The “Golden Hits Of The 50s”
Main MenuConcept Refinement The Author..Wayne JancikGolden Age Of The 50sGolden Age Of The 60s1970s and There After
KIRBY STONE FOUR
“Baubles, Bangles and Beads”
Columbia 41183
(R. Wright, G. Forrest)
No. 25 July 28, 1958
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Variants of the Kirby Stone quintet and quartet date back into the ’40s. Kirb (b. April, 27, 1918/New York,
N.Y.) and his crew performed at night spots for years. Their perseverance served them the host position
for the CBS-TV 15-minute program “Strictly for Laughs” (1949-50). The usual routine was to harmonize
the hits with taste and a touch of silliness. When the show shut down, the group joined what TV historians
Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh have referred to as “the grandaddy of all television’s informal talk shows”,
“Broadway Open House” (1951). Initially Morey Amsterdam and Jerry Lester emceed the monologues and
the mayhem. FRANK GALLOP–latter to strike it with “got A Match”–was also a regular.
After an appearance in the mid’5Os on the “Ed Sullivan Show” their manager George Greif was able to work
out a recording contract with Columbia Records. The group line-up at this point was comprised of Kirb,
Larry Foster, Michael Gardner, and Eddie Hall. Although they would make many recordings over the next
decade, “Baubles, Bangles and Beads” from the Broadway Production of Kismet, a track from off their
debut album (#13), would be their only pop hit. Through the duration their style was unique. They were
always uptempo, jazzy-orientated and with a tight scat-like harmony. To younger folk, they were an
acquired taste like the Swingle Singers. Their “Zing Went the Strings Of My Heart” received isolated
airplay. Thereafter, the Stone Four’s vinyl ventures were largely ignored by the pop/rock radio waves.
Through the ’60s Kirb’s crew continued to appear on variety shows and to work the night club circuit.