Contacts
Info
Hosted by Jeff Bressler, The Make Believe Ballroom brings you Classic Big Band jazz, blues, boogie-woogie, and dixieland hits from the 30s and 40s each week. The program has been...
show more
Hosted by Jeff Bressler, The Make Believe Ballroom brings you Classic Big Band jazz, blues, boogie-woogie, and dixieland hits from the 30s and 40s each week.
The program has been broadcast almost continuously since 1935. The Ballroom is America's third-longest-running music radio program.
Each program mixes beloved 78 rpm records, stories, listener requests, and special guest features, all geared to bring you the music and history of the big band era.
show less
The program has been broadcast almost continuously since 1935. The Ballroom is America's third-longest-running music radio program.
Each program mixes beloved 78 rpm records, stories, listener requests, and special guest features, all geared to bring you the music and history of the big band era.
Episodes & Posts
Episodes
Posts
Transcribed
25 SEP 2026 · On this week's show: an email from Austria, a rare Benny Goodman recording, the Andrews Sisters go Hillbilly, and more records and reminiscences from the big band and jazz era.
Transcribed
18 SEP 2026 · On this week's show: Jam, Jelly, Marmalade, singing groups with longevity, music from a Glenn Miller film, and more records and reminiscences from the big band and jazz era.
Transcribed
11 SEP 2026 · On this week's show: Fats Waller meets Public Enemy Number One, a song honoring one of the era's greatest blues singers, the singer Benny Hill got his inspiration from, and more records and reminiscences from the big band and jazz era.
Transcribed
4 SEP 2026 · On this week's edition of the Make Believe Ballroom, hosted by Jeff Bressler, Glenn Miller's greatest trombone solo, trombones of Teagarden and Dorsey, train songs, a short-lived Charlie Barnet vocalist, and more records and reminiscences from the big band and jazz era.
Transcribed
28 AUG 2026 · On this week's show: Two hits of the same song recorded 30 years apart, the battle for the title of "First Lady of Radio," British Bandleaders, two great drummers, and much more on this week's program.
Transcribed
21 AUG 2026 · On this week’s show: A look at “Hard Luck” Amy, a vocalist whose mishaps paid off in the end —did old fogeys listen to swing music? Plus many more great songs and tales to cherish and enjoy on the program.
Transcribed
14 AUG 2026 · On this week’s show: why Kansas City was a jazz hub, a song that brings a memory back to Jeff Bressler—this and many more great songs and tales to cherish and enjoy on the program.
Transcribed
7 AUG 2026 · On this week’s show: the "Mayor of Harlem," a song about a profession that helped bring black Americans into the middle class, and three crooners who caused swooning—this and many more great songs and tales to cherish and enjoy on the program.
Transcribed
31 JUL 2026 · On this week’s show: a sneaky marketing ploy involving a popular songstress, a great Bing Crosby story —this and many more great songs and tales to cherish and enjoy on the program.
On the air since 1935 and the nation's third-oldest broadcast music radio program, the show features treasured 78rpm recordings, fascinating stories of legendary bandleaders, musicians, composers, and vocalists, listener requests, and special segments that bring the era’s music and history vividly to life.
Transcribed
24 JUL 2026 · On this week’s show: a few Johnny Mercer tunes, a bandleader who didn't know who the real star was, some swinging polkas—this and many more great songs and stories to cherish and enjoy on the program.
Hosted by Jeff Bressler, The Make Believe Ballroom brings you Classic Big Band jazz, blues, boogie-woogie, and dixieland hits from the 30s and 40s each week. The program has been...
show more
Hosted by Jeff Bressler, The Make Believe Ballroom brings you Classic Big Band jazz, blues, boogie-woogie, and dixieland hits from the 30s and 40s each week.
The program has been broadcast almost continuously since 1935. The Ballroom is America's third-longest-running music radio program.
Each program mixes beloved 78 rpm records, stories, listener requests, and special guest features, all geared to bring you the music and history of the big band era.
show less
The program has been broadcast almost continuously since 1935. The Ballroom is America's third-longest-running music radio program.
Each program mixes beloved 78 rpm records, stories, listener requests, and special guest features, all geared to bring you the music and history of the big band era.
Information
| Author | Retro Radioland |
| Organization | Retro Radioland |
| Categories | Music History , Music , Music Commentary |
| Website | www.makebelieveballroompodcast.com |
| jeff@retroradioland.com |
Copyright 2026 - Spreaker Inc. an iHeartMedia Company
