Background music in the natural breaks in the story was composed by David T. Reilly and played by his father Tommy Reilly on the harmonica.[2]
The album has never been issued on CD.
Background
Executive producer Geoff Milne described the background in a magazine article after Crosby’s death. “Argo wanted to do something to commemorate the American Bicentennial celebrations, and it seemed a good idea to do Tom Sawyer - we all agreed that the only person who could relate the story was Bing Crosby…The recordings were done in two sessions, one lasting four hours and the other two and one-half hours...It was interesting to watch him in the studios. He was on his feet throughout the sessions. And he didn’t just read Tom Sawyer, he was actually acting the parts. His voice took on different tones and characters. He put a lot into it and I believe that it comes across in the records.”[3]
Most of the sound effects on the album were done by Geoff Milne himself – the sound in the cave for instance was achieved by recording a dripping tap in the Decca washroom and then doctoring the effect appropriately.[4]
Reception
Mary Postgate writing in the UK publication, the Gramophone liked the box set. "This abridged version of a well-loved story is one of the most enjoyable sets to have come my way in recent years. It was a master stroke to get Bing Crosby to read it, for the ‘Old Groaner’ has a devastatingly charming manner, compounded of a relaxed and sympathetic delivery and a lovely speaking voice. The vocal cords that kept him at the very top in music and musical films for so many years are just as velvety now...Crosby’s masterly reading needs little help. Delicate, dry, humorous but never whimsical or condescending, he is one of the most delightful readers Argo has offered us. The quality of the sound is exceptionally fine. Highly recommended."[5]
Crosby researcher and author Fred Reynolds summed the album up saying, "the exploits of Tom, living with his Aunt Polly in a small town on the Missouri, and his companion Huckleberry Finn are refreshingly recaptured in Crosby’s reading. . . . Bing’s expressive narrative and his dialect voicing of the characters enhance an impressive and entertaining story."[6]
Track listing
SIDE ONE
Tom Escapes from Aunt Polly
The new boy
Whitewash!
Becky Thatcher is admired
Huckleberry Finn
At School
Tom Meets Becky
SIDE TWO
An engagement
Tom and Huck in the graveyard
Muff Potter and Injun Joe
The murder
A solemn oath
Pain-killer!
Becky rejects Tom
SIDE THREE
Tom, Huck and Joe Harper run away
Jackson's Island
Supper and homesickness
Exploring the Island
Have the boys drowned?
The Storm
A Resurrection
Tom and Amy Lawrence
A blotted spelling book and a torn picture.
SIDE FOUR
Mr. Dobbins discovers the books
Muff Potter in jail
The Trial
Injun Joe escapes
Digging for Treasure
The haunted house
Injun Joe returns
SIDE FIVE
The Temperance Tavern
Injun Joe's 'Number Two'
The Picnic
McDougal's Cave
Huck saves the Widow Douglas
Tom and Becky are lost
At Church
The Searchers
SIDE SIX
In the cave
Injun Joe returns
The children are found
Tom and Huck explore the cave
The Treasure
A Party
Huck is introduced into society
References
^"A Bing Crosby Discography". BING magazine. International Club Crosby. Retrieved May 28, 2017.