Jack Smith - To Be In Love

This is my favorite version of this lovely song. Jack Smith (1898-1950) was known as "Whispering" Jack Smith and was a popular baritone singer in the 20s and 30s who made a brief come-back in the 40s. He was a radio and recording artist who occasionally appeared in films. Smith began his career in 1915, when he sang with a quartet at a theater in the Bronx. After service in World War I, he got a job in 1918 as a "song plugger" for the Irving Berlin Music Publishing Company. He was a pianist at a radio station when he got his singing break substituting for a singer who failed to show up. Smith was exclusively on the radio, but beginning in 1925, he began making records. He also started performing on-stage on the vaudeville circuit. In 1927, Smith was touring England, performing with the Blue Skies Theater Company till he was suddenly replaced. Later he worked for NBC Radio. On this refined 1929 recording Mr. Smith was accompanied by a studio orchestra conducted by Leonard Joy.