Traditional pop is Western pop music that generally pre-dates the advent of rock and roll in the mid-1950s. The most popular and enduring songs from this era of music are known as pop standards or American standards. The works of these songwriters and composers are usually considered part of the canon known as the "Great American Songbook". More generally, the term "standard" can be applied to any popular song that has become very widely known within mainstream culture.
With a Song in My Heart is a 1952 American biographical musical drama film that tells the story of actress and singer Jane Froman, who was crippled by an airplane crash on February 22, 1943, when the Boeing 314 Pan American Clipper flying boat she was on suffered a crash landing in the Tagus River near Lisbon, Portugal. She entertained the troops in World War II despite having to walk with crutches. The film stars Susan Hayward, Rory Calhoun, David Wayne, Thelma Ritter, Robert Wagner, Helen Westcott, and Una Merkel. Froman herself supplied Hayward's singing voice.
Frankie Laine was an American singer and songwriter whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performance of "That's My Desire" in 2005. Often billed as "America's Number One Song Stylist", his other nicknames include "Mr. Rhythm", "Old Leather Lungs", and "Mr. Steel Tonsils". His hits included "That's My Desire", "That Lucky Old Sun", "Mule Train", "Jezebel", "High Noon", "I Believe", "Hey Joe!", "The Kid's Last Fight", "Cool Water", "Rawhide", and "You Gave Me a Mountain".
Miyoshi Umeki was a Japanese-American singer and actress. Umeki was nominated for the Tony Award and Golden Globe Award and was the first East Asia-born woman to win an Academy Award for acting.
"I Believe" is a popular song written by Ervin Drake, Irvin Abraham, Jack Mendelsohn and Al Stillman in 1953. The most popular version was recorded by Italian-American singer Frankie Laine, and spent eighteen weeks at No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart.
Sinatra Sings Days of Wine and Roses, Moon River, and Other Academy Award Winners is a 1964 album by Frank Sinatra, focusing on songs that won the Academy Award for Best Song. The orchestra is arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle.
"Do Nothing till You Hear from Me" is a song with music by Duke Ellington and lyrics by Bob Russell. It originated as a 1940 instrumental that was designed to highlight the playing of Ellington's lead trumpeter, Cootie Williams. Russell's words were added later. In 1944, Ellington's own recording of the song was a number one hit R&B chart for eight non-consecutive weeks and number six on the pop chart.
A Man and His Music is a 1965 double album by Frank Sinatra. It provides a brief retrospective of Sinatra's musical career. The album won the 1967 Grammy Award for Album of the Year.
Ervin Drake was an American songwriter whose works include such American Songbook standards as "I Believe" and "It Was a Very Good Year". He wrote in a variety of styles and his work has been recorded by musicians around the world. In 1983, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
"The Gypsy in My Soul" is a popular song written for the 50th anniversary of the University of Pennsylvania Mask and Wig show in 1937 by two Penn graduates, Clay Boland and Moe Jaffe. Boland wrote the music and Jaffe the lyrics. Although both men had long since graduated, it had become the practice at the time for professionals, rather than students, to compose songs for the show.
"I Had the Craziest Dream" is a popular song which was published in 1942. The music was written by Harry Warren, the lyrics by Mack Gordon.
"South of the Border Down Mexico Way" is a popular song describing a trip to Mexico, written by Jimmy Kennedy and Michael Carr and published in 1939 for the film of the same name starring country star Gene Autry.
"I've Heard That Song Before" is a 1942 American popular song about nostalgia with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Sammy Cahn. It was introduced by Martha O'Driscoll in the 1942 film Youth on Parade. The song was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1942 but lost out to “White Christmas”.
"September in the Rain" is a popular song about nostalgia by Harry Warren and Al Dubin, published in 1937. The song was introduced by James Melton in the film Melody for Two. It has become a standard, having been recorded by many artists since.
"A Cottage for Sale" is a popular song. The music was composed by Willard Robison, and the lyrics were written by Larry Conley. The song was first published in 1929, and over 100 performers have recorded versions of "A Cottage for Sale." The first versions of the song were released by The Revelers in January 1930 and Bernie Cummins with the New Yorker Orchestra in March 1930.
"(You'd Be So) Easy to Love" is a popular song written by Cole Porter for William Gaxton to sing in the 1934 Broadway show Anything Goes. However Gaxton was unhappy about its wide vocal range and it was cut from the musical. Porter re-wrote it for the 1936 film Born to Dance, where it was introduced by Eleanor Powell, James Stewart, and Frances Langford under its alternate title, "Easy to Love". The song was later added to the 1987 and 2011 revivals of Anything Goes under the complete title "You’d Be So Easy to Love".
Walter Wanger's Vogues of 1938 is a 1937 musical comedy film produced by Walter Wanger and distributed by United Artists. It was directed by Irving Cummings, written by Bella Spewack and Sam Spewack, and starred Warner Baxter and Joan Bennett. It was filmed in New York City in Technicolor.
"Paradise" is a 1931 song with music by Nacio Herb Brown and lyrics by Gordon Clifford. It was first sung by Pola Negri in RKO Pictures' 1932 film A Woman Commands, and has since been heard in many other films, including a memorable performance by Gloria Grahame, in the 1949 Nicholas Ray film A Woman's Secret.
"I Can't Believe That You're in Love with Me" is a 1926 popular song and jazz standard composed by Jimmy McHugh, with lyrics by Clarence Gaskill.
Tears and Laughter is a fourteenth studio album by Dinah Washington with Orchestra conducted by Quincy Jones, that was released on Mercury Records. The orchestral arrangements, partly with strings for the jazz standard repertoire, were provided by Jones, Hal Mooney, Al Cohn, Ernie Wilkins and Billy Byers. On the second half –the B-side– of the original LP release Washington is backed by the male doo-wop quintet The Dells, who toured with her as the opening act since 1960. They are also featured without Washington on "Jeepers Creepers", and "Am I Blue?" is a duet with one of them.
