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Propaganda Swing CD/Video Package: K54 Special Savings Offer

Propaganda Swing: Dr. Goebbels Jazz Orchestra (Charlie and His Orchestra) (VHS)
Charlie Schwedler (Karl Schwedler)
In the twisted annals of the Third Reich, few stories are so improbable as that of Charlie and his Orchestra .

Even as the Nazis campaigned against degenerate jazz music, persecuting musicians and throwing swing kids into concentration camps, behind the scenes Joseph Goebbels and his Propaganda Ministry were creating a jazz orchestra that would serve up Nazi propaganda backed by the latest swing music.

The result was Charlie and his Orchestra , Karl Schwedler, made up of Europe s finest jazz players, whose short-wave broadcasts to English and American audiences soon gained a following abroad and, more clandestinely, within the Reich itself.

Combining hit-parade savvy with pro-Nazi, anti-Semitic lyrics, the orchestra specialized in cover versions of the latest swing sensations; among the recordings featured here are the Churchill-baiting "You're Driving Me Crazy" , the anti-Roosevelt "FDR Jones", and "Slumming on Park Avenue" ( Let s go bombing... ).

As soon as the war ended, orchestra members found themselves in hot demand by American occupation forces, and many become respected leaders of Europe's postwar jazz scene.

In this film, surviving band members (including the late Fritz "Freddie" Brocksieper) recall their musical collaboration with the Nazi regime with ambivalence and insight, shedding new light onto the contradictory workings of Goebbels propaganda machine.

1989, B&W/Color, 60 minutes, English commentary.

Video Cassette available in NTSC only

Propaganda Swing: The Music Of Charlie And His Orchestra, Volume 1
The Swing Era's most improbable jazz band, "Charlie and his Orchestra" (Karl Schwedler) was the brainchild of none other than Joseph Goebbels and his Propaganda Ministry.

Nazi opposition to "degenerate" jazz was a well-advertised fact, yet Goebbels recognized its propaganda value in reaching foreign audiences, and during the war years "Charlie and his Orchestra" provided German foreign broadcasting large doses of musical sizzle and hipster allure. Featuring many of Europe's finest jazz players, combining hit parade savvy with pro-Nazi, anti-Semitic lyrics, the band served up cover versions of the latest swing sensations, creating a body of work that (in spite of its lyrical content) attracted a substantial following among English and American audiences.

The Orchestra's remarkable story has recently been told in the documentary Propaganda Swing: Dr. Goebbels' Jazz Orchestra, also available through IHF Films.

This CD, an IHF exclusive, presents the Orchestra's "hits" in chronological order for the first time... Tracks include:

I'm Putting All My Eggs in One Basket, 2:46;

The King's Horses, 2:58;

St. Louis Blues, 3:08;

Slumming On Park Avenue, 2:45;

I'll Never Say 'Never Again' Again, 2:37;

Dinah, 2:55;

Daisy, 2:28;

Goody Goody, 2:42;

Who'll Buy My Bublitchky, 2:34;

I've Got A Pocketful of Dreams, 2:54;

Lili Marleen (Lale Anderson & Charlie Schwedler), 3:21;

The Man With The Big Cigar, 3:01;

British Soldier's Song, 1:50;

Nice People, 3:07;

Thanks For The Memory, 3:07;

Stormy Weather, 3:21;

It's A Long Way To Tipperary, 2:55;

When Day Is Done, 2:55;

You're Driving Me Crazy, 3:14;

Hold Me, 3:23;

You Can't Stop Me From Dreaming, 3:24;

With A Smile And A Song, 3:16;

Indian Love Call, 3:18;

The Sheik Of Araby, 2:46.

CD, 72 minutes See also Propaganda Swing: Charlie and His Orchestra: Propaganda Swing: The Music Of Charlie And His Orchestra Volume 2 and Propaganda Swing: Charlie and His Orchestra: K50 Special Savings Offer. Compact Audio Disk Propaganda Swing: The Music Of Charlie And His Orchestra, Volume 2
The Swing Era's most improbable jazz band, "Charlie and his Orchestra" (Karl Schwedler) was the brainchild of none other than Joseph Goebbels and his Propaganda Ministry.

The Orchestra's remarkable story has recently been told in the documentary Propaganda Swing: Dr. Goebbels' Jazz Orchestra, also available through IHF Films.

This CD, an IHF exclusive, presents the Orchestra's "hits" in chronological order for the first time... Tracks include:

Let's Put Out The Lights, 3:11;

Bei mir bist Du schön, 2:34;

Makin Woopee, 3:06;

I'm Sending You The Siegfried Line, 2:44;

Laugh, Clown, Laugh, 2:36;

By, By, Blackbird, 2:34;

Japanese Sandman, 3:15;

I Found A Million Dollar Baby, 2:40;

Avalon, 2:49;

You Started Something, 2:54;

You're The Top, 2:20;

Bom, 2:55;

Little Sir Echo, 2:58;

Picture Me Without You, 2:37;

Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf?, 2:36;

The Lambeth Walk, 2:47;

Three Little Fishies, 2:06;

Why'd Ya Make Me Fall In Love, 2:34;

I Double Dare You, 2:27;

Miss Annabelle Lee, 2:23;

South Of The Border, 2:53;

Hold Tight, 2:48;

I Can't Give You Anything But Love, 2:17;

Daisy, 2:16;

United Nations Air Men, 2:52.

CD, 69 minutes.

Compact Audio Disk

Only available on DVD. Click here to order..

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