Big Band Library: October 2010 "Big Band News"

The big bands are back

in a new and exciting way!

What, then is in store for Pentleton and the McIntyre ensemble?

"My hope for the future of the McIntyre band is very simple: to try and keep the group working as much as possible," he says. "All of the above makes not only me but the members of the MacOrk want to keep it going, even though the current down money trend makes it a bit difficult. We'll do our part if the fans do theirs. Supporting the bands will go a long way to keeping the flame burning."

To learn more about Hal McIntyre, read the biographical sketch "Hal McIntyre: A Great Guy" elsewhere on this website.

MORE NAME BANDS NOW

Ray Anthony. Oct. 24, L.A. Jazz Institute "A Jazz Tribute to Frank Sinatra," Los Angeles,

CA.

Count Basie Orchestra directed by Dennis Mackrel. Oct. 23, Mayo Center for the Performing

Arts, Morristown, NJ; Oct. 24, State Theatre of Ithaca, Ithaca, NY; Oct. 25, Moriah Central

School, Port Henry, NY; Oct. 30, Mecc Jazz Maastricht, Maastricht, Holland; Oct. 31,

Thessaloniki Music Hall, Thessaloniki, Greece.

Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra directed by Bill Tole. Oct. 2, Pawley's Island, SC.

Jan Garber Orchestra directed by Howard Schneider. Oct. 3, Dubuque County Fairgrounds

Ballroom, Dubuque, IA.

Harry James Orchestra directed by Fred Radke. Oct. 2, Astoria, OR.

Glenn Miller Orchestra directed by Larry O'Brien. Oct. 2, Blanche Touhill Performing Arts

Center, St. Louis, MO; Oct. 3, The Orpheum Theatre, Galesburg, IL; Oct. 5, Tiffin

Columbian High School, Tiffin, OH; Oct. 7, Historic Crockett Theatre, Lawrenceburg, TN;

Oct. 9, Fulton City High School, Fulton, KY; Oct. 12, T.B. Shelton Auditorium, Red Wing,

MN; Oct. 15, SE Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau, MO; Oct. 17, River Raisin

Centre for the Arts, Monroe, MI; Oct. 20, Mansion at Oak Hill, Carmel, IN; Oct. 21, Bear

Creek Farms, Bryant, IN; Oct. 22, Ford Community & Performing Arts Center, Dearborn,

MI; Oct. 23, Tecumseh Civic Auditorium, Tecumseh, MI; Oct. 25, Central Dauphin High

School, Harrisburg, PA; Oct. 26-27, Penn’s Peak, Jim Thorpe, PA; Oct. 28, The Carlyle

Club, Alexandra, VA; Oct. 29, Dover Downs Hotel & Casino, