ST. PATRICK'S DAY ALBUM

St. Patrick's Day is a compilation album of phonograph records by Bing Crosby released in 1947 featuring songs with an Irish theme. This includes one of Crosby's most-beloved songs, "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral" which was number four on Billboard for 12 weeks, and topped the Australian charts for an entire month, on shellac disc record. This version, the 1945 re-recording, was released earlier in another Crosby album, Selections from Going My Way.

Billboard liked it:Aiming at maximum holiday sales, this package of five platters brings together 10 Erin faves cut at varying times by Bing Crosby, getting vocal assist on some of the sides from the Jesters and the King's Men, while the music making belongs to Bob Haggart, Victor Young and John Scott Trotter. Der Bingle in good Erin form for each of the sides and song selections are tops ... Photo of the smiling Bing on the album cover, with notes on the singer and the songs in the accompanying booklet.

Down Beat was not impressed however saying:Bing's album, despite his usual graceful ease of interpretation, lacks his old fullness of voice. If Crosby is going to keep on making records with his evident sloppiness and lack of interest, it would be better if he would stop now and let his millions of fans remember him by his older and far better discs.

The album quickly reached No. 3 in Billboard's best-selling popular record albums chart in March 1947 and was still selling well the following year when it reached No. 1 in the same chart on 20 March 1948. It was 18th in the annual chart of top selling record albums for 1948.
Original track listing

These previously issued songs were featured on a 5-disc, 78 rpm album set, Decca Album No. A-495.

Disc 1 (23495):
A. "McNamara's Band"
B. "Dear Old Donegal" 

Disc 2 (23786):
A. "Who Threw the Overalls in Mrs. Murphy's Chowder?" George L. Giefer December 6, 1945 the Jesters, and Bob Haggart and His Orchestra 2:27
B. "It's the Same Old Shillelagh" Pat White December 6, 1945 the Jesters, and Bob Haggart and His Orchestra 2:44

Disc 3 (23787):
A. "Did Your Mother Come From Ireland?" 
B. "Where the River Shannon Flows" 

Disc 4 (23788):
A. "The Rose of Tralee" 
B. "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" 
Disc 5 (23789):

A. "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral" 
B. "I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen" 

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THE ETHNICITY OF BING

Birth Name: Harry Lillis Crosby, Jr.

Date of Birth: May 3, 1903

Place of Birth: Tacoma, Washington, U.S.

Date of Death: October 14, 1977

Place of Death: Alcobendas, Madrid, Spain

Ethnicity: English, Irish

Bing Crosby was an American singer and actor. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for Going My Way (1944).

His father, Harry Lillis/Lincoln/Lowe Crosby, was of English descent and his mother, Catherine Helen (Harrigan), was of Irish descent. Bing was raised Catholic.

Bing was married to actress and nightclub singer Dixie Lee, until her death, and to actress Kathryn Grant, until his death. He had four children with Dixie, and three children with Kathryn.

Actor and businessperson Harry Crosby is his son. Actress Denise Crosby is his granddaughter.

Bing’s patrilineal line can be traced to Anthony Crosby, who was born, c. 1545, in Holme-on-Spalding-Moor, Yorkshire, England.

Bing’s paternal grandfather was Nathaniel Crosby (the son of Nathaniel Crosby and Mary Lincoln). Bing’s grandfather Nathaniel was born in Maine, and was of English descent, from a family resident in New England since the 1600s. Bing’s great-grandfather Nathaniel was the son of Nathaniel Crosby and Ruby Foster; Ruby was the daughter of Chillingsworth Foster III and Sarah Freeman. Mary was the daughter of Isaac Lincoln and Mary Foster.

Bing’s paternal grandmother was Cordelia Jane Smith (the daughter of Jacob Smith and Priscilla Fearnley). Cordelia was born in Indiana. Priscilla was born in England.

Bing’s maternal grandfather was Dennis Harrigan (the son of Dennis Harrigan and Catherine Driscoll/Driscol). Bing’s grandfather Dennis was born in Williamstown, Northumberland County, New Brunswick, Canada, and was of Irish descent.

Bing’s maternal grandmother was Catherine Ahearn/A’Hearn (the daughter of John Ahearn and Ann Meighan). Catherine was born in New Brunswick, to Irish parents...

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BING: AN IRISH HERO

Somebody just told me Bing Crosby was jailed for drunk driving in 1929. Right here in Hollywood even. I had no idea. 1929 was the middle of Prohibition. And Hollywood had been a dry town to begin with, before the movies came. So they hauled him in. They wouldn’t have dared a decade later, but this was 1929, and Bing was still a jazz singer then, and cops didn’t particularly like jazz singers. Or jazz trumpeters…the LAPD busted Louis Armstrong for marijuana possession a couple years later, in 1931. Vice cops were busy saving the city back then. They knew about Bing’s drinking back then. Who didn’t? But did they know that Bing and Louis would hang out smoking reefer in Chicago just a bit before? Probably not. That was a secret.

We didn’t know it, not in our family. Along with Jack Kennedy (or simply Jack), Bing Crosby (simply Bing) were icons in our house. Jesus and Jack on the wall, Bing on the Hi Fi. We didn’t know about the jailed for drunk driving, and we certainly know that he’d been a viper, getting high and cracking wise and singing with Satchmo…but we knew generally that he was quite the heller in his young days. That was a good thing, being quite the heller in your young days. It was expected. A drunk driving bust would have been perfectly understandable. Besides, the cops probably set him up anyway. That’s what we would have said. I don’t believe he was set up. I just think he was drunk. Bad luck. Somebody smacked into his car. Rear ended him. What can ya do? Looked it up–he was busted on Hollywood Blvd right there in front of the Roosevelt Hotel. No doubt I’ll think of that now every time I pass .Every time.

My mother called me the day he died. Bing died she said. It was like losing a grandfather’s brother, a relation you never saw in person, but knew all about. When my grandmother told my grandfather that Bing had died, my grandfather went pale. You aren’t gonna die on me too now, she asked. He recovered. No, No, I’m not going anywhere. But he did not long after.


There’s never been Irish Americans as important to American Irishmen since Jack and Bing. Jack’s story is too sad for words (and Bobby’s even sadder), but Bing’s ended just right. That was a great game, fellas. And it was.

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HOWARD CROSBY AND BING'S IRISH ROOTS

The nephew of legendary crooner Bing Crosby has said the singer was always "enormously proud" of his Irish roots.

Howard Crosby (above) was speaking ahead of a concert in which he was performing in honour of the bi-centenary of the founder of St Vincent de Paul, Frederic Ozanam. "The Irish were second-class citizens in America for the better part of 100 years," he said. "But when Bing Crosby (right) openly acknowledged and celebrated his Irish ancestry . . . it went from being something you might have been ashamed of, to something that was cool."

The charity concert was held last week in the National Concert Hall.

Also singing was 'X Factor' contestant Mary Byrne (above). In 1995, Mary was struggling with her finances and received help from the charity. "I always said if I could give back a little I would," she said...

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