Hoosier Hot Shots Breezin' Along: The Singles Collection 1935-46 (2-CD)

The Hoosier Hot Shots were a quartet of American musicians from Indiana, hence their name, although no-one knows the exact origins of the term 'hoosier' as applied to natives of Indiana. Their music defied categorisation, but largely comprised novelty material played in a style that somehow combined jazz, swing and country, using a variety of instruments, from brass and woodwind through to novelty implements like bicycle horns, bells and slide whistles. Their washboard and other artefacts from the band are now in the collection of the Indiana State Museum. They recorded novelty songs and versions of vaudeville and pop standards, powered by a frantic, freewheeling instrumental virtuosity, grounded in comedy and whimsicality but always brilliantly performed. They performed on stage, on radio and in movies and started to record in 1935. This 51-track 2-CD collection comprises selected recordings on the Vocalion, Banner, Melotone, Conqueror and Decca labels from these years, and features their hits "Breezin' Along With The Breeze", "Red Hot Fannie", "The Man With The Whiskers", "Annabelle", "She Broke My Heart In Three Places" and "Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You)", along with classics like "Beer Barrel Polka", "When There Are Tears In The Eyes Of The Potato" and "O-Hi-O". It's a thoroughly entertaining showcase for one of the most unusual acts of the era.