Global InformationDownloading the Repertoire information
| Downloading the Repertoire | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Live album by Jack Mudurian | |
| Released | 1996 |
| Recorded | June 15, 1981 |
| Venue | Duplex Nursing Home, Boston, Massachusetts |
| Label | Arf! Arf! Records AA-057 |
Downloading the Repertoire is a 1996 novelty album by American singer John "Jack" Mudurian (May 23, 1929 – September 30, 2013).[1][2]
Mudurian was a resident of Duplex Nursing Home in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1981, David Greenberger, an employee who also edited the zine The Duplex Planet, overheard Mudurian singing at a home talent show, and when Greenberger spoke to him about it, Mudurian boasted that he could sing as many songs as Frank Sinatra. Greenberger brought in a cassette tape recorder and asked him to sing; Mudurian proceeded to sing 129 songs, many from the Tin Pan Alley repertory (and several more than once), continuously over the next 47 minutes.[1][3][4]
The recording was issued as Downloading the Repertoire on Arf! Arf! Records in 1996,[5][6] and it became a cult novelty hit.[7] Neil Strauss, writing about the recording for The New York Times, wrote: "What is most interesting about this CD is not Mr. Mudurian's slurred, rushed singing but the way his entire life story unfolds in his selection of material."[8] In a review for AllMusic, Cub Koda commented: "[Mudurian's]... free association from tune to tune is downright astounding. No matter what kind of music you might have in your collection, it's a good bet you don't have anything that sounds quite like this."[5] A reviewer for CMJ New Music Monthly described the album as "a hysterical, bizarre tour through the history of American popular song."[7]
A shortened version of the music heard on Downloading appeared on Irwin Chusid's compilation of outsider music called Songs in the Key of Z, Vol. 1.[9] Mudurian can also be heard on the compilations The Talent Show (1996),[10][11] and The Tarquin Records All Star Holiday Extravaganza (2000).[12][13] After meeting Mudurian, singer Jad Fair transcribed his version of "Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)" and performed it in his own live shows.[14]
According to Greenberger, the nursing home at which Mudurian resided closed in 1987, and the two lost touch. Greenberger, who affectionately referred to the marathon recording session as "Jack's and my private Olympic event," recalled: "That June afternoon lives on for me. Planes flew overhead, birds chirped in the trees and another resident... could be heard singing in the background from time to time."[1][15]
- ^ a b c "Jack Mudurian | David Greenberger".
- ^ "John Mudurian", Social Security Death Index, via FamilySearch.org.
- ^ Chusid, Irwin (2000). Songs in the Key of Z: The Curious World of Outsider Music. A Cappella Books. p. 22.
- ^ "Downloading the Repertoire: Lost and Found Sound: Jack Mudurian's 45-Minute Medly". NPR. September 10, 2005. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ a b Koda, Cub. "Jack Mudurian: Downloading the Repertoire". AllMusic. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ "Jack Mudurian: Downloading the Repertoire". Arf! Arf! Records. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ a b "Weird Record of the Month". CMJ New Music Monthly. October 1996. p. 10.
- ^ Strauss, Neil (August 20, 1996). "Brilliant Or Merely Bizarre?". The New York Times. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ "Various Artists: Songs in the Key of Z, Vol. 1-2: The Curious Universe of Outsider Music". AllMusic. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ Koda, Cub. "Various Artists: Talent Show". AllMusic. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ "The Talent Show". Arf! Arf! Records. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ Cramer, Stephen. "Various Artists: The Tarquin Records All Star Holiday Extravaganza". AllMusic. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ Greenberger, David. "Discography". DavidGreenberger.com. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ Chusid, Irwin (2000). Songs in the Key of Z: The Curious World of Outsider Music. A Cappella Books. p. 24.
- ^ Chusid, Irwin (2000). Songs in the Key of Z: The Curious World of Outsider Music. A Cappella Books. p. 25.