"BIG BAND NEWS"
JANUARY 2006
reported by Christopher Popa
MORE IN-PRINT OR ONLINE
Aird, Daniella. "Big Band a blast to past: Seniors flock to hear jazz, swing hits,"
South Florida Sun Sentinel / sun-sentinel.com, Jan. 25, 2006. [ trumpeter Paul Cohen
(Shaw '45; Basie '71-'74; Goodman '85) leads a big band ]
Barber, Mary. "Shaw's legacy lives on with orchestra," Jackson [ MI ] Citizen Patriot /
mlive.com, Jan. 12, 2006.
Coutros, Evonne. "Why retirement's inconceivable for Bucky Pizzarelli,"
northjersey.com, Jan. 4, 2006. [ Pizzarelli reminisces about Monroe, Goodman, others ]
Dream Brother. "Louis Armstrong - The Definitive Collection," murmurs.com,
Jan. 29, 2006. [ brief review of CD ]
Figueroa, Laura. "Big Band brings back fond memories at fair," Bradenton [ FL ]
Herald / bradenton.com, Jan. 26, 2006. [ Sammy Kaye Orchestra ]
"Historic music venue up for sale for $3.8 million," Stamford [ CT ] Advocate /
stamfordadvocate.com, Jan. 29, 2006. [ the dance hall at Bantam Lake and once known as
The Music Box ]
"Jazz legend Maynard Ferguson to perform at Lake Texoma Festival," Durant [ OK ]
Daily Democrat / durantdemocrat.com, Jan. 26, 2006.
Leland, Elizabeth. "Beat of the generations: Want to know what heredity sounds
like? For 4 generations, the Thorne men have lived for their music,"
Charlotte [ NC ] Observer / charlotte.com, Jan. 1, 2006. [ including Bob Thorne, trumpeter
(Brown '36-'37) ]
Miller, Cam. "Nature of jazz will not allow for Carnegie carbon copy," North County
[ CA ] Times / nctimes.com, Jan. 4, 2006. [ clarinetist Ken Peplowski explains why his concerts
can't replicate Benny Goodman note-for-note ]
Moody, Mike. "Krupa quartet to play tribute to Ol' Blue Eyes," Brownsville [ TX ]
Herald / brownsvilleherald.com, Jan. 24, 2006. [ the New Gene Krupa Quartet, featuring
Michael Berkowitz, performs with singer Nick Hilscher ]
Pieper, Mary. "Big names grace stage at the Surf," [ Clear Lake, Iowa ] Globe
Gazette / globegazette.com, Jan. 30, 2006. [ performers at the Surf Ballroom have included
Ellington, Nelson, Basie ]
Puckett, Jeffrey Lee. "Profile: John La Barbera, jazz whirlwind," [ Louisville, KY ]
Courier-Journal / cournier-journal.com, Jan. 29, 2006. [ La Barbera (Rich; Miller-DeFranco) ]
Reich, Howard. "Jazz: Tale of 2 bands: Which is best?," Chicago Tribune,
Jan. 15, 2006. [ he picks the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra over the Chicago Jazz Ensemble ]
"Study Finds Musical Heritage Falling Silent," International Musician, Jan. 2006, p.3.
[ of recordings made between 1890-1964 and protected by copyright, only 14% have been reissued on CD ]
Varble, Bill. "Maynard Ferguson performs in Medford," [ Medford, OR ]
Mail Tribune / mailtribune.com, Jan. 27, 2006.
Whaley, Charles. "Book Review: Tommy Dorsey, the volatile band leader,"
[ Louisville, KY ] Courier-Journal / courier-journal.com, Jan. 15, 2006.
