- Al Rinker
Al Rinker (
December 20 ,1907 –June 11 ,1982 ) began performing as a partner withBing Crosby in 1925 and the two singers formed the Rhythm Boys, which singer/songwriter/pianistHarry Barris later joined. Barris wrote the songs "Mississippi Mud", "I Surrender, Dear", and "Wrap Your Troubles in Dream" among others. The singing trio worked withPaul Whiteman 's Big Band in Los Angeles until Crosby dissolved the group to go solo, recording both with Whiteman and on their own with Barris on piano.The Rhythm Boys were filmed for thePaul Whiteman movie "The King of Jazz " (1930) singing "Mississippi Mud", "So the Bluebirds and the Blackbirds Got Together", "I'm a Fisherman", "Bench in the Park", and "Happy Feet". After the breakup, they reunited only once, to appear together on the "Paul Whiteman Presents" radio broadcast onJuly 4 ,1943 .In 1952, a song for which Rinker wrote the lyrics, "You Can't Do Wrong Doin' Right", appeared in the film "Push-Button Kitty" and in the television series "
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis ". He also wrote the song "Ev'rybody Wants to Be a Cat" for theDisney cartoon children's movie "The AristoCats" (1970).Rinker's sister Mildred, under her married name of
Mildred Bailey , became a well-known jazz singer after the Rhythm Boys arranged for Paul Whiteman to "discover" her singing at a party and hired her. She became the first woman to join a band as a full-time singer, as Crosby had been the first man to do so.ources
*Donald Shepherd and Robert F. Slatzer, "Bing Crosby: The Hollow Man" (New York:
St. Martin's Press , 1981)ISBN-13: 978-0523421643
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