Here are Some Swing Era Bands

1. Here are Some Swing Era Bands • Cab Calloway • Jimmie Lunceford • Chick Webb • The Casa Loma Orchestra • McKinney’s Cotton Pickers • Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey • Glenn Miller • Artie Shaw

2. Cab Calloway • trademark song - “Minnie the Moocher” (hi-de-hi-de-hi-de-ho) • “Minnie the Moocher’s Wedding Day” • scat singer • books include • Cab Calloway’s Hepster’s Dictionary • Prof. Cab Calloway’s Swingformation Bureau • born Cabell Calloway III in Rochester, NY, Christmas, 1907 • raised in Baltimore • studied law at Crane College in Chicago while moonlighting as MC, singer and bandleader • offered a contract to play basketball with the Harlem Globetrotters in 1928

3. AccordionSqueeze-Box or Groan-Box Ain't coming on that tabwon't accept the proposition. Usually abbr. to "I ain't coming.” Armstrongsmusical notes in the upper register, high trumpet notes. Barbecuethe girl friend, a beauty Battlea very homely girl, a crone. BeatLacking anything. Ex, "I am beat for my cash", "I am beat to my socks" (lacking everything). Beat it outplay it hot, emphasize the rhythym. Beat up the chops (or the gums)to talk, converse, be loquacious. Cab Calloway's "Hepsters' Dictionary," c. 1944

4. Cab Calloway • played opposite Louis Armstrong at Chicago’s Sunset Cafe • took over the Missourians which became known as the Cab Calloway Band for 19 years • played sax, offered job to Chu Berry and agreed to never again play • 1931 • took over for Duke Ellington at the Cotton Club • recorded “Minnie the Moocher” • took his all-black band on the road and played in many clubs and theaters where blacks had not played before

5. Cab Calloway • band broke up in 1948 • career rescued in 1952 with a revival of Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” in the roll of Sportin’ Life (Gershwin actually patterned the character after him) • performed in an all-black “Hello Dolly”, “Eubie” “Bubblin’ Brown Sugar” and “Pajama Game” • honors include: • Black Businessmen’s Association • Negro Actor’s Guild • Black Hall of Fame • 7th Annual Black Achievement Award by Ebony magazine, the Ebony Lifetime Achievement Award • St. James Infirmary, recorded in 1988

6. The Structure of the Big Bands • Sax section 3-5 members • Various instruments • Players double (play a second instrument) on cl and fl • Trombone section 3-4 members • Sound can be altered with mutes • Trumpet section 3-4 members • Sound can be altered with mutes • Rhythm section • Piano, string bass, drums, rhythm guitar (seldom used today)

7. Roles in the Horn Section • Bands are organized by sections • The leader of each horn (in jazz, horn means any wind instrument) section plays the most demanding part • Section members are expected to use the same interpretation as the leader • The second chair player is usually responsible for the improvised solos

8. Roles in the Rhythm Section • The rhythm section has no particular leader unless one member is the leader of the band • This section is less restricted than the horns • The pianist is free to add ideas • The bass and drum are free to fill in • When a drummer accents a musical idea in the band, the drummer is “Kicking” the band • The bass may play what is written or be instructed to two-beat or walk

9. Interplay • Sections employ the call and response technique • The fills are written out • Since several musicians play at the same time, the music is written out to avoid chaos • Collective improvisation in a large band would be unintelligible • The freedom of early jazz groups has almost disappeared • There was no place for jazz musicians who could improvise but not read music but there was great demand for musicians who could do both.

10. The Arranger • Big bands were very organized • Musical decisions were made by the arranger before the band performed • Fletcher Henderson and Edgar Sampson created the sound that made Benny Goodman the “King of Swing” • Henderson also wrote for his own band • John Hammond

11. Showmanship • Informal early jazz had no place in the big band • Swing bands had to compete with society bands such as Eddie Duchin and Guy Lombardo by • Flashy satin tuxedos • Music stands with logos • A bass drum with a logo and the drummer’s initials • Sections stood to soli or shout • Trumpeters swung their derby mutes • Band members indulged in novelty numbers

12. Showmanship • The number of musicians caused many bands to fold • Section playing was boring • Other than the leaders, the most popular personalities were usually the singers • The rebellion against all this helped bring about bebop

