Friday, June 20, 2014

Bennie in the Band

Note: if you run out of time or patience, skip to the end.  The last one is really special!

I don't remember what made me think of it, but I recently searched through my copy of Brian Rust's discography to find songs on which Benny Goodman played.  I ignored songs where one would expect to find him; those with his own bands, with Lionel Hampton, with Teddy Wilson... I knew there were a lot of songs he recorded with lesser-known groups, and that is what I was curious about.

What I found is a lot.  I don't own even half of the songs that I found, and many of them are not on Youtube either.  The ones I can't find sound so intriguing!  Like this:
I don't know if this recording was ever released.

Or this:
What a lineup!

Anyway, for your listening pleasure, ten songs with Benny Goodman that I could find on youtube:

1.
After You've Gone: Joe Venuti and Eddie Lang and their All-star Orchestra, 1931
(Charlie Teagarden trumpet, Jack Teagarden trombone/vocals, Benny Goodman clarinet, Joe Venuti violin, Frank Signorelli piano, Eddie Lang guitar, Ward Lay string bass, Neil Marshall drums)


2.
Bag O' Blues, Jack Pettis and his Orchestra, 1929
(Bill Moore and Donald Bryan tumpet, Jack Teagarden trombone, Benny Goodman clarinet/alto sax, Jack Pettis C-melody saxophone, Dick McDonough banjo/guitar, Merill Klein tuba, Dillon Ober drums) 



3.
Charlie's Home, Adrian Rollini and His Orchestra, 1933
(Manny Klein trumpet, Tommy Dorsey trombone, Benny Goodman clarinet, Jimmy Dorsey alto sax, Arthur Rollini tenor sax, Adrian Rollini bass sax/vibraphone, Fulton McGrath piano, Dick McDonough guitar, Herb Weil drums, Howard Philip vocals) 



4.
Farewell Blues, Joe Venuti and Eddie Lang and their All-star Orchestra, 1931
(Charlie Teagarden trumpet, Jack Teagarden trombone/vocals, Benny Goodman clarinet, Joe Venuti violin, Frank Signorelli piano, Eddie Lang guitar, Ward Lay string bass, Neil Marshall drums)



5.
On Revival Day, Rube Bloom and His Bayou Boys, 1930
(Manny Klein trumpet, Jack Purvis trumpet, Tommy Dorsey trombone, Benny Goodman clarinet, Adrian Rollini bass sax, Dick McDonough guitar, Rube Bloom piano/vocals, Stan King drums, Roy Evans vocals)



6.
You're the One I Care For, Annette Hanshaw, 1931
(Tommy Dorsey trombone, Benny Goodman clarinet, Artie Bernstein string bass, others: ???)



7.
Bix Beiderbecke, I'll be a Friend With Pleasure, 1930
(Bix Beiderbecke cornet, Ray Ludwig trumpet, Tommy Dorsey trombone, Benny Goodman and Jimmy Dorsey clarinet/alto sax, Bud Freeman tenor sax, Min Leibrook string bass, Joe Venuti violin, Irving Brodsky piano, Eddie Lang guitar, Gene Krupa drums, Weston Vaughn vocals)



8.
St. James Infirmary, Rube Bloom and His Bayou Boys, 1930
(Manny Klein trumpet, Tommy Dorsey trombone, Benny Goodman clarinet, Adrian Rollini bass sax, Rube Bloom piano, Stan King drums, Roy Evans vocals)



9.
The Yacht Club Boys, Super Special Picture of the Year, 1934
(Charles Adler, George Kelly, Jimmy Kern, Billy Mann: vocals
Benny Goodman, clarinet; others unknown)



10.
Royal Garden Blues, Ted Lewis and His Band, 1931
(Mugsy Spanier and Dave Klein trumpet, George Brunies and Sam Bank trombone, Benny Goodman clarinet, Louis Martin alto/baritone sax, Tony Gerhardi guitar, John Lucas drums, Harry Barth bass, Fats Waller piano/vocals)
Also, I didn't even know this song had lyrics!



----------------

Addendum:
I forgot this one.  So good.  (If you're skipping to the end, go listen to #10.)

Deep Harlem, Irving Mills and His Hotsy-Totsy Gang, 1930


1 comment:

  1. I don't know if this is obscure these days (there are many postings on youtube) but I was always fascinated by Shirttail Stomp by Benny Goodman and His Boys. The lineup is great and they are just boys at that time. But even at such an early age, they are lampooning other bands of the day. It is a fun record.

    I looked for the "Bill Dodge All-Stars" but couldn't find any. I think there was no person named Bill Dodge, just dodging contractual obligations is my guess.

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