Al Bowlly - "Have You Ever Been In Heaven"? (1938) "Guilty" "Midnight, The Stars And You"

Albert Allick "Al" Bowlly (7 January 1899 -- 17 April 1941) was a popular Jazz singer and crooner in the United Kingdom during the 1930s, making more than 1,000 recordings between 1927 and 1941. Bowlly showcased a diverse range of material unsurpassed by any contemporary other than perhaps Bing Crosby. He was also a truly international recording artist. He was killed by the explosion of a parachute mine outside his flat in Jermyn Street, London during the Blitz.
Bowlly was born in Lourenço Marques (now Maputo), in the then Portuguese colony of Mozambique, to Greek and Lebanese parents who met en route to Australia and moved to South Africa.
In the 1930s, he was to sign two contracts which were to change his fortunes — one in May 1931 with Roy Fox, singing in his live band for the Monseigneur Restaurant in London, the other a record contract with Ray Noble's orchestra in November 1930.
In December 1931, Bowlly married Freda Roberts, but Bowlly discovered his new wife in bed with another man on their wedding night. The couple separated after two weeks, and sought a rapid divorce. He remarried in December 1934, this time to Marjie Fairless, the marriage lasting until his death.
A visit to New York in 1934 with Noble resulted in more success and their recordings first achieved popularity in the USA; he appeared at the head of an orchestra hand-picked for him and Noble by Glenn Miller (the band included Claude Thornhill, Charlie Spivak, and Bud Freeman, among others).
The evening of his death on 17 April 1941, Bowlly and Messene had just given a performance at the Rex Cinema in High Wycombe. Both were offered the opportunity of an overnight stay in the town, but Bowlly opted to take the last train home to his flat in Jermyn Street, London instead. Bowlly's decision proved to be fatal; he was killed by a Luftwaffe parachute mine which detonated outside his flat later that evening. Bowlly's body appeared unmarked: although the massive explosion had not disfigured him, it had blown his bedroom door off its hinges and the impact against his head proved fatal. Bowlly was buried with other bombing victims in a mass grave at the Westminster Cemetery, Uxbridge Road, Hanwell, London, where his name is spelled Albert Alex Bowlly.
Some speculation surrounds his age at the time of his death. Bowlly claimed that he was born in 1899, making him 42 at the time of his death. However, his death certificate gives his age as 43, which would indicate that he was born in 1898. Several contemporaries claimed that the perpetually boyish-faced singer was born as early as 1890. As no birth certificate exists, and much of his early years in South Africa remain shrouded in mystery, his actual age remains unknown.
Al Bowlly is invariably credited with inventing crooning, or "The Modern Singing Style", releasing a book of the same name. Bowlly experimented with new methods of amplification, not least with his Melody Maker advert, showing him endorsing a portable vocal megaphone. With the advent of the microphone in 1931, Al adapted his singing style, moving away from the Jazz singing style of the 20s, into the softer, more expressive crooning singing style used in popular music of the 30s and 40s. It was Al's technique, sincerity, diction and his personality that distinguish him from many other singers of the 30s era.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Al
• Bowlly
• Have
• You
• Ever
• Been
• To
• Heaven
• 1938
• Guilty
• 1931
• Midnight
• The
• Stars
• And
• 1934
• Ray
• Noble
• orchestra
• Jazz
• singer
• crooner
• TheBacmaster
• Music
• Videos

[Shabannie]

I like Al Bowlly too. I enjoyed the pictures of stars too.

---------Ellen

[ldFlorida]

I never heard "Midnight, the Stars and You". Love it!!

[IllPropaganda]

Excellent!

[flipside1545]

thanks joe..goin waaay back on this one!!

[weejoeshadows]

Thanks for this good video my friend respect from joe