The Rhythm Boys: Rinker, Crosby, Barris Paul Whiteman's orchestra opened at the Paramount Theatre on Times Square in New York in January 1927. Audiences at the Paramount did not respond well to Bing and Al. The theatre did not yet have electronic amplification, and the audience may have had difficulty hearing Crosby and Rinker's vocals. Whatever the reason for the cool reception, Whiteman removed them from his show. Matty Malneck, a violinist within the Whiteman Orchestra, offered his help and arranged for Al and Bing to be teamed with a third vocalist, Harry Barris (shown on the right in the photo). Barris (1905-1962) had written a song called "Mississippi Mud," and with the help of Malneck they turned it into a hit. Crosby returned to the Whiteman Orchestra in March as part of a trio called "The Rhythm Boys."

Download a recording by Paul Whiteman's Rhythm Boys.
(Real Audio format, 344K, 1929)


How did the Rhythm Boys wear out their welcome with Whiteman?
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