Would congenially observe that this song goes hand-in-glove with "The Breeze and I" ("Andalucia") much like "Moonglow" goes with the theme from "Picnic."
Great is simply great and I have always placed them amongst the very best. To think they were all musicians, as well as singers. But sadly they are all gone now. I know we all must go but it hurts to see a passing of an era that you remember as a child.....and never forgot. I certainly didn't. Thanks.
The Four Freshmen are amazing. Bob Flanigan was a great lead singer. Too bad he's gone. We just need radios to stop playing overplayed songs like Adele Rolling in the Deep, DJ Got Us Falling in Love by Usher and others and play songs like this.
Bob Flanigan, here playing the acoustic bass, died on May 15, 2011. He also played the trombone on their recordings and was the highest voice in the group.
@wordwise3 I am saddened to learn of his passing. This leaves Ross as the only member remaing from the original group, and last I heard, he was in poor health. I thank God for their beautiful music.
I wasn't born until 1960 so this is certainly not the genre of music I grew up listening to, and I've heard many jazz renditions of this song without the vocals. Actually, I didn't know there were words to this song until I stumbled upon Johnny Mathis here on YT (I grew up knowing about Johnny through my mom. She's 74 now and she's still in love with him!) and now, the Four Freshman. Simply beautiful!
I had the privilege to see them when I was in high school. Their harmonies were unbelievably great, I had a lot of their records. The present copy groups are like comparing a Chevy truck to a Ferrari. But I'm glad somebody's keeping their music alive.
Boy, they don't make music like this anymore.The 40's and 50's had music for every taste...swing, jazz, and beautiful melodies like this. I loved living in that era.
It was most likely lip-synched to a recording they made at the film studio the day of the filming. This was standard procedure for music on film in those days.
I saw them live in the early 90's and had the good fortune to be able to speak with them after the show. I complimented them (totally tongue-in-cheek) on their rendition of Brian Wilson's arrangement of Graduation Day - you should have seen the looks on their faces one nanosecond before they 'got it.' Extremely talented gentlemen, one and all!
Fantastic. Yeah I discovered them via Brian Wilson (Smile in particular). The Beach Boys did a FF song as a tribute, very nice. I listen to FF a lot now. I assume this is lip synced but who cares.
@denverexec2000 I doubt that it was lipsynched. It is completely unlike the recorded single. Plus this was back when people had actual talent and could perform without tricks. Also, it was back when people didn't need their favorite song to sound exactly the same way it sounds on itunes.
If you get a positive reply from anybody _ please, please contact me. I saw them live in the '50s and they got the same sound singinging into just one mike on the stage. My favourite is the LP with 4 Trombones
@didymus46 YES - that was one of their most successful albuns - but there were many more. You can see two versions of the Freshmen with fivw trombones here on YouTube - including either the 1950's voices or the Freshmen TODAY !
I LOVE this song, soooooo soothing ....kind of like a sweet lullaby:-) I want to drift off to slumberland listening to these gentlemen sing this song. Thanks for uploading this video!
Love the Four Freshman....as a young girl in Indiana......there was no finer, stan kenton, June Cristy and the Four Freshan....they were and here 50 years later the best....thanks for posting
Hey Bobbie--I also grew up in Indiana-saw Kenton at Shaffer Lake-been a life long fan of the freshmen. I heard them at the Fort Wayne Coliseum in the late 60's-shared a beer with them in the dressing room before one of their shows.-And-the 'new' Freshmen are also fantastic.
Good stuff....vocal rendering of Glenn Miller's version from WWII years, but there's no arguing that Ahmad Jamal made this composition come ALIVE! If you haven't heard Ahmad Jamal play Poinciana....you're cheating yourself.
what a wonderful song! Your can hear the Brian Wilson influence in the vocal arrangement. Any BB's fan knows what I am talking about. The soprano (lead), the crescendos, etc.
