That's a long-time, long-running show, but it was off the air for a couple of years. Thankfully they brought it back. Rob plays a selection of jazz, dating from some of the earliest jazz that's been recorded up until — typically — about the 1940s. And then, of course, modern players who also play in that vein.
When I turned it on. I heard a most-fascinating recording of a song I love called “Deep Night.” It was the first I'd heard that version of it. I think that there is one version that's definitive, which I will get to momentarily, but I thought this one really had a nice swing to it.
I couldn't place who the artist was. That wasn't surprising when he revealed it, as it was Sam Donahue. Sam Donahue was a prolific sideman with some of the great bands, including Krupa and Benny Goodman. Later, he had struck out on his own.
Donahue plays both saxophone and trumpet, by the way, which, as a trumpet player is somewhat amazing to me. I thought the three buttons on a trumpet were hard enough — there are far too many buttons on a Saxophone — which was is part of the reason I switched to trombone.
And on top of it, you've got the Harry James Orchestra. You've got Harry James playing a dirty trumpet sound — growling — it's just, it's an amazing arrangement.
When I was a kid, and I first picked up a trumpet, my Aunt Edna made sure that I was hooked up with recordings of Harry James. Harry James was her guy. And so, from a very young age, I was listening to Harry James recordings from the 1940s when his band was perhaps the most popular around.
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If you get a chance to listen to those recordings that he put out in the 50s, you're gonna hear some really, really good music and swinging charts. I highly recommend them. So, I encourage you to stop by my website, cd six.com/music, where a transcript of this podcast will soon appear, along with links to some of the songs that I'm referencing. I think that will make for some happy listening. Hope you enjoyed it. ‘Til next time, this is Chris Riffs.