In 1960 the lead singer here (Essex Scott) went on a fishing trip 100 miles south of Miami with two local friends. High winds and heavy rain were reported later that day and when the men didn't return that night the coastguard began searching. A few stressful days passed until their boat was found, but sadly no trace of the men. The Ink Spots group he was performing with at the time had to keep performing without him which they said was very difficult. They didn't want to give up hope. Bernie Mackey, the leader of the group he was with said after one show; "we kept watching the door thinking he might come walking in at any moment."
@@rejectionisprotection4448 Not to my knowledge and I've done some research on this. Their boat was recovered but no bodies. Last time I was in Florida on the coast I was out there in the water singing the songs he sang thinking about him and the incident. Very sad ending but he had a fantastic career and I think a good life.
I remember the Ink Spot from the 50'st...my Dad really liked them. I tried to save so much but so much got lost. I had his old records..but my mother was a thrower away type.
ah i was on a long drive in canada. we stopped in a smaller town that was a lot of farmland. they had lots of radio stations surprisingly and one was playing a lot of old music like this, found some new songs too. i was in heaven.
My folks were teens/early 20's during the war and I remember hearing from older aunts and uncles (all dead now) about how they used to see the original ink spots play in person..then this group which was a break off by Charlie Fuqua (sp?)...in fact one uncle who just died actually sat in the parking lot and shared a beer with them back in the early 1950's......and this movie used to be on UHF when I was a kid back in the 1970's during the afternoons on Saturdays and Sundays......
Brings tears..had a player piano as a child and can hear my Dad and other family singing. And I learned how to play so many oldies...and remember to this day all the words and the great times ! So many years ago. No one can tell me those were not good days. The rolls are crumbling and those times are past but I thank all the people who upload so many great oldies and for a few minutes...I am so happy.
my mom had this song on a record by another group and we would sing it together back in the 50's. she loved music and her record collection and always let us kids play them.
Lyrics: Its only a shanty, in old shanty town Its roof is so slanty, it touches the ground Just a tumbledown shack, by an old railroad track Like a millionaire's mansion, oh baby it's calling me back! I'd give up my palace, if I were a king It's more than a palace, it's my everything There a queen waiting there, with a silvery crown Shanty in old shanty town! (Tenor) Just an old shanty, back in old shanty town That roof is so bad, it's lying down on the ground But still it's my old shanty, back there behind ol' railroad track And to me? Just like a millionaire's mansion Oh baby it's calling me back! Shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shanty, shantytown The roof is so slanty, it touches the ground Well it goes way up, and it comes back down Goes all-around around So long (So long), Farewell (Farewell) Goodbye (Goodbye), Goodnight to old shantytown
When the cam zooms out it brings a tear to my eyes, reminds me that this video I just a memory of a gone time and dam this guy's rock. If there is an after Life I hope they can see just how much their music has transcended time.
Music was nice when they had a full orchestra to play behind the singers. Don't get me wrong, there is good music today as well. But this music will always be good
When I was a college student, I sang constantly. I sang along with records in my room, and a capella as I walked across the campus. The Ink Spots were at the top of my list. One day, walking across the “quad” and singing “We Three”, black female student walked over to me and told me to stop. She said “That’s our music. You should not be singing it.” I told her I’d stop if she agreed to throw away all of her music and listen only to black music from that time on. And I reminded her that music is for everyone. She turned around and walked away.
I hate it when they do that. Just as there are different types of music, there are different colors of people, who says we can't love them ALL!? We don't tell them they can't have white peoples music, and I bet'ya the Ink Spots would not like it if white folks were not allowed to buy black music, so, why does anyone have to ruin it and try to stop it, I have never heard one white person say blacks should not enjoy our music, we all should love and enjoy each other. I love the Ink Spots, I grew up singing along with them, I used to have several of their albums, and my Mom and me used to harmonize to Shanty Town, it was one of our favorites. btw, I never heard that it was only by black people, I have heard several white people sing it. Mom and me liked to sing it regular, before getting to the jazzed up version, but, when she did sing it jazzed up, she had her own way that she really rocked with it, and she would dance 'The Trucken' along with it, and it was great. But when we sang it the regular way, every time we got to the part that says "there's a queen waiting there with a silvery crown" I would always break down crying b/c I didn't want my mom to get old and die. She was 57 when she died, and she only had a few silver hairs in her hair, she didn't live long enough to get all silver, but I am 73 now, and I am totally silver, but I still have guys making passes at me, and I love my silvery/white hair, I got it from my Dad, and I always hoped I would get his hair, Im glad I did, but lately it is getting pretty thin, his never got thin. He died at 82, but he would be 103 now if he was alive, mom would be 101.God Bless the Ink Spots, where ever they are, I know they liked anyone enjoying their singing.