The Beach Boys came in the 1960's, so it's exactly the opposite. Brian Wilson has said that The Four Freshmen were a major influence on the Beach Boys, especially their lush, tight harmonies.
First time I heard these guys was when they were playing at Facks !! in San Francisco in the early 50's and I was in The Navy on a ship docked in Oakland. We were all fellow hoosiers.
When I told a a fellow crew member by the name of Bob Prather, another fellow hoosier said he had played with them a little back in Greencastle. He joined me the following night at Facks and sure enough, he knew them. Over the years we became acquainted. I became a deejay and gave them a lot of air time.
I have the studio version of this but hearing a live performance only testifies to the degree of the talent these guys had. What's so impressive to me was that they also were instrumentalists. Most singing groups stand and sing which is fine. But these guys played, and played well, while singing in the most incredibly beautiful and totally unique harmony. Just blows me away! When I heard that Brian Wilson also loves this stuff, I wasn't the least surprised. No wonder I love his music as well.
There I was, looking for Manhattan Transfer's version (they covered it on their 2nd album), only to happen upon the "Original". This is great. Thanks!
Four Freshmen used exclusively "close harmony" or (in other words) "thickened line", while the Hi-lo's often made an expedition to the world of expanded voices. Both are perfect. It's a matter of taste. I personally prefer the Hi-lo's, but it's just my personal taste. The 4 Freshmen are great.
I remember seeing them perform in a little jazz club in Chicago many years ago. They really were great a very talented group. Now I wish I'd gone back and seen them over and over again.
Well. johnhowell I must have visited your jazz club in Adelaide in the 1960's, because if I remember correctly, there was only one. It was in the early 60's and wasn't it in a basement?
I am so glad I lived in this era of time.. I am in twilight years now. So many wonderful memories to recall. from this kind of music.Thank you so much silverhammer for posting.. Ive lived it Thanks.. Hank Ohare
@hanker95 You and I are peers and I know exactly what you mean, I've was there too. The real shame is that those who were not there with us will never know what is used to be like and what an oasis it used to be. This sound is gone now except for the recordings and the memories.
@hanker95 Real vocalists singing real music. I was in my teens during the era of this wonderful music and, like you, have entered the twilight years (68). The memories flow like the melody of this graceful song and I like the warm glow and smile they bring back.
I definitely agree with that comment. I absolutely love their harmony. Its so beautiful. I like the Beach Boys myself but the Four Freshman are like their fathers. They should give them credit.
Diamond!
Bruno47602 2 months ago
Anyone remember Sinatra singing this in the middle 40's? It was the best.
jayseah32 2 months ago
I would love to be serenaded like this. Live
nancydrew5 2 months ago
The great Four Freshman, now that's what singing is all about...
chaneyroot2 2 months ago
how can i download this??!?!?!?
MatthewFalcon73 3 months ago
Priceless footage. Thanks, silverhammmer.
soulfuljakazz07 4 months ago
Would congenially observe that this song goes hand-in-glove with "The Breeze and I" ("Andalucia") much like "Moonglow" goes with the theme from "Picnic."
dwsingrs 4 months ago
Great is simply great and I have always placed them amongst the very best. To think they were all musicians, as well as singers. But sadly they are all gone now. I know we all must go but it hurts to see a passing of an era that you remember as a child.....and never forgot. I certainly didn't. Thanks.
boomerang905 4 months ago
Wait a second no auto tune? So this is what the human voice sounds like!
bassdrumbone64 5 months ago
What happened to music like this? I stil find it as beautiful now as I did then.
iluminatiytu 5 months ago
How could anyone not love the Freshmen?
caravan922 6 months ago in playlist YouTube Mix for The Four Freshmen
Beautiful!!
swissroll40 6 months ago
they were in their 20s when this was made. The original line up..
bobandrayfan1 6 months ago
The last of the Original quartet passed away this week. His obituary was in the NYTs today, Aug 24.2011. RIP
John55son 6 months ago
I wish I was born in 1935 instead of 1985 when I hear music like this.
