Background
Ted Weems was born Wilfred Theodore Weymes in Pitcairn, Pa.
https://www.amazon.com/My-Baby-Just-Cares-Me/dp/B079C4GBX6?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B079C4GBX6
https://www.amazon.com/Ted-Weems-Greatest-Hits/dp/B00005BGKL?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00005BGKL
(She's Perfect Sheet music Jan 01, 1931 Ted Weems and Joe ...)
She's Perfect Sheet music Jan 01, 1931 Ted Weems and Joe Bennett
https://www.amazon.com/Shes-Perfect-Ted-Weems/dp/B00D5EHWUE?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00D5EHWUE
https://www.amazon.com/1940-41-Broadcast-Recordings-Ted-Weems/dp/B000003LXB?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B000003LXB
(Jewel case with inserts, CD is like new with clear sound)
Jewel case with inserts, CD is like new with clear sound
https://www.amazon.com/Marvelous-Ted-Weems/dp/B000001HFK?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B000001HFK
(These recordings need to be listened to appreciatively wi...)
These recordings need to be listened to appreciatively within the context of their time and the wonderful band directed by Ted Weems with which Perry worked for six years from 1936 to 1941. The Weems band has been called a 'singer's delight' which featured a range of talented singers, one after another, of which Perry is undoubtedly the most famous and though these recordings, all recorded during Perry's stint with Weems, will be of great interest to Como fans, curious to hear what he sounded like during these very early years, the real reasons for listening to them should be to appreciate Weems and the talents of all who performed in his band. Perry's performances are all secondary and I make this claim respectfully. Ted Weems interspersed his crisp, unsophisticated ensemble sounds with the crooning of Como, the sweet ingénue singing of little Mary Lee, the more sexy emoting of Marvell Maxwell (who later changed her name to Marilyn Maxwell and became a Hollywood star), the novelties of Red Ingle, whom Como calls "one of the most talented men I've ever met" and who later made a hit record of "Timtayshun" with Jo Stafford, the straightforward rhythmic singing of Parker Gibbs, (who went on to be a top NBC radio producer), the stylized, semi-hillbilly performances of 'Country; Washburn and the whistling of Elmo Tanner. When you listen to these recordings, think about these people and not just Perry alone. Going back even further in time than their recent Jasmine CD (JASCD359 - I Want To Thank You Folks), this new CD finds Perry Como at the very start of his recording career as vocalist with Ted Weems & his Orchestra. Although at the time Perry was treated second best to the bands featured whistler Elmo Tanner, Como had the last laugh though. Long overdue for reissue, the 24 songs here follow the development of Perry's singing voice from the influences of Al Jolson & Russ Columbo to the clearly defined style we recognise today.
https://www.amazon.com/Class-Will-ORIGINAL-RECORDINGS-REMASTERED/dp/B000031WE3?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B000031WE3
https://www.amazon.com/Heartaches/dp/B003P7JW7M?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B003P7JW7M
(The name Ted Weems is associated in musical history with ...)
The name Ted Weems is associated in musical history with two major events. The first, that in 1936 he recruited into his band a young unknown singer called Perry Como, and because of this the early recordings featuring this subsequent superstar have become collector's items. The second, because an obscure 1933 recording called "Heartaches" was picked up by a Charlotte, North Carolina, radio station in 1947 and became a million-seller fourteen years after its initial release. A selection of Ted Weems with Perry Como recordings are available on another Jasmine CD (JASCD362 - Class With Tell) and the said "Heartaches" is contained in this very compilation. It would not be fair to remember Ted Weems for just these two facts, though. Ted led perhaps the best 'swing' band of the 1920s and 1930s and the recordings on this CD certainly give justification to that claim.
https://www.amazon.com/Saturday-Night-Til-Monday-Morning/dp/B000056V1H?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B000056V1H
Ted Weems was born Wilfred Theodore Weymes in Pitcairn, Pa.
He was a graduate of Lincoln School in Pittsburgh. He attended the University of Pennsylvania.
