Sound Beat

Syracuse University Library
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  • SOCIETY & CULTURE

A trip through the history of recorded sound

  1. JAN 13

    Let Me Call You Sweetheart

    The song you hear ”Let Me Call You Sweetheart” by Bing Crosby with Georgie Stoll and His Orchestra was recorded in 1934 on the Decca label. You’re on the Sound Beat. “Let Me Call You Sweetheart“ was originally written by Leo Freidman and Beth Slater Whinston in 1910. The song was a big hit for Author Clough in May 1911 and a #1 hit for Henry Burr and the Peerless Quartet in November 1911 And this version is still popular today. In fact “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” by Bing Crosby was #3 on Apple Music’s top 200 jazz songs in Bolivia on January 27 2019. This episode was written by Ian Coe. Artwork by Omari Odom. Watch a video of their work at Let Me Call You Sweetheart — Sound Beat – Syracuse University Videos

    2 min

  2. 11/24/2025

    There be Sirens!

    The mythical Sirens have long been depicted as tantalizing, seductive, banes to the existence of accursed sailors, enchanted by their fatal song.  The Greeks had them as winged maidens, but somewhere along the way, the meaning shifted: in most European languages, the word Siren translates as “mermaid”. You’re listening to the Green Brothers Novelty band with “Siren of the South Sea”. If the smell of fresh-brewed coffee renders you helpless, you may have run into Melusina today. Starbucks has used the half-woman, half water-serpent’s likeness since 1971, based on a Norse woodcut. Why the nautical theme? Starbuck was the name of Captain Ahab’s first mate in Moby Dick.

    2 min

  3. 10/01/2025

    Atomic Cocktail

    Like Slim Gaillard said, “The Atomic Cocktail” is “the drink that you don’t pour”…until Las Vegas bartenders made it one. You see, in 1951, the government announced Nevada would be home to new bombing test sites. There was, understandably, heightened tension in the area…but then, Vegas knows a thing or two about relieving tension. Hotels and bars embraced the plans and the Atomic Cocktail was born. Want to make your own? (info courtesy of Esquire Magazine) Just take:   1 1/2 ounces vodka 1 1/2 ounces brandy 1 teaspoon sherry 1 1/2 ounces Brut  champagne Stir the vodka, brandy, and sherry well with cracked ice, then strain into  a chilled cocktail glass and add 1 1/2 to 2 ounces cold brut champagne. Garnish  with plastic three-eyed fish from Simpsons playset. Note: If you use the  sweeter Spanish brandy, opt for the drier Amontillado sherry. Conversely, if you  use the (dry) cognac, choose the (sweet) Oloroso. We strive for balance in all  stirs.

    2 min

  4. 02/05/2025

    Laguardia’s Lament

    You’re listening to “The Airplane” from an RCA Victor Youth Series 78 entitled “LET’S PLAY”. It was produced by Helen Myers in 1946. The year before that, New York mayor Fiorello Laguardia left office. One of his biggest achievements, the development of the airport that would bear his name, came about as the result of, well, a bit of a hissy fit. The mayor had been sold a ticket to “New York”, which was at the time serviced by Newark Airport. Indignant, he refused to step on to Jersey soil and demanded to be flown to Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, and held an impromptu press conference proclaiming New York City’s need for an airport. In short, it worked, and construction began in 1939. Image: unknown author, courtesy of U.S. National Archives. Aerial view of the tip of Manhattan, New York, United States ca. 1931. Note that the Cities Service Building (now known as the American International Building), which would become lower Manhattan’s tallest building in 1932, is only partially completed.

    2 min

  5. 10/16/2024

    Spellbound

    On today’s episode we’re talking electronic music…and the importance of a thorough resume. You’re on the Sound Beat. Miklos Rosza had long considered using electronic music in a film. He got his chance when director Alfred Hitchcock and producer David O. Selznick approached him about scoring 1945’s Spellbound. Wanting to add an atmospheric, contemplative air to the piece, he settled on the theremin. Here’s a quote from Dr. Samuel Hoffmann. “I put down theremin on my card…without thinking much about it. When Miklos Rozsa thought of using a theremin in his score for Spellbound he called the union to see if any players were available. I was the only one listed at that time who could read music.” Before Rozsa’s call, Hoffmann was a practicing podiatrist in the Hollywood area. After the score won an Oscar, Hoffman and the theremin would feature in films like “The Day the Earth Stood Still”, “It Came from Outer Space” and more…see the whole list right now at soundbeat.org. Sound Beat is produced at the Belfer Audio Archive, Syracuse University Libraries. I’m Brett Barry. Link to Hoffman’s discography

    2 min

  6. 08/17/2024

    Low Bridge!

    Why did Governor Dewitt Clinton build a giant ditch across New York state? To get to the other side. From the time the first shovel went into the ground in 1817, critics blasted the Erie Canal project, dubbing it Clinton’s Ditch. But it would go down in history as an engineering marvel. When finished, it stretched three hundred and sixty three miles across New York, from : (lyrics “Albany to Buffalo”) This is Low Bridge! Everybody Down, sung by Edward Meeker in a wax cylinder recording from 1913. The Canal forever changed shipping in the Northeast, cutting transportation costs a whopping ninety percent. It also helped open a steady trade route with the Midwest, turning a seed of a downstate port town into the Big Apple. Mules like Old Sal were the early stars of the canal system, but steam powered barges rendered them obsolete by the end of the 19th century.

    2 min

  7. 08/08/2024

    The Last Flight of the Lady Be Good

    The American B-24 Bomber Lady Be Good departed a Libyan Air Base on a bombing raid in April 1943.  She did so into a sandstorm, and disappeared for 15 years. World War II raged, and then ended. Still, the whereabouts of the Lady Be Good remained unknown. It was thought the men had crashed into the Mediterranean, but in 1958 the nearly-intact bomber was found over 400 miles inland. Remains of 8 of the 9 crew members were found, some over a hundred miles north of the crash site. And, because everyone seemed to back then, they kept journals of their trek. To read excerpts, click to visit http://ladybegood.net, an excellent, and exhaustive site.

    2 min

  8. 03/05/2024

    Honey in the Rock

    You’re listening to the Carter Family’s rendition of “Honey in the Rock”, a Coral Record from 1949, and you’re on the Sound Beat. Frederick A. Graves originally wrote the song in 1895, but his version was a bit, well, heavy…A.P. Carter then rewrote it in 1937 to better fit the Carter Family’s repertoire. In short, he focused more on the “honey and the salvation” than the” blood and the sins”. Probably a good move, sales-wise. The Carter Family recorded for over 30 years, helping to create and then redefine country music, and were inducted into its Hall of Fame in 1970. This episode was co-written by Syracuse University Honors student Jack McCormack, part of the Sound Beat Class Partnership. Learn how students are interacting with historic sound right now at Soundbeat.org

    2 min
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About

A trip through the history of recorded sound

Information

  • Creator
    Syracuse University Library
  • Years Active
    2012 - 2026
  • Episodes
    71
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Syracuse University Library
  • Show Website
    Sound Beat