Jimmy McHugh In Hi-Fi - Urbie Green

 

Diga Diga Doo

Jimmy McHugh In Hi-Fi

Urbie Green His Trombone and Orchestra

Arrangements by Al Cohn and Irwin Postal

Produced by Fred Reynolds

Recorded in Webster Hall, New York, May 5, 9 and 12, 1958

Engineer: Ernest Delrich

RCA Victor LSP-1741

From the back cover: This album combines the talents of two superb musical giants – Jimmy McHugh and Urbie Green. To do full justice to McHugh's wonderful songs, Urbie has assembled some of the New York's finest sidemen. He sparks this big, wonderful band with is own great trombone. And Mr. Green's trombone-playing is widely conceded to be just about the best in the business.

This is Urbie's second album for RCA Victor, following on the heels of his successful "Tet's Face The music And Dance (LSP-1667). So here, in brilliantly recored sound, are many of your favorite songs in settings that are tops for listening and arrangements that are absolutely unbeatable for dancing.

Also from the back cover: After a command performance in London in 1951 the Queen of England, then Princess Elizabeth, said to Jimmy McHugh: "Mr. McHugh, you seem to have written all my favorite songs."

It is not by implied chance, however, that millions everywhere share her royal sentiment, or that the music of Jimmy McHugh holds suck a warm and large place in the heart of the world. Nor is ti by design.

The simple answer is that Jimmy McHugh writes about love with love. Far more than most men, he genuinely loves people. Not just the rich and successful, but al kids of people in every walk of life and circumstance of fourteen. It is reflected in every song he ever wrote. Recognizing it, men and women the world over have responded in kind.

In rich and deserved reward, Jimmy has been called American's greatest composer of love songs.

There is another actor, how er, which has bled an important part in the enormous popularity of jimmy McHugh's songs. It is simply this: whatever you mood of the moment may be – gay, sad, romantic, or bustling with bounce – there is a McHugh song to fit that mood. Moreover, in this music, there is something to appeal to every brow, be it high, low or medium; classics lovers and pop enthusiasts can walk side-by-side in enjoyment of his musical magic.

Every McHugh fan, of course, has his or her favorite McHugh song, usually identified with some highly personal memory. Maybe it was a social moon, a special dance, a social date that certain song recalls. Or maybe even a special quarrel with a sweetheart. Thus for some the favorite might be Don't Blame Me, Exactly Like You or I'm In The Mood For Love, while others might choose Lovely To Look At, On The Sunny Side Of The Street, Cuban Love Song, When My Sugar Walks Down The Street, A Most Unusual Day, or countless others on the fabulous list of McHugh song hits

Countless is the accurate word, incidentally, For Jimmy himself says he has lost track of the number of his songs since the first one, Emaline, was published in 1921. But considering that he has written the score for sixteen New York musicals and forty-five Hollywood movies (to say nothing of his prolific output of individual numbers), simple arithmetic sends the staggering total up in the hundreds!

To identify and cherish a song because of a romanic memory it recalls is as it should be, regardless of one's age; both are lively things meant to be cherished. There is one song must indelibly identified with Jimmy McHugh himself, and perhaps his most popular of all. It is the beloved I CAn't Give You Anything But Love. Two generations already have loved it and danced to its lovely strains, and generations to come will be doing the same thing. This is its thirtieth anniversary.

Written for the Broadway show "Blackbirds of 1928," it was one of the first hits of the team of Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields. Even more exciting, the team had four smash success shows playing simultaneously on Broadway that year, all carrying the miracle tag, "Music by Jimmy McHugh – lyrics by Dorothy Fields."

The list of famous performers who have introduced Jimmy McHugh songs is almost as impressive as the number and variety of songs themselves. Staring with Maurice Chevalier in Ziegfeld's last "Midnight Revue" (the show which introduced Chevalier to America), the star-studded list includes such names as Helen Morgan, Lawrence Tibbett, Gertrude Lawrence, Lily Pons, Jan Pierce, Ethel Waters, Harry Richmond, Eddie Cantor, Mary Martin, Frances Langford, Shirley Temple, Carmen Miranda, Jane Powell, Deanna Durbin, Alice Faye, Perry Como, Judy Garland and Frank Sinatra, to mention but a few.

