That Jazz - Monkey Max Music and File Download

106
Part II: Jazz Greats and Great Jazz: An Evolutionary Riff
Figure 6-3:
Benny
Goodman
helped
showcase
star soloists
in his band.
suggestion of producer John Hammond, Goodman (see Figure 6-3) hired
Henderson to be his arranger. To meet the demand of the radio audience and
ballroom dancing crowd, both black and white bands tended toward smoother,
middle-of-the-road sounds.
©William P. Gottlieb, www.jazzphotos.com
As a young musician, Goodman classically trained on clarinet, in Chicago, he
also studied the music of Louis Armstrong and King Oliver (see Chapter 5), as
well as clarinetists Buster Bailey, Barney Bigard, Johnny Dodds, Albert
Nicholas, and Jimmie Noone.
Goodman’s big band music had a more precise and exacting sound than Count
Basie’s loosely swinging, liberally improvising crew, but Goodman had an ear
for gifted players. The music swung in a ballroom dancing mode, and the
leader himself played peerless clarinet.
Goodman integrated his group with Charlie Christian, Lionel Hampton, Teddy
Wilson, and others as essential members. The small group recordings he made
with these players during the 1930s sped the transition from big band swing to
a format that left more room for improvisation. Given Goodman’s phenomenal