Hoagy Carmichael & His Orchestra - Bessie Couldn't Help It, Take 2 - Victor 25371

[fatsfan70]

A great number - I love both this Hoagy version and the 1930 Rube Bloom and his Bayou Boys. Armstrong also recorded it in 1930 - a favourite of mine - his vocal is, for Louis, wonderful. He almost persuades me of Bessie's innocence!

[fromthesidelines]

Bix's final recording, with Hoagy's "hand-picked" studio band. This take was first issued in 1936 (which is why, unlike the original release, his name is prominently featured below Carmichael's, as Bix was already becoming a "jazz legend").