13. James Melvin Lunceford • Born: Fulton, MS, June 6, 1902 • Died: Oregon, July 12, 1947 • Jimmie Lunceford is best known for his orchestra's consistently swinging and showy live performances • His orchestra rivaled those of Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman and Count Basie

14. Jimmie Lunceford 1902-1947 • founded a big band of black musicians in 1927 • same size as Glen Gray’s band • 6 brasses, 4 reeds, 4 rhythm instruments • Glen Gray, a sax player, named the band the Casa Loma Orchestra • Lunceford studied music in Denver and at Fisk University and with Paul Whiteman’s father • Taught High School Music in Memphis • started his own band with students

15. Jimmie Lunceford • Lunceford conducted the band • Listen to SCCJ CD II, #15“Organ Grinder’s Swing” recorded in 1936 • by Sy Oliver • Oliver uses dynamics, sonorous and tone-color contrasts • Note the muted trumpet, the growl trumpet, the celeste, the temple blocks and the pianissimo saxes • based on a children’s jingle • became an international hit • Lunceford’s (and Duke Ellington’s) band broke away from “Call and Response” • Many bands copied Lunceford’s style • Lunceford suddenly collapsed and died in 1947 while signing autographs after an engagement in Oregon

16. William Henry “Chick” Webb 1909-1939 • BornFebruary 10, 1905, Baltimore, died in Baltimore,June 16, 1939 • His last words were“I’m sorry, I’ve got to go.”

17. William “Chick” Webb 1909-1939 • One of the first bands to play at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, which opened in 1926 - home of the “Happy Feet” • Webb introduced Ella Fitzgerald (1918-1996) to the world • A-Tisket-A-Tasket • Chick Webb and His Orchestra • Featuring Ella Fitzgerald

18. The Savoy Ballroom

19. Chick Webb • Came to Harlem from Baltimore in 1925 • Webb created the 1930s style for big-band drumming • Died in 1939 of spinal tuberculosis

20. Heebie Jeebies • Recorded March 30, 1931 (Vocalion 1607) • Benny Carter arrangement • The Band: • Louis Bacon, Shelton Hemphill, Louis Hunt - tr • Jimmy Harrison - tb • Benny Carter, Hilton Jefferson - cl and alto • Elmer Williams - cl and ts • Don Kirkpatrick - pf • John Trueheart - g • Elmer James - b • Chick Webb - dr

21. The Casa Loma Orchestra • One of the more interesting orchestras to appear was Glen Gray and his Casa Loma Orchestra • An offshoot of the Jean Goldkeete orchestra was the Orange Blossoms. A sax player in the band, Glen Gray (Knoblaugh) took over the band for the opening of a Canadian nightclub in 1929. The Prince of Wales was to be there, but the opening never took place.

22. The Casa Loma Orchestra • The band declared themselves a cooperative, elected Glen Gray the president (he eventually became the leader) and • Adopted the name of the club, becoming the Casa Loma Orchestra • The Casa Loma Orchestra recorded 6 sides for OKeh • The “Casa Loma Stomp” was recorded in 1930 (Okeh 41492) • Intricate melodies for sax • Symmetrical and un-syncopated • The most important element of the band’s success was its beat • The band used a string bass instead of a tuba to record • The Casa Loma Orchestra is almost completely forgotten today

23. McKinney’s Cotton Pickers • Don Redman took control of this cooperative band and recorded between 1928 and 1932 • The band was very similar to Fletcher Henderson’s • Their best known recording was Chant of the Weed (Columbia 2675-D)

24. Tommy Dorsey 1905-1956Jimmy Dorsey 1904-1957 • Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey formed an orchestra together in the early 1930s known as "The Dorsey Brothers Orchestra," and included Glenn Miller, Ray McKinley and Bob Crosby. • "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" was first recorded September 24, 1932 by a pick-up recording group under the Dorsey brothers. • Tommy, well-known for his temper and acid tongue, stormed off the stage one night. Intent on starting his own band and showing up his brother • Tommy quit in 1935 after a disagreement between the two brothers. • He formed a band of his own from the remnants of Joe Haymes' orchestra, with "Sentimental" as his theme number. • Reunited in 1953, the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra, was led mainly by Tommy, but with Jimmy prominently featured