From the performances I've seen, I love both the Bill Kenny Ink Spots and the Charlie Fuqua Inkspots. However, I slightly prefer the Fuqua Inkspots which is why it is such a shame there isn't more recordings of them. They had much more variety to there performance style. This song in particular does not even sound like anything remotely close to what Kenny's band would do but it still captures the spirit of the Ink Spots. I love Kenny's band, and I understand it's the premise that all the songs sound similar, but it gets depressing after awhile. Seeing the joy and pride on Essex's face is something you don't even need visuals to see. Just a perfect all around performance and this is easily one of my favorite songs ever.
I totally agree, this tends to be my favorite incarnation as well, they just have more upbeat numbers that swing. As well, Essex is something else. His booming voice is both warm and electrifying at the same time.
Man.. The Ink Spots.. I have yet to find a song they’ve done that I don’t love.. wish I could have seen them live.. had to be quite the show.. my favorite has to be its a sin to tell a lie..
I am totally going to play this version of the recording for my local swing dance next week. They are gonna dig it. Thanks porknbeans1968 for posting it :)
@ Gary Murphree: Song written in 1932, originally, haile Selassie was emperor of Ethiopia in the 1930s.. so a good rhyme.. Original song: lyrics by Joe Young, music by Ira Schuster and Jack Little, and performed in the movie "the Crooner" by Ted Lewis and his band... for those who don't know. My wife's mother performed this song on organ even after she had lost all speech to Alzheimers. She was 10 when it came out, learned it when she was 12, God rest her soul, we lost her a few years ago at the age of 89.
wow - what a treat this is, great to see the audience sitting right beside the band. This has to go in our set list next to "sitting on top of the world". cheers for the upload fae Bonnie Scotland
There are two basses here. We see Hoppy Jones playing his cello in the manner of a standup bass while there's an actual standup bass being played in the background.
The guy playing the Cello is Harold Jackson. You're right though... Harold played the Cello along with the Bass player. Sort of unnecessary as the bass is much louder, but Jackson could so I think he figured "why not?".
@@AustinCasey now that you mention it, playing cello like a bass was unnecessary in this particular circumstance, he could have played a mandocello instead.
Fab . This is Charlie Fuqua`s Inkspots from about 1952 with Jimmy Holmes lead tenor , Charles Owens second tenor (sorry Essex Scott) , Harald Jackson bass and Fuqua on guitar .
I’m honestly a bit fed up of people saying things along the lines of “Music these days is awful” just because they ignore all of the brilliant music that is being produced at the moment and focus on what is in the charts. There are so many amazing musical talents out there as we speak, whether they are taking jazz to new places, reviving Rock n Roll again, bringing new light to genre fusions etc. You just have to look outside the charts in order to find the type of music that is composed for the joy of making music rather than the money.
shoroe How is it ignorant to point out that there is some actual good music around these days if you look for it? If anything, it's ignorant to say otherwise.
It's all but impossible to find the Ink Spots version of this song on any official site. And on iTunes, the collection album that it was supposed to be a part of is missing it.
That's because this isn't the real Ink Spots. It's a spin-off group led by original member Charlie Fuqua. Incidentally, this group never released a record of this song. A few other spin off & imposter Ink Spots group DID record this song but they weren't as good as this.
I happened to wake up in dream in a Jamaican old shanty town. Rough women where they depended each day on the other being there. Every country has one. Lee Marvin played one in the movie Emperor of the North Pole. Me waking up in one was a truly unique experience.
I like this it's not the same as the one thoughts and he's six but has more of a even higher upbeat too and I like it very nice I like it I think both songs are good I was worried it's just going to be like the same like the one other one but it's nice
As soon as I typed that, I said, damn! Someone is going to say that :P but let's not forget that Bethesda created the 3D version, giving it more life, but I would agree, interplay did create it.
I'm up in the world, but I'd give the world to be where I used to be, A heavenly nest, where I rest the best, means more than the world to me. It's only a shanty in old Shanty Town the roof is so slanty it touches the ground. But my tumbled down shack by an old railroad track, like a millionaire's mansion is calling me back. I'd give up a palace if I were a king. It's more than a palace, it's my everything. There's a queen waiting there with a silvery crown in a shanty in old Shanty Town.
All_Fallout This is Charlie Fuqua's Ink Spots... a "spin-off" group from 1955. Left to right is Jimmy Holmes, Essex Scott (lead), Harold Jackson (who died just a couple years ago... was in his 100s) and Charlie Fuqua the Baritone and Guitarist of the original Ink Spots.
+Dominick The Banana Nope. This is Charlie Fuqua's Ink Spots, not the real Ink Spots. This group is Essex Scott, Jimmy Holmes, Charlie Fuqua and Harold Jackson. Scott sings the lead here. Pretty good vocal group!
