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Show ZOOMS ZOOM ! BOOM ! Music-Mad Music Mad - America ' Tats 'Eats Eats Up ' New Tunes Faster FasterThan FasterThan FasterThan Than Composers Can Write Them ; The Song You YouHum YouHum YouHum Hum Today Will Be a Headache Next Week ! I By JOSEPH W LaBINE LaBINEIt It s not so many years smce since smceyou sinceyou sinceyou you heard a good phonograph phonographrecord phonographrecord phonographrecord record at your neighbor's neighbors neighbor'shouse neighbor'shouse neighbor'shouse neighborshouse ' house , thereupon rushmg rushing rushmgI rushmgnght rushingright rushingright I nght right down to the music store storeto storeto storeto to buy a copy for your own owngramaphone owngramaphone owngramaphone gramaphone Maybe it was wasone wasone wasone one of Gene Austin's Austins Austm's Austms ' remark remark- remarkably remarkably remarkably - ably successful songs - re- re remember remember9 re remember7 - - member7 member member9 ? member7In member9In In those days a composer composercould composercould composercould could write ' Yes , We HaveNo HaveNo Have HaveNo No Bananas " or "MargIe MargIe "Margie"and Margieand " " and settle back to watch the theprofits theprofits ' profits roll in m from sheet sheetmUSIC sheetmusic sheetmusic mUSIC , recordings recordmgs and dance danceorchestras danceorchestras danceorchestras orchestras For a year or ormore ormore ormore more Carolina Carolma Moon swept the thenation thenation thenation nation and nobody tired of it In Indeed indeed indeed deed v . we e haven t tired of it yetBut yetBut yet yetBut But that was long ago-maybe ago maybe ago - - maybe 10 10yearsm 10yearsin 10years years-m years m years-in in - in the d m halcyon days be before before betore fore home was not the same without withouta a radio before beCore music became a ahIgh ahigh ahigh hIgh speed industry instead mstead of oC a lei leisurely leisurely leisurely surely profession proCessIOn Nowadays you youget youget youget get shivers up the back one week weekfrom weekfrom weekfrom from A t sket A taskct tasket and the thefollowing thefollowing thefollowing following week you scream when whenever whenever whenever ever anyone hums it The first firsttime firsttime firsttime time you hear Flat Foot Floog e eIt eit eit It has a novel catch but after aCter it s sbeen sbeen . been smashed all over your hVlng living hVlngI hVlngroom livingroom livingroom I room by every band from Benny BennyGoodman BennyGoodman BennyGoodman Goodman to the Hot Shot Six Flat FlatFoot FlatFoot FlatFoot Foot Floogie Floogle really falls flatIn flatIn flat flatIn In other words it If you ve ye any Ideas Ideasabout ideasabout ideasabout about making a m llion lhon Ilion by writing writinga a popular song get rid of them themThe themThe themThe The tide has changed so rapidly so socompletely socompletely socompletely completely that the modern com corn composer cornposer cornposer poser starves to death unless unleGs he cangrind c.an can c.angrind . tangrind grind out several new tunes a year yearZoom yearZoom yearZoom Zoom Up-Boom Up Boom Up - - Boom DownTake DownTake Down DownTake Take The Merry Go Round Broke BrokeDown BrokeDown BrokeDown Down DownIt -It It - it actually d din d in three threemonths threemonths threemonths months simply through too much muchradlOcastmg muchradiocastmg muchradiocasting radlOcastmg radiocastmg Overnight it zoomed zoomedto zoomedto to nat on wide popularity almost as asfast asfast asfast fast it tell fell with a thud and a boom boomthat boomthat boomthat that resounded up and do vn vii New NewYork NewYork NewYork York s Tin Tm Pan Alley Looking at atincidents atincidents atincidents incidents 1 ke this the American Soc So Soc Soc c ety of Composers Authors and andPublishers andPublishers , Publlshers Publishers ( As Ascap cap to the trade tradeis ) IS trying tryrng to promulgate fair trade tradepractice tradepractice tradepractice practice rules to stop carrying earrymg a