(Week of 9/13/03 - 9/19/03)

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"I'll Be Waiting For You" by The Sentimentalists on Manor 1049-A released in 1946

"Don't You Run Away (And Leave Me)" by The Four Tunes Featuring Jimmie Nabbie on Crosby 3-A-45 released in 1959

[The above photo provided by Paul Ressler.]

Above: Photo of The Four Tunes. (L-R) Jimmie Nabbie, Danny Owens, Jim Gordon, and Pat Best. Before becoming The Four Tunes, this same grouping were The Sentimentalists (named for Best's composition "For Sentimental Reasons"). Pat Best is the only surviving member of this lineup.

THE FOUR TUNES started life as The Brown Dots, who were formed in 1945 after Deek Watson left The Ink Spots. The Brown Dots consisted of Joe King (lead tenor), Deek Watson (first tenor), William "Pat" Best (baritone), and Jim Gordon (bass) and recorded for the Newark, NJ based Manor Records. After this group's first two releases, Jimmie Nabbie (lead tenor), who had been with The Orange Blossom Quartet and The Payne Jubilee Singers, replaced Joe King.

In late 1946, Best, Gordon, and Nabbie left Watson, replacing him with Danny Owens (first tenor), to become The Sentimentalists and continued to record for the Manor label. Owens had been with The Coleman Brothers and Southern Sons/Melody Masters. When Tommy Dorsey, who earlier had a vocal group also named The Sentimentalists, asked them to stop using that name, they became The Four Tunes.

Click HERE for an article about The Brown Dots/Four Tunes by Marv Goldberg.

Above Left: Manor label (Newark, NJ) image of "I'll Be Waiting For You" released in December 1946.

Above Right: Crosby label (Las Vegas, NV) image of "Don't You Run Away". The Four Tunes had two 45 rpm records on Crosby both released in November 1959.

Jerry Blaine (Jubilee Records) would come to Las Vegas to record The Four Tunes. Because the studio was near a railroad track, recording sessions would be held up until each train passed.

Click on an option below to listen to "I'll Be Waiting For You" by The Sentimentalists using Windows Media Player.

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(file size=433KB)

Click on an option below to listen to "Don't You Run Away" by The Four Tunes using Windows Media Player.

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(file size=330KB)

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