Some Have Greatness Thrust Upon 'Em
As Shakespeare wrote, some men are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon 'em. Jimmy Dorsey falls into the latter category. Greatness was not on his To Do List. He would have been perfectly happy to sit back in the sax section of the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra, cracking wise and blowing killer solos, just as he had been for the last three years, while his brother Tommy ran the show.
Ever since they were kids in Pennsylvania's coal country, Tommy had been the dominant personality and Jimmy had been the softer one. Quiet and affable, Jimmy was content to let Tommy get most of the attention.
But, as is often the case with siblings, there were resentments. Jimmy took out his resentments with a steady stream of passive-aggressive wisecracks from the sax section during rehearsals and sometimes performances, all of it meant to exasperate Tommy.
Of course, a pancake has two sides, no matter how flat. Tommy brought a lot of it on himself by being such a hard-driving hothead. He would yell at the guys for missed notes, and especially for errors counting time. His ten-minute harangues were legendary. Jimmy saw the needling as his way to bring Tommy down a peg in front of the guys. Finally, Tommy had had enough. He walked off the bandstand in the middle of a rehearsal at the Glen Island Casino in the summer of 1935, and the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra was no more.
"Suddenly, everybody was looking at Jimmy, and he wasn't having it," said drummer Ray McKinley later. "But we finally brought him around." Jimmy reluctantly stepped in front of the band with a sheaf of new arrangements and a recording contract with Decca. The band was hired as the orchestra for Bing Crosby's weekly radio show, which originated in Hollywood, making Jimmy and the band available for appearances in Hollywood films.
Over the next several years, the Jimmy Dorsey band stayed busy building a steady, if undistinguished, business. Bob Eberly had been singing with the band since 1936. Helen O'Connell joined in 1939. But they never sang together with the band on a record until a couple of years later.
Then in the spring of 1941, came Amapola, the first of the pair's mega-successful duets. The record was a game-changer for the Jimmy Dorsey band. It was the first to use a formula that Jimmy would go to over and over to create hit after hit for the next several years. After Amapola, there was Green Eyes, Jim, Tangerine, and a handful of other #1 chart hits that featured their vocals, either singly or together.
This is the period of the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra that we will celebrate on this week's In the Mood: the band's successes with Bob and Helen, as well as Bing Crosby, are included.
For a reluctant bandleader, I have to say I think Jimmy Dorsey did all right. Eventually, he reunited with Tommy and joined his brother's band, playing distinctive solos from 1951-55. At that point, Jimmy reorganized his own band with a crop of excellent young players and the Artie Malvin Singers to tour the country playing proms and theater dates. This is the same band that recorded an album in 1956 and 57 that was released on Fraternity Records. It contained Jimmy's last big chart hit, So Rare. The tune was just reaching its peak on the Billboard charts when Jimmy died in June of 1957. We will hear some choice selections from the heyday of the Jimmy Dorsey band as we open this week's show. I think you will enjoy our picks.
Hour 2 kicks off with Ella Fitzgerald taking the Swingin' Spotlight for about 20 minutes of musical memories from the 1930s, 40s and 50s. We'll hear her groundbreaking performance of A-Tisket, A-Tasket with the Chick Webb band, plus a fine sampling of her best solo recordings for Decca and Verve. I think you will especially enjoy the classic scat vocals and her live performance of I Can't Give You Anything But Love from the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival. Honestly folks, it's just like being there if you close your eyes. It'll be a hip trip through some swinging, significant moments in Jazz.
Aside from the aforementioned Spotlight features on Jimmy Dorsey and Ella Fitzgerald, this week's In the Mood presents a satisfying smorgasbord of Swing. We'll hear Tommy Dorsey's trombone, Teddy Wilson's piano magic and Artie Shaw's clarinet live from the Blue Room of the Hotel Lincoln in New York City. Crosby will croon, Ziggy Elman will Zag, and Buddy Clark will harmonize with Doris Day. It's a star-studded once-in-a-lifetime show, so don't miss it! Lord knows, you'll have plenty of chances to catch it, with 9 broadcasts on 7 stations this week. For the full schedule, including live links to the stations' Live Streams, scroll the posts on our Facebook Page.
I figure, what's the point of owning these fabulous historical and cultural gems if you don't share them with the world? Besides, they are actually fun and educational to listen to, especially if you are a musician, singer, or performer. And if you're a showbiz history buff, you'll find plenty to love on this show every week.
Thanks for reading through all this drivel! I hope it somehow enhances your enjoyment of this week's show. Remember, please be kind to one another, and Keep Swingin', My Friends!
Scott
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