MVillani1985 6 months ago
They don't make music like this anymore...
GeoCoppens 7 months ago
Make your mark...young people by composing and writing immortal music...like this!
It lasts forever.
dwetick 8 months ago
The Four Freshmen are amazing. Bob Flanigan was a great lead singer. Too bad he's gone. We just need radios to stop playing overplayed songs like Adele Rolling in the Deep, DJ Got Us Falling in Love by Usher and others and play songs like this.
jazzalex22 8 months ago
I was 11 when this Four Freshmen song became a hit. I was hooked on their close harmony style for the next 8 to 10 years. Thanks for posting.
howeysca 8 months ago
Bob Flanigan, here playing the acoustic bass, died on May 15, 2011. He also played the trombone on their recordings and was the highest voice in the group.
wordwise3 9 months ago
@wordwise3 I am saddened to learn of his passing. This leaves Ross as the only member remaing from the original group, and last I heard, he was in poor health. I thank God for their beautiful music.
HoosierBullhead 8 months ago
NICE !!!!!
preachingsaxplayer 9 months ago
I'm 71 AND THE FRESHMEN SOUND AS GOOD AS THEY DID 55 YEARS AGO
dennis721000 9 months ago
Before the Beach Boys, there were the Four Freshmen.
predlycon 9 months ago 2
The current line up of the 4 freshmen doesn not come close to this one
AWESOME
dbookin 10 months ago
I was a young teenager in the fifties, the four freshman really played around with hormones
l8in64 11 months ago
in 1952 i was 14years and now I am 73 and this song I heard from the 4freshmen at that time even now it sounds so frsh and clear thanks guys..5*****
amanyttap 11 months ago
i have this song by tex beneke and his orchestra on 78
shaunsstuff79 11 months ago
Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys biggest influence. No wonder. So good...
xXtguiseXx 1 year ago 2
@xXtguiseXx i know, i understand the influence he got from their harmonies. it's very close knit just like the beach boy's harmonies.
kennyg03 10 months ago
@xXtguiseXx Well, The Four Freshmen and The Ronettes...
tbirdy 9 months ago
apik temenan
jarotkr1 1 year ago
español ??
Johaniiry 1 year ago
Beautiful!
KaRidder234 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Jesus christ is king of kings and lord of lords
bass109 1 year ago
I wasn't born until 1960 so this is certainly not the genre of music I grew up listening to, and I've heard many jazz renditions of this song without the vocals. Actually, I didn't know there were words to this song until I stumbled upon Johnny Mathis here on YT (I grew up knowing about Johnny through my mom. She's 74 now and she's still in love with him!) and now, the Four Freshman. Simply beautiful!
ilovegoodsax 1 year ago
I had the privilege to see them when I was in high school. Their harmonies were unbelievably great, I had a lot of their records. The present copy groups are like comparing a Chevy truck to a Ferrari. But I'm glad somebody's keeping their music alive.
raleighsquare 1 year ago
O.M.G ...that was music.....the voices sounds like a Sumerbreeze.....like four Nitghingales!
zigeunerlein 1 year ago
Boy, they don't make music like this anymore.The 40's and 50's had music for every taste...swing, jazz, and beautiful melodies like this. I loved living in that era.
toyne38 1 year ago
It was most likely lip-synched to a recording they made at the film studio the day of the filming. This was standard procedure for music on film in those days.
Russgershon 1 year ago
I saw them live in the early 90's and had the good fortune to be able to speak with them after the show. I complimented them (totally tongue-in-cheek) on their rendition of Brian Wilson's arrangement of Graduation Day - you should have seen the looks on their faces one nanosecond before they 'got it.' Extremely talented gentlemen, one and all!