25. Tommy Dorsey • "The Sentimental Gentleman of Swing” • Trombonist Thomas "Tommy" Dorsey was born in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania on November 19, 1905. • Younger brother of famed jazz clarinetist, Jimmy Dorsey. • Equally well-known as both trumpet and trombone player, by 1930 he was one of the most successful free-lance radio and recording artists on trombone • Tommy Dorsey died suddenly at his country home on November 26, 1956. Death was caused by strangulation • “Well, Git It” - Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra

26. Jimmy Dorsey • The older of the two Dorsey brothers was a musical prodigy • Began his musical career at the age seven playing the slide trumpet and cornet with his fathers brass band at local parties • After the breakup, Jimmy began a new band which was a commercial success featuring popular singers Helen O'Connell and Bob Eberly. • In 1953, a few years after the release of the motion picture The Fabulous Dorsey's, Jimmy and Tommy reunited and continued playing together until Tommy's death in 1956 • Jimmy continued leading the band until ill-health forced him to retire from music permanently • Jimmy died in mid-1957 • “Don’t Be That Way” - The Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra

27. Glenn Miller 1904-1944 • Miller, Glenn led the most popular dance band of the late 1930s and early 1940s. • Trombonist and an excellent arranger • His distinctive use of clarinet lead over four saxophones became his trademark and contributed to his success

28. Glenn Miller 1904 - 1944 • Born Alton Glenn Miller in Clarinda, Iowa • Miller led a busy career as a dance band and studio trombonist, working in the bands of American bandleaders Ben Pollack (1927) and Red Nichols (1929-1930) • 1934 Miller worked with the Dorsey Brothers Band • Joined English bandleader Ray Noble (1935) as a trombonist and arranger • Miller formed his own swing orchestra in 1937, but the group met with little success until 1939 • Miller's biggest hit was "In the Mood"

29. Glenn Miller • Miller disbanded his orchestra in September 1942 and enlisted in the United States Army • He formed the 42-piece,all-star Army Air Force Band, which entertained World War II service personnel with regular radio broadcasts in the United States (1943) and in England (1944) • In December 1944, Miller died when his small plane, headed to Paris, France, disappeared over the English Channel during bad weather

30. Glenn Miller • Ray McKinley assumed direction of the band and subsequently led a reorganized version of the Glenn Miller Orchestra from 1955 to 1966 • Other leaders of the band include clarinetist Buddy DeFranco and trombonists Jimmy Henderson and Buddy Morrow • Trombonist Larry O'Brien assumed leadership of the orchestra in 1981 • Miller's life and career were portrayed in the 1953 movie “The Glenn Miller Story”, which starred Jimmy Stewart

31. Artie Shaw Arthur Jacob Arshawsky was born in 1910 to Jewish-immigrant parents in New York. His family moved to New Haven, Connecticut where he began to play the saxophone and a few months later the clarinet By the time he was fifteen he had left home and changed his name to Artie Shaw and was playing all over the country.

32. Artie Shaw 1910 - 2004 In Chicago Shaw "discovered a whole new world," when he heard recordings of some of the great classical composers of his era - Stravinsky, Debussy, Bartok, Ravel, etc. • 1930 Shaw went to New York and stayed there

33. Artie Shaw • He established himself as the top lead alto-sax and clarinet player in the system of New York radio and recording studios • Shaw was soon leading the country's number one band with a smash hit, “Begin the Beguine” (Cole Porter) • The Artie Shaw Band was now making more than $60,000 a week ($600,000 in today’s money) • Shaw hired Billie Holiday becoming the first white bandleader to hire a black female singer as a permanent member of the band • Benny Goodman was “King of Swing”, Artie Shaw was dubbed "King of the Clarinet"

34. Artie Shaw • Shaw lead more bands than any other bandleader of his era, a total of five. • He also had an astonishing number of marriages - eight • Shaw retired to Mexico • He joined the Navy in 1942, formed a service band and performed up to 4 concerts daily • In 1947 Shaw performed Mozart's Clarinet Concerto with the New York Philharmonic in Carnegie Hall