Jimmy McHugh also has been hailed as the most successful Irish-American composer since Victor Herbert. This pleases him, frankly and greatly because he is, as the sons of Erin say, "fightin' proud" of his Irish ancestry, and even coined a word, "Irishtocrat" to express it. In appearance hi is a big and handsome man, and looks like an Irishman is supposed to look. As his friends known,m he also has the temperament – great sensitivity and quick temper – the match, and is sympathetic to anyone in trouble.

Born in Boston, Jimmy well might have become a plumber if his plumber father had had his way. As it turned out, his mother, an accomplished pianist, had her way in supporting her son's determination bo become a musician, albeit he served a break apprenticeship in his father's shop.

Jimmy's first real job was as an office boy with the Boston Opera House. There he met such opera greats a Caruso, Tetrazzini, Puccini, Geraldine Farrar and Toscanini, and in their leisure moments back-stage often entertained them with unique McHugh improvisation on operatic arias. There is little doubt this early association had a great bearing later on the catholicity of his original compositions.

Next came a stint as traveling sungplugger for the Irving Berlin Publishing Company, and then McHugh struck out on his own in New York. Writing with various lyricists for the famed Cotton Club shows in Harlem he scored a number of hits, among them I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me, which thirty years later became the theme song for the motion picture "Caine Mutiny."

Hollywood called McHugh and Fields in 1930, and thereafter the team alternated their highly sought service between the movies and Broadway. Throughout the years of World War II, however, Jimmy concentrated much of his time and energy along patriots lines, writing special songs at the request of Washington, and staging war bond drives. At one such rally he choked up the largest single sale of war bonds ever recorded – $28,000,000 worth!

There is another and lesser known side to Jimmy McHugh which was described by Dr. Jack Frederick Kilpatrick, Dallas Herald Times music critic and professor of music at Southern Methodist University, in these words: "It's like talking to the man who invented doorknobs, the chef who created bam and eggs. It's like meeting up with the fellow who first thought of shoelaces, to be introduced to Jimmy McHugh."

In other words – this is Jimmy McHugh, solid citizen affectionately known as "The Bishop of Beverly Hills" and honorary Mayor of that famous community. Also: active director and cast president of the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce; organizer and leading spirit of the polio foundation which has furnished thirty costly respirator to various hospitals and medical venters; composer of a Community Chat song, and worker-contributor in charities for every race, sect and reed; recipient to honorary degrees from two universities, and a half dozen awards for his effort in in behalf of youth; honorary life membership in the AAY for his interest in amateur swim champions, and designation as an honorary official of the 1948 Olympics. And most proudly, among other honors too numerous to mention, processor of a Presidential Citation, given by President Truman in recognition of valued services to the country.

Quite a guy, this Songwriter Jimmy McHugh!

P.S.: My favorite McHugh song? Naturally it's Louella.

– Louella O Parsons

From Billboard - November 10, 1958: Here is a tasteful, danceable package of Jimmy McHugh evergreens, which should enjoy particularly good sales on the West Coast where McHugh is active in civic affairs. Selections – all fine programming material for jocks – include "Louella," "Lovely To Look At," "I Can't Give You Anything But Love" etc. Liner notes by Louella Parsons, who has given package several solid plugs in her nationally syndicated movie column.

Louella

Cuban Love Song

Medley: I'm In The Mood For Love / Don't Blame Me / On The Sunny Side Of The Street / You're A Sweetheart / Where Are You? / Lovely To Look At / Candlelight And Wine / I Couldn't Sleep A Wink Last Night / Lost In A Fog / Blue Again

Rock-A-Bye Bluebird

I Feel A Song Comin' On

I Found Myself A Guy

Diga Diga Doo

I Must Have That Man

Medley: Exactly Like You / I'm Shooting High / I Don't Care Who Knows It / How Blue The Night / Thank You For A Lovely Evening / A Lovely Way To Spend And Evening / My, How The Time Goes By / When My Sugar Walks Down The Street / I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me / I Can't Give You Anything But Love

Goodbye Blues