Aileen Stanley

Aileen Stanley

Source: Vintage Recordings

Born Maude Elsie Aileen Muggeridgeon on 21 March 1893 in Chicago, Aileen Stanley began her musical career in vaudeville as a child with her older brother, Stanley. Thus "Aileen Stanley" of early billing as "Aileen and Stanley". Stanley had toured various circuits in the States and Canada before her debut at the Palace Theatre on Broadway in New York City in February of 1915, which speaks of her popularity in her early twenties since the Palace was probably the major vaudeville venue in the land and reserved for stars.

Though Stanley never did top the charts at #1, she put "popular" in popular music with lesser performing titles to the tune of some 25,000,000 records sold out of a discography of 215 recordings [Hoffman]. Upon Victor advancing from acoustic to electric technology she began getting billed as "The Victrola Girl" in 1926. Her first recording sessions in 1920, however, were blues oriented. She would release titles of a jazz persuasion with backing by such as the Vincent Lopez Orchestra and the Virginians. Her debut recording is thought to have been on 15 March 1920 for 'Alibi Blues' issued on Pathe 22393-B in August with Ernest Hare's 'I'm the Good Man That Was Hard to Find' on side A.

'Alibi Blues'  Aileen Stanley   First recording

Recorded 15 March 1920   Pathe 22393-B

Music: Carey Morgan   Lyrics: Arthur Swanstrom

Stanley also recorded 'I'm a Jazz Vampire' on 15 March 1920. It's intended for release on Pathe 22389 in July was halted, its revision being issued instead on Pathe 22407 [Gracyk]. If that was put down on 15 May as König and others cite then it was before the advance advertisement of 22389 in June in 'Talking Machine World' [Gracyk]. König has the same matrix of 68590 for both sessions.

'I'm a Jazz Vampire'  Aileen Stanley

Recorded 15 May 1920   Matrix 68590   Pathe 22047-B

Music: Carey Morgan   Lyrics: Arthur Swanstrom

'All By Myself'  Aileen Stanley

Recorded 16 May 1921 in Camden NJ   Matrix B-25174   Victor18774-A

Composition: Irving Berlin

DAHR traces Stanley's first tracks with Victor to 10 August that year in Camden, NJ, for Victor on 'The Broadway Blues' and 'My Little Bimbo Down on the Bamboo Isle' (both 18691). 'Early to Bed and Early to Rise' on the same date went unissued. Stanley's first title to chart per Music VF was 'Singin' the Blues' (18703) at #12 in Jan 1921. The UCSB cylinders library also has her on ten Edison Blue Amberols in 1921-22. She placed eight songs in the Top Ten from 'My Mammy' (Okeh 4275) at #8 in June of 1921 to 'Everybody Loves My Baby' (19486) at #5 in Feb 1925.

'Broadway Blues'  Aileen Stanley

Recorded 10 Aug 1920 in Camden NJ   Matrix B-24371   Victor 18691-B

Music: Carey Morgan   Lyrics: Arthur Swanstrom

'My Little Bimbo on the Bamboo Isle'  Aileen Stanley

Recorded 10 Aug 1920 in Camden NJ   Matrix B-24372   Victor 18691-A

Composition: Walter Donaldson / Grant Clarke

Of duet partners, Stanley was best-known on titles with Billy Murray, recording numerously with him throughout the twenties. DAHR places them together for Victor in Camden, NJ, as early as 15 Dec of 1921 on ''In My Heart, On My Mind, All Day Long' / 'Boo-Hoo-Hoo' (18855). That pair never topped the charts either, though several titles saw big success: 'All Over Nothing at All' ('22), 'You've Got to See Mama Ev'ry Night', 'It Had to Be You' ('24), 'Keep Your Skirts Down, Mary Ann' ('26), 'I Can't Get Over a Girl Like You' ('26) and 'Bridget O'Flynn' ('27). DAHR tracks Stanley w Murray to as late as 13 June 1929 for 'Katie, Keep Your Feet on the Ground' (22040) with 'Please Don't Cut Out My Sauerkraut' unreleased. In the meantime, on 10 October 1927 Stanley had featured at the premiere of the new Kit Cat Restaurant, a cabaret in London replacing the prior Kit Cat Club opened in 1925. She began a two-month residency at Chez Victor in London, a cabaret run by Victor Perosino, in January of 1928.

'All Over Nothing at All'  Aileen Stanley w Billy Murray

Recorded 29 Aug 1922 in Camden NJ   Victor 18943   #9 Dec 1922

Composition: J. Keirn Brennan / Paul Cunningham

'Away Down East in Maine'  Aileen Stanley w Vincent Lopez & His Hotel Pennsylvania Orchestra

Recorded Nov 1922 in NYC   OKeh 4736

Composition: Walter Donaldson

'It Had to Be You'  Aileen Stanley w Billy Murray

Recorded 5 June 1924 in Camden NJ   Victor 19373   #8 Nov 1924

Music: Isham Jones   Lyrics: Gus Kahn

'When My Sugar Walks Down the Street'  Aileen Stanley w Gene Austin

Recorded 30 Jan 1925 in NYC   Victor 19585   #3 1925

Composition: Jimmy McHugh / Irving Mills / Gene Austin

'I'll Get By As Long As I Have You'  Aileen Stanley

Recorded 7 Jan 1929 in NYC   Victor 21839

Composition: Fred E. Ahlert / Roy Turk

Wikipedia has her moving to London in 1931, she back in the United States to perform on radio in 1932-33 for the 'Parade of the States' show by NBC. A trans-Atlantic star, she was back in Great Britain to record for HMV (His Majesty's Voice) from 12 Feb 1934 ('Who Walks In When I Walk Out?' Brunswick 01706) to 1937. She first performed at the Palladium in London in 1934. DAHR finds her back in New York City in 1935 holding what, if reflected by DAHR, would be her last sessions in the States, those again for Victor on 5 April. DAHR has 'I'm Livin' in a Great Big Way' issued on Gramophone BD-289 with 'I'm in Love All Over Again'. The status of 'Music in My Heart' and 'Life Is a Song' is unknown. Sometime in the early latter thirties she transcribed for Chevrolet's Musical Moments radio revue. Stanley was back in England when she appeared in the infant medium of television in 1937, that for BBC's 'Starlight' variety program. The 'Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound' (Hoffman) and 'The Complete Entertainment Discography' (Rust) have Stanley recording her last titles for HMV in London on July 9, 1937 for 'It Looks Like Rain in Cherry Blossom Lane' / 'I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm' (HMV BD 444). 'Never in a Million Years' and 'The You and Me That Used to Be' went unissued.

'I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm'  Aileen Stanley

Recorded 9 July 1937 in London   HMR BD 444

Composition: Irving Berlin

Stanley's return to the States in 1937 saw to her retirement en large from the music industry. She disappears into obscurity, anyway, with the exception of possible radio transcriptions as late as 1947. She later opened a vocal training studio in New York City until 1960 when she made her home in Hollywood, dying there on 24 March 1962.