Johnny Marvin & Ed Smalle - Precious Little Thing Called Love, 1929

Johnny Marvin & Ed Smalle (Vocals) - A Precious Little Thing Called Love (Lou Davis / J. Fred Coots) Theme song from the Paramount Production „The Shipworn Angel, Victor 1929
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Johnny MARVIN (born: John Senator Marvin in 1897, Indian Territory, USA, now Oklahoma died: 1945, North Hollywood, California, from heart attack ). He was one of the most celebrated ukulele performers and crooners of the era, billing himself as "Honey Duke and His Uke" then as "Johnny Marvin, the Ukulele Ace". His recorded output was prodigious: among his many hits from the 1920s, are: "Oh How She Could Play the Ukulele," "Give Me A Night In June", "Red Lips, Kiss My Blues Away," "If You See Sally," "There's Something Nice About Everyone (But There's Everything Nice About You)" and many others. He even had a brand of ukulele named for him, which sported his face on the headstock and was noted for its unique airplane-shaped bridge.
As the ukulele craze of the 20s faded, Marvin retired. When the stock market crashed, he lost his savings and came out of retirement, reinventing himself as a cowboy songwriting partner to Gene Autry, providing him with a second equally noteworthy career that lasted until his death. Inducted into the Ukulele Hall of Fame in 2003.

Ed SMALLE (often pronounced as: Small) (c. 1887-1968) American pianist and popular baritone. With Franklyn Baur and Lewis James, (tenors), baritone Elliot Shaw, bass Wilfred Glenn, Ed Smalle as pianist, was (until 1926) one of The Revelers famous American male vocal quartet, that started enormous popularity of male vocal choruses in America and in Europe, in late 1920s until 1940s (to mention only The Rhythm Boys in USA, Comedian Harmonists in Germany, or Chór Dana in Poland). As vocalist he also recorded - during "The Crooners Golden Era (from circa 1927 until early 1930s) dozens of sides with popular American dance orchestras.

:isten to a Polish version of that great hit, played by the Henryk Gold Orchestra in pre-war Warsaw http://pl.youtube.com/watch?v=UuOf8RojPCo

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Roaring
• Twenties
• 1920s
• America
• USA
• jazz
• age
• male
• vocal
• group
• duett
• 78rpm
• shellac

[davidlawrencenewland]

I'm so happy to find this here. I just bought the sheet music for it at a flea market (because it had the uke chords in it). Great to hear it performed.

[HarborGuy]

Wonderful!

[f417h]

Love this one

I love alot of your uploads

but this one especially

-/\

[fatsfan70]

Thank you G for this - I didn't know the film origin or the lyric for this song - I only have the hot uptempo 1929 version by McKinney's Cotton Pickers which is non-vocal and runs through my head long after I hear it.

[kspm01]

Distinctive vocal and instrumentation!

[barbcard]

Great uke music! And a rather strange harmony, reminds me of "Munchkin" music in the Wizard of Oz.

[genia106]

My comment never appeared...so if it shows up..delete it.

I love this song and I loved it better in Polish! Too bad that handsome Gary isn't Polish, I guess I can't have everything,

Aleksander was! :-)