The Constantly Changing "When Swing Was King"

One of the things that most astounds and delights our “When Swing Was King”
audiences is that we have created 23 different programs!

And each volume has 12 original hit songs. Each volume has over 200 photographs projected on the screen by a Power Point program. And each volume has its own commentary to accompany it.  This means that we need not repeat any our monthly program for two whole years.

The full truth, however, is even more exciting because we actually never repeat a program!

No kidding. I’m always doing something to update, improve, and make more relevant each program in our repertoire.  A good example is Volume 4.4 which we will be playing to our regular schedule of 11 nursing homes and other senior centers throughout the month of April.  Last night I completed my revisions: three different songs, dozens of new photographs, and a wholesomely revamped narrative.

I base the changes on what we learn from our audiences.  We carefully note, for instance, their reactions to the songs and pictures and stories. We also welcome specific requests.  And, since “younger” seniors continually enter our audience, we regularly add in songs from later years.  Our forte remains the swing era of the 1930s and 1940s, but we are also seasoning our catalog with songs from mainstream crooners from later years: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole, The McGuire Sisters, Patti Page, The Mills Brothers, The Ames Brothers, Rosemary Clooney, and so on.

Here’s this month's song list which we will start presenting on Thursday.

1) Glenn Miller Orchestra (Main vocals by Tex Beneke)
“Chattanooga Choo Choo”
(Photo theme: trains and train stations from back in the day)

2) Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra (Vocals by Bob Eberly & Helen O’Connell)
“Green Eyes”

3) Artie Shaw Orchestra
“Begin the Beguine”

4) Benny Goodman Orchestra (Vocals by Martha Tilton)
“The Lady’s in Love With You”

5) Tommy Dorsey Orchestra (Vocals by Frank Sinatra)
“Fools Rush In”

 6) Lawrence Welk Orchestra
“Alley Cat”
(Photo theme: cats)

7) The McGuire Sisters
“Sincerely”
(Photo theme: Scenes from the year 1955)

8) The Mills Brothers
“Lazy River”
(Photo theme: rivers, riverside activity)

9) The Andrews Sisters
“Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy”
Photo theme (World War II)

10) Glen Gray & The Casa Loma Orchestra
“Blue Again”

11) Vaughn Monroe Orchestra
“There I Said It Again”

12) Sammy Kaye Orchestra
“Daddy”

Of course, just reading through a song list is hardly an effective way to experience the fun, interest, and relational value of “When Swing Was King.” So why not check our schedule and choose a presentation that you could attend and help us visit the residents?

We’d love to have you.  But they would love it even more!