35. Artie Shaw • Because of his earlier actions in racial integration, the House Un-American Activities Committee called Shaw before them in 1953 • During the early fifties, Shaw had several big and small bands and his own symphony orchestra • Artie put his clarinet away in 1954 and moved to Spain in 1955 • He returned to America in 1960 • Shaw’s own life is the subject of a feature-length documentary by a Canadian film-maker - “Artie Shaw: Time Is All You’ve Got” • Artie Shaw died December 30, 2004

36. Music in America - Jazz Quiz 6 • 1. What is the generic term for jazz and much popular music of the mid-thirties through the mid-forties? • A. syncopation • B. Swing • C. West Coast Jazz • D. Tin Pan Alley

37. Music in America - Jazz • 2. When all band members in one section play the same material, it is called • A. Shout Chorus • B. Tutti • C. Soli • D. Shuffle

38. Music in America - Jazz • 3. Why is collective improvisation seldom used by a “big band”? • A. Because it would be too loud. • B. Because it would be unintelligible. • C. Because it is too hard to write out. • D. Because it would no longer be jazz.

39. Music in America - Jazz • 4. Arrangers Fletcher Henderson and Edgar Sampson were responsible for the • A. Benny Goodman sound. • B. Tommy Dorsey sound. • C. Jimmy Dorsey sound. • D. Count Basie sound.

40. Music in America - Jazz • 5. He studied law at Crane College in Chicago. • A. Chick Webb • B. Artie Shaw • C. Glenn Miller • D. Cab Calloway

41. Music in America - Jazz • 6. Jimmie Lunceford • A. taught High School Music in Memphis. • B. started his professional band with student musicians. • C. both A and B • D. neither A nor B

42. Music in America - Jazz • 7. A-Tisket-A-Tasket was • A. a song performed by Ella Fitzgerald with the Chick Webb Orchestra. • B. A song performed by Chick Webb with the Ella Fitzgerald Orchestra . • C. Neither Chick nor Ella ever directed a jazz orchestra. • D. performed by a children’s choir accompanied by the Savoy Orchestra.

43. Music in America - Jazz • 8. Who played what? • A. Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey both played trombone. • B. Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey both played clarinet. • C. Tommy played clarinet and Jimmy played trombone. • D. Tommy played trombone and Jimmy played clarinet.

44. Clarinet - Benny Goodman Saxophone - Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young Trumpet - Roy Eldridge Piano - Teddy Wilson Singer - Billie Holliday Trombone - Jack Teagarden Piano - Earl Hines and Art Tatum Bass - Jimmie Blanton Drums - Jo Jones and Gene Krupa Guitar - Charlie Christian Composer/arranger - Benny Carter Singer - Ella Fitzgerald Swing Era Stylists

45. Jack Teagarden 1905-1964 • "Teagarden is considered by many critics to be the finest of all jazz trombonists” - Grove’s Dictionary of Jazz

46. Jack Teagarden • 1905 - Weldon Leo 'Jack' Teagarden was born in in Vernon, Texas on the 20th of August • Started piano at the age of 5, age 7 learned to play the baritone horn, age of 10 - playing trombone - self taught

47. Jack Teagarden • His recording debut came with Johnny Johnson and his Statler Pennsylvanians in early December 1927 • Played with Ben Pollack fro June 1928 until May 1933 • In1933 joined Paul Whiteman • Started his own band in 1939 • Died on Jan. 15,1964 in New Orleans of pneumonia • “Dinah” - Red Nichols and His Five Pennies - Teagarden starts it off (recorded in 1929)

48. Earl “Fatha” Hines • Hines’ Contributions include • Horn-like piano • Solos on piano rolls in 1928 • His band provided training for bebop innovators Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie

49. Earl “Fatha” Hines • Born in Duquesne, PA 12-18-1905 • His father was a musician, his stepmother a church organist • He had a great ability to sight-read and transpose • Moved to Chicago in 1923 • 1928 directed the house band at the Grand Terrace Ballroom - for 10 years

50. Earl “Fatha” Hines Earl Hines was always proud of: • 1966 - received by Pope Paul VI • 1969 - included in the Ellington White House birthday party • 1976 - included in a state dinner with the President of France