Bert Kaempfert had almost too much talent, ability, and good luck rolled into one career to be fully appreciated, even by his own chosen audience, the lovers of fine orchestral pop music. He was one of the most successful conductors, arrangers, and recording artists in the latter field, but was also a major producer and played a key (if... [+] Read More

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One of the leaders of England's early-'60s trad jazz movement, Chris Barber (a solid trombonist) began leading his own bands in 1948. In 1954, trumpeter Pat Halcox joined Barber, and with the later additions of clarinetist Monty Sunshine, banjoist/singer Lonnie Donegan, and blues singer Ottilie Patterson, Barber had an all-star crew. Sunshine's... [+] Read More

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America's undisputed Polka King, Frankie Yankovic did more to popularize polka music than any other single performer, and remains the yardstick by which all other polka artists are measured. Yankovic was the first polka artist to score a million-selling single (1948's "Just Because"), the first to perform on television, and the first to win a... [+] Read More

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Kay Kyser couldn't read a note of music, and spent nearly as much time doing comedy as music on radio. But for over 15 years, from 1933 until the end of the 1940s, he was one of the most popular bandleaders and music personalities in America, and delighted tens of millions of listeners. Born into a family of academics, Kyser was supposed to... [+] Read More

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It may or may not be true that Lawrence Welk is the most popular easy listening artist of all time, but it's difficult to think of anyone who is more prominently associated with the genre. Welk's long-running TV variety show was a huge success in its time, and remains an enduring favorite in reruns. And while Welk recorded prolifically, his true... [+] Read More

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Nino Tempo is best known for his duo with his sister, April Stevens, which produced a number of popular recordings in the '60s, notably "Deep Purple." He also had a long career as a session musician, and in the '90s belatedly embarked on a career as a jazz musician.

The son of Sam Lo Tempio, a grocer, and his wife Anna, Tempo began... [+] Read More

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Walter Wanderley was a talented and gifted organist with an acute ear for new harmonies. With 46 recorded solo albums in his entire career, both in Brazil and the U.S., he reached number 26 on the Billboard pop charts in September 1966, opening a large pathway of success only menaced by himself and his complex character. Ten years after his... [+] Read More

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