Of all of the successful big band leaders of the swing era, Jimmie Lunceford had one of the most unusual beginnings. While most leaders were
Wingy Manone had an appealing image of a happy intuitive musician, a primitive who one day woke up and started playing the trumpet for the
In his career, Bing Crosby showed that he could sing practically everything other than opera. Whether it was classic American pop tunes, traditional Irish songs,
When one thinks of the top swing era bandleaders, the names of Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, and Harry James
The violin was part of some of the earliest jazz bands in New Orleans but it was not taken seriously as a solo instrument in
Swing singer Maxine Sullivan and stride pianist Cliff Jackson may not have been the most logical matchup, but it was a marriage that worked. Both
Arguably the top jazz trumpeter or cornetist on records prior to 1923, Phil Napoleon has somehow managed to miss being prominently included in most jazz
Boogie-woogie, which has been said to have originated in Texas in the 1870s, started out as a piano music characterized by an “eight-to-the-bar” left-hand pattern
They were one of the most popular Dixieland bands of the 1950s and ’60s, performing and recording their enthusiastic brand of trad jazz for a
When one thinks of Hoagy Carmichael, it is often of the character that he portrayed in movies: a wisecracking pianist who offered homespun advice to
Everyone cherished Eubie Blake, particularly in his later years. A lovable character who had survived a long lean period, in the 1970s he was the
Isham Jones, whenever he is mentioned today, is cited as being a talented songwriter who added several standards to the Great American Songbook. However he
In 1920, the success of Mamie Smith’s recording of “Crazy Blues,” the first blues recorded by an African-American singer, was a major surprise to the
Banjoist Fred Van Eps cut his first released recordings in 1897 while his son, guitarist George Van Eps, made his final recordings in 1997, a
Jimmie Noone was one of the big three of New Orleans clarinetists to emerge on records in the 1920s, holding his own with Johnny Dodds
Guitarist Charlie Christian and bassist Jimmy Blanton never recorded together and it is quite possible that they never jammed on the same stage, but there
They were a bit of an odd couple. Red Norvo was thin and soft-spoken while Mildred Bailey was heavy and could be rather boisterous. But
During the swing era, there were two types of male singers that were employed by many big bands, and then there was Jimmy Rushing. While
He was a very popular singer and entertainer who, as “Ukulele Ike,” had major accomplishments in the 1920s, he appeared in many films in the
Throughout his long career, Louis Prima was a New Orleans-based trumpeter, a good-humored singer, and a lovable personality. While his wide-ranging career can easily be
He had the most beautiful tone of anyone ever on alto-sax and possibly of all saxophonists (although Stan Getz on tenor came close). When he
Trumpeter Yank Lawson and bassist-composer Bob Haggart, while having separate careers, were musical friends and collaborators for nearly six decades. They came together during at
Was any jazz musician as consistent for as long a period as Benny Carter? One of the top alto saxophonists of 1927, he also ranked
Edmond Hall was one of a handful of jazz musicians who could be identified after one note. Playing on a famous filmed version of “St.
