[78-L] Total Recall: Artie Shaw

[Jeff Sultanof]

I have written extensively about the idea that the arranger/composers for
the big bands were an important group of American composers, in some ways as
important and creative as Copland, Harris, Gershwin and so on. Let's look at
some of the names:

Manny Albam
Ralph Burns
Tadd Dameron
Gil Evans
Bill Finegan
George Handy
Paul Jordan
Phil Moore
Johnny Richards
Pete Rugolo
William Russo
Eddie Sauter
Paul Villipigue

There are many more; these are just the names I think of first.

I have just started a project where the music of these people and more will
be available legally with estates getting paid, something I've been wanting
to do for over thirty years. So yes, very often the arranger was challenged
to make something good out of a terrible song. That so many could do so,
with horrible time constraints (cranking it out overnight for a recording
session, hammering it out on the bus traveling to another job) truly makes
them heroes in my eyes.

Jeff

On Mon, Jan 25, 2010 at 7:10 PM, Geoffrey Wheeler <dialjazz at verizon.net>wrote:

>
> I think what you say, Jeff, about Shaw’s dislike of some of his
> Brunswick recordings is true. He regards them from his own perspective,
> whereas we listeners and collectors look at how and why they fit into
> the historical spectrum of his canon. Many artists, of course, were
> stuck with tunes they regarded as “crap,” but what often transformed
> them into engaging, sometimes enthralling, pieces were the arrangements
> and the solos. I regard arranging as akin to classical composition. In
> many cases, the arrangements were the tune. Very few people today may
> listen to some of the recordings Ben Pollack made for Decca with a full
> band, but I find the arrangements excellent, and the well-constructed
> solos fitting beautifully. Examples include: Naturally, So
> Unexpectedly, Meet the Beat of My Heart, What Are You Doing Tonight,
> and As Long as I Live. Vocalist Paula Gayle does a first-class job.
> Francis Hunt, who was mentioned in the context of Goodman Victor
> recordings, also recorded with Pollack for Decca.
> Geoffrey Wheeler
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