| Al Bowlly |
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Al Bowlly ( January 7 1899 – April 17 1941 ) was the most popular Singer in the United Kingdom during the 1930s , making more than 1,000 recordings between 1927 and 1941 . Bowlly was born in Mozambique to Greek and Lebanese parents, brought up in Johannesburg , South Africa , and killed by the explosion of a parachute mine outside his apartment in London during The Blitz . Bowlly showcased a range of material unsurpassed by any contemporary other than perhaps Bing Crosby . He was also a true international recording artist. He gained his musical experience singing for a dance band led by Jimmy Liquime in India and Singapore during the mid- 1920s . Just one year after his 1927 debut recording date in Berlin, Bowlly arrived in London for the first time as part of Fred Elizalde 's orchestra. That year, "If I Had You" became one of the first popular songs by an English jazz band to become well known in America as well, and Bowlly had gone out on his own by the beginning of the 1930s . During the next three years, he recorded over 500 songs, and appeared with orchestras led by Ray Noble and Lew Stone . A visit to New York in 1934 with Noble resulted in more success and their recordings first achieved popularity in the USA; he appeared at the head of an orchestra hand-picked for him and Noble by Glenn Miller (the band included Claude Thornhill , Charlie Spivak , and Bud Freeman , among others). During the early-mid 1930s, such songs as "Blue Moon", "Easy to Love", "I've Got You Under My Skin", and "My Melancholy Baby" were sizable American successes — so much so that Bowlly gained his own radio series on NBC and travelled to Hollywood to co-star in ''The Big Broadcast'' in 1936, which also starred one of his biggest competitors, Bing Crosby . In December 1931 , Bowlly had married Freda Roberts, but the marriage proved a disaster, with Bowlly discovering his new wife in bed with another man on their wedding night. The couple separated after two weeks, and sought a rapid divorce. He remarried in December 1934 , this time to Marjie Fairless, the marriage lasting until his death. Despite Bowlly's stellar success in Britain through the early 1930s, he never achieved the same measure of fame in the USA, and the his absence in the UK when he moved to the States in 1934 damaged his popularity with UK audiences. His career also began to suffer as a result of problems with his voice from around 1936 , which affected the frequency of his recordings. He and Marjie moved back to London in January 1937, with Bowlly appearing with his own band, the Radio City Rhythm Makers, but they dissolved by late 1937 when his vocal problems were traced to a wart on the inside of his throat, which briefly caused him to lose his voice entirely. He flew back to the USA to successfully undergo major throat surgery for its removal, but had further difficulties with his voice late in his career - some fans believe it lost some of its earlier, silky quality after the operation. With his success in Britain a shadow of its former self, he toured regional theatres and recorded furiously to make a living, moving from orchestra to orchestra, including those of Sydney Lipton , Geraldo , and Ken Johnson . He underwent a brief revival from 1940 , as part of a double act with Jimmy Messene (whose career had also suffered a recent downturn) , with an act called 'Radio Stars with Two Guitars', performing on the London stage. It was his last venture before his death in April 1941. The partnership was an uneasy one, as Messene suffered from a serious Drink Problem by this stage, and was known to turn up incapable on stage, or not to turn up at all, much to Bowlly's consternation. Bowlly's last recorded song, made two weeks before his death, was a duet with Messene of Irving Berlin's satirical song on Hitler, "When That Man is Dead and Gone." Bowlly remains one of the most highly regarded singers of his era because of his extraordinary range, his command of pitch and rhythm, and above all, the sincerity with which he could deliver a Lyric . The evening of his death, Bowlly and Messene had just given a performance in High Wycombe and both were offered the opportunity of spending the night there, but Bowlly opted to take the last train home to his flat in Jermyn Street , London instead. Some speculation surrounds his age at the time of his death. It is generally accepted that he was born in 1899 , making him 42, but his death certificate gives his age as 43, and several contemporaries claimed that the perpetually boyish-faced singer was born as early as 1891 . As no birth certificate exists, and much of his early years in South Africa remain shrouded in mystery, his actual age may remain unknown. PARTIAL DISCOGRAPHY BIBLIOGRAPHY
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