Where Swing is King!
“Everything Happens to Me” Composed by Matt Dennis and Tom Adair; arranged by Axel Stordahl. Recorded by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra for Victor on February 7, 1941 in New York. Thomas Francis Dorsey, Jr., [..]
“With a Little Help From My Friends” Composed by John Lennon and Paul McCartney; arranged by Bob Florence. Recorded by Count Basie and His Orchestra on December 15, 1969 for Happy Tiger Records in New [..]
“Sing, Sing, Sing” Composed by Louis Prima; initial vocal arrangement by Jimmy Mundy. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra on July 6, 1937 for Victor in Hollywood, CA. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: Harry [..]
“Happy as the Day is Long” Composed by Harold Arlen; arranged by Benny Carter. Recorded by Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra for Decca on September 11, 1934. Fletcher Henderson directing: Russell Smith, first trumpet; Irving [..]
“Reflections in D” Composed by Duke Ellington Recorded by Duke Ellington for Capitol on April 13,1953 in Los Angeles. Duke Ellington, piano; Wendell Marshall, bass. The story and the music: “When an art form is created, [..]
“Smoke Rings” Composed and arranged by H. Eugene Gifford. Recorded by Glen Gray and the Casa Loma Orchestra for Decca on July 23, 1937 in New York. Glen Gray, saxophone and B-flat clarinet, directing: Walter [..]
“Naked City” Composed and arranged by Raymond Scott in 1953. Transcribed by Menno Daams. Recorded by The Metropole Orchestra, conducted by Jan Stulen, on June 18-22, 2001 in Hilversum, Netherlands. Jan Stulen, directing:Jan Oosthof, Jan [..]
“Jubilee” Composed by Hoagy Carmichael (music) and Stanley Adams (words). Arranged by Chappie Willet. Recorded by Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra for Decca on January 12, 1938 in Los Angeles. Louis Armstrong, trumpet and vocal, [..]
“Big Noise From Winnetka” Composed by Bob Haggart and Ray Bauduc Recorded by Bob Haggart and Ray Bauduc for Decca on October 14, 1938 in Chicago. Bob Haggart, bass and whistling; Ray Bauduc, drums. The [..]
“Cherry Juice” Composed and arranged by Thad Jones. Recorded by the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra for Horizon on January 10, 1976. Thad Jones, flugelhorn, directing: Al Porcino, first trumpet; Sinclair Acey, Waymon Reed, Cecil Bridgewater, [..]
The Ripening of “Cherry” “Cherry” Composed by Don Redman; arranged by Jimmy Mundy. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra from a CBS radio sustaining broadcast October 27,1937, Madhattan Room, Hotel Pennsylvania, New York City. Benny [..]
“Eager Beaver” Composed and arranged by Stan Kenton. Recorded on November 19, 1943 for Capitol in Hollywood, California. Stanley N. Kenton, piano, leading: Marion “Buddy” Childers, Karl George, Ray Borden, John Carroll, Dick Morse, trumpets; [..]
“The Jitterbug Waltz” Composed by Fats Waller. Recorded by Fats Waller and His Rhythm for Victor on March 16, 1942 in New York. Thomas “Fats” Waller, Hammond organ, directing: John “Bugs” Hamilton, Courtney Williams, Joe [..]
Dr. Funk Makes a House Call The story: Although I was fortunate to have a father who exposed me to swing music when I was a child, my awareness of mainstream jazz came when I [..]
(This is the second installment in the ongoing Rodgers and Hart celebration here at swingandbeyond.com. See links below for more posts featuring the music of Rodgers and Hart.) The story: Lee Wiley, born October 9, 1908 [..]
NOTE: With this post, swingandbeyond.com inaugurates a small celebration of the music of Rodgers and Hart. Subsequent posts will continue this joyous presentation of the music of one of the greatest song writing teams in [..]
“Sepia Panorama” Composed by Duke Ellington; arranged by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn. Recorded by Duke Ellington and His Orchestra on July 24, 1940 in New York. Duke Ellington, piano, directing: Charles M. “Cootie” Williams, [..]
“The Wearin’ of the Green” Traditional Irish melody arranged by Joe Lippman. Recorded by Bunny Berigan and His Orchestra for Victor in New York City on May 26, 1938. Bunny Berigan, trumpet, directing: Steve Lipkins [..]
“Vilia” Composed by Franz Lehar; arranged by Artie Shaw. Recorded by Artie Shaw and His Orchestra on January 17, 1939 for RCA-Bluebird in New York City. Artie Shaw, clarinet, directing: John Best, first trumpet; Chuck [..]
“Is That Religion?” Composed by Maceo Pinkard (music) and Mitchell Parish (lyric); arranged by Glenn Miller. Mildred Bailey accompanied by the Dorsey Brothers with Bunny Berigan. Recorded for Brunswick on April 8, 1933 in New [..]
The Story: Lester Willis Young, one of the most influential musicians in the history of jazz, was born on August 27, 1909, in Woodville, Mississippi. After a lengthy apprenticeship spent in numerous black territory bands [..]
They both grew up in Pittsburgh at the same time, the 1920s and 1930s, and knew each other. They were about the same age. But they were very different people. One was big and boisterous; [..]
“Blues in Hoss’ Flat” Composed and arranged by Frank Foster. Recorded by Count Basie and His Orchestra for Roulette on April 28, 1958 in New York City. William J. “Count” Basie, piano, directing: Eugene “Snooky” [..]
MANHATTAN’S BRILL BUILDING A JAZZ SHOWCASE AND MUSICAL SHRINE I am constantly looking for historic buildings that are a part of the fabric of jazz history whenever I am in Manhattan. One building I have [..]
James Francis Dorsey was the older of the Dorsey brothers, and the smaller, in terms of both physical stature and ego. He was a master musician whose virtuosity on both clarinet and alto saxophone was [..]
“Song of the Wanderer” Words and music by Neil Moret; arrangement by William Johnson. Recorded for RCA Bluebird on April 26, 1940 in New York. Erskine Hawkins, trumpet, directing: Sammy Lowe, first trumpet; Wilbur “Dud” [..]
The story: The summer and fall of 1945 were challenging times for Artie Shaw, the bandleader. After an extensive cross-country tour with his band that lasted from late 1944 until March 15, 1945, he and [..]
“Benny Goodman’s Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert” by Catherine Tackley I recently finished reading this wonderful book, which was published in 2012 as a part of Oxford University Press’s “Studies in Recorded Jazz” series. [..]
“Snowfall” Composed and arranged by Claude Thornhill. Recorded for Columbia by Claude Thornhill and His Orchestra on May 21, 1941 in New York. Claude Thornhill, piano, directing: Conrad Gozzo, first trumpet; Lyle F. “Rusty” Dedrick, [..]
“White Christmas” Composed by Irving Berlin. Recorded by Barbra Streisand for Columbia in September 1967 in Los Angeles. The story – part one: There’s never been such a day… I have learned again and again throughout [..]