Singer of the century

Thomas Sowell takes time out from his usual beat to pay tribute to Bing Crosby on the occasion of his hundredth birthday on May 2 in his column today: “Bing Crosby: Singer of the century.”
Confirming a point made in this column concerning Crosby’s eclecticism, I was surprised to hear Crosby taking a couple turns with blues/jazz singer Louis Jordan (on “My Baby Said ‘Yes’” and “Your Socks Don’t Match”) in the wonderful, inexpensive five-disk Louis Jordan and his Tympani Five compilation that came out on JSP Records in 2001. Suffice it to say that Crosby complemented Jordan beautifully.
Jazz writer Gary Giddins has published the first volume of what will be the definitive biography of Crosby — Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams. The first volume, now out in paperback, was published in 2001 and takes the story to 1940.