The Incomparable Hildegarde

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Hildegarde biographies:

• Wikipedia
• AllMusic
  
• IMDb

Hildegarde Loretta Sell Papers:

• Raynor Memorial Libraries Archives at Marquette University
  

Major Engagements 1933-1994 and Discography:

• http://keepingscore.x10.mx/hildegarde.html

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1933

I Was In the Mood for Love – 1933

British Pathé short film

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1935

Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup (Anna Sosenko)

British Pathé short

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For Me, For You (w.m Leo Towers and Rodd Arden) — recorded 20 May 1935

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I Dream Too Much (m. Jerome Kern, w. Dorothy Fields) was introduced in the 1935 film of the same name, sung by Lily Pons, and covered by Hildegarde that year.

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Honey-Coloured Moon (Mabel Wayne and Desmond Carter)

Hildegarde with Henry Hall and his Orchestra in the British film Music Hath Charms (1935)

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1936

Joue à Joue is a French lyric version of Irving Berlin’s Cheek to Cheek, with the lyric by Rene Nazelles. It was recorded by Hildegarde in 1936.

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1938

Ten Pretty Girls (w.m. Will Grosz & Jimmy Kennedy) published in 1937

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1944

Lili Marleen (m. Norbert Schultze, w. Hans Leip) with English lyrics by Phil Park, and Mack David

Hildegarde with orchestra and male chorus directed by Harry Sosnik – 1944

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My Heart Sings (Harold Rome, Henri Jamblan, Henry Herpin)

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1945

I’ll Be Yours (m. Dino Olivieri, w. Anna Sosenko)

“I’ll Be Yours” is an English-language version of the popular European WWII era song J’Attendrai (Tornerai). The song was recorded on 28 April 1945, according to the Hildegarde discography at http://keepingscore.x10.mx/hildegarde.html, and issued that year as Decca 23423, with Counting the Days as the A-side.

Of Anna Sosenko, Wikipedia notes that she is

perhaps best known as a manager and writer for Hildegarde for whom she wrote “Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup.” She worked with Hildegarde for twenty years and was her companion before the two broke up in the 1950s.”^[2]

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Counting the Days — issued as the A-side of Decca 23423, b/w I’ll Be Yours – 1945

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1946

The Sidewalks of New York (Charles B. Lawlor, James W. Blake)

Excerpts from the Wikipedia article:

The tune, a slow and deliberate waltz, was devised by Lawlor, who had been humming the tune while stopping by the hat store where Blake worked. As the two became increasingly enthusiastic about the song, they agreed to collaborate, with Lawlor putting the tune to sheet music and Blake creating the lyrics.^[1] The words of the song tell the story of Blake’s childhood, including the friends with whom he played as a child, namely Johnny Casey, Jimmy Crowe, Nellie Shannon (who danced the waltz), and Mamie O’Rourke (who taught Blake how to “trip the light fantastic,” an extravagant expression for dancing). The song is sung in nostalgic retrospect, as Blake and his childhood friends went their separate ways, some leading to success while others did not (“some are up in ‘G’ / others they are on the hog”).

Though the song achieved cultural success shortly after its release, the two authors earned only $5,000 for their efforts. Lawlor died penniless in 1925, while Blake fell ill and died in 1935, their song reputedly having sold 5,000 copies a year by the time of Blake’s passing.^[3]

Hildegarde with Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians and (vocal group) The Song Spinners — 1946

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Hildegard live, mid-1970s — “The Last Time I Saw Paris,” “I’ll Be Seeing You,” “Lili Marlene”

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