Lecture 7

The Swing Era (1935 1946)

Jazz became the cornerstone of popular culture during the Swing Era
It influenced clothing styles, retail marketing, fashion, dance, and even language
Jazz helped pull America out of the Depression and get through World War II
It nursed the record industry back to health
Bandleaders became celebrities, with fans following their every move in
magazines

The Swing Band

Standard instrumentation
Brass
5 (typically 3 trumpets and 2 trombones)
Eventually expanded to 8 (typically 4 trumpets and 4 trombones)
Reeds
4 (saxophones and clarinets)
Eventually expanded to 5 (adding flute doubles)
Rhythm
4 (piano, bass, and drums + one other such as guitar or vibes)
Vocalists
Most bands had a female singer, whose good looks were as
important as their talents
Some bands had a male singer as well
Characteristics of Swing Bands
Matching costumes, such as a suit or tuxedo
Stand fronts (paneled cardboard structures designed to hide music stands
and make the visual display of the saxophone section more attractive) with
logos
A mix of danceable music and entertainment
Theme songs were the signature that identified each band
Many theme songs were sentimental, especially during the war
years
The Recording Ban
On August 1, 1942, the American Federation of Musicians banned all recordings
by its members as the result of a bitter standoff with the recording industry
At issue was the unions demand to be reimbursed for the increased substitution
of recorded performances on phonographs, jukeboxes, and radio for live
performances
The record companies eventually relented in late 1944
While the settlement would be a victory for musicians in the long run, the
immediate impact was to turn the publics attention increasingly to other music

styles, including R&B and country, whose performers typically were not union
members
The End of the Swing Era
Changing economics caused the supply of bands to outpace demand for them
World War II added to the economic woes of the swing bands through gas and
rubber rationing (which affected touring) and amusement taxes imposed upon
dance venues
Additionally, thousands of musicians were called up for duty, creating a shortage
of good players
The swing band format had become predictable and clich
The swing audience had grown and were ready to move on with their lives
The rise of bebop immediately reframed swing as old-fashioned, dull, and
commercial
Benny Goodman (1909 1986)
Born Benjamin David Goodman on May 30, 1909 in Chicagos Jewish ghetto
The ninth of twelve children
Known as the King of Swing
Goodman is responsible for a significant step in racial integration in America
Formative Years
Bennys father signed his sons up to play in the band at the Kehelah Jacob
Synagogue when Benny was ten years old
Benny was assigned the clarinet, the smallest available instrument, because he
was the smallest son
Benny progressed quickly on the clarinet
Within three years, he joined the musicians union
He began following Chicago clarinetists such as Johnny Dodds, Leon Roppolo,
and Frank Teschmacher
Early Career
In 1925, at the age of 16, he took a job traveling with the Ben Pollack Orchestra
Goodman left for New York City and became a successful session musician
during the late 1920s and early 1930s
He made a reputation as a solid player who was prepared and reliable
He played with the nationally known bands of Ben Selvin, Red Nichols, Isham
Jones, and Ted Lewis before forming his own band in 1932
Small Groups & Integration
In the early 1930s, black and white jazz musicians could not play together in most
clubs or concerts
In the Southern states, racial segregation was enforced by the Jim Crow laws
Benny Goodman broke with tradition by hiring pianist Teddy Wilson to play with
him and drummer Gene Krupa in the Benny Goodman Trio
In 1936, he added Lionel Hampton on vibes to form the Benny Goodman Quartet
in 1939 he added pioneering jazz guitarist Charlie Christian to his band and small
ensembles

