Scarce disc that was not commercially issued.
Features a variety of music, including one rockabilly song ("Blue Suede Shoes" written by Carl Perkins) and one country song ("Why, Baby, Why?" written by George Jones), as well as some swinging cadence calling ("Drill Team Boogie," "Honey-Babe," and "Jodie Chant").
THE 1956 ALL-ARMY ENTERTAINMENT CONTEST
This year, for the first time, the hitherto separate All-Army Soldier Singing Contes*
(1952 and 1954) and All-Army Talent Contest (1954-1955) were combined in a single
competition - THE 1956 ALL-ARMY ENTERTAINMENT CONTEST. Competition was held
in two phases. "Live" categories included solo and small group vocal, instrumental, and
specialty acts. This long-playing album contains the winners in the "recorded" phase,
and is presented as a memento to each member of a winning group in the Department
of the Army Finals. Other command winners entered in the Grand Finals have received
certificates.
MEET THE WINNERS!
Barbershop Quartet - THE A CAPPELLS,
48th Armored Medical Battalion, APO
34, New York.
The quartet sings a medley of three
barbershop regulars, TELL ME WHY,
MISTER MOON, and CONEY ISLAND
BABY.
Battalion or Regimental Chorus - THE
PMGC CHORUS, Provost Marshal Gen-
eral's Center, Fort Gordon, Georgia,
representing Third Army Area. Num-
bering 35 singers, the chorus led
by Captain Werner Paul, sings a
medley of three songs: THE HALLS
OF IVY, THE HAPPY WANDERER, and
ARMY BLUE.
Singing Platoon - COMPANY G, MILI-
TARY POLICE TRAINING CENTER, Fort
Gordon, Georgia, representing the
Third Army Area. The platoon, sparked
by its imaginative song leader, per-
forms a bright medley of the DRILL
TEAM SOOGIE, HONEY-BABE (from
"Battle Cry") and the JODIE (DUCK-
WORTH) CHANT.
Post or Division Chorus - THE STUDENT CHOIR, ARMY LANGUAGE SCHOOL, Fort Ord,
California, representing Sixth Army Area. (No picture available) This large choir,
composed of students studying Russian at the School, sings two Russian songs, SOUTH
WIND and AT THE WIND.
Country and Western Group - THE
CIRCLE A WRANGLERS, Fort McPher-
son, Georgia, representing Third Army
Area. This unit contains five Alabamans
and one chap from New Mexico. (Must
be the "western" influence.) The group
includes a sax, not usually found with
this style of music. They perform two
recent big ones in the country and
western field, WHY, BABY, WHY? and
BLUE SUEDE SHOES.
Army Band Chorus - 84TH ARMY BAND
CHORUS, APO 26, New York, repre-
senting USAREUR. (United States Army,
Europe)
The small chorus of bandsmen, directed
by Sp3 Doyle Dumas, sings two stan-
dard songs from chorus literature,
SWEET AND LOW and DE ANIMALS.
HATS OFF TO OUR JUDGES!
These leading organizations and representatives from the entertainment and music
fields accepted the invitation of The Adjutant General to serve as judges in the recorded
phase of the All-Army Finals:
Choruses and Singing Platoons
MISS FLORENCE BOOKER, Music Educators National Conference
MR. DAVID S. COOPER, Chief of Music, U.S. Information Agency
DEAN WARNER LAWSON, Howard University and the National Music Council
DR. HAROLD SPIVACKE, Chief, Music Division, Library of Congress
Barbershop Quartets
MR. W. L. DOMINY MR. JAMES EWIN MR. LEWIS SIMS
, Society For The Preservation and Encouragement Of Barber Shop Quartet Singing In America, Inc.
Country and Western Groups
MR. CONNIE B. GAY
MR. RAY HANEY
MR. PHIL LONG
Country & Western Entertainment
All recorded entries in the All-Army Finals were judged equally on the basis of
(1) Technical excellence (2) Originality or Interpretation and (3) Selection of Material.
THE IRVING BERLIN TROPHY (The
picture shows Secretary of the Army,
Wilber M. Brucker, Irving Berlin, Mrs.
Berlin and Mrs. Brucker at dedication)
The Irving Berlin Trophy has been
established by order of the Secretary of
the Army as a perpetual award to the
area level command winning the greatest
number of points in the Grand Finals^
of the All-Army Entertainment Contest.
Points are awarded to the entertainment
teams comprising the entrants from each,
area level command contest, as follows:
10 points for each category entered in the Grand Finals
25 points - winner
15 points - 2nd place
10 points - 3rd place
The Irving Berlin Trophy is retained by the winning command for one year. A replica
is awarded for permanent possession. The winner of the 1956 All-Army Entertainment
Contest, and first recipient of the Irving Berlin Trophy, was United States Army, Europe.