Sissle and Blake’s Shuffle Along of 1950

The 1921 show Shuffle Along was groundbreaking. The first African-American production to be staged on Broadway since 1910, it was the first to feature blacks singing a mature love song (“Love Will Find A Way”). Despite some stereotyped characters, the music of Eubie Blake and the lyrics of Noble Sissle made the show a surprise success with “I’m Just Wild About Harry” becoming a hit. The 2016 release from the Harbinger label Sissle and Blake Sing Shuffle Along recreated the show by using a few duet recordings by Blake and Sissle from the 1920s, performances from the 1970s with an original cast member, a piano roll medley, and eight songs performed by Sissle and Blake on a previously unreleased set of demonstration recordings from 1950. Noble Sissle always wanted to revive the show and, after getting some interest (but never enough money), in 1950 he, Blake, and singers LaVerne Hutchinson and Charlotte Holloman made a nearly hour-long demo recording of the show. The contents of the disc, released for the first time, give one a good idea of what the new show would have been. Sissle introduces each number and relates the action and plot as it develops in addition to contributing vocals. Blake, who barely recorded at all during 1932-67, is in top form on piano, taking some impressive solos. Hutchinson and Holloman’s semi-classical singing is dated but an asset in relat