Birth of the Blues / Blue Skies

New Orleans clarinetist Bing Crosby teams with trumpet player Brian Donlevy and singer Mary Martin to form a band to play his new style of Dixieland music in "Birth of the Blues," a tuneful (if not always accurate) account of the beginnings of jazz. Songs include "St. Louis Blues," "Memphis Blues," "Melancholy Baby." Next, the musical extravaganza "Blue Skies," filled with classic Irving Berlin tunes, details a love triangle involving nightclub owner Crosby, chorus girl Joan Caulfield, and hoofer Fred Astaire over a 25-year period. There's dandy dancing and songs like "Puttin' on the Ritz," "You Keep Coming Back Like a Song," and "White Christmas." 182 min. total. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono; Subtitles: French, Spanish.