Search - The Cats & The Fiddle :: Killin' Jive, 1939-40 - The Complete Recordings Vol. 1

Nice reissue of obscure vocal jazz

Robert English | Independence, OR USA | 01/08/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This import CD (in addition to its companion volume) is a fitting replacement for the 2-LP package that RCA issued 24 years ago - nearly impossible to find now. Generally, if you like the Mills Brothers' early material ("Swing Is The Thing", and the sides they cut with Louis Armstrong for instance), you'll find this stuff very entertaining. Ahead of their time, their fast-banter scat singing presaged Bop stylists (ex. Lambert, Hendricks and Ross) by almost a decade. The ballads are typical of the period, and while not the highlight of the program they do serve to round it out.Small caveat: the sides presented here are from private collections, and not from RCA's vaults. Surface noise has been reduced nicely, but there's some needle wear on the louder passages."

Highly recommended

allismile0 | Washington, DC | 02/28/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is really exciting music from around the early 1040's. Four beautiful voices harmonizing through jazz ballads and fast tempo numbers- fascinating rhythms, pretty guitar solos, neat tempo changes. The songs are all really well written and simple. From what I've heard of the Mills Brothers I see the resembalance only in that they both are jazz vocal groups. The Cats and the Fiddle are much less refined which gives the music more a feeling of excitement and raw emotion (depending on the subject of the song).
I was recommended this music a few years ago because the person thought that since I liked the Beach Boys I would like this. Well, I don't exactly see how they pieced that together- although there is a lot of heart in this music. I don't mind carrying on that idea though... If you like the Beach Boys... You definetly like this!
highly recommended."

The Roots of Doo-wop and R&B

Andre M. | Mt. Pleasant, SC United States | 06/11/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Along with Louis Jordan's Tympani Five, this group laid the foundations of R&B, and doo-wop in particular. The Cats & The Fiddle sang in jivey harmony while accompaning themselves on various srtinged instruments. Their ode to marijuana, "Killing Jive" with it's appealing (but cleverly coded) lyrics started all the fun (check their spirited performance of this song in Lena Horne's film "The Duke Is Tops"). "Thursday Evening Swing" captures the mood of a 1930s jitterbug party and "Mr. Rhythm Man" will simply make you smile while tapping your feet. "Nothing," with it's refrain, "doo-wop doo-wop" very well may have been the source for the name of the musical genre of the same name. In either case, a highly entertaining purchase."