Rknbkr12 1 year ago
Really Cool! What a great sound and a wonderful bunch of musicians! Thanks for posting! JAZZ!
entertainu 1 year ago
Yes, we can see the" rhythmic savage beat" pulsating through your bodies.(LOL)...simmer down guys!
tet43 1 year ago
Unreal.....Brian Wilson's biggest influence...
danimal7925 1 year ago
I'm going to guess this was NOT lip synced. I've seen them twice live and they were spot on perfect! Amazing!
judygrell 1 year ago
The new Four Freshmen is very, very good! So glad the group has continued all these years!
hhn1000 1 year ago
Fantastic. Yeah I discovered them via Brian Wilson (Smile in particular). The Beach Boys did a FF song as a tribute, very nice. I listen to FF a lot now. I assume this is lip synced but who cares.
denverexec2000 1 year ago
@denverexec2000 I doubt that it was lipsynched. It is completely unlike the recorded single. Plus this was back when people had actual talent and could perform without tricks. Also, it was back when people didn't need their favorite song to sound exactly the same way it sounds on itunes.
rickygervais1776 1 year ago
Man, these guys were awesome.
marcoamedrano 1 year ago
@rickyrudolph1: "Leroy" was Ross Barbour's "alter ego" who sounded a lot like Donald Duck. :>)
bicoastalmusic 1 year ago
These guys were dam good. They made my life fuller during that period.
iluminatiytu 2 years ago 3
My favourite vocal group - ever.
jh8856 2 years ago 3
is there a published arrangement of this? anyone know, pm me! thanks!
S3Suggs 2 years ago
Brian Wilson loved these guys. No wonder!
Trondoc 2 years ago 3
Let's see how good you FF fans are.
Does any one know who "Leroy" was?
Ross, if you happen to read this,you're
disqualified
rickyrudolph1 2 years ago
What is this video from? I would love to get videos of them performing. Amazing group. I can't wait to see the new group next week!!!
tjeeta12 2 years ago
If you get a positive reply from anybody _ please, please contact me. I saw them live in the '50s and they got the same sound singinging into just one mike on the stage. My favourite is the LP with 4 Trombones
hommefriday 2 years ago
They were absolutely the best, but wasn't it "The Four Freshmen and FIVE Trombones"?
didymus46 2 years ago
@didymus46 YES - that was one of their most successful albuns - but there were many more. You can see two versions of the Freshmen with fivw trombones here on YouTube - including either the 1950's voices or the Freshmen TODAY !
search on 'oldjazzfan'
oldjazzfan 1 year ago
i love this song and im only 50 years old!
ThePoinciana 2 years ago
i love this song and i'm only 24
devious222 2 years ago
i love this song too and im only 36 !
i think ... this arrangement is outstanding ... and timeless !!!
postfach1055 2 years ago
I have always loved this song and I'm only 73 yrs old. lol
bobbiepetton 2 years ago 6
I LOVE this song, soooooo soothing ....kind of like a sweet lullaby:-) I want to drift off to slumberland listening to these gentlemen sing this song. Thanks for uploading this video!
TWILIGHT112366 2 years ago
I love these guys and their music
ZapMeBaby 2 years ago 2
Marvellous voices full of harmony!
SBatez 2 years ago 2
Love the Four Freshman....as a young girl in Indiana......there was no finer, stan kenton, June Cristy and the Four Freshan....they were and here 50 years later the best....thanks for posting
Bobbbiejean 2 years ago 17
@Bobbbiejean -
Hey Bobbie--I also grew up in Indiana-saw Kenton at Shaffer Lake-been a life long fan of the freshmen. I heard them at the Fort Wayne Coliseum in the late 60's-shared a beer with them in the dressing room before one of their shows.-And-the 'new' Freshmen are also fantastic.
Bob (Plymouth,In. native)
MegaBobo66 1 year ago
I can totally hear how this heavily influenced the Beach Boys sound. Fascinating. Thanks folks!
uKooKu 2 years ago
to relive these songs is more than any other art forms in life
Thanks
BeckMarianne 2 years ago
Great jazz versions by the Three Sounds (Gene Harris on Piano) and Gary Burton.