To give an understanding of American history at this time, Goodman's integration

of popular music happened ten years before Jackie Robinson entered Major
League Baseball
The Benny Goodman Orchestra
Goodman formed his own band in 1932
In 1934 Goodman and his band auditioned for NBCs Lets Dance, a well
regarded radio program that featured various styles of dance music
Since Goodmans band needed new charts every week for the show, his agent,
John Hammond, suggested that he purchase jazz charts from Fletcher Henderson
His radio broadcasts from New York aired too late to attract a large East Coast
audience, however, the timeslot gave him an avid following on the West Coast
He and his band remained on Lets Dance until May of 1935 when a strike forced
the cancellation of the show
The Goodman Band on Tour
With nothing else to do after the cancellation of Lets Dance, the band set out on a
tour of America
At a number of engagements the band received a hostile reception, as many in the
audiences expected smoother, sweeter jazz as opposed to the hot style that
Goodman's band was accustomed to playing
By August of 1935, Goodman found himself with a band that was nearly broke,
disillusioned and ready to quit
It was at this moment that everything for the band and jazz changed
The Palomar Ballroom
The last scheduled stop of the tour came on August 21, 1935 at the Palomar
Ballroom in Los Angeles where Goodman and his band were scheduled for a
three-week engagement
The Palomar provided the ideal environment, as there was a huge dance floor with
a capacity of 4,000 couples
The first night, the band cautiously began playing recently purchased stock
arrangements, but the reaction was tepid
Seeing the reaction, drummer Gene Krupa said If we're gonna die, Benny, let's
die playing our own thing
Goodman then told the band to put aside the stock arrangements and called for
charts by Fletcher Henderson and other swing arrangers who were writing for the
band
When trumpeter Bunny Berigan played his solos on Hendersons versions of
Sometimes I'm Happy and King Porter Stomp, the Palomar dancers cheered like
crazy and exploded with applause
They gathered around the bandstand to listen to this new music
Aftermath
Over the nights of the engagement, a new dance labeled the Jitterbug captured
the dancers on the floor, and a new craze had begun
Within days of the opening, newspapers around the country were headlining
stories about the new phenomenon that had started at the Palomar
Goodman was finally a nationally known star, and the Swing Era began
Following this the big band era exploded

The Carnegie Hall Concert

In late 1937, Goodmans publicist attempted a publicity stunt in the form of
suggesting Goodman and his band should play Carnegie Hall in New York City
This was to be the first-ever jazz concert at the venue
Scheduled for January 16, 1938, the concert sold out weeks in advance and was a
standing-room-only crowd
Included on the concert were performances by Goodmans trio and quartet, as
well as jam sessions with members of both the Duke Ellington and Count Basie
Orchestras
This concert has been regarded by some as the most significant in jazz history, as
after years of work by musicians from all over the country, jazz had finally been
accepted by mainstream audiences
Later Years
Goodman furthered his interest in classical music written for the clarinet, and
frequently met with top classical clarinetists of the day
Goodman commissioned and premiered works by leading composers for clarinet
and symphony orchestra that are now part of the standard repertoire
He continued to play the clarinet until his death from a heart attack in New York
City in 1986 at the age of 77
Memories of You
The Benny Goodman Sextet recorded November 22, 1939
Personnel: Benny Goodman (clarinet), Charlie Christian (electric guitar),
Fletcher Henderson (piano), Artie Bernstein (bass), Nick Fatool (drums), Lionel
Hampton (vibraphone)
Dont Be That Way
By Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
Re-released on the album The Essential Benny Goodman
And the Angels Sing
Recorded in 1939 by Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
Featuring Martha Tilton (vocals) and Ziggy Elman (trumpet)
Bei Mir Bist Du Shon
Recorded live at Carnegie Hall on January 16, 1938
Benny Goodman and his Orchestra featuring vocalist Martha Tilton
Notable Goodman Associates
Gene Krupa (1909 1973)
Born Eugene Bertram Krupa on January 15, 1909 in Chicago
An influential American jazz and big band drummer, known for his
energetic and flamboyant style
In 1934 he joined Benny Goodmans band, where his featured drum work
made him a national celebrity

In 1938, after a public fight with Goodman, he left Goodman to launch his
own band
Krupas Legacy
Many consider Krupa to be the most influential drummer of the 20th
century, particularly with regard to the development of the drum kit
He made history in 1927 as the first kit drummer ever to record using a
bass drum pedal
At Krupas urging, the Slingerland Drum Company developed tom-toms
with tunable top and bottom heads, which immediately became important
elements of virtually every drummers set-up
His collaboration with Armand Zildjian of the Avedis Zildjian Company
developed the hi-hat stand and standardized the names and uses of the ride
cymbal, the crash cymbal, the splash cymbal, the pang cymbal and the
swish cymbal
Krupa also developed and popularized many of the cymbal techniques that
became standards
Sing, Sing, Sing (Parts 1 & 2)
Recorded in Hollywood, California on July 6, 1937
Personnel:
Benny Goodman (clarinet)
George Koenig and Hymie Schertzer (alto saxophones)
Vida Musso and Arthur Rollini (tenor saxophones)
Ziggy Elman, Gordon Griffin, and Harry James (trumpets)
Red Ballard and Murray McEachern (trombones)
Allen Reuss (guitar)
Jess Stacy (piano)
Harry Goodman (bass)
Gene Krupa (drums)
Lionel Hampton (1908 2002)
Born on April 20, 1908
One of the first real jazz vibraphone players
Began his career as a drummer
In the late 1920s, he began practicing vibraphone, later playing it with
Louis Armstrong in 1930
Met Benny Goodman in November of 1936 and was invited to join
Goodmans trio making it the Benny Goodman Quartet
In 1940 Hampton left the Goodman organization under amicable
circumstances to form his own big band
The Lionel Hampton Orchestra
Hamptons orchestra became very popular during the 1940s and early
1950s
His third recording with them in 1942 produced a classic version of Flying
Home, featuring a solo by Illinois Jacquet that paved the way for Rhythm
& Blues
Hamptons band played in a jazz, merged with rhythm & blues vein from
around 1945 to the early 1950s

