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[0:00] Paul Lazarus: Hi, this is Paul Lazarus. In the 1980s, I produced and hosted a radio series called Anything Goes, a celebration of the American musical theater. Now, the Broadway Podcast Network is bringing back these shows. This is the first of a three-part program saluting Hoagy Carmichael, one of my favorite songwriters. This program originally aired in 1982. Together with my guest Dick Sudhalter, we featured many Carmichael rarities and little-known recordings of his most famous songs like Stardust and Skylark.

[0:39] ♪ Musical number: "April in My Heart" — performed by Billie Holiday ♪

[3:54] Paul Lazarus: And this is Anything Goes, and I'm your host Paul Lazarus, with a tribute to Hoaglin Howard Carmichael, who died December 27, 1981, just a couple of weeks back. And to help me celebrate this tribute to Hoagy Carmichael, I've invited Richard Sudhalter, noted cornetist and jazz historian and critic, and author of Bix, Man and Legend, to help me on this program. Welcome, Dick.

[4:33] Richard Sudhalter: Well, it's a pleasure to be here. I'd like to, before we get any further, qualify something you said earlier. You know, you referred to this show as a tribute, which generally implies a memorial. In this case, I'd rather think of it, I think, as a salute to somebody who, because his music is so vivid and so timeless and lives on beyond his mortal existence, is still with us. Hoagy Carmichael will, you know, almost to paraphrase his own book, he didn't die a couple of Sundays ago. He's still alive. He's still there. And if you are in any doubt, just play the songs and just listen. And, you know, he remains with us. So let's call it a salute.

[5:16] Paul Lazarus: Okay. And that's what we plan to do for the next hour and a half. And Dick and I decided that we would feature some lesser-known but equally important Carmichael songs today, in lieu of just playing the more well-known standards. And there are reasons why songs become standards, but sometimes well-deserved music doesn't get enough airplay and isn't given enough exposure. So we have to rectify that a little bit today. It might also be just the fact that a very worthy song comes along at a time when a slightly more worthy song by somebody else is garnering a lot of public attention. Certainly that happened to Hoagy a couple of times, too. He didn't win an Academy Award until, what was it, Koo Koo Koo of the Evening. That's right. Where Buttermilk Sky got nosed out by Johnny Mercer, Satchez and Topeka in the Santa Fe. So Mercer promised him, said, look, I'll write one with you and then you win an Academy Award. And it actually happened.

[6:10] Richard Sudhalter: Hoagy Carmichael was an actor, a singer, pianist, a film star, starred in a TV series called Laramie. But perhaps what he's best known for and what is uniquely Carmichael are these songs that he wrote individually. And you wrote rather extensive notes for an RCA album called The Legendary Hoagy Carmichael, and you referred to his non-urban quality. And I think we should talk about that a little bit, because it's really important in terms of Carmichael.

[6:41] Richard Sudhalter: Well, let's just remember that Hoagy did not write for the theater. He didn't write to order. He wrote about the things that were parts of his life. And he happened to have been a Midwestern American born at around the turn of the century. He was born in 1899 and grew up in Bloomington, Indiana, with all the piecework of that kind of American dream around him. And his songs reflect that. I don't think there's any other songwriter I can think of about whom you can say, even if you'd never known anything about him, known any biographical facts known of any of the course of his life, all you'd have to do is string the songs end to end and listen. And you'd know an awful lot about Hoagy Carmichael and where he was and what he was and where he'd been and where he'd come from.

I think that's a very strong point. It happened that it wasn't an urban existence. He wrote love songs, but they weren't love songs with the kind of world weary detachment of a Cole Porter, for example, and all the rest of it. They had their own flavor again.

[7:42] Richard Sudhalter: He was the son of a self-taught pianist who played in movie houses. And that's really his first exposure to music. Well, unlike his friend Bix Beiderbecke, who grew up in Iowa, somewhat to the west, Hoagy's family looked very sympathetically upon the new music that was in the air after World War I, ragtime and ultimately jazz. His mother was no slouch as a ragtime pianist. In fact, she came on Tommy Dorsey's Raleigh Cool Radio Show in the middle 30s at age 80 plus, whatever it was, and played the Maple Leaf Rag and broke it up. Contrast that to Bix's very staid, Germanic home in which anything resembling the proletarian efforts of a Scott Joplin or anything like that was just looked upon as frightfully in for a dig, and we couldn't have a son of ours becoming a professional musician.

Therefore, that very music became the instrument of Bix Beiderbecke's adolescent rebellion. Hoagy, that is, wrote his first major piece while at Indiana University for Bix Beiderbecke and his group at that time, the Wolverines.

[8:48] Richard Sudhalter: That's right. And I think we should get to the music because it speaks so eloquently for Hoagy.

