The Boswell Sisters

There is a lot of confusion about where the Boswell Sisters were born. Some books say they were all born in New Orleans. One says Connie was born in Kansas City, and Martha and Vet were born in New Orleans. Another says Connie and Martha were born in Kansas City, and Vet was born in Birmingham, Alabama. The Boswell Sisters Museum agrees with this last source, and adds that Martha was born on July 9, 1905, Connie on December 3, 1907, and Vet on May 20, 1911. They all lived in New Orleans when they were young.

In the twenties, they sang together on radio and theater, and also in vaudeville. They also played instruments - Connie played the 'cello, while Martha played the piano and Vet the violin. Connie was also the group's lead singer and arranger. Their style was sophisticated and jazzy, and they were the first female close harmony group to become famous. They made their first record in 1925, but didn't record again until 1930. They performed in Honolulu, San Francisco and Los Angeles before moving to New York in 1931, where they worked at the Paramount Theater. There they signed a contract with Brunswick, for whom they made dozens of records over the next few years. They recorded with some of the best jazz bands of the day, including The Dorsey Brothers Orchestra, Red Nichols and His Orchestra and Don Redman and His Orchestra. These bands included such greats as Joe Venuti, Eddie Lang, Bunny Berigan and Benny Goodman. They continued to perform on radio, on the Chesterfield Show in 1932, and the Bing Crosby Show in 1934 - 1935. In 1933 and 1935, they performed in England. They performed in the movies The Big Broadcast of 1932, Moulin Rouge, and Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round.

Martha and Vet married in 1935 and retired from performing, but Connie continued to perform (the sisters would occasionally perform together, but from this point on Connie was mostly a solo singer). At some point after the group broke up, she changed her name to Connee. She performed on record, radio, on television and in person through the fifties. Martha died in 1958, Connee in 1976, and Vet in 1988.

We've Got to Put That Sun Back in the Sky

Brunswick 6257

The Boswell Sisters Accompanied by the Dorsey Brothers (Connie Boswell - Helvetia "Vet" Boswell vocal; Martha Boswell vocal - piano; Bunny Berigan - Manny Klein trumpet; Tommy Dorsey trombone; Jimmy Dorsey clarinet - alto sax; Harry Hoffman violin; Dick McDonough guitar; Joe Tarto bass; Stan King drums)

Recorded February 19, 1932

Irving Kahal and Joseph Meyer wrote We've Got to Put That Sun Back in the Sky in 1932. I don't know of any other song they both worked on. With other songwriters, Kahal co-wrote I Can Dream, Can't I?; I Left My Sugar Standing in the Rain; I'll Be Seeing You; It Was Only a Sun Shower; Let a Smile Be Your Umbrella; (There Ought to Be a) Moonlight Saving Time; The Night Is Young, and You're So Beautiful; Sittin' on a Backyard Fence and Wedding Bells Are Breaking up That Old Gang of Mine, while Meyer co-wrote Blue River; California, Here I Come; Clap Hands! Here Comes Charley!; Crazy Rhythm; A Cup of Coffee, a Sandwich and You; Happy Go Lucky Lane; If You Knew Susie (Like I Know Susie); I Wish I Were Twins and My Honey's Lovin' Arms.

We've Got to Put That Sun Back in the Sky was also recorded by Lou Gold, Roane's Pennsylvanians and Ted Wallace and His Campus Boys.

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