The Solid Swing of Al Donahue & His Orchestra

by Al Donahue

This popular big band leader of the late 1930s and early 1940s has been almost entirely forgotten, save for his mega-smash "Jeepers Creepers." Leave it to Dan Rivard to ressurect Donahue's swinging bones with this new CD, the first EVER comp of the band leader's work!

Ken Robertson works his usual magic with the pre-tape-era audio, but some tracks do suffer wear more than others, especially the opening rarity "Spring is Here." More puzzling is Rivard's omittance of several of Donahue's hits, all owned by Sony like the rest of these here, in favor of more obscure fare. Sure, the smash hit "The Wise Old Owl" is extremely welcome (in its worldwide CD debut), but one wonders what became of the top ten "Lambeth Walk" and minor chart hits "Heart and Soul" and "I Hear a Rhapsody."

But Rivard does dish up a surprise at the end... two previously unreleased studio sides from 1942! Wow! A sensational job overall, despite the sometimes perplexing track selection.

One can only hope Mr. Rivard will next set his sights on bandleaders Bob Chester and Abe Lyman's RCA-Bluebird hits... [hint hint]