Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. I Surrender, Dear
2. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams (And Dream Your Troubles Away)
3. Star Dust
4. I Found A Million Dollar Baby (In A Five And Ten Cent Store)
5. Please
6. Where The Blue Of The Night (Meets The Gold Of The Day)
7. I'm An Old Cowhand (From The Rio Grande)
8. New San Antonio Rose
9. Pistol Packin' Mama
10. Don't Fence Me In
11. Sweet Leilani
12. Blue Hawaii
13. My Isle Of Golden Dreams
14. Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's An Irish Lullaby)
15. McNamara's Band
16. Galway Bay
17. Wait Till The Sun Shines, Nellie
18. Road To Morocco
19. South America, Take It Away
20. A Couple Of Song And Dance Men
21. Alexander's Ragtime Band
22. In The Cool, Cool, Cool Of The Evening
23. You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby
24. Yes, Indeed!
25. South Rampart Street Parade

Disc 2:

1. June In January
2. Pennies From Heaven
3. I've Got A Pocketful Of Dreams
4. Moonlight Becomes You
5. Sunday, Monday Or Always
6. Swinging On A Star
7. The Bells Of St. Mary's
8. Blue Skies
9. It's Been A Long, Long Time
10. I Can't Begin To Tell You
11. Ol' Man River
12. You Are My Sunshine
13. San Fernando Valley
14. Sioux City Sue
15. Dear Hearts And Gentle People
16. Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy
17. Jingle Bells
18. I'll Be Home For Christmas
19. Silent Night
20. White Christmas
21. Red Sails In The Sunset
22. Now Is The Hour
23. Far Away Places
24. Harbor Lights
25. Around The World

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #36005 in Music
• Brand: MCA
• Released on: 2003-04-08
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .26 pounds

Amazon.com
Bing Crosby has been called the "Voice of the Century," a title that's rooted in considerably more art and accomplishment than mere show-biz hype. Others may have scaled more spectacular peaks during the 20th century, but one could make a well grounded argument that without Crosby's pioneering vocal artistry the careers of Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley might well have never blossomed. This 50-track double-disc anthology chronicles the most productive years of the crooner's career, a period that spans the early '30s to the mid-'50s; his final years at RCA largely rested on the laurels garnered herein. His rich, effortlessly dreamy baritone has become a pop-culture cliché, but it was in fact as radically pioneering in its day as anything the King or the Chairman of the Board would muster in later decades. Radio and modern electronic recording were in their infancy on many of the '30s hits here, yet Crosby mastered both with preternatural grace--and an innate, jazz-born sense of timing--he later brought to his successful film and TV careers. What's remarkable here is the breadth of styles and influences Crosby's dulcet tones make there own here. The dizzying slate here includes standards and early hits ("Star Dust" and "Where the Blue of the Night" in Decca re-recordings of his original Brunswick sides), country-western ("New San Antonio Rose," "Don't Fence Me In"), island exotica ("Sweet Leilani," "Blue Hawaii"), Irish affectations ("McNamara's Band," "Galway Bay"), holiday favorites ("Silent Night," "White Christmas") and film hits ("Pennies From Heaven," "Swinging On a Star"), performances that represent the very cornerstone of American vocal tradition. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

A Perfect Sampler!
I bought 9 copies of this - one for myself, one for each of my seven siblings, and one for my parents. Growing up, we had lots of Bing Crosby music in the house (along with various other wonderful artists). I gravitated to Bing, and my siblings remember that - and were tickled to receive these 'samplers' during in Bing's 100th year. Why? Because, while Bing wasn't their favorite, he was *A* favorite of theirs, yet they had nothing of his on CD! The variety of themes reminds us how vast Bing's repetoire was.

The song selection is a perfect introduction - or re-introduction, if necessary - to Bing's Decca years. The sequencing is perfect for the casual fan, and the notes are informative and educational without a hint of preachiness.

This collection is a MUST for any general music lover - it'll broaden their senses and their knowledge of America's first true entertainment superstar. My thanks to the team who put this gem together!

Two and one half hours of recorded bliss!!!!
For years, I have been searching for a comprehensive collection of Bing Crosby's Decca recordings. Since his career at Decca spanned a quarter century, and because he was such a prolific artist, it seemed that I might never find what I was looking for. But this collection, released in 2003 has it all.
Here you will find a compendium of Crosby at his absolute best.
You'll hear the great standards such as "Stardust" and Pennies From Heaven". You'll enjoy tunes from his movies including "The Bells of St. Mary's", and "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ra".
Hear several of his classic Irish recordings as well as a few numbers with the Andrews Sisters. Then there's Bing with some country and westerm cuts and oh so much more. Included in this 2 CD package are a number of his biggest hits that I have not seen on other collections including "June in "January", "Moonlight Becomes You" and one of my personal favorites "Dear Hearts and Gentle People." The recordings are of very high quality and the set is accompanied by a neat 20 page booklet containing some very informative liner notes and interesting photographs. Although my first reaction was that this collection was a bit expensive I am happy that I purchased it. If you are a huge Crosby fan, break down, just this once and grab this one. As a record collector for nearly 40 years I have long since learned that when you see an item this good, you'd best get it while you can. Very highly recommended!!!

Excellent edition. Great songs, Great quality.
These two cd's are fantastic. Excellent quality with beautiful songs. A good edition. I'm on my way to purchasing all the Bing Crosby cd's which will probably take a lifetime. But this edition put a good dent in the time it'll take to acquire them all.
It has charming information in the pocket sleeve about the different genres that Bing participated in. Little details about his music history.
It's quite nice to read, while you listen.
PERFECT.
I recommend this 110%. A thousand even.