1937 FRED ASTAIRE 78 BEGINNER'S LUCK / SLAP THAT BASS UK BRUNSWICK 02424 V+/E-
Sold Date:
October 13, 2021
Start Date:
July 13, 2019
Final Price:
£12.00
(GBP)
Seller Feedback:
13272
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AN EXCELLENT COPY OF THIS 78 FROM THE 1937 FRED ASTAIRE AND GINGER ROGERS MUSICAL FILM " SHALL WE DANCE "
" I'VE GOT BEGINNERS LUCK "
b/w " SLAP THAT BASS "
"(I've Got) Beginner's Luck": A brief comic tap solo with cane where Astaire's rehearsing to a record of the number is cut short when the record gets stuck.
"Slap That Bass": In a mixed race number unusual for its time, Astaire encounters a group of African-American musicians holding a jam session in a spotless, Art Deco-inspired ship's engine room. Dudley Dickerson introduces the first verse of the song whose chorus is then taken up by Astaire. The virtuoso tap solo which follows is the first substantial musical number in the picture, and can be seen as a successor to the "I'd Rather Lead A Band" solo from Follow the Fleet (1936)—which also took place aboard ship—this time introducing a vertical element to the predominantly linear choreography, some pointedly dismissive references to ballet positions, and a middle section similarly without musical accompaniment but now imaginatively supported by rhythmic engine noises. George Gershwin's colour home-movie footage of Astaire rehearsing this number was discovered only in the 1990s.
DISC DETAILS: UK BRUNSWICK 02424 10" 78rpm shellac CONDITION - E-/V+ TWO MORE CLASSICS FROM FRED ASTAIRE ON THIS BRUNSWICK 78 DON'T MISS OUT - BUY NOW!!
