Unsung

While out estate saling last Friday, I stopped at a sale in Mehlville.  While I was browsing, I heard people talking about the owner of the home being a local coach.  His name was Coach Raymond Cliffe and after doing a little research found he was well known and fondly remembered in the high school level sports scene, having taught over 40 years from 1948 through 1992.  In fact, he was inducted into the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame.  He was also a locally exhibited artist, helping design the scenery for the first holiday lights show at Tilles Park in Ladue.  The Post-Dispatch wrote a nice article on him when he passed.

But with all due respect, this blog is not about Coach Clifffe.  It's about his wife.

While rummaging through a box of photos and various ephemera, I came across what appeared to be publicity photos for a Miss Shirley White.

She was born Shirley Weiss (White was her stage name, perhaps "Weiss" being a little too German that soon after World War II) in 1927. She married Ray Cliffe on May 9th, 1949. She passed away December 13, 2002. Anything beyond that will be conjecture on my part. You see, there isn't much information available on Shirley. Google has failed me.

But from the photos, it's apparent she was a featured singer with Phil Levant and his Orchestra. Who was Phil Levant? Google fails me again. Outside of a few archived newspaper articles, some autographed photos and a mention that he wrote the music for the Marquette Victory March for Marquette University, there's no further information.

Digging further into the box of loose photographs, I came across some night club photos taken of Shirley and gang.  The first up is from Riviera-on-the-Lake in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin and is a photograph of Shirley with the Phil Levant Orchestra.  Shirley and Phil are second and third from the left respectively.

This picture was taken July 28th, 1948

An interesting note on the back of this photograph holder:

The Colony Club - McClure, Illinois

Shirley looks really young here.  No idea who her bow-tied friend is.  The Colony Club was destroyed by a fire in 1959.

Chicago's China Doll

Inside, the inscription in the left corner reads, "To my future secretary and a very pretty girl -- don't forget the postcards! Tom" and in the right, "Remember the time we met this "character"?  Bud P.S. We did have fun!"

Shirley is on the left, of course.  Phil is second from the right, nursing what appears to be a cold Schlitz.

The Lake Club in Springfield, Illinois.  It also burned down.  This one in 1992 and is now reputedly haunted.

Shirley at the far left.  I believe that's Phil on her left, but I'm not positive.

The Plantation in Houston, Texas.

Shirley and Phil on the left.

John Dotson's Famous Blue Moon. So famous, I can't find a thing about it on the internet.  But I love the cover.

Hey pal, get your meathooks offa the dish!  Here we find Phil enjoying a Coke.  Kansas was a dry state until 1948.

Among the pictures, I also found a couple of Western Union Telegrams. These were sent to the Blackhawk Restaurant in Chicago.

Shhhh...  If you listen carefully, you can hear Martin's heart breaking...

A couple of hometown folks with some interesting names dropped her a line as well, addressed to her real name to let her know in no uncertain terms they knew her when...

There was also an envelope for Western Union. I'd never seen one before.

The ancestor of the pop-up ad

Google did provide a postcard and a few vintage pictures of The Blackhawk Restaurant

Today it's a Loft Women's Clothing store.

In case you want to walk around what was The Blackhawk Restaurant.

Among the boxes of papers, I found a few menus Shirley had kept as mementos including two from The Blackhawk Restaurant.

After gathering up all the related ephemera I could find, I moved on to the other rooms.  One room contained a large collection of records.  Among them, I found original audition cuts of Shirley singing with The Phil Levant Orchestra. 

One of the record sleeves has a note to not play the record after 10:00 p.m. due to union rules, unless, of course, you're paid overtime:

Some warnings about using alternative needles:

I transferred the records to mp3 and have uploaded them below.  The quality isn't great, but I did what I could.  I've provided both the raw and the cleaned up tracks.  The quality of some of the records is pretty poor so noise reduction worked better on some than others and there are a few skips here and there.  But take a listen, because I think they are worth it and I think Shirley deserves to be heard:

How Come You Do Me Like You Do Do Do (Original)
How Come You Do Me Like You Do Do Do (Noise Reduction)
A Little Bird (Original)
A Little Bird (Noise Reduction)
South America Take It Away (Original)

South America Take It Away (Noise Reduction)

11:60 PM (Original)
11:60 PM (Noise Reduction)
And Then It's Heaven (Original)
Here To Stay (Original)
Here To Stay (Noise Reduction)
Funny (Original)
Funny (Noise Reduction)
How Cute Can You Be (Original)
How Cute Can You Be (Noise Reduction)
Pussy Cat Song (Original)
Pussy Cat Song (Noise Reduction)
Shoo Shoo Baby (Original)
Shoo Shoo Baby (Noise Reduction)

The Man I Love (Original)
The Man I Love (Noise Reduction)
Tampico (Original)
Tampico (Noise Reduction)
Cow Cow Boogy (Original)  (I know it's spelled "Boogie", but that's the way it was pencilled on the record.
Cow Cow Boogy (Noise Reduction)

There were a few tracks tracks that that didn't feature Shirley.  Some were instrumental only and others featured a male singer.  The male singer may be Jose Chavez who sings with Shirley on Tampico or it could be Lee Shearin who was also billed with Shirley.
Whole World (Original)
Whole World (Noise Reduction)
If It Ain't Wrong, It's Right (Original)  I'm sure I've heard this played on a Bugs Bunny cartoon
If It Ain't Wrong, It's Right (Noise Reduction)
Jealousy
Long, Long Time (Original) I would have loved to have heard Shirley sing this
Long, Long Time (Noise Reduction)
Hindustan

Even through all of the crackling, hissing and popping, it's evident Shirley was a talented singer.  Unfortunately, when these records were made the Big Band sound and Swing Era were fading.  In 1948, because of musicians' union strikes, there were no records made and I imagine it had a similar impact on the night club business. When the ban was over in January 1949, the Swing Era was over and Rock 'n Roll was on the horizon.

Did Shirley quit because of the musician's strike? Or did she quit to marry Coach Cliffe and raise a family? Or was it a combination of both?  Like I said, it's mainly conjecture.  But there's one thing I do know: Shirley, I heard you sing tonight and baby, it was beautiful.