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Chapter 6
The Golden Era of Big Band
Swing: The 1930s and Beyond
In This Chapter
� Setting the stage for big band swing
� Going on the road with Midwest territory bands
� Looking at the influence of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Benny Goodman
� Meeting big bands, solo musicians, and singers
New Orleans rose to a Mardi Gras of primal jazz through the early 1900s,
but during the late teens and early 1920s, the best New Orleans musicians
migrated to Chicago to take advantage of the vibrant jazz scene (see
Chapter 5). In the 1930s, though, New York City became the new capital of
music composing, publishing, and recording and the hottest place for new jazz.
Already, in Chicago, the Midwest, and New York, larger bands had replaced
small groups as jazz’s dominant format. A new generation of big band leaders
launched the Swing Era in earnest. Born as America emerged from the
Depression, big band swing — a music that offered upbeat escape — became
a popular phenomenon. Traditionalists also believe that the big band era
produced jazz that’s never been equaled (fans of bebop and newer music give
them a good argument).
Initially, two types of big bands emerged in the late 1920s and the early 1930s
(not counting the bands led by Duke Ellington, who belongs in a class all his
own — see “Coronating Duke Ellington” later in this chapter):
� Smooth and sophisticated bands played intricate arrangements and confined
soloists to smaller roles. College-educated players such as Benny
Goodman, Fletcher Henderson, Coleman Hawkins, and Don Redman
populated many of these smooth bands.
� Rougher blues-oriented “territory” bands from the Midwest and Southwest
and their successors in New York City (such as Count Basie’s band)
showcased talented soloists.