Notable Hampton Orchestra alumni include Clifford Brown, Kenny

Dorham, Dizzy Gillespie, Johnny Griffin, Quincy Jones, Charles Mingus,
Wes Montgomery, Annie Ross, Dinah Washington, and Snooky Young
Flying Home
By Lionel Hampton and his Orchestra
Featuring tenor saxophonist Illinois Jacquet
Teddy Wilson (1912 1986)
Born November 24, 1912 in Austin, Texas
Wilson studied piano and violin at Tuskegee Institute
In 1935 he joined the Benny Goodman Trio becoming the first AfricanAmerican musician to perform in public with a previously all-white jazz
group
In the 1930s and 1940s he recorded fifty hit records with various singers
such as Lena Horne, Helen Ward, and Billie Holiday
Oh Lady Be Good
The Benny Goodman Trio
Recorded in 1935
Personnel: Benny Goodman (clarinet), Teddy Wilson (piano), Gene
Krupa (drums)
Charlie Christian (1916 1942)
Born Charles Christian on July 29, 1916 in Bonham, Texas
The first great soloist on the amplified guitar
A key figure in the development of bebop, cool and modern jazz
After an introduction by John Hammond, Goodman hired Christian to play
with the newly formed Goodman Sextet in 1939
By February 1940, Christian dominated the jazz and swing guitar polls
and was elected to the Metronome All Stars
Christians Legacy
Christians solos are frequently referred to as horn-like, and in that sense
he was more influenced by horn players
Christian admitted he wanted his guitar to sound like a tenor saxophone
Christian paved the way for the modern electric guitar sound and for this
reason Christian was inducted in 1990 into the Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame as an Early Influence
Christians exposure was so great in the brief period he played with
Goodman that he influenced not only guitarists, but other musicians as
well
Seven Come Eleven
By the Benny Goodman Sextet
Recorded circa 1939-1941
Featuring Charlie Christian (guitar) and Lionel Hampton (vibraphone)
John Hammond
Fletcher Henderson
Harry James
Bunny Berigan
Ziggy Elman

Other Important Swing Era Bandleaders

Chick Webb (1909 1939)
Jimmie Lunceford (1902 1947)
Cab Calloway (1907 1994)
Artie Shaw (1910 2004)
Charlie Barnet (1913 1991)

Sources
History and Tradition of Jazz by Thomas E. Larson
Jazz for Dummies by Dirk Sutro
Benny Goodman and the Swing Era by James Lincoln Collier
Jazz a film by Ken Burns
http://en.wikipedia.org
Discography
1. One OClock Jump by the Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
from the album The Very Best of Benny Goodman
BMG
2. Memories of You by The Benny Goodman Sextet
from the album The Benny Goodman Sextet featuring Charlie Christian
Columbia CK45144
3. Dont Be That Way by Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
from the album The Essential Benny Goodman
BMG
4. And the Angels Sing by Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
from the album The Centennial Collection
BMG
5. Bei Mir Bist Du Shon by Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
from the album Live at Carnegie Hall 1938-Complete
Sony
6. Sing, Sing, Sing (Parts 1 & 2) by Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
from the album Masters of Jazz Volume 3: Big Bands of the 30s & 40s
Rhino Records R2 72470/DRCI-1325
7. Flying Home by the Lionel Hampton Orchestra
from the album Priceless Jazz Collection: Lionel Hampton
UMG Recordings
8. Oh Lady Be Good by the Benny Goodman Trio
from the album Rare Recordings 1935-1936
LaserLight 15 726
9. Seven Come Eleven by Charlie Christian
from the album The Genius of Electric Guitar
Sony Music Entertainment

10. Avalon by Jimmie Lunceford

from the album Swingsation
GRP GRD-9923
11. Begin the Beguine by Artie Shaw
from the album The Essential Artie Shaw
BMG