About the Music Played on Swing City Radio...

The vintage Big Band and Swing music you hear on Swing City Radio is rescued from the vast archives of Old Time Radio Broadcasts, Armed Forces Radio recordings, Radio Remotes, Transcription Discs and other public sources.  I then clean up the audio, taking out as many pops and crackles that I can while retaining the integrity of the original recording, and then I play it here just for you. On many occasions, I keep the original song introductions by the old radio announcers so it retains that "authentic feel" so you can enjoy it just like listeners did all of those years ago.

It's safe to say that there are not many radio stations like this one and I truly hope you enjoy the music that's played here.  My hopes are that this fantastic Big Band music is never forgotten.

Swing City Radio: Big Band Favorites from the Archives of Old Time Radio!

Read More

Playlist Additions - March 2025

This month I've added about a dozen songs to the Swing City Radio Playlist by one of my favorite vocal groups of the 1940's, The Dinning Sisters.

All of these tracks were original aired on a very popular show called "National Barn Dance" which broadcasted from the city of Chicago from 1924 until 1968.  "National Barn Dance" regularly featured Country/Western artists, but in the early 1940's with Swing Music reaching it's peak in popularity, artists like The Dinning Sisters would make appearances to add a little bit of "Swing" to the Country music.

The Dinning Sisters made their first appearances on "National Barn Dance" in 1940 and soon became regulars.  They received national exposure and gained quite a following.  By 1943, the group was signed by Capitol Records to be that label's answer to The Andrews Sisters, who exclusively recorded for the Decca Record label.

The "National Barn Dance" recordings I recovered were quite tough to work with. Many shows were originally recorded too loud causing a distortion that couldn't be fixed.  Luckily, some were captured correctly and with the exception of a few "pops" here and there, they came out sounding pretty good. 

Keep an ear out for their version of "San Fernando Valley", a song called "3,121 Miles" and the song I've included in this post - "Blue Jacket".  Great stuff!

Read More

Feb 2025 - Playlist Additions and Update

Hey there everyone!

I hope you are all having a great 2025 so far!  The numbers for Swing City Radio have been through the roof over the last few months. It makes me so happy that even after all of these years the station continues to draw more listeners week after week.

As you all know by now, I continue to add new tracks to keep things fresh on the station.  Here's a brief breakdown of a couple dozen tracks I'm adding this month:

Jimmy Dorsey

Selected tracks from a show that Jimmy did to support the U.S. Treasury War Bond Drive in 1943.  Keep an ear out for a fantastic version of "Murder, He Says" sung by Kitty Kallen and a blistering rendition of "One O'clock Jump". Jimmy was definitely jammin' on this performance.

Glenn Miller

I'm always on the look out for Glenn Miller content.  He's always been one of my favorites.  I've recently cleaned up some music from a Basic Music Library Transcription Disc issued by the AFRS.  Tracks include live performances of "The Weekend Of A Private Secretary", "Whatcha Know Joe", "Dancing In A Dream" and "High On A Windy Hill".  Great stuff!

I'm also adding music by Connee Boswell, Freddie Rich and Mildred Bailey from a show called "It's Florida's Treat" that originally aired in 1937. And selected tracks from an April 1951 episode of "Jazz Club USA" featuring Buddy Johnson and Cootie Williams.

Also, I want to wish Ray Anthony a belated Happy Birthday.  He turned 102 years old last month. 

Enjoy the music!

Read More

Footprints of The Rat Pack

Every year around this time I travel out to Las Vegas for work purposes.  That's why I don't post as much as I should in January.  When I have a chance, I enjoy strolling down The Strip and taking in the sights and sounds.

This year I stumbled upon something I hadn't seen before.  In the area where The Venetian now presently stands I found a little landmark celebrating The Rat Pack.

In the early 1960's Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Joey Bishop, Sammy Davis Jr. and Peter Lawford posed for a legendary photograph taken in front of The Sands Hotel.  They marked the location with a nice plaque and footprints on the ground where they stood.  Very cool!

And in case you are wondering, yes I did stand on both Frank Sinatra's and Dean Martin's footprints. :)

Just a little personal update from your friendly neighborhood station owner.

~ Ronnaldo

Read More

Added to Playlist - January 2025

Hey there, Hepcats! - Happy New Years to all of you!  Over the holidays I had a chance to clean up some great music.  Most of the tracks came from a show called "Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands". If you are unfamiliar with the show, it was a 15 minute program that featured the hottest bands of the day and aired nationally. "Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands" was sponsored by Coca-Cola and ran from 1943 to about 1950. The show would travel around the United States to different Military Bases and Manufacturing Plants.

Here are some of artists and performances that I recently added to The Swing City Radio Rotation:

Charlie Barnet - Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands (AFRS) - Ep 777 - Mar 14, 1945

Charlie Spivak - Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands (AFRS) - Ep 731 - Jan 19, 1945

Al Donahue - Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands (AFRS) -Nov 10, 1943

Johnny Long - Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands (AFRS) - Ep 810 - Apr 21, 1945

Tommy Tucker - Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands (AFRS) - Ep 814 - Apr 26, 1945

Tommy Dorsey - Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands (AFRS) - Jan 17, 1942

The performances listed above yielded a few dozen new additions to the "always growing" playlist. Also added were a few tracks from a Red Nichols radio remote from The Hotel Netherlands, Cincinnati, OH recorded on March 31, 1939 and a Frankie Trumbauer Radio Broadcast from The Hickory House recorded in February of 1937.

Enjoy!

Listen to: "Boarding House Bounce" by Tommy Tucker from 1945

Read More