We just
left 2025 behind, an important year because it saw BING magazine reach
its
landmark 200th issue, and now we are welcoming 2026, which is an
equally
noteworthy year in the Crosby saga as it marks the centennial of the
beginning
of Bing’s long and successful career as a recording artist. Indeed, in
October
1926, Bing and his pal Al Rinker entered a makeshift recording studio
for the
first time to sing a vocal chorus with Don Clark’s Los Angeles Biltmore
Hotel Orchestra
on a sprightly jazz age ditty entitled “I’ve Got the Girl.” It wasn’t
an
auspicious start because the lads didn’t get label credit on the record
to
begin with, the song itself was far from a masterpiece, and the
recording was
released at the wrong speed, so their voices didn’t sound as polished
as they
should. In fact, for many years fans and researchers forgot about the
existence
of this record, assuming that Crosby’s recording career had begun with
Paul
Whiteman.
Bing and Al would join
pianist-songwriter Harry Barris and, as the Rhythm Boys, would start
making a
name for themselves within the great Whiteman orchestra, even making an
appearance in the pioneering musical film The King of Jazz, which aptly
spotlights the Whiteman organization. In just a few years, Bing would
strike
out on his own and become a mass-media sensation, but retrospectively,
it all
began 100 years ago with that uncredited vocal in which Bing and Al
couldn’t
believe that they got the girl.
It’s comforting to see that a century after
Bing made his first record in a Los Angeles warehouse, present-day
artists are
still interested in recording posthumous duets with him, and so many
ICC
members keep honoring his legacy with well-researched pieces in BING
and
presentations during the monthly online meetings hosted by Jason
Liddiard.
Reading the contents of the magazine, you are now holding in your
hands, one
can’t help but feel overjoyed by the excellent health of both the
Crosby oeuvre
and the ICC.
Happy reading and I
hope the first few months of 2026 are treating you as best as possible.
Anton
Garcia-Fernandez antongarciafdez@gmail.com
This 56-page glossy magazine
continues to be essential reading for the serious Crosby supporter and order
your copy of the magazine now by contacting Perry
Huntoon (phone: (630) 357-5374).
To see details of earlier issues,
click here.
Editorial
Secretary / Treasurer’s Report
The Private Collection of Kathryn and Bing
Bing back in the charts
Yule Be Shocked
ICC
Online Meetings
Bing Crosby Advocates
True
Love: Bing & Rosie
Bing
in lyrics
If I
Was a Millionaire
Joe
DeRita and Bing Crosby in: Road to Berlin…
Trading
Post
Books
‘n’ Bing
A
visit to Litchfield with ‘Skitch’ Henderson
Celluloid
Crosby
Twin
Peaks
Bing
Crosby: Carefree Crooner
Bing
Crosby’s 1974 Health Crisis
Desert
Island Discs
One
Sweet Letter from You
Harmonizing
with Bing - part two
Ken
Crossland’s Crosbyana
The
Groaner and the Pelvis
A
Note from Australia
Bing
on the Box
Once
in a While
The
Way We Were
Keeping
Track