Memorial Day with the Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands - a podcast by Frank Miller

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for remembering the people who died while serving in the country's armed forces. In 1941, the Mutual Radio Network had the idea of broadcasting Swing Bands remotely from various halls around the country. Coca Cola was sold on the idea, and the first edition of Spotlight Bands was broadcast just days before Pearl Harbor. Patriotism is front and center and the music is hot! And it was on Spotlight Bands/Victory Parade. Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, Les Brown, Ted Fio Rito, Jack Teagarden, Louis Armstrong and many others lent their talents to the program. On today's show we present three band remotes: Les Brown, Gene Krupa, and Charlie Spivak. Note that on the Les Brown remote Doris Day is the vocalist. I hope you enjoy the music from the war years as we celebrate Memorial Day 2019.

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