“Blue Hills of Pasadena” (1929)
“Blue Hills of Pasadena (Are Calling Me Home)” (Trevor-Campbell-Connelly). Recorded in London on June 13, 1929 by Ray Starita and His Ambassadors with vocalist Betty Bolton.
“Blue Hills of Pasadena (Are Calling Me Home).” Composed by Huntley Trevor (under the pseudonym “Raymond Wallace”) and Jimmy Campbell and Reg. Connelly (the latter two working under the collaborative alias “Leo. Herbert”). Recorded in London on June 13, 1929 by Ray Starita and His Ambassadors with vocalist Betty Bolton. Columbia 5424 mx. WA-9075-1.
Personnel: Ray Starita cl-ts dir. Max Goldberg-t-mel1 / another-t / ?Bill Hall-tb / Chester Smith-another-cl-as / Reg. Pursglove-vn / Donald Thorne-p / George Oliver-bj-g / Arthur Calkin-bb-sb / Rudy Starita-d-vib-x / Betty Bolton-v
Ray Starita and His Ambassadors Band (v. Betty Bolton)
“Blue Hills of Pasadena” (1929)
“Blue Hills of Pasadena (Are Calling Me Home)” successfully conveys the singer’s homesickness for Pasadena—but its vocal refrain is not particularly generous in local details. The product of the collaboration of three English songwriters (Huntley Trevor and the legendary duo Campbell and Connelly), the song’s lyrics have the vocalist don the persona of a native Californian who longs to return there “o’er the foam.” I seriously doubt that any of the composers had actually been to Pasadena, California—it is more likely that the town suggested itself as a suitable destination after having been featured in another song that had been popular in Britain a few years earlier, “(Home in) Pasadena” (1923; Warren–Clarke–Leslie). In 1929, Pasadena was still a winter resort destination for Americans from the East Coast and, incidentally, was probably less inextricably tied in the public mind to the urban Los Angeles metropolis, more associated with, well, blue hills than with tall buildings.
Nottingham-born Betty Bolton performs her vocal chorus very earnestly, effectively conveying the song’s theme of longing for home. This recording shows off nicely how Bolton’s voice was not, perhaps, nearly as precise as that of many of her peers in that era—and yet her singing is imbued with character and particularly endearing. Given her reputation for liking to do accents and funny voices, I am just a little surprised that she did not try to sound American in this recording, but actually I rather like her unaffected interpretation of the song. Bandleader Ray Starita (who, along with his percussionist brother Rudy, came from Boston, Massachusetts—which, I suppose, is somewhat closer to Pasadena than Bolton’s native England) delivers a stunningly beautiful rendition of “Blue Hills of Pasadena” that stands out among many good versions of the song recorded in 1929. Incidentally, my copy of this record, which you can see and hear above, was once part of Ray Starita’s own collection.
Other British bands who recorded “Blue Hills of Pasadena” in 1929 were Jay Whidden and His Band (v. Fred Douglas), Hal Swain’s Café Royal Band (v. Hal Swain, Jimmy Redmond, and Cecil Woods), Harry Hudson’s Melody Men (as the Plaza Band; v. Phil Arnold), The New Mayfair Dance Orchestra (dir. Carroll Gibbons; v. Les Allen, Phil Arnold, and Eddie Brandt), Nat Star and His Dance Orchestra (as The Rhythmics; v. Cavan O’Connor), Jay Wilbur and His Orchestra (as the Deauville Dance Orchestra; v. Tom Barratt), Ronnie Munro and His Dance Orchestra (as Will Perry’s Orchestra; v. Maurice Elwin), and Bidgood’s Broadcasters (as Al Benny’s Broadway Boys; v. Eddie Pola, Eddie Brandt, and Les Allen). I have not yet identified any North Amerian recordings of this song.
Rust and Forbes identify as trumpetists Andy Richardson and either Freddy Pitt or Arthur Niblo, but I have it on good authority from Nick Dellow that one of the horn players is definitely Max Goldberg, who was working freelance; he is also heard playing the mellophone. ↩︎
