Where Swing is King!
“Ridin’ High” Composed by Cole Porter; arranged by Jimmy Mundy. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra live in performance from a CBS radio broadcast on March 4, 1937 from the Madhattan Room of Hotel [..]
“Jingle Bells” Composed by J.S. Pierpont; arranged by Lyle “Spud” Murphy. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Victor on July 1, 1935 in New York. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: Bunny Berigan, first and [..]
“I’m a Ding Dong Daddy (from Dumas)” Composed by Phil Baxter; head arrangement by the Benny Goodman Quartet. Recorded live from a CBS Camel Caravan radio show from the stage of the Palace Theater, Milwaukee, Wisconsin on [..]
“Oh, Lady Be Good” Composed by George Gershwin; probably arranged by Fletcher Henderson. Recorded live in performance by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra from a Mutual radio broadcast on March 11, 1937 from the Madhattan [..]
“Down South Camp Meeting” Composed and arranged by Fletcher Henderson. Recorded by Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra for Decca on September 11, 1934. Fletcher Henderson directing: Russell “Pops” Smith, first trumpet; Irving “Mouse” Randolph and [..]
“Why Don’t You Do Right?” Music and lyric by Joe McCoy; arranged by Mel Powell. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Columbia on July 27, 1942 in New York. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: [..]
“One Sweet Letter from You” Composed by Harry Warren (music), Sidney Clare and Lew Brown (lyric); arranged by Fletcher Henderson. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Columbia on September 13, 1939 in New [..]
“Sometimes I’m Happy” Composed by Vincent Youmans; arranged by Fletcher Henderson. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Victor in New York on July 1, 1935. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: Bunny Berigan, first and [..]
“And the Angels Sing” Composed by Ziggy Elman (music) and Johnny Mercer (lyric); arranged by Abe Osser. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Victor on February 1, 1939 in New York. Benny Goodman, [..]
“Basin Street Blues” Composed by Spencer Williams; arranged by Glenn Miller. Recorded by Benny Goodman (as “The Charleston Chasers” under direction of Bennie Goodman) for Columbia on February 9, 1931 in New York. Benny Goodman, [..]
“The Earl” Composed and arranged by Mel Powell. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Columbia-Okeh on September 25, 1941 in New York. Benjamin D. “Benny” Goodman, clarinet, directing: Billy Butterfield, first trumpet; Cootie [..]
“Jersey Bounce” Composed by Tiny Bradshaw, Eddie Johnson and Bobby Plater; arranged by Mel Powell. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Columbia on January 15,1942 in New York. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: James [..]
“When the Sun Comes Out” Composed by Harold Arlen (music) Ted Koehler (lyric); arranged by Eddie Sauter. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Columbia on June 4, 1941 in New York. Benny Goodman, [..]
Tales from the Kingdom of Swing -Tale Number Two: “Hey Eugene, take the gum out of your mouth!” The story: The swing era was not only a time when wonderful music was being made, it [..]
“Breakfast Feud” Composed by Benny Goodman; head arrangement worked out by Benny Goodman and the members of his Sextet. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Sextet(*) for Columbia on January 15, 1941(**) in New [..]
“Big John Special” Composed and arranged by Horace Henderson. Recorded on November 16,1937 by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra from a CBS Camel Caravan broadcast. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: Harry James, first trumpet; Ziggy Elman [..]
“Flat Foot Floogie” Composed by Slim Gaillard, Slam Stewart and Bud Green; probably arranged by Edgar Sampson. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Victor on May 31, 1938 in New York. Benny Goodman, [..]
Johnny Mercer…Poet of American Popular Song The story: I have found over time that my reading is very often directed by the music I have listened to recently. Last month, I rediscovered (for the umteenth [..]
“Undecided” Composed by Charlie Shavers; arranged by Eddie Sauter. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Victor on December 15, 1938 in New York. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: Harry James, first trumpet; Ziggy Elman [..]
The story: Back in early 2016, I was about to launch this blog. Over several decades I had accumulated a lot of recorded music, books, images and articles about the musicians who made the music, [..]
“Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea” Composed by Harold Arlen (music) and Ted Koehler (lyric); arranged by Fletcher Henderson. Recorded on July 1, 1935 by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Victor in [..]
“Rattle and Roll” Composed and arranged by Wilbur “Buck” Clayton. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Columbia on December 19, 1945 in New York. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: Conrad Gozzo, first trumpet; John [..]
“I Got Rhythm” Composed by George Gershwin; arranged by Fletcher Henderson. Recorded by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra live from the NBC “Let’s Dance” radio show of May 4, 1935. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: George [..]
“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 [..]
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 [..]
With the approach the High Holidays of the Jewish faith each year, I think of the pioneering jazz tenor saxophonist Bud Freeman. Although Bud was Jewish, I think it accurate to describe him as a [..]
Composed by Ferdinand “Jelly Roll” Morton, arranged by Fletcher Henderson. Recorded on July 1, 1935 by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra for Victor Records in New York. Benny Goodman, clarinet, directing: Roland B.”Bunny” Berigan, first [..]
