Kay Kyser And The College Of Musical Knowledge, Vol. I

Radio Broadcasts

      Kay Kyser and his Orchestra were playing at Chicago’s Blackhawk Restaurant in 1937 when Kyser came up with Kay’s Klass, a freewheeling combination of community sing, amateur night and audience quiz. The show was re-christened Kay Kyser’s College of Musical Knowledge and WGN/Chicago gave it a trial run on the air. In 1938, Lucky Strike bought the show and moved to New York and became an instant hit on NBC.

As "The Ol’ Perfessor," Kyser greeted listeners with his trademark "Evenin’, folks. How y’all?" while wearing a long robe and mortarboard hat. Contestants were often given a "true-false" quiz and expected to offer "false" answers to "true" statements. When they did, Kyser proclaimed "That’s right, you’re wrong!"

Kay Kyser’s College of Musical Knowledge ran on radio until 1949. 

The College Of Musical Knowledge broadcast on this CD is from Feb. 26, 1941, where the Kyser band was performing for military personnel at the U.S. Marine Base in San Diego, CA. Featured are songsters Harry Babbitt, Ginny Simms, and Sully Mason. Trumpeter Merwyn Bogue (a.k.a., Ish Kabibble) is also on hand for some hilarious hi-jinx of his own. The show is an hour in length, complete with commercials for Lucky Strike cigarettes.

Some outstanding vintage radio from one of the great commercial show bands of the Big Band era.

Kay Kyser And The College Of Musical Knowledge, Volume I  is $10, plus $2.50 for shipping and handling. To order, send e-mail to jazzconnection@hotmail.com  

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