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Howdy folks,
I’d intended to build and publish this feature in January…of 2020, that is. Better late than never. Hope you enjoy it! Like “June in January,” this song is about a love interest that seems to turn January into a warmer month. The introductory verse, included in the versions by The Sunshine Boys and Barbara Lea, goes like this:
It’s a January morning
We two meet without a warning
And I hope my eyes will say for me
That you’ve made the day like May for me
From now on ’twill be my failing
Not to know when it is hailing
Ev’ry storm is unavailing
Now you’re a part, of my heart
It Seems to be Spring (m. Richard A. Whiting, w. George Marion, Jr.) — The song was evidently written for the 1930 musical comedy film Let’s Go Native, which was released on 16 August 1930. It is performed as a rehearsal of a theatrical production within the film by Jeanette MacDonald and James Hall.
Oddly, the first recording that I’m aware of, that by Waring’s Pennsylvanian’s on 27 January 1930, precedes the song’s copyright date, 17 February 1930, by a few weeks. There may be an earlier copyright date that I haven’t discovered yet.
- sheet music, lyric: Margaret Herrick Library Digital Collections
- film links
- Wikipedia
- IMDB
- complete film at Internet Archive — mistitled Castaway Love
Waring’s Pennsylvanians, vocal: The Three Girl Friends — (Fred Waring, bandleader) — recorded 27 January 1930 in New York, NY; issued 8 August 1930 on the 78 rpm single Victor 22470 as the B-side of “I’ve Got a Yen for You” (A-side recorded by Gus Arnheim and his Orchestra)
audio file (VBR MP3, 2.4 MB) from the page Waring’s Pennsylvanians 1925-1934 (COMPLETE) at archive.org:
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Fred Rich Orchestra, vocal: Harold “Scrappy” Lambert — one of multiple recordings* by Fred Rich Orchestra for OKeh Records, made on 7 June 1930 in New York, NY
audio file (VBR MP3, 2.4 MB) from a Fred Rich 1925-1935 collection at archive.org:
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Meyer Davis’ Hotel Astor Orchestra — recorded in August 1930**, and issued on the 78 rpm single Brunswick 4882, b/w “Why Have You Forgotten Waikiki?” — I haven’t conclusively identified the vocalist yet, but it sounds an awful lot like Scrappy Lambert.
audio file (VBR MP3, 7.3 MB) from the page Meyer Davis Collection 1925-1934 (COMPLETE) at archive.org:
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Sam Lanin’s Troubadours, vocal: Helen Rowland — recorded on 2 September 1930; issued on the following 78 rpm singles
- Banner 802, c/w “The Recipe Song”
- Romeo 1418, c/w “The Recipe Song”
- Domino 4625, c/w “I Got a Yen for You” — under the pseudonym Broadway Broadcasters
- Perfect 15347, c/w “I Got a Yen for You” — under the pseudonym Broadway Broadcasters
audio file (VBR MP3, 2.3 MB) from the page Sam Lanin Orchestra 78rpm Collection at archive.org:
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The Sunshine Boys (Joe and Dan Mooney) — recorded on 12 September 1930 (Columbia matrix W150731), according to the DAHR; issued on the 78 rpm single (US) Columbia 2303-D, and on (UK) Columbia DB 345, c/w “I Like a Little Girl Like That” in each case — The DAHR also indicates that two different takes were mastered under the same matrix number, W150731, and that each of these takes was issued on records with the same catalog number, 2303-D.
(US) Columbia 2303-D — audio file (VBR MP3, 5.7 MB) from the page IT SEEMS TO BE SPRING (Parece Primavera) at archive.org:
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(UK) Columbia DB 345
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Jack Coakley’s Orchestra, vocal: Paul Slobody — recorded in San Francisco, 1931; issued on the Flexo label, matrix 428 (no catalogue number), as the B-side of “Golden Sands”
other info from the YouTube provider:
Jack Coakley (piano) directing Harry Fish – Bill Starkey (saxophones), Bob Logan (guitar), Fred Gaffney (brass bass, string bass), Bill Snow (mellophone), Paul Slobody (drums, vocal) – other personnel unknown
10″ inside-start flexible plastic 78rpm disc recorded at the Pacific Coast Record Corporation Ltd. studios, 1040 Geary Street, San Francisco. Coakley’s orchestra played at Tait’s at the Beach from c. 1930 until 1933.