[8:54] Paul Lazarus: Okay, you know, the Wolverines came to Indiana University in the spring of 1924. Hoagy had gotten them the job, and Hoagy proudly presented this piece that he'd written, this jazz band piece, to Bix. He called it Freewheeling, and Bix played it through and said, I like it. I don't like the title, so we'll change the title to Riverboat Shuffle, and the rest is history.

[9:12] Paul Lazarus: And this is Bix Beiderbecke and the Wolverines from a 24 recording, isn't it? A Jeanette original called Riverboat Shuffle.

[10:16] Richard Sudhalter: Welcome to Anything Goes, a celebration of the great American songbook and the legendary Hoagy Carmichael. Today, we begin our three-part salute to this remarkable songwriter and performer, known for classics like "Star Dust" and "Georgia on My Mind."

[10:46] Richard Sudhalter: Hoagy Carmichael's career spanned decades, and his influence on American music is immeasurable. He collaborated with many of the great lyricists of his time, including Johnny Mercer, and his songs have become timeless standards.

[11:16] Richard Sudhalter: In this episode, we'll explore some of his lesser-known works alongside his most famous hits. We'll hear recordings that showcase his unique style and the emotional depth of his music.

[11:26] Richard Sudhalter: One of the first songs we'll listen to is "April in My Heart." This piece beautifully captures the essence of longing and nostalgia that is so prevalent in Carmichael's work.

[11:36] ♪ Musical number: "April in My Heart" — performed by Hoagy Carmichael ♪

[11:56] Richard Sudhalter: That was "April in My Heart," a perfect example of Carmichael's lyrical and melodic genius. Next, we have "Riverboat Shuffle," which reflects the lively spirit of the jazz age.

[12:06] ♪ Musical number: "Riverboat Shuffle" — performed by Hoagy Carmichael ♪

[12:26] Richard Sudhalter: "Riverboat Shuffle" is such a fun and upbeat tune, showcasing Carmichael's ability to blend rhythm and melody seamlessly. Now, let's move on to another classic, "What Kind of Man is You?"

[12:36] ♪ Musical number: "What Kind of Man is You?" — performed by Hoagy Carmichael ♪

[12:56] Richard Sudhalter: That was "What Kind of Man is You?"—a song that highlights Carmichael's knack for storytelling through music. Now, let's listen to "Moon Country," a piece that transports us to a dreamy, romantic landscape.

[13:06] ♪ Musical number: "Moon Country" — performed by Hoagy Carmichael ♪

[13:26] Richard Sudhalter: "Moon Country" is a beautiful example of Carmichael's ability to evoke imagery and emotion through his compositions. As we continue our tribute, we'll delve deeper into his life and the impact he had on American music.

[13:36] Richard Sudhalter: Hoagy Carmichael was not just a songwriter; he was also a performer who brought his songs to life with his unique voice and style. His contributions to the world of music are truly remarkable.

[13:46] Richard Sudhalter: Stay tuned as we explore more of his works and hear from those who were influenced by his music. Up next, we'll take a closer look at his collaborations with lyricists and how they shaped his career.

[13:56] Richard Sudhalter: Thank you for joining us on this journey through the life and music of Hoagy Carmichael. We have much more to share in the upcoming segments, so don't go away!

[14:06] Richard Sudhalter: Remember, this is just the beginning of our celebration of Hoagy Carmichael. We'll continue to uncover the treasures of his musical legacy in the next episode.

[14:16] Richard Sudhalter: Until then, keep listening to the great American songs that have shaped our culture and continue to inspire generations.

[21:02] Richard Sudhalter: Salute 2.

[21:23] Richard Sudhalter: I'm a sucker for that, especially for the tune.

[21:34] Richard Sudhalter: And this time we get the real thing singing it too.

[21:37] Paul Lazarus: Indeed.

[22:03] Richard Sudhalter: And this time we get the real thing singing it too.

[22:33] Paul Lazarus: Indeed.

[22:51] ♪ Musical number: "Moon Country" — performed by Hoagy Carmichael ♪

[27:14] Richard Sudhalter: Wow. Two versions of Moon Country. Beautiful.

[27:27] Richard Sudhalter: The final one was by Max Morath and of course Hoagy Carmichael performing on the first.

[27:32] Paul Lazarus: Boy, thank you for that song. That's a really fine example of a song that just doesn't have the same kind of stature as some of his standards, but deserves the same stature, absolutely.

[27:46] Richard Sudhalter: For me, certainly. And I'm especially honored to have been on that record date because it was just a magic moment.

[27:54] Paul Lazarus: Oh, oh, oh.

[30:06] Paul Lazarus: You've been listening to part one of a three-part salute to songwriter Hoagy Carmichael. Anything Goes Backstage with Broadway's Best is produced and hosted by Paul Lazarus. For more information, visit anythinggoespl.com. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to rate and follow us. Thanks for listening.