Ken on a Theatre Organ!

On Indian Love Song Ken's keyboard control is very much as if he was sitting at a pipe organ! He even pauses as if at such a keyboard and the finished sound catches a theatre organ mood
very well. We know, from these pages, that Ken played and practiced on pipe and theatre organs in his early day but few of us have actually heard him play one on a recording. However,
Andy thinks he has actually found some records of Ken playing a pipe organ. That would be very interesting to hear and I will keep you informed of how it turns out.

Update: Oh dear, what a disappointment. Andy found that while Ken was credited and his picture on the cover, inside was a totally different organist altogether. However I am sure Andy
will be successful on finding Ken playing on a theatre organ before long. Frank Pugno also mentions recordings of Ken on a pipe organ and it is hoped more news on this will become
available in time.

UPDATE Sept. 2002 While at Andy's home we discussed this recording and he proved to us that this wasn't Ken but actually Reginald Foort. Andy played a track from the 'Ken' LP and
then played the same recording from an actual Reginald Foort LP. It was definitely the same recording, but strangely it was actually played at a faster speed, which is yet another puzzle! From
Kirby we learned that the LP (Rondo-lette A30) supposed to be Ken, was probably a printing error by Rondo, or it's printers and they had used the cover pictures and text for another Ken LP.

Phil Gunsul kindly sent me a copy of this LP and also sent me a scan of the front and back covers, which I display below. 

  

This creates as many questions as answers, in that, what became of the actual LP that the cover pictures & printed labels were meant for!. Were the tracks actually recorded! It would have made
for an interesting  addition to Ken's LP output.

It is not suspected that Rondo had ever gone out to fool anyone that this was really Ken at a pipe organ. It was most likely a simple printing error. Companies as big as Rondo had a great respect
for their  reputations and I doubt that this LP had ever left the factory. It could be that after Rondo packed up someone else has found these recordings and unknowingly let them onto the market.

As Kirby has told us  that he knows of no recordings of Ken on a pipe organ it seems we have to accept that there probably aren't any, which is a shame as Ken must have done a lot of pipe
organ playing in his time and it would be  nice to hear him play on such an instrument.

With thanks to Phil Gunsul for the photo scans.