One of the many things I learned while writing this book is that there are literally dozens of airchecks (recordings of radio broadcasts) of performances by Bunny Berigan that have been preserved over the many decades since they were made, but have never been gathered and released. I have been lucky enough to acquire dubs of a few of these recordings, and I can say without reservation that they contain some of Berigan’s best playing. The dubs I have were transferred from the original source recordings (probably acetate disks) rather carelessly decades ago. This was long before the invention of the miraculous digital equipment that exists today to clean-up these old jewels, and rid them of surface noise and make them sparkle. If I could locate these unique airchecks, I believe that I could have them cleaned-up and digitized by a legendary sound engineer, and then make them available for Berigan fans everywhere. So if you know anything about any aircheck recordings that may be by Bunny Berigan, please contact me so that we can discuss how to take the music off those scratchy old disks and make it sound clean, clear, and beautiful, just the way Bunny played it. You may contact me at my email address: mzirpolo@neo.rr.com –or you can use the contact boxes above. Thank you!
Please read about the cache of previously unknown Berigan recordings I recently found on the home page. The story of these recordings is literally developing day-by-day. I will report all developments about this exciting find on this website.
Michael P. Zirpolo
Michael, I too am searching for radio air checks and transcriptions from the 1930’s. My Grandpa Bob Effros performed with Bunny Berigan on radio. I have found some Philco Radio shows on YouTube. The Old Time Radio Project archives are a great resource. Your book “Mr.Trumpet” was one of the inspirations to embark on telling my Grandpa’s story. Thank you.
Thanks Barbara for the kind words. I am familiar with the name Bob Effros from looking at various dicsographies from the early 1930s. However, I knew almost no details about your grandfather’s career. I learned a bit about him by browsing your blog. I wish you the best of luck in writing your grandfather’s story. He, like Bunny Berigan, was a part of the golden age of American music.