Big Band: Swingin' Through the Night

by Big Band: Swingin Through The N

Overview

The terms "swing era" and "big-band era" are often used interchangeably, which makes sense because swing and big bands have often gone together -- often, but not always. During jazz's pre-bebop years, there were plenty of small groups that played swing. And after World War II, bop had the occasional big band. Assembled by Bluebird/RCA in 2002, Big Band: Swingin' Through the Night is primarily a compilation of big-band swing. The CD spans 1933-1954, and about 80 percent of these big bands embrace swing. The oldest track is Cab Calloway's 1933 smash "Minnie the Moocher," and the most recent is the Sauter-Finegan Orchestra's 1954 recording "The Loop." Although swing is dominant, "The Loop" and Dizzy Gillespie's 1947 recording of Tadd Dameron's "Good Bait" are perfect examples of big bands playing bop. Overall, the material is excellent -- gems by Benny Goodman ("King Porter Stomp"), Duke Ellington ("Don't Get Around Much Anymore"), and Glenn Miller ("Little Brown Jug") are swing heaven. But regrettably, a number of other things bring the disc's rating down. First, RCA doesn't list all the musicians for each track, only select players, arrangers, and soloists. Second, the sound quality isn't up to RCA's usually high standards. Songs that have sounded great on other Bluebird/RCA compilations (thanks to digital remastering) sound a lot scratchier and noisier here. And Bunny Berigan's sublime 1937 smash "I Can't Get Started" is butchered; RCA only provides about 60 percent of the performance and cuts the song off abruptly, which is ridiculous because Swingin' Through the Night only clocks in at about 45 minutes -- it isn't as though RCA did it because of space limitations. Because so many of RCA's jazz-oriented compilations have been expertly assembled, it is surprising that this CD has as many problems and flaws as it does. ~ Alex Henderson

Product Details

Release Date:	05/21/2002
Label:	Bluebird Rca / Rca
UPC:	0090266392926
Rank:	187745

Tracks

1. King Porter Stomp  -  Goodman  - Jelly Roll Morton
2. Blueberry Hill  - Al Lewis  -  Miller  - Vincent Rose  - Larry Stock
3. Tuxedo Junction  - Julian Dash  - Buddy Feyne  - Erskine Hawkins  - William Johnson  - William Johnson
4. 'S Wonderful  - George Gershwin  - Ira Gershwin  -  Shaw
5. Minnie the Moocher  - Cab Calloway  - Clarence Gaskill  - Irving Mills
6. Cherokee  - Charlie Barnet  - Ray Noble
7. I Can't Get Started  -  Berigan  - Vernon Duke  - Ira Gershwin  - Thad Jones
8. Never No Lament (Don't Get Around Much Anymore)  - Duke Ellington  -  Ellington  - Bob Russell
9. Marie  - Irving Berlin  - Tommy Dorsey
10. Little Brown Jug  - Bill Finegan  -  Miller  -  Traditional  - Joseph E. Winner
11. Robbin's Nest  -  Basie  - Illinois Jacquet  - Sir Charles Thompson
12. Good Bait  - Count Basie  - Tadd Dameron  -  Gillespie
13. Night Train  - Duke Ellington  - Jimmy Forrest  - Buddy Morrow  - Lewis Simpkins  - Oscar Washington
14. The Loop  - Bill Finegan  - Eddie Sauter  -  Sauter-Finegan Orchestra

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Charlie Barnet   Primary Artist,Sax (Tenor)
Erskine Hawkins   Primary Artist,Trumpet
The Sauter-Finegan Orchestra   Primary Artist
Cab Calloway   Primary Artist,Vocals
Buddy Morrow   Primary Artist,Trombone
Bunny Berigan & His Orchestra   Primary Artist
Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra   Primary Artist
Artie Shaw & His Orchestra   Primary Artist
Dizzy Gillespie & His Orchestra   Primary Artist
Tommy Dorsey   Primary Artist
The Glenn Miller Orchestra   Primary Artist
Count Basie Orchestra   Primary Artist
Benny Goodman & His Orchestra   Primary Artist
Count Basie   Piano,Celeste
Dizzy Gillespie   Trumpet
Benny Goodman   Clarinet
Doc Cheatham   Trumpet
Dud Bascomb   Trumpet
Nick Travis   Trumpet
Johnny Hodges   Sax (Alto)
Bud Freeman   Sax (Tenor)
Bunny Berigan   Trumpet
Haywood Henry   Clarinet
Cootie Williams   Trumpet
Lawrence Brown   Trombone
Paul Gonsalves   Sax (Tenor)
Tex Beneke   Sax (Tenor)
Ray Eberle   Vocals
Al McKibbon   Bass
Artie Shaw   Clarinet
Dodo Marmarosa   Piano
Jack Lacey   Trombone
Herbie Steward   Sax (Tenor)
Ted Kelly   Trombone
Bob Price   Trumpet
Joe Venuto   Xylophone
Duke Ellington   Piano

Technical Credits

Duke Ellington   Arranger,Composer
Count Basie   Composer
Clarence Gaskill   Composer
Thad Jones   Composer
Eddie Sauter   Arranger,Composer
Fletcher Henderson   Arranger
Erskine Hawkins   Composer
Carlos Kase   Reissue Producer
George Gershwin   Composer
Ira Gershwin   Composer
Joseph E. Winner   Composer
The Sauter-Finegan Orchestra   Performer
Al Lewis   Composer
Cab Calloway   Composer
Buddy Feyne   Composer
Buddy Morrow   Arranger
William Johnson   Composer,Arranger,Composer
Sir Charles Thompson   Composer
Bill Finegan   Arranger,Composer
Billy May   Arranger
Illinois Jacquet   Composer
Tadd Dameron   Arranger,Composer
Traditional   Composer
Fred Stulce   Arranger
Joshua Sherman   Series Producer
Jelly Roll Morton   Composer
Jimmy Forrest   Composer
Billy Strayhorn   Arranger
Vincent Rose   Composer
Lewis Simpkins   Composer
Julian Dash   Composer
Ray Conniff   Arranger
Sheryl Lutz-Brown   Design
Joe Lipman   Arranger
Oscar Washington   Composer
Andreas Meyer   Reissue Engineer
Ray Noble   Composer
Bob Russell   Composer
Irving Mills   Composer
Vernon Duke   Composer
Irving Berlin   Composer
Larry Stock   Composer