[78-L] Esquire Awards, was Helen Humes question about Suspicious Blues

[Joe Scott]

[...]Herbie Fields whose year with Lionel Hampton had established him as the first Esquire award-winning white sideman with a major black band, played alto and clarinet.[...]It's interesting to look at who won those awards. Fields was a good musician but by no means deserving of the "New Star" Bronze he got in 1945 (actually after this recording session). There were 22 voters for that one, less for the first one the year before. Of course who Feather knew, including Fields (e.g. Red Norvo was best man at Feather's wedding) was going to have some relationship with Feather's friends in jazz criticism and what kind of music they liked -- e.g. Ulanov voted the first year and Panassie didn't.These are some I think were most questionable, other than Fields:Al Casey gold, guitar 1944 (the voting was before Waller died, btw) and 1945Teddy Wilson gold, piano 1945 and 1947Duke Ellington gold, band 1945 and 1946 (during this period Basie, Herman, others were better)Pete Candoli silver, trumpet 1946Some I think were particularly good (and not obvious a la Pops, Goodman, etc.):Earl Hines silver, piano 1944 (after Tatum)Oscar Pettiford gold, bass 1944Leo Watson silver, male singer 1944Dave Tough gold, drums 1946Buck Clayton gold, musician in armed forces 1945Bill Harris, Flip Phillips, Chubby Jackson, Cleanhead Vinson, New Stars 1945Don Byas silver, tenor 1946 (after Hawkins; really Lester should have been gold or silver but glad to see Byas recognized)Vic Dickenson silver, trombone 1946Woody Herman silver, band 1946Joseph Scott