Enoch Light (1907-1978) was leading a big band in the 1940s and 50s, but is best remembered today for his groundbreaking stereo recordings that began when he founded Command Records in the early 1960s and continued through the 70s on the Project 3 label. Light established that company after he sold Command to ABC Records, which in turn was bought out by MCA. Command ceased operations in 1970.
Light was among the first producers to exploit the full range of possibilities of the relatively new stereo technology, especially on his albums Persuasive Percussion and Provocative Percussion. He often utilized what was termed "ping pong stereo," in which the music jumped from speaker to speaker.
Enoch Light and His Orchestra at Carnegie Hall Play Irving Berlin, which came out in 1962, is not, despite its title, a live album. But it does have a dozen excellent renderings of Berlin standards, including Alexander's Ragtime Band.
Alexander's Ragtime Band
ABC reissued the Irving Berlin album in 1972 and there was a horribly pressed, truncated version issued on the budget Pickwick label in 1978. It did not include Alexander's Ragtime Band. All 12 tracks surfaced on a 1987 Project 3 CD retitled as The Music of Irving Berlin and featuring the nondescript cover pictured below.
This CD is long out of print. There are used copies for sale in the Amazon Marketplace, but they start at a ridiculous $18. However, copies of the Command vinyl album can be purchased in the Marketplace for $3-$5. Make sure you get the version issued by Command before it was bought out by ABC. It's a far superior pressing.
The album isn't available as a download, but here's another sample from YouTube.
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