Wisk, Allison. "Bandman is music to students' ears," Dallas [ TX ] Morning News /
dallasnews.com, Jan. 22, 2006. [ about elementary school music teacher Art Osborne, whose mother,
according to the story, was Vaughn Monroe's cousin ]
NECROLOGY
Ernani "Noni" Bernardi, 94, alto saxophonist - arranger (T. Dorsey '35; Goodman
'38-'39; Elman recordings '38-'39, Kyser '40-'47), Jan. 4
Jimmy Valentine, 89, vocalist (Bradley '40-'41), Jan. 5, following an operation for
colon cancer
Fayard Nicholas, 91, tap dancer (The Nicholas Brothers, in "Sun Valley Serenade"
[Miller, '41], "Orchestra Wives" [Miller, '42], and "Stormy Weather" [Calloway,
Waller, '43]), Jan. 24, pneumonia
BAND ITINERARIES - SELECT LIST
Count Basie Orchestra directed by Bill Hughes: Jan. 16, IAJE Conference,
New York, NY
Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra directed by Bill Tole: Jan. 26, Palm Desert, CA
Tommy Dorsey Orchestra directed by Buddy Morrow: Jan. 9, Maltz Jupiter Theatre,
Jupiter, FL; Jan. 20-24, American Queen Riverboat cruise
Maynard Ferguson and Big Bop Nouveau: Jan. 24-29, Jazz Alley, Seattle, WA;
Jan. 31, South Medford High School, Medford, OR
Woody Herman's Thundering Herd directed by Frank Tiberi: Jan. 11, Broward
Center for the Performing Arts, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Sammy Kaye Orchestra directed by Roger Thorpe: Jan. 25, Manatee County Fair,
Palmetto, FL
Gene Krupa Orchestra directed by Michael Berkowitz: Jan. 6, Sanford, NC;
Jan. 14, Carlisle, PA; "Gene Krupa Quartet," Jan. 26, Jacob Brown Auditorium,
Brownsville, TX
Guy Lombardo's Royal Canadians directed by Al Pierson: Jan. 29, Manatee
Community College, Bradenton, FL
Glenn Miller Orchestra directed by Larry O'Brien: Jan. 10, Florida Community
College, Jacksonville, FL; Jan. 12, North Florida Community College, Madison, FL;
Jan. 14, Cypress Gardens, Winter Haven, FL; Jan. 15, Van Wezel Performing Arts
Center, Sarasota, FL ( 2pm ) and Barbara Mann Performing Arts Center, Ft. Myers,
FL ( 7:30pm ); Jan.17, Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, FL; Jan. 18, Lyric Theater,
Stuart, FL ( 6pm and 8:15pm); Jan. 21, Grove Park Inn, Asheville, NC; Jan. 22, Newberry
Opera House, Newberry, SC; Jan. 24, Lemon Bay High School PAC, Englewood, FL;
Jan. 26-29, Busch Gardens, Tampa Bay, FL; Jan. 30, private dance, Bonita Springs, FL
Russ Morgan Orchestra directed by Jack Morgan: Jan. 15, Tropicana Hotel
and Casino, Las Vegas, NV
Artie Shaw Orchestra directed by Dick Johnson: Jan. 13, Macomb Center for
the Performing Arts, Clinton Township, MI; Jan. 14, Potter Center, Jackson Community
College, Jackson, MI; Jan. 15, Mendel Center for the Arts, Lake Michigan College,
Benton Harbor, MI; Jan. 31, Duxbury, MA
FRIDAY THE 13TH WAS LUCKY FOR THEM
Clarinetist Buddy DeFranco and pianist - trombonist - composer Bob Brookmeyer were honored January 13th as two of the new National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) "Jazz Masters" for 2006. The ceremonies, awarding America's highest recognition in jazz, were held as part of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE) convention, in the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton New York Hotel.
Trumpeter Jon Faddis' Jazz Orchestra of New York opened the musical portion of the program by performing Beige, a movement from a Duke Ellington suite, and The Count Basie Orchestra directed by Bill Hughes later played a brief set. For the grand finale, the two big bands squared off, recalling the 1961 Columbia album "Duke Ellington Meets Count Basie," with soloists from each group trying to outdo each other on Battle Royale.
Another of the "Jazz Masters" recipients, singer Tony Bennett, commented, "More than anybody else I'd like to thank Count Basie for teaching me how to perform."
The NEA provides each honoree with a one-time fellowship of $25,000.
SING! SING! SING!
A number of tributes to Benny Goodman's famous 1938 Carnegie Hall jazz concert took place during January, featuring clarinetist Ken Peplowski, who was in the last big band Goodman led during 1985-86, and the so-called Kingdom of Swing Big Band, "staffed by many Benny Goodman Orchestra alumni." Dates included January 6, Haugh Performing Arts Center, Glendora, CA; January 7, the California Center for the Arts, Escondido, CA; and January 15, the Del E. Webb Center for the Performing Arts, Wickenburg, AZ.
RING IN / SWING IN 2006
The Turner Classic Movies (TCM) cable TV channel brought in the New Year with a great line-up of back-to-back "swing" motion pictures, starting the morning of January 1st. In order, they were: "Swing!," a 1938 musical - drama; the 1936 Fred Astaire - Ginger Rogers feature, "Swing Time"; "Swing Your Lady," a 1938 comedy starring Humphrey Bogart; the 1940 "Mystery in Swing"; and two 1943 films featuring Kay Kyser, "Swing Fever" and "Around the World." Kyser was given an encore on January 3rd, when TCM showed him in the 1942 comedy, "My Favorite Spy."
BEST BAND ON CAMPUS
That was the title of a 1962 album by Les Elgart and His Orchestra (Columbia CL 1890 / CS 8690), subtitled "Campus Favorites By 'Mr. College.'" Now, according to the Les Elgart Orchestra's website, leselgart.com, the band may be heading back to the school grounds, by joining the National Association of Campus Activities. "It is our goal to bring quality big band music to our college students all across America," the band's present leader, Russ Dorsey, states. "We have special programs that educate and involve the students and faculty."
"... IT DOESN'T SHOW
SIGNS OF STOPPING ..."
