While mining the pop culture reference points for Phil Moore's 1953 RCA Victor recording of "Chinchy Old Scrooge," I can't let it pass without pointing out the one person who gets name-dropped...
One particular line goes, "This ain't a fit night out for Clyde McCoy!"
Being somewhat hip by 1953 standards myself, I immediately recognize Clyde McCoy as the embodiment of corny music. He was a popular bandleader and trumpet player who featured the ultimate "wah-wah" sound on his horn. (This circuitously led to the non-corny wah-wah pedal for guitars in the 1960s, but that's another story!)
His type of square music is typical of what the bop cats were rebelling against. The difference between Clyde McCoy as a trumpeter and, say, Dizzy Gillespie is incalculable!
The thing is that I think Clyde McCoy is awesome! I absolutely love his theme song "Sugar Blues." He recorded it a few times, but my favorite is his 1935 version for Decca Records:
I love hipsters vs. squares circa 1953!
Just to provide a bit of context, here are "Billboard" magazine's top ten best selling singles from November 28, 1953, when "Chinchy Old Scrooge" was released:
I know all those records very well and they're not without merit, but they are pretty square!
The spiritual successor to Clyde McCoy is Pee Wee Hunt with his version of "Oh!"
So, are we done with Phil Moore?
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