Bing Crosby - Through The Years Vol. 1: 1950-1951 & Vol. 2: 1951 (2008)

In 2006 and 2007, Sepia Records issued two Bing Crosby compilations, Good & Rare and Good & Rare, Vol. 2, that brought into the CD realm commercial recordings made by Crosby between 1949 and 1955 that had fallen into out of print obscurity, never having achieved much popularity to begin with since they were released at a time when the singer's popularity was in decline. The albums were enthusiastically received by Crosby collectors, and as of 2008, Sepia agreed to take over the long-running series The Chronological Bing Crosby that had been undertaken by the tiny Jonzo Records label and, running to 51 single-CD volumes, traced Crosby's commercial recording career from 1926 to 1950. (Neither the Jonzo nor Sepia releases are authorized; they take advantage of the 50-year copyright limit on recordings in Europe and are remastered from old 78-rpm records with audio restoration techniques applied. In the U.S., copyright continued to be claimed by Universal Music, successor to Crosby's main record label, Decca, and others.) With Through the Years, Vol. 1: 1950-1951, Sepia renames the series and starts the counter over at one, but for all intents and purposes, this album might as well be called The Chronological Bing Crosby, Vol. 52. It picks up the story at a time when Crosby was the country's top pop recording artist (he is ranked number one for the calendar year 1950 by Billboard chart researcher Joel Whitburn), as well as one of the top Hollywood film stars and radio show hosts. But change is in the air as tastes in music and movies are in flux, and television is supplanting radio. The 47-year-old Crosby is slow to adapt, and that can be seen in his recording sessions here, which produced only one chart single, the holiday-themed "A Marshmallow World," number 24 in Billboard for a single week. But that only became apparent later. Between September 1950 and February 1951, Crosby did what he usually did in the studio, recording songs from upcoming Broadway shows (including numbers from Guys & Dolls and Call Me Madam); Christmas music, much of it with his longtime partners the Andrews Sisters; a big-band swing session with the orchestra led by his old friend Tommy Dorsey; Irish music in anticipation of St. Patrick's Day, 1951; and, finally, a Latin American date with the Bando da Lua. There may only be one minor hit, but there are standards in the making, including "Autumn Leaves," "If I Were a Bell," and "Silver Bells." And whatever the material or the backing, Crosby maintains his calm assurance and light touch.

In 1950, Bing Crosby ranked as the top pop recording artist in the U.S. (according to chart researcher Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard charts), the fifth time he had topped the list since 1943. In 1951, Crosby would slip to 11th place, the first time he had missed the Top Ten since Billboard instituted a singles chart in 1940. But in February 1951 it must have seemed to be smooth sailing, as Crosby held marathon recording sessions prior to scheduled hospitalization for gallstones. Jonzo Records issued 51 volumes of its series The Chronological Bing Crosby, compiling Crosby's commercial recordings in chronological order, and now the series has been taken over by Sepia Records and renamed Through the Years. This second volume in the Sepia series chronicles four months in Crosby's recording career, running through June 1951. In the 24 songs (plus an alternate take of the Louis Armstrong duet "Gone Fishin'"), Crosby does what he usually did, moving from Spanish material to Broadway to Hawaiian music to old standards, and giving every selection an assured reading. By this time, the hits, such as they were, tended to come when he was paired with another act -- with the Andrews Sisters on "Sparrow in the Treetop," with his son Gary Crosby on revivals of "Moonlight Bay" and "When You and I Were Young, Maggie, Blues," and with Armstrong. (He also had a minor hit with his cover of Doris Day's "Shanghai.") But his best performances come when he finds a song that suits his mature perspective, notably the show tunes "More I Cannot Wish You" from Guys & Dolls and "Hello, Young Lovers" from the just-opened The King and I, songs in which he is not the ardent lover himself but instead a sage observer of young romance. "Indian Summer" (recorded for an album of Victor Herbert songs) is also a good choice for a veteran artist transitioning into the latter part of his career. (Crosby fans should note that "With This Ring I Thee Wed" and "We All Have a Song in Our Hearts" are making their CD debuts with this release.)