agood agood agood good tune too farIn farIn far farIn In common practice a pubhsh publish publisher pubhsher er s representative approaches a na natlonally nattonally nationally tlonally ttonally broadcast dance orchestra orchestraleader orchestraleader orchestraleader leader like llke Guy Lombardo or Rudy RudyVallee RudyVallee RudyVallee Vallee and begs him hnn hum to give glVe every everyfe AN N 9 b A 9I IYj I ! Yj Yjys ys fe aSS \ i 'A A ' - % / . ysr r t new tune a trial It s really quite quitean quitean quitean an honor they say to offer a numher nwn aim nwnber aimber ber over the air for the first time timeIf timeIf tuneIt If the public likes hkes It it , , the song be becomes becomes becomes comes a national favorite overnight overnightand overnightand overnightand and is thereby rUInedWhat ruinedWhat ruined ruinedWhat What Ascap wants is control over overthe overthe overthe the number of performances a new newsong newsong newsong song gets over the airwaves And Andthough Andthough Andthough though some may cry Monopoly Monopoly'and Monopolyand ' and Unfairl Unfair I ! it still isn ism t a bad badIdea badidea badidea badideaAscap Idea IdeaAscap Ascap is composed of most majorsong maJor maJorsong maorsong ] song writers wnters who complain complam they theymust theymust theymust must now write 10 tiroes times as many manysongs manysongs manysongs songs as in pre radio days and even eventhen eventhen eventhen then their sheet music and record recording recordlag recording ing lag profits are smallerThe smallerThe smaller smallerThe The best index to this up and anddown anddown anddown down trend of pub publ pub1 ' c acceptance is isfound isfound isfound found in m the radio program whIch whIchasks whichasks whichasks asks its listeners hsteners to vote on their theirfavorite theirfavorite theirfavorite favorite numbers each week No Notune Notune Notune tune has ever stayed in first place placemore placemore placemore more than a few weeks seldom do dothey dothey dothey they stay in the runn ng more than thantwo thantwo thantwo two months monthsBilly Billy Hill lIi1l s ExperienceAscap ExperienceAscap Experience ExperienceAscap Ascap which pools all musical musicalcopyrIghts musicalcopyrights musicalcopyrights copyrIghts of its members collectsroyalties collects collectsroyalties collectsroyalties royalties and distributes dlstnbutes them has haswon haswon haswon won some success in m its campa camps gn gnIn gnIn gnIn In Nebraska where Ascap was held heldan heldan heldan an unconstitutional restraint restramt of oftrade oftrade oftrade trade an appeal brought a tempo temporary temporary temporary rary injunction mJunctIon against agamst the decIsion decIsionThe decisionThe decisionThe The organization claims it simply simplyoDrotects simplyprotects simply.protects simplyprotects oDrotects protects . its members which could couldhardly couldhardly couldhardly hardly be called racketeermg racketeering racketeermgGene racketeeringGene racketeeringGene Gene Buck Ascap president lIkes lIkesto likesto likesto to tell what happened to Billy Hill Hillwho Hillwho Hillwho who found h mself broke while whlle hisHome hisHome his hisHome Home o 0 ' the Range was bemg being bemghummed beinghummed beinghummed hummed all over the natIonSmce nationSince nation nationSince Since Smce the public pUbhc eats up new newtunes newtunes newtunes tunes so fast composers and or orchestra orchestra orchestra chestra leaders are getting gray grayhair grayhair grayhair hair trying to meet the demand demandThe demandThe demandThe The result has been some ingemous ingenious ingemousdevIces ingeniousdevices ingeniousdevices ingeniousdevicesOne devIces devIcesOne One method is to take an old oldtune oldtune oldtune tune and rearrange it change It Itfrom itfrom itfrom from waltz to foxtrot time and back backagam backagain backagain agam again What asked Benny Good Goodman Goodman Goodman man recently can you do with a asong asong asong song I 1 ke My Gal Sal after aCter you