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Jack Harris and his Orchestra (At Grosvenor House) — Decca F.1932; matrix GB.1872 — recording date not identified
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Barbara Lea with Wes McAfee — recorded 21 October 1997; released on the album The Melody Lingers On, BL CD 6613, in 2002
personnel:
Barbara Lea – leader, vocal
Wes McAfee – piano
Boots Maleson – bass
Dave Ratajczak – drums
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* It’s not clear which of the following three recordings of “It Seems to be Spring” by Fred Rich Orchestra (v. Harold “Scrappy” Lambert) is found in the archive.org audio file provided above:
- OKeh matrix 404212, take B — recorded on 7 June 1930, New York, NY
- issued on OKeh 41434, b/w “Beware of Love,” credited to Fred Rich Orchestra (FRO)
- issued on Odeon ONY 36110, b/w “Beware of Love,” FRO under the pseudonym The New York Syncopators
- issued on Publix 2025-P, as the B-side of “I Remember You from Somewhere,” FRO under the pseudonym The Paramounteers; master renumbered as Col W100408 (A-side by Sam Lanin Orchestra)
- issued on (UK) Parlophone R 757, FRO under the pseudonym Roof Garden Orchestra — c/w either “Beware of Love” by FRO as Roof Garden Orchestra, “My Mad Moment” by Paul Specht Orchestra, the latter also credited under the pseudonym Roof Garden Orchestra*, or both — It’s not clear whether there are three recordings on the record, or two, with one of the three listed by the Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) being omitted on any of multiple versions of Parlophone R 757.
- On the other hand, here’s a page in a huge discography by Brian Rust that documents a recording of “It Seems to Be Spring” issued on (UK) Parlophone R 757 that was recorded by Paul Albin’s Hotel Pennsylvania Music. Perhaps this is simply evidence of yet another Fred Rich Orchestra pseudonym.
- OKeh matrix 404212, take C — recorded on 7 June 1930, New York, NY
- issued on different versions of each of the records listed for Okeh matrix 404212, take B, above
- OKeh matrix 490083 (take unknown) — recorded on 7 June 1930, New York, NY
- issued on Odeon ONY 36111, b/w “Beware of Love,” FRO under the pseudonym The New York Syncopators
- issued on Parlophone PNY 34101, as the B-side of “Old New England Moon,” FRO under the pseudonym The Deauville Syncopators (A-side by Ray Seeley Orchestra)
On (UK) Parlophone R 757 — It’s quite confusing, but the notes provided by the DAHR at its Okeh matrix 404212 page and its R 757 page collectively seem to suggest that each of the recordings included on the two sides of various versions of (UK) Parlophone R 757 are credited to Roof Garden Orchestra, although on those versions of the record that have “My Mad Moment” on the A-side, this “Roof Garden Orchestra” is actually Paul Specht Orchestra, while the “Roof Garden Orchestra” credited on the B-side is Fred Rich Orchestra.
OKeh matrix 404212, takes B and C, were also each released on various other Parlophone and/or Odeon catalog numbers in Japan and Australia.
If you’re not overwhelmed by the above, then you might be amused by the list of 90-odd pseudonyms used by Fred Rich and his Orchestra provided by Discogs.com. The list of aliases for Sam Lanin and his Orchestra is even longer.
** Regarding the Meyer Davis’ Hotel Astor Orchestra recording date for Brunswick 4882: The DAHR dates it August 1930, while others, including the following, specify a recording date of 8 August 1930:
- this page at Henry König’s Musiktiteldatenbank (@http://musiktiteldb.de), and this page
- Brunswick 4000 series list @The Online Discographical Project (@78discography.com)
- Brunswick 4500-4599 list @The 78 rpm Club (@78rpmclub.com)
Songbook 