Saturday, August 22, 2015

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Don Swan & His Orchestra

Artist:Don Swan & His Orchestra
Song:Tico Tico
Album:Ultra-Lounge Vol. 2: Mambo Fever





Latin music has changed over the years. Back in the 50s, it was sold mostly as dance music. Today there is still a cult market for it as kitschy lounge music. Don Swan recorded a few albums in the late 50s and then retired from music in the 60s. He was born Wilbur Schwandt June 28, 1904 in Manitowoc, WI. Schwandt's claim to fame was as co-writer of the pop music standard Dream A Little Dream Of Me with Fabian Andre and Gus Kahn. It was first recorded in 1931 by Ozzie Nelson. The best known version was recorded by Mama Cass in 1968. In the 30s, Schwandt was an arranger for various big bands and toured with Bob Hope. He joined Xavier Cugat's orchestra in 1940 and was his arranger for the next 20 years. This was Schwandt's background in Latin music. He also was an arranger for Perez Prado, Desi Arnaz and Freddie Martin. In 1956, Schwandt signed with Liberty Records and recorded five albums of Latin Dance music as Don Swan. Tico Tico is from his 1960 album Latino Vol. 2. This was Schwandt's final album for Liberty. Tico Tico is a Brazilian song that was popularized by Carmen Miranda in the 1947 film Copacabana and it was also a hit single for organist Ethel Smith in 1945. Today this kind of music has a cult following as retro kitsch. Capitol has released the CD series Ultra-Lounge. Mambo Fever includes a couple of Don Swan recordings along with other similar artists. Wilbur Schwandt retired from music in the mid-60s and he moved to Florida. He died on July 23, 1998 at age 94. Here's a video for Tico Tico by Don Swan & His Orchestra.

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