It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) - Duke Ellington & His Famous Orchestra (1932)

One of the great composers and band leaders of the 20th Century, doing a favorite of mine with Ivie Anderson on vocals.

From You Tube: "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" is a 1931 composition by Duke Ellington with lyrics by Irving Mills, now accepted as a jazz standard. The music was written and arranged by Ellington in August 1931 during intermissions at Chicago's Lincoln Tavern and was first recorded by Ellington and his orchestra for Brunswick Records (Br 6265) on February 2, 1932. Ivie Anderson sang the vocal and trombonist Joe Nanton and alto saxophonist Johnny Hodges played the instrumental solos. The title was based on the oft stated credo of Ellington's former trumpeter Bubber Miley, who was dying of tuberculosis. The song became famous, Ellington wrote, "as the expression of a sentiment which prevailed among jazz musicians at the time." Probably the first song to use the phrase "swing" in the title, it introduced the term into everyday language and presaged the Swing Era by three years. The Ellington band played the song continuously over the years and recorded it numerous times, most often with trumpeter Ray Nance as vocalist."

Pokey LaFarge and the South City Three---"Pack It Up"

Here's a group that plays traditional American folk and jazz music, and also comes up with original compositions like this foot-tapping tune. Hope you enjoy!

From MySpace (Pokey La Farge)

"Of the countless roots musicians traveling the world, spreading the early American music tradition, St. Louis musician and singer Pokey LaFarge is the next in line to make a significant impact on music enthusiasts everywhere. His creative mix of early jazz, string ragtime, country blues and western swing rings true and fine, making him one of the most innovative of all the purists performing American roots music today. It’s wonderfully infectious, and all laid down in front of a big, big swingin’ beat. A lot of performers are content to play old material, reworking the tunes to give them new life or to stamp them with personal style. But LaFarge both achieves timelessness with his original songs and honors the legendary songwriters and musicians of songs he covers. He uses his booming voice as an instrument with an incredible range; above his parlor guitar one moment he shouts a line and the next he croons. And while his music may be a fitting soundtrack to R. Crumb's comics, don't dare to call it “old-timey.” Whether performing solo or with his crew of painstakingly hand-picked supporting musicians, LaFarge’s extraordinary blend of raw talent and refined, idiosyncratic charm turns reviewers into poets as they attempt to label his one-of-a-kind sound."

Bing Crosby - Some Of These Days, 1932

I'm going back a little further than usual here. Bing Crosby was the major singing sensation of the early 1930's and, of course, beyond. He was a huge star in all mediums of that time, and, according to his biographer, jazz critic Gary Giddings, the most admired man in post-WWII America.
Most everybody knows about "White Christmas" and his singing with the Andrews Sisters and the "Road" movies, tv specials, et al. But I got to listening to some of his earlier recordings a while back. I was struck by how much "zing" Bing could put into a song. Here's some fun scat-jazz singing by the guy Swing-Era bandleader Artie Shaw called "the first hip white guy."

Note: the song was originated by Sophie Tucker, hence her pics on part of the video.