Born Alvin McBurney in California in 1908, guitarist Alvino Rey played with the orchestras of Ev Jones and Phil Spitalny during the 1930s, changing his name to take advantage of the popularity of Latin music in New York, where he was working. He came to prominence playing pedal steel guitar with Horace Heidt’s Musical Knights in the late’ 30s, and having married Louise King of The King Sisters, launched his own band in 1939 with The King Sisters providing vocals. Based at radio KHJ in Hollywood, he recorded for Bluebird and had his first hit in 1941.

This great-value 50-track set comprises of A & B sides from his releases on the Bluebird, RCA-Victor and Capitol labels from this era, including performances featuring The King Sisters, or individual members of the group, on vocals. Features all his nine career chart entries, including the No. 2 “I Said No”, the No. 3 hits “Deep In The Heart Of Texas” and “Near You”, and the top 10 hits “Strip Polka”, “Cement Mixer (Put-Ti, Put-Ti)” and “I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover”. Many of the recordings naturally provide a showcase for different aspects of his virtuoso skill as a guitarist, but they also range across the spectrum of Latin, middle-of-the-road, big band and novelty pop, offering a rather different slant on the pop music of the 1940s from that typified by the mainstream “sweet” orchestras of the era.

REVIEWS

“There has been a succession of interesting and varied sets from Acrobat spotlighting the bands of the thirties and forties and these issues have underlined just how rich and diffuse was the fare available to audiences under the broad banner of big band music. This set is a case in point, as once again, the subject is an artist whose contribution was highly individual and arguably unique. This a very welcome and enjoyable collection, well worth the purchase.” - Gerry Stonestreet (In Tune Issue 343)