Search - Mills Brothers :: Sweeter Than Sugar

Timeless vocal quartet

Annie Van Auken | Planet Earth | 08/01/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Tracks on ASV's Mills Bros. collection SWEETER THAN SUGAR were waxed between 1931 and '35, with the lion's share from a September '34 NYC studio session.



The version of "Tiger Rag" presented here is a 1934 remake, which is good but not as spirited as the '31 original, a platter that marked this fine vocal quartet's recording debut. The disc closes however with the 'B' side of that premiere single ("Nobody's Sweetheart").



Audio clarity is generally fine with pleasant tone and fine bass response. Some minor surface noise is apparent, but there's no scratch ticks or random pops, and little groove damage on loud passages.



These sides showcase the youthful Mills Bros. at their best. Most feature joyous scatting, voice imitations of muted trumpet and other instruments plus oldest brother John's rhythm guitar strumming. These solid examples of pop and jazz vocalizing are distant precursors to the sort of a cappella harmonizing used twenty years later by the first doo-wop groups.



PROGRAM--



[1:49] Tiger Rag (9/14/34)

[2:15] Old Fashioned Love (9/12/34)

[2:57] Fiddlin' Joe (1/25/33)

[2:25] Smoke Rings (1/25/33)

[2:45] I've Found a New Baby (9/14/34)

[2:36] Chinatown, My Chinatown (4/14/32)

[2:58] Lazy Bones (6/13/34)

[3:07] Diga Diga Doo - w/Duke Ellington orchestra (12/22/32)

[2:20] Nagasaki (6/13/34)

[1:54] Sweeter Than Sugar (9/12/34)

[3:11] Miss Otis Regrets (9/12/34)

[2:35] Ida! Sweet as Apple Cider (9/13/34)

[3:25] Rockin' Chair (9/14/34)

[2:31] Some of These Days (9/14/34)

[2:32] Sweet Georgia Brown (9/12/34)

[2:20] Nobody's Sweetheart (10/12/31)



TOTAL PLAYING TIME: 41:40"