Ben Bernie & The Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra - Please Let Me Dream In Your Arms (1928)
Channel: C Porter
Date: 2020-09-08

I said months ago that I had never heard an intro on a record as cool as this. That still rings true.

"The Old Maestro" himself, it's Ben Bernie. Ben Bernie was an american jazz violinist, radio star, and Bandleader from the mid 1920s to the mid 1930s. Known mostly for being one of the best parts of the Brunswick Light-Ray and for first recording Sweet Georgia Brown.  Ben had 3 orchestras he recorded with. Ben Bernie And All The Lads, His Main Orchestra and his Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra. the second two had a lot of success. 

His Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra formed in 1924 and signed onto Vocalion along with Bernies main Orchestra. After only a few records, they would switch over to Brunswick in 1925 as the Light- Ray was just starting. This would be where they stayed, never recording elsewhere and recording prolifically until 1929 when that band would break up.

This band would have a respectable amount of hits including Sweet Georgia Brown in 1925, Ain't She Sweet in 1927, Sleepy Time Gal in 1926, It's A Lonesome Old Town in 1930, I'm Looking Over A Four Leaf Clover in 1927, Reaching For The Moon in 1927,  Cheerie I Love You in 1926, Muddy Water in 1927, and Hello Swanee Hello in 1927.

Picture of Ben Bernie sourced for The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. May 29th 1928, Page 30.  

The A Side is called Here We Are which you can listen to here: https://youtu.be/yd2uUiCvxno