He passed away more than three decades ago, but interest in singer - bandleader Vaughn Monroe remains high in 2006, thanks to members of the Vaughn Monroe Appreciation Society, formed in August 2001 by Lou Kohnen and Claire Schwartz.
Schwartz continues to enhance the Society's website, vaughnmonroesociety.org, with added biographical facts and other information. It's easily the best-developed and maintained website about a single big band, thanks to her dedication.
On the Society's Yahoo newsgroup, started in 2004, Monroe aficionados such as Gerald "Jerry" Furris, Herb Wasserman, Polly Attridge, Dick and Pat Longtin, and Walt Kidd share stories, comment about Monroe's life and career, and respond to questions from others.
Furris posts an ongoing series called 'Did You Know?', in which he sheds light on little-known details concerning Monroe.
NEW COMPACT DISCS - SELECT LIST
Louis Armstrong, "The Definitive Collection," Hip-O 489302
Count Basie, "Jumpin' At Ten," Sounds of Yesteryear SOY 694
Billy Butterfield, "Duet," Jazzology 174
Carmen Cavallaro, "Stairway to the Stars - More Cocktail Piano Favorites," Jasmine 430
Benny Goodman, "The Chronological 1947 Vol.3," Classics 1407
Earl Hines, "With the Alex Welsh Band," Jazzology 348
International Sweethearts of Rhythm, "Hot Licks," Sounds of Yesteryear SOY 692
Illinois Jacquet, Lone Hill Jazz 10229; "Bosses of the Ballad," Lone Hill Jazz
10231; "Go Power!," Lone Hill Jazz 10232; "The Message," Lone Hill Jazz
10230; "Swing's the Thing," Lone Hill Jazz 10228
Harry James, "It's the Talk of the Town," Sounds of Yesteryear SOY 693
Jimmy Rushing, "Complete Goin' to Chicago & Listen to the Blues," Lone Hill
Jazz 10208
Ginny Simms, "One More Dream," Flare 238
Muggsy Spanier, "The Chronological 1949-1954," Classics 1405
Chick Webb, "Stomping At the Savoy," Proper Box 97 ( 4-CD set )
various artists, "The Big Broadcast: Jazz & Popular Music of the 1920s and 1930s,"
Rivermont 1141; "Sweet Songbirds," Flare 239 ( 2-CD set ); "Swinging On a V-Disc,"
Jasmine 16 ( 4-CD set )
send feedback about "Big Band News: January 2006" via e-mail
return to "Big Band News" directory
go to Big Band Library homepage
NEW DVDS - SELECT LIST
Count Basie, "Big Band '77," Eagle Vision
39062
various artists, "All Star Swing Festival,"
Delta 82328 [ Basie, Goodman,
Ellington, Wilson ]
various artists, "Cabin in the Sky," Warner
Home Video 67678 [ Armstrong, Ellington ]
various artists, "Stormy Weather," Warner
Home Video 2232184 [ Calloway, Waller ]
photograph by
James Kriegsmann
Kidd, meanwhile, recently discovered a website which includes online scans and transcripts of Monroe's "Camel Caravan" radio show dialogue.
The Society is presently offering for sale to its members two volumes of information about Monroe, selected from scrapbooks held at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA, where Monroe had studied voice in 1935. The scrapbooks, which contain dozens of photographs and newspaper and magazine clippings, were compiled by longtime Monroe fan Marian Gower and donated to the Conservatory in 1957. Due to the fragility of the original items, photocopies were made from microfilms of the scrapbooks. A sampling of the two new, spiral-bound books includes "My life with Vaughn Monroe," a question-and-answer piece involving Monroe's wife, Marian, and which originally appeared in the April 1949 Radio & Television Best magazine; "Vaughn Monroe Quits Band Biz To Do a Single," as reported by Variety on April 1, 1953; and numerous pages from early, official Vaughn Monroe Music Club journals.
Eight people joined the Vaughn Monroe Appreciation Society in November 2005 alone.
NEW BIOGRAPHY OF TED LEWIS
For decades, people were entertained by bandleader Ted Lewis (1890-1971), a great showman who worked vaudeville and stage shows, made recordings, was on television, and performed live into the mid-1960s. But only a small circle knew that in 1929 he fathered a child with a friend's wife. Had the birth become known to the public, it would have caused a scandal.
The girl, who grew up as Dawn Williams, didn't find out who her biological father was until she was age 53, over 10 years after Lewis' death. A graduate of the University of Southern California's Journalism program, she has now written a 245-page book, Me and My Shadow: A Daughter's Quest and Biography of Ted Lewis "The Jazz King" (Seal Beach, CA: Sunrise House Publishers, 2005).
She discussed her story, which is both biography and autobiography woven together, on the Jordan Rich Show, over WBZ radio in Boston, on January 7th.
For more information, view the website tedlewisjazzking.com.
When My Baby Smiles At Me, an early hit for Ted Lewis