Also, Manhattan Transfer, w/Michael Brecker on tenor, do a nice vocal take.
sekander3 2 years ago
Good stuff....vocal rendering of Glenn Miller's version from WWII years, but there's no arguing that Ahmad Jamal made this composition come ALIVE! If you haven't heard Ahmad Jamal play Poinciana....you're cheating yourself.
TrueFan1947 2 years ago
Check Out Ahmad Jamal "Live at the Pershing", great version of the song... love it.
pepethedrum 2 years ago
Just wonderful....sheer magic!
2KRW 2 years ago
Glenn MIller did a version of this song with his Army Air Corp band.
generationll 2 years ago
Incredible song.
tiltowwhirl 2 years ago
That's what I meant by my comment. ie. you can hear the "sound" that influenced Brian, many of these Four Freshmen recordings.
iferraro 2 years ago
Comment removed
singinjohnny 2 years ago
Comment removed
singinjohnny 2 years ago
what a wonderful song! Your can hear the Brian Wilson influence in the vocal arrangement. Any BB's fan knows what I am talking about. The soprano (lead), the crescendos, etc.
iferraro 2 years ago
The Beach Boys came in the 1960's, so it's exactly the opposite. Brian Wilson has said that The Four Freshmen were a major influence on the Beach Boys, especially their lush, tight harmonies.
youyong28 2 years ago
First time I heard these guys was when they were playing at Facks !! in San Francisco in the early 50's and I was in The Navy on a ship docked in Oakland. We were all fellow hoosiers.
When I told a a fellow crew member by the name of Bob Prather, another fellow hoosier said he had played with them a little back in Greencastle. He joined me the following night at Facks and sure enough, he knew them. Over the years we became acquainted. I became a deejay and gave them a lot of air time.
Charliebear65 2 years ago
Before he passed me and my grandfather would spend hours listening to these cats on his old record player. Abraham I. Fowlkes a great man
thevillain5 3 years ago
I have the studio version of this but hearing a live performance only testifies to the degree of the talent these guys had. What's so impressive to me was that they also were instrumentalists. Most singing groups stand and sing which is fine. But these guys played, and played well, while singing in the most incredibly beautiful and totally unique harmony. Just blows me away! When I heard that Brian Wilson also loves this stuff, I wasn't the least surprised. No wonder I love his music as well.
singinjohnny 3 years ago
There I was, looking for Manhattan Transfer's version (they covered it on their 2nd album), only to happen upon the "Original". This is great. Thanks!
uKooKu 3 years ago
I love them close harmonies. I think the Modernaires sung in this style.
hootinouts 3 years ago
Four Freshmen used exclusively "close harmony" or (in other words) "thickened line", while the Hi-lo's often made an expedition to the world of expanded voices. Both are perfect. It's a matter of taste. I personally prefer the Hi-lo's, but it's just my personal taste. The 4 Freshmen are great.
19321214 3 years ago
great also with stan de man kenton i love it thanks for the memory john zero from holland
johnrijswijk 3 years ago
I remember seeing them perform in a little jazz club in Chicago many years ago. They really were great a very talented group. Now I wish I'd gone back and seen them over and over again.
reduxmisc 3 years ago
magical
leirgauk 3 years ago
Well. johnhowell I must have visited your jazz club in Adelaide in the 1960's, because if I remember correctly, there was only one. It was in the early 60's and wasn't it in a basement?
sambapelomar 3 years ago
what an amazing piece of history
I remember playing their LP when I had
a jazz club in the 60's here in Adelaide
Australia - how can I acquire a copy of same
johnhowell1 3 years ago
Glenn Miller did a version of this great song.Have been listening to this song since 1993
generationll 3 years ago
I believe they influenced Take 6
nancydrew5 3 years ago
Gene Puerling and The Hi-Lo's influenced Take 6.
