Les Brown (1912-2001), who led his jazzy dance band through seven decades, recorded hundreds of songs for major labels like RCA, Columbia, Coral and Capitol. So you'd think that just about everything of his would have turned up in the digital age, or at least on an LP when vinyl was still king.
Not so for Boola, a 45 single (Say It with Music was on the flip side) released by Coral in 1958. It never graced one of Brown's long-players and it hasn't turned up on CD or as a download either despite the declaration in Billboard magazine on Feb. 23, 1959 that "Boola by Les Brown and Happy People of Monterey by Dick Jacobs (both on Coral) are big [disc] jockey favorites."
But you can listen to, and download this hard-to-find Brown tune if you so desire, from the link below. The MP3 is taken from the original 45.
Boola
Brown is remembered by most people today for his 1944 hit Sentimental Journey, with Doris Day as the vocalist, and for his many years serving as the bandleader for Bob Hope. But he never really retired, making his last appearance in 2000, the year before he died at age 88.
Here, from YouTube, is a vintage Les Brown performance (date and venue not stated) featuring vocalist Butch Stone.
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