NOTE: This compilation includes only Johnnie Scat Davis's recordings
as a leader - the sides he made with Red Nichols (which are actually
on Dan's COMPLETE FIVE PENNIES series) and Fred Waring (which
are on the Stash / VN FRED WARING MEMORIAL ALBUM) are not included.
The one side with Sleepy Hall is included here as a "bonus"
item, as are the numbers from the KATNIP KOLLEGE soundtrack.
SUGAR (Young-Meyer) "JOHNNY DAVIS AND HIS ORCH" Crown
3208-B (1501-2) NY, 10/31 [Note: This is actually SMITH BALLEW'S
ORCH; Davis was a member of Ballew's band at the time. The matrix
is adjacent to a Ballew session for Crown.]
THIS IS THE MISSUS (DeSylva - Brown - Henderson) SLEEPY HALL'S COLLEGIANS (probably a Red Nichols unit). Melotone 12256; Circa early 1931.
JOHNNIE DAVIS AND HIS ORCHESTRA : Johnnie Davis-t-v / ? Bunny Berigan-t / ? Floyd O'Brien-tb / Benny Goodman-cl / as / ts / ? Bob Henderson-p / ? Lennie Johnson-g / sb / Stan King-d. New York, October 15, 1934. (Rust lists Goodman & Berigan, but most researchers would probably disagree.)
YOU GOTTA GIVE CREDIT TO LOVE (Sigler - Goodhart - Hoffman, from the Hal Roach short The Chases of Pimple Street) Dec 271A (38844-A) NY, 10/15/34
COLLEGE RHYTHM (Gordon-Revel, film College Rhythm) Dec 272
TAKE A NUMBER FROM ONE TO TEN (Gordon-Revel, film College Rhythm) Dec 272
BETWEEN SHOWERS (Baxter) Dec 271B (388474) NY, 10/15/34
NY, 10/22/34
DON'T STOP ME IF YOU'VE HEARD IT BEFORE (Sigler - Goodhart - Hoffman) Dec 256A (38866-A) NY, 10/22/34
WERE YOU FOOLIN'? (Turk - Ahlert) Dec 256B (38667-A) NY, 10/22/34 [Piano is Fulton McGrath.]
IT'S A HUNDRED TO ONE (Hanighen & Cates) Dec 257
CONGRATULATE ME (Handman & Rothberg) Dec 257
Johnnie Davis-t-v / Stinky Davis-tb / Artie McFarland-ts / Frank Froeba-p / Charlie Barber-sb / Vic Engle-d / probably others. New York, September 27, 1935.
TRUCKIN' (Ted Koehler - Rube Bloom, from Cotton Club Parade) Dec 573A (60007-A; unlisted take) NY, 9/27/35
LOAFIN' TIME (Arthur Altman - Milton Ager) vocal Johnnie Davis and another; Dec 573B (60008-A) NY, 9/27/35 [Joe Marsala or Slats Long, cl]
New York, September 28, 1935.
I FEEL A SONG COMIN' ON (McHugh - Fields - Oppenheimer, from Walter Wanger production Every Night At Eight) Dec 583A (60011-A) NY, 9/28/35
EV'RY THING IS OKEY DOKEY (John Jacob Loeb) Dec 583B (60012-A) NY, 9/28/35
The Post Decca Sides: We are including as many of these as we've been able to find. None of these appear to be listed in any discography, and there may be others.
HIP HIP HOORAY (Milt Ebbins - Henry Nemo) Hit 7012 / Mx W173 vJSD [Although the flip side, WHITE CHRISTMAS, is also credited to the Johnny Scat Davis Orch, it seems likely that Davis had no direct participation in it, since there's neither a vocal nor trumpet solo by him.]
The next eight songs from Universal Records, a Chicago label, circa 1949-'50. These are "double feature discs," with two songs on each side (all are 10" 78s). Each side has its own catalogue number, and each song has its own master number. All sides have vocals by Johnnie Scat Davis.
OLD UNCLE FUD (no C. C.) 8668 [DF 1008]
KATNIP KOLLEGE: The complete soundtrack of this 1938 Merrie Melodies
cartoon, featuring Scat Davis and Mabel Todd.
Intro, featuring a hot trumpet solo, possibly by Davis.
"Let That Be A Lesson To You" - Mabel Todd & Katnip
Kollege Korus
(background instrumental: "You're An Education")
"It Was On The College Campus..." - Katnip Kollege Korus
"Easy as Rollin' Off A Log" - Scat Davis & Mabel Todd
Collected and Toasted by Roger Sturtevant, John Leifert, Gus Kuhlman
and Rich Markow. Toastmaster Supreme: Uncle Wilsci
