Midnight, the Stars, and . . . what the?

[LimeTree99]

I know this record is sought after, but . . . really? https://www.ebay.com/itm/196574640412

Over the years, movie soundtracks have revived old songs and given them a second life - off the bat I think of Singing in the Rain and As Time Goes By. The particularity here is that, instead of re-recording the old song, Kubrick decided to play the old record, and this, added to the enduring popularity of The Shining, created the buzz among us collectors. Suddenly, a forgotten record by a singer unknown outside England became a kind of Holy Graal, stoking the greed of people that owns copies of it, like the one in the eBay ad. The record is not even that rare, and although nice, it is not the artistic pinnacle of Ray Noble and Al Bowlly, but it became a celebrity. Noble and Bowlly, if still alive, would be elated with such success.

I found this out when I tried looking for a copy of "I don't want to set the world on fire" by The Ink Spots. (Popular song in the Fallout video game series). I found a badly scratched Decca record on eBay going for over $200... I mean, I wanted it, but not badly enough to shell out $200

[jamiegramo]

£411 is far more reasonable... Was an instrumental version of this ever released? Something I've wondered for a while, because while it is a beautiful song, I don't really care much at all for Al Bowlly's voice. A hot take, yes, and I mean zero offense to all of the Al Bowlly fans of this talented vocalist, but he always sounds to me like he is on the cusp of a yawn.

Agreed. At the risk of insulting Bowlly fans, I am also not a fan. To each their own

Without wanting to cause offence I quite like Al Bowlly’s voice. I think his voice gives the record in question an ethereal or ghostly quality which is probably one of the reasons Stanley Kubrick picked it.

[JerryVan]

£411 is far more reasonable... Was an instrumental version of this ever released? Something I've wondered for a while, because while it is a beautiful song, I don't really care much at all for Al Bowlly's voice. A hot take, yes, and I mean zero offense to all of the Al Bowlly fans of this talented vocalist, but he always sounds to me like he is on the cusp of a yawn.

Agreed. At the risk of insulting Bowlly fans, I am also not a fan. To each their own

Without wanting to cause offence I quite like Al Bowlly’s voice. I think his voice gives the record in question an ethereal or ghostly quality which is probably one of the reasons Stanley Kubrick picked it.

Certainly, no offence taken by me. I realize Bowlly has a large following, so there must be some excellent quality that apparently does not speak to my ear. The loss is solely my own, sorry to admit. For a singer who left us so long ago, and so tragically, to be so well regarded yet today, speaks for itself.

[CarlosV]

For a singer who left us so long ago, and so tragically, to be so well regarded yet today, speaks for itself.

That's an interesting remark, my impression is that Al Bowlly is more popular today than in his heyday. He recorded hundreds, maybe beyond a thousand sides, but never really made it to stardom, even in England. Most of his recordings did not even identify him as the singer, he was the crooner for several English dance bands, with the infamous ¨with vocal refrain¨ stamped under the band's name. And just when his name started to get better known, he underwent a sudden decline, hit by a health problem that caused his voice to degrade sharply - this is clearly noticeable in his last records. It is ironic that it took a horror movie made decades after his death to link him to a particular song and bring him back to public's ears.

[Inigo]

There's a nice British Pathé reel featuring Bowlly singing The Very Thought Of You, accompanied by Monia Liter on piano. Let's see if I find it..
Here chilled in yt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr4ncMR5EVQ
Here in the BP site singing Melancholy Baby
https://www.britishpathe.com/asset/79538/

[CarlosV]

There's a nice British Pathé reel featuring Bowlly singing The Very Thought Of You, accompanied by Monia Liter on piano. Let's see if I find it..

Thanks for posting them, Iñigo, I had seen them, these are some of the few instances when Al Bowlly was captured in film. These Pathé shorts are very nice, they filmed most of the British popular (and not-so-popular) artists of the time, as a counterpart of the US soundies. There are films of Layton and Johnstone (American duettists that made their careers in England), the pianist Raie da Costa, Leslie Hutchison, and the dance bands, some of which include Al Bowlly as the uncredited crooner. There is even a short of the Quintette du Hot Club de France, with Django and Grapelly in action.

[Inigo]

Yes, British Pathé is a mine of surprises!
Another of my favourites is this film of Pat O'Malley (Jack Hylton singer) singing Believe it Beloved
https://www.britishpathe.com/asset/66373
And another old favourite is this one... Prepare for an interesting tour of the HMV radiogram construction and a good Jack Hylton performance
https://www.britishpathe.com/asset/207892/

[travisgreyfox]

For whatever reason it seems like horror fans have deep pockets. I see lots of obscure horror dvds and even VHS tapes selling for hundreds of dollars (sometimes thousands). Original 1930s horror posters sell for $10,000 +. When the Stephen King movie "1408" came out they used that The Carpenters song "We've Only Just Begun". A vinyl record that use to be sitting at every goodwill in America for 25 cents suddenly was selling on ebay for $30+.

[jamiegramo]

There's a nice British Pathé reel featuring Bowlly singing The Very Thought Of You, accompanied by Monia Liter on piano. Let's see if I find it..
Here chilled in yt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr4ncMR5EVQ
Here in the BP site singing Melancholy Baby
https://www.britishpathe.com/asset/79538/

Thank you for posting these links. I haven’t seen Al Bowlly singing before.

[Inigo]

It's nice, isn't it?