He first led a band as a pupil at Lincoln Grammar School in Pittsburgh, Pa. The young musicians played mouth organs, combs, and improvised drums commendably enough to receive a penny each from the school principal. When the Weems family moved to Philadelphia, Ted pursued a busy music schedule, playing violin in the West Philadelphia Symphony and trombone in the high school band, where his brother, Art, held forth on trumpet. Before long he was conducting. It was a pattern the brothers maintained through years of dance-band work. While an engineering student at the University of Pennsylvania, Weems became director of the varsity band and organized a dance orchestra that played for school functions. After playing trombone in Paul Specht's band in the early 1920's, Weems and his brother organized their All-American Band, made up of college musicians. They soon were playing at the Trianon Ballroom in Newark, N. J. Some authorities consider Weems's engagement at the Steel Pier at Atlantic City in July 1923 as his real debut. The band went on the road, playing hotels in major cities, but gravitated to Chicago. There radio broadcasts helped to widen its popularity. In 1924 the band had a hit record, "Somebody Stole My Gal. " Other successes followed: "My Gal Sal, " "My Cutie's Due at Two to Two Today, " "You're the Cream in My Coffee. " At dances and in theaters Weems communicated easily with the public, and it responded warmly to the happy, outgoing style of the band. In 1929, back in Chicago after touring the country, the band continued to have good air exposure. The haunting theme "Out of the Night, " embellished with gentle whistling, signaled radio listeners that Ted Weems was on. Another hit record, "Piccolo Pete, " proved irresistible to eager disc buyers. Besides purveying happy, danceable music, Weems featured entertaining novelty numbers and attractive vocalists such as Parker Gibbs, Red Ingle, Joe "Country" Washburn, and Elmo Tanner, the band's talented whistler. Tenor Art Jarrett was the band's romantic balladeer until early 1931. After his departure Weems kept on the lookout for a replacement. In 1936 he found one: Perry Como. The relaxed Como style, direct descendant of crooner Bing Crosby's, graced the Weems music for six years. Though male vocalists dominated the band, two female singers contributed their share to its popularity: Mary Lee and Marvel Maxwell, who later appeared in films as Marilyn Maxwell. In the 1930's the Weems band performed on radio with Jack Benny, tenor James Melton, and Fibber McGee and Molly. It was equally busy in the recording studios. Among tunes written by Weems and recorded by the band were "The Martins and the Coys, " "The One-Man Band, " and a number he wrote with Country Washburn, "Oh, Mon-ah" ("Oh, Mourner" in southern accent). One recording, destined to secure Weems' fame in dance music history, started with a whimper. It was an upbeat, excitingly rhythmic (and quite antiromantic) version of a current romantic ballad, "Heartaches. " Released in 1933, it broke no sales records. But when the band recorded it again on a different label in 1938, it zoomed to the million-seller mark. In December 1942, Weems and his band joined the U. S. Merchant Marine. They were assigned regular duties at Basic Cadet School in San Mateo, Calif. , but they were free after 4 P. M. every day. After release from the service, Weems reorganized his band. Prewar "big bands" were disappearing, and disc jockeys were replacing radio "remotes" for promoting bands. In 1947 a disc jockey in Charlotte, N. C. , put Weems's 1933 "Heartaches" on his turntable. Victor reissued it; it hit the million-seller ranks; a new generation discovered Ted Weems. The band played on into the 1950's, but the rock 'n' roll craze finally forced Weems to give up. He became a disc jockey, but he still did occasional tours with the band. He died in Tulsa, Okla. , "with his boots on" during a tour, doing what he had been doing so engagingly and so well for nearly forty years.
(These recordings need to be listened to appreciatively wi...)
(The name Ted Weems is associated in musical history with ...)
(She's Perfect Sheet music Jan 01, 1931 Ted Weems and Joe ...)
(Jewel case with inserts, CD is like new with clear sound)
In 1924, Weems married Eleanor Constance Logan; they had one son.
