
Related Scanning WWII dates...
- 12 Oct 35: Nazis ban "degenerate" swing, jazz music from German radio
- 09 Jan 38: Nazi exhibit denounces "Degenerate Music"
- 02 Jan 41: Andrews Sisters record "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy"
- 28 Jul 42: Spike Jones records iconic song "Der Fuehrer's Face"
- 01 Aug 42: Musicians Strike begins, leading to V-Disc recordings
Music in World War Two...
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CD - 2 discs, mp3 - The Best of Spike Jones
CD - 2 discs - Swinging on a V-Disc
CD - 4 discs - Swing Kids
DVD, 1993 - The Music Survives! Degenerate Music:
Music Suppressed by the Third Reich - Propaganda Swing:
Dr Goebbels' Jazz Orchestra - Hitler's Airwaves:
The Inside Story of Nazi Radio Broadcasting and Propaganda Swing