Search - Boswell Sisters :: The Boswell Sisters Collection, Vol. 5, 1933-36

The first sisters of recorded popular music

Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 09/22/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Boswell sisters, although largely unknown these days, were an enormous influence on many singers of the forties and fifties, including other sister groups like the Andrews sisters and solo singers like Ella Fitzgerald.The Boswell sound was jazz based, like much music of the era. They were capable of many different types of song - they could swing but they could also sing romantic love songs.If I had a million dollars is wishful thinking even today, but was even more so in the depression of the 1930's. There are five Irving Berlin songs, including Top hat white tie and tails, Cheek to cheek and Let yourself go.Some of their own hits can be found here, including The object of my affection (their only #1 hit as a trio, from 1935), I'm gonna sit right down and write myself a letter (a cover of a Fats Waller hit which charted higher than the original) and Dinah (a cover of a song which had already been a huge hit in 1926 and 1932 for several others, but they still took it to #3).Alexander's ragtime band originally dates back to 1911. The Boswells' cover was a top ten hit (as the flip side of Dinah) in 1935, but was re-issued in 1939 on it's own and charted higher, but Connee Boswell recorded a new version with Bing and that version (not included here) topped the chart.This is an excellent conclusion to a wonderful series of CD's covering the music that Connee, Martha and Helvetia (known as Vet) made together. Connee continued for many years as a solo singer after the others retired. Those recordings are covered separately."