Collection Overview

Interviews:

Conducted by John Gilliland from 1955 through 1977, 180 interviews are included in the collection.  Approximately 160 of the interviews were conducted exclusively for “The Pop Chronicles.”  The interviews reflect popular and influential artists, composers, producers, executives, and writers from the 1940s through the 1960s and were used in creating the “Pop Chronicles” shows.  See the Index to Interviews and the Index to "The Pop Chronicles" for more information.

John Gilliland’s “The Pop Chronicles” '50s & '60s:

Conceptualized in 1967 after attending the Monterey International Pop Music Festival, John Gilliland’s “The Pop Chronicles” traces the history of popular music from the 1950’s through the 1960’s.  Mr. Gilliland wrote, narrated and produced these 55 hours of broadcasting first airing at KRLA Pasadena, CA. in February 1969.  The pop music history is told by an interleaving of Mr. Gilliland’s narration, music, and comments from the interviews of the people directly involved in the music scene of the day.  The Index to “The Pop Chronicles” provides a description of each show in the series.

John Gilliland’s “The Pop Chronicles” '40s:

Similar to the “Pop Chronicles” '50s & '60s, the “Pop Chronicles” '40s relive the rich past of the popular music scene in the 1940s.  This series includes 24 hours of broadcast shows first airing at KSFO San Francisco November 3, 1972.  By April 8, 1973 the “Pop Chronicles” '40s, while already syndicated, received an award from California State College.  The '40s are heralded along with narration, music, actual radio transmissions, and the interviews of cultural figures from the '40s. 

“Pop Chronicles” '40s includes exclusive interviews of:

Patty Andrews
Tex Beneke
Edgar Bergan
Les Brown
Sammy Cahn
Frankie Carle
Perry Como
Bing Crosby
Ray Eberle
Helen Forrest
Harry James
Paula Kelly
Stan Kenton
Peggy Lee
Freddy Martin
Johnny Mercer
Harry Mills
Ella Mae Morse
Helen O’ Connell
Andy Russell
George T. Simon
Jimmy Van Heusen

The show also features the voices of:

Abbott & Costello
Mel Blanc
Humphrey Bogart
Nat “King” Cole
Bette Davis
Tommy Dorsey
Ella Fitzgerald
John Garfield
Judy Garland
Arthur Godfrey
Dick Haymes
Hildegarde
Bob Hope
The Ink Spots
Gene Kelly
Glenn Miller
Vaughn Monroe
Edward R. Murrow
Franklin D. Roosevelt
The Shadow
Dinah Shore
Frank Sinatra
Kate Smith
Walter Winchell

“The Big Band Chronicles: The Lively Story of Swing Music in the ‘40s”:

Published in 1994 by Minds Eye as a book on 4 cassette tapes, the “Big Band Chronicles” is a condensed version of “The Pop Chronicles” '40s with an emphasis on swing music in the 1940s.  The program clocks in at approximately 6 hours covering the music before World War II, during the war, and post war music up to 1950.