Great American Big Bands

Our window on a long gone world opens with a piece by the legendary Count Basie Orchestra of the late 1930s. From the simplest of riff patterns, developed in the heady atmosphere of Kansas City jam sessions, an arrangement like Sent For You Yesterday would emerge, complete with fine solos and propulsive section work, the momentum supplied by one of the most perfect rhythm teams in all of jazz. Jack Teagarden (1905-64), another Texan, was the most celebrated jazz trombonist of his day but a reluctant band leader, with little appetite for business. His playing was always relaxed, at its best in the company of his peers. Benny Goodman's triumph at the Palomar Ballroom in Los Angeles on August 21, 1935, marked the official start to the 'swing era'. Sidemen became the focus of unprecedented attention, much like soccer players today, and crowds gathered wherever Goodman appeared. Louis Armstrong (1901-71), the fabulous 'Satchmo', was the single most important innovator in early jazz. By 1942, he had become a popular entertainer and a familiar presence in musical films Bill Ashton, founder of the superb National Youth Jazz Orchestra, aptly summed up the virtue of these and all their counterparts when he said that 'there's nothing more exciting in music than a big band in full flight.'