I’ve got a bunch of old 78s that used to belong to my Great Aunt. When I was a kid I’d lug my brother’s portable phonograph down to my Aunt’s place and play all her records. Even then I liked jazzy swing-type music.
Well, the other day I ran across one of those songs which set me to wondering a bit. It’s a rollicking tune by the Aagaard Swingsters called “Nagasaki”. Now I knew this record of my Aunt’s dated to before WWII but I’m still kind of curious about the title.
Some digging around has established the Swingsters were a Norwegian Jazz group. Also “Nagasaki” appears to have been a pretty popular tune, being recorded by numerous performers including Cab Calloway and Fats Waller. I’ve also found the lyrics, I think. It’s a really lively piece so it’s hard to make out all the words.
I’ve further discovered that the music was written by Harry Warren and the lyrics by Mort Dixon.
None of which tells me though if it’s named after the Japanese city and if so why that particular place? Was Nagasaki a hotbed of jazz in the 20s and 30s? Or was it just a whim of the lyricist?
Love that song. It’s probably a combination of Nagasaki being an “exotic” port-of-call for troops, and (more important) the fact that it rhymes with “tobaccy” and “wicki-wacki.”
It was probably because they liked the sound of the word.
And if you’re going to link to Mort Dixon, you should also link to Harry Warren, one of the greatest 20th century popular composers. If you go over his song list, you’re going to find quite a few names you recognize. “Nagasaki” was Warren’s first major hit (he had already had several minor ones).
If you like “Nagasaki,” you probably already like other Warren tunes like “42nd Street,” “Chattanooga Choo Choo,” “That’s Amore,” “Wyatt Earp” (TV show theme), “Lullabye of Broadway,” “Dames,” “Shuffle Off to Buffalo,” “You’re Getting to be a Habit with Me,” and many of the songs used in Warner Brothers cartoons.
I guess that would be a tricky rhyme. I sort of thought that was probably why he used it. Especially perusing the rest of his work.
At least I did mention Warren.
A whole bunch of good stuff there. I’m surprised how many I recognize.
I was also surprised to run across the updated version of Nagasaki while googling. Good to know the oldies are still being appreciated.
I’ve also recently been playing some inherited CDs-mostly a collection of fabulous showtunes and the like. Harold Arlen, Dorothy Fields, Fats Waller/Razaf, Loesser, Lerner, Jerome Kern…and on and on. I love this stuff! The songs are so vibrant and emotional. It’s just great. (Plus I can understand the lyrics.)
Should anyone still be reading this, let me ask-Got any good links to to music of the 1920s, 30s, 40s?
Chica Chica Boom Chic y’all
Also, while nowadays people think of Nagasaki as the place that got nuked, prior to that it was one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Japan. It wasn’t only a large port, it was also a pretty happenin’ place.
Another nifty version of the song can be found on the Spanky and Our Gang album Live, which was recorded in 1967 but not released until 1970. Check out the All Music Guide review.
Though I was a big fan of the group, I missed the release and didn’t know about it until just recently. It is beguiling, indeed.