ve ye veplayed yeplayed veplayed played it 4000 4 000 t mes7 mes9 mes ? You ve ye got gotto gotto gotto to kick it aroundAnother aroundAnother around aroundAnother Another method which ties up upwith upwith upwith with Goodman s idea is to go back backmto backinto backinto mto into history ELa Fitzgerald Negro Negrovocahst Negrovocalist Negrovocalist vocahst vocalist completely abandoned abandonedmodern abandonedmodern abandonedmodern modern tunes when she saw how fast fastthey fastthey fastthey they wear out Instead she combed combedthrough combedthrough combedthrough through the files and revived old oldnumbers oldnumbers oldnumbers numbers like hke S wanee River final finally finally finally ly reach reaching lg the nursery rhymes As Asa Asa Asa a result A tisket tlsket A tasket was wasbrought wasbrought wasbrought brought mto into the limehght limelight limehghtSchubert limelightSchubert limelightSchubert Schubert to Swine Swmg Swing SwmgSome SwingSome SwineSome Some months ago an opera lover loverwas loverwas loverwas was amazed at the familiarity famlharIty of atune a atune atune tune he heard being bemg played by a aJazz ajazz ajazz Jazz orchestra The melody kept keptrunnmg keptrunning keptrunning runnmg running through his mmd mind at ItS ItSfast itsfast itsfast fast tempo exasperat ngly until unhl he heslowed heslowed heslowed slowed it down and discovered the thetruth thetruth thetruth truth An adept arranger had slm sim slmply simply simply ply lifted hfted an aria from the operaMartha operaMartha opera operaMartha Martha Smce Since then such classl classi classlcal classical classical cal composers as Mendelssohn MendelssohnSchubert MendelssohnSchubert MendelssohnSchubert Schubert Schumann and Grieg Gneg have havebeen havebeen havebeen been turned over in their graves gravesand gravesand gravesand and changed to sw ng timeThis timeThis time timeThis This say some is plain rob robbery robbery robbery bery yet it s very seldom that abrand a abrand abrand brand ne v tune comes out of Tin TinPan TinPan TinPan Pan Alley The June moon love lovedove lovedove lovedove dove blue you idea runs through so somany somany somany many modern lyrics that it some sometimes sometimes sometimes times becomes d sgusting sgustmg What s smore smore smore more many a long dead composer composerhas composerhas composerhas has furnished the msp rasp ration tor for a Radio s growing growmg army of enter entertamers entertanners entertamers tamers tanners helps devour the new songs songsso songsso songsso so much that the average tune lasts lastsonly lastsonly lastsonly only a few weeks before beCore the public publictires publictires publictires tires of oC it At left Rudy Vallee Valleeof Valleeof Valleeof of Stem Stein Song fame Below PhilCook Phil PhilCook PhilCook Cook song pluggcr plugger extraordinary extraordmary ai aiq q v M3 } 4 a sere t tf ta f a * ' k kg g y yy yrs y rs rsA A > a 0 ' d } AyIPY " r 1/ 1 1l / l , y yP P , i9i i9ia a d de e d m Ii ? y 9 9P ' ' Y pa pa"Be"n "Be"n Ben " " ' P a " % S ' 4 4f ; " / /f f / fvet I t e vet ' ea a } tat tatu u fag fagxtbx , xtbx xtbxvfw vfw ' / t * A a Ne Nee * e 1 1s 1f J A s f ' " / I IFrankse Frankie Frankse \ Masters 1\Iasters 1 Iasters well known ra radlo radro radio dlo dro orchestra leader leads his Jus band bandin bandfn bandIn in fn rcbearsine rebearsmg rehearsing a brand new tune-or tune or tuneorIs tune - - oris Is it just an n old one revamped with witha a few Cew notes and another set of or Iyr lyr IyrIcs lyricse lyrlcs icse Ics ? icsemodern modern song writer A good musl musi muslclan musiclan musiClan clan can take most popular numbers numbersapart numbersapart numbersapart apart and show what makes them themrun themrun themrun themrunCopyright run runCOPYright runCopyright Copyright TroublesThe TroublesThe Troubles TroublesThe The Merry Go Round Broke BrokeDown BrokeDown BrokeDown Down had its start in a Manhattan Manhattanmght Manhattannight Manhattannight mght night club where Eddie Riley and andMIke andMike andMike MIke Fariey Farley pulled a verse from the theFord theFord theFord Ford joke book and wrote a tune to togo togo togo go with it Soon a New York radIo radIostahon radiostation radiostation stahon station began broadcasting broadcastmg from the theclub theclub theclub club and overnight the song was a anatIonal anational anational natIonal favorite The mterestrng interesting mterestrngsldehght interestingsidelight interestingsidelight sldehght sidelight here is that the Ford Joke Jokebook jokebook jokebook book was not copyrighted other otherWIse otherwise otherwise WIse its publisher pubhsher could have col collected collected collected lected $250 250 $ from every radio sta stahon station station hon tion cafe and restaurant that used usedIt usedit usedit useditCopi It ItCOP itCopyrightsor COP Copyrights-or Copyrights or Copi ) rights-or rights or rights - or lack of them- them themhave themhave them themhave - have given many a composer fman finan fmanclal financial financial clal cial trouble Take Shelton Brooks Brooksnow Brooksnow Brooksnow now pounding poundmg piano in m a New York Yorkcafe Yorkcafe Yorkcafe cafe Back in m 1910 while whlle doing domg the thesame thesame thesame same thing thmg in m Chicago he wrote the thefamous thefamous thefamous famous Some of These Days No Nopubl Nopubl Nopubl publ sher would touch it so Mr MrBrooks MrBrooks MrBrooks Brooks and a friend handled it them themselves themselves themselves selves Their net profit at 10 cents centsa a copy was $62 62 $ 50 But a few months monthslater monthslater monthslater later a vaudeville trio tno picked it up upand upand upand and started it on the road to fame fameMr fameMr fameMr Mr Brooks sold out to Will Rossller Rossiter Rossllerfor Rossiterfor Rossiterfor for $500 500 $ Tha That t s all he got out of It Itthough itthough itthough though Some of These Days went wenton wenton wenton on to make a cool million trulllon dollarsSmce dollarsSince dollars dollarsSince Since Smce good song writers are few fewthese fewthese fewthese these days publishers have grasped graspedat at a new method of protecting protectmg them themselves themselves themselves selves and keeping the public pubhc happy happyThey happyThey happyThey They re keeping keepmg in mmd mind the fact factthat factthat ( actthat that copyrights on the tunes that thatthrilled thatthrilled thatthrilled thrilled grandfather are now run runmng running runnmg mng ning out and that it s often possible possibleto to buy renewal rights from the com corn composers cornposers cornposers posers or their heirs With new newtunes newtunes newtunes tunes so few orchestra leaders oft often often often en find it convement-and convement and convenient-and convenient convenient - and pleasing pleasmg pleasingto pleasmgto -to to - to insert msert a medley of oldtImers oldtimersin oldtImersm m in the r programs programsReviving programsRevlvwg Reviving Revlvwg the NwehesOne NinetiesOne Nineties Nwehes NinetiesOne One of the leaders m in this thls old tune tunebus tunebusiness tunebusiness bus business mess is Jerry Vogel a New Yorkpublisher York Yorkpublisher Yorkpublisher publisher who got a break several severalyears severalyears severalyears years ago when George M Cohen Cohenturned Cohenturned Cohenturned turned over h sent s ent re portfolio portfol1o with without without without out charge Thus Vogel found hnn him hnnself himself himself self Sltt siting sittng ng ng1th \ with \\1th 1th \ full rights on such suchone suchone suchone one time hme hit tunes as Forty five fiveMinutes fiveMinutes fiveMinutes Minutes From Broadway George GeorgeWashmgton GeorgeWashington GeorgeWashington Washmgton Washington Jr and Over ThereSometime ThereSometime There ThereSometime Sometime later a woman from fromnear fromnear fromnear near Boston dropped m in and offered offeredto to sell renev renewal . al rights nghts on the num number number number HenryJ ber her uncle had written wntten Henry J Sayers Ta |