Ben10r 3 years ago
They definitely influenced Brian Wilson.
mutantqueen 3 years ago 2
Wow, this is Great,,, Vintage Four Freshmen,,, do you have "It's a blue world"? Thanks for the post!!!!
robertwbecker 3 years ago
haunting and mesmerizing- love it!
RAM71 3 years ago
What an enchanting song. Excellent version of it.
hootinouts 3 years ago
Awesome!!!
LeonardoProVincie 3 years ago
any wonder brian wilson loved these incredible vocals first class more please.
lornaestlin 3 years ago
Look up Ahmad Jamal's jazz version of "Poinciana". No vocals, but just as sweet.
GingerMartini 3 years ago 2
I love Jamal's older version
hootinouts 3 years ago
Ahmad's my favorite version, that drummer is bad azz on that version. I had to transcribe that for a class.
nancydrew5 3 years ago
Brian Wilson's greatest influence!!! That terrific!!! Ten out of Ten!!
muymoderno 3 years ago 2
I am so glad I lived in this era of time.. I am in twilight years now. So many wonderful memories to recall. from this kind of music.Thank you so much silverhammer for posting.. Ive lived it Thanks.. Hank Ohare
hanker95 3 years ago 44
You lucky dog you!! living back in the day when good music was popular, and popular music was good. Alas unlike today ;-(
nancydrew5 3 years ago
Totally agree with you..
btyson1987 3 years ago
@hanker95 You and I are peers and I know exactly what you mean, I've was there too. The real shame is that those who were not there with us will never know what is used to be like and what an oasis it used to be. This sound is gone now except for the recordings and the memories.
Halo101st 1 year ago
@hanker95 Real vocalists singing real music. I was in my teens during the era of this wonderful music and, like you, have entered the twilight years (68). The memories flow like the melody of this graceful song and I like the warm glow and smile they bring back.
Halo101st 6 months ago
that was INCREDIBLE!!!phew....amazing!
kapdrums 3 years ago
Such a beautiful song
rthmjohn 3 years ago 2
Superb!
Juanita5009 4 years ago
What happened to the valve trombone?
javagen 4 years ago
LONG WAY SINCE fACS
THANKS FOR THE GREAT CONCERT AT OAKNOLL NAVY
HOSPITAL(1949)
9
javagen 4 years ago
Incredible !
DunhillHilton 4 years ago
Simply the best vocal group...ever!
dewey44 4 years ago 2
OUTSTANDING! thanks for posting this. Hope some of the listeners here who appreciate great vocal groups will check out The Hi-Los.
sandaglad 4 years ago 3
I'm now a new Four Freshmen fan. I'll check out what seems to be today's younger guys.
koenigjohn 4 years ago
the beachboys owe everything to the freshmen...this is perfection...oh so cool...love it
xoolkam 4 years ago
I definitely agree with that comment. I absolutely love their harmony. Its so beautiful. I like the Beach Boys myself but the Four Freshman are like their fathers. They should give them credit.
lovelychick84 4 years ago
They do give them credit. Ever heard the Beach Boys sing "Graduation Day"? Guess where they got that arrangement?
k5vg 4 years ago
This is a great Freshman ballad....wish we could turn the clock back and see and hear them live again.
portobob 4 years ago
Oh my God this is sooooooooo good.
BazCanada88 4 years ago
they are,without question, the best vocal group ever!
romanoce 4 years ago
Great harmony, reminiscent somehow of Claude Thornhill, wonder if it is his, 5* at any rate.
itsartolie 4 years ago 2
I absolutely LOVE this vocal arrangement and performance. It's 55 years ago!!!!!!!!
Tony Rivers.
tonyrivers 4 years ago 2
Im a huge fan of harmony. though my preferances lean more to Doo Wop this harmony arrangement is an absolute MASTERPIECE. Im a huge fan of this group
sagiriqua 4 years ago