Back Again

New Zealand Listener, Volume 17, Issue 418, 27 June 1947, Page 12

Back Again

‘THERE was on a recent Sunday night a programme from 4YO entitled "Recalls: Recordings selected ftom the week’s programmes." Unless there was some special reason for doing this, unless these records were recalled for some particular reason, one might ask, "Why bother to label the programme at all?" And indeed, listening to it, I couldn’t discern any obvious reason for the programme, nor discover upon what principle the items had been selected, for they were not specially new or specially superb examples of recordings. I cotild understand a pfogramme being labelled "Recalls" if there was ati idea behind it-if the records were all by one artist (as 4ZB did the same afternoon playing a timely selection of Ninon Vallin’s records when the singer was actually in Dunedin); or if the records were all humorous, of -all classical, or all swing music, or all mew feleases which we might want to hear again; or with any other connecting link, however slight. But the mere fact that all the records had already been included in the week’s programmes was no reason for repeating them, especially as the method of announcing the items was the shop-worn

one of pretending that the artists were not on gramophone records at all ("We enjoyed the way Isobel Baillie sang ‘Love’s Philosophy’; we are asking her now to repeat it.") The selection began with Gershwin; went on by means of Webster Booth and a popular pianist playing Strauss, J., to Pierne’s "Little

Fauns" and the Kentucky Minstrels singing "White Wings"; an example of Strict Tempo playing; and then, most incongruously, Isobel Baillie ‘singing "Love’s. Philosophy." After ‘this, I switched off. I could see no reason for continuing to listen to "recalls," only one of which I had really cared to hear again. Why "recalls?" Why not "Ragout," "Random Hatvest" or "Rag-Bag?"