Search - Bing Crosby :: Cocktail Hour: Bing Crosby

Look up the term "crooner" in the encyclopedia and you won't find Bing Crosby's picture, but you should. For a half century Crosby was an American pop-music icon, one whose smooth, seemingly effortless delivery belied an innate musical ability to get inside his material and make it his own. This generous double-disc collection gathers some 27 recordings from early in Crosby's career, spanning a number of hits and material that ranges from ballads ("White Cliffs of Dover") and standards ("Sweet Georgia Brown," "Pennies from Heaven") to loping swing ("Swinging on a Star," "New San Antonio Rose," "Shoo Shoo Baby") and a few patriotic numbers ("Yankee Doodle Boy," "Song of Freedom," "Get on the Road to Victory"). Not the definitive Crosby collection, but a fine introduction to his career and, given the vintage radio recordings herein, an often fascinating historical document as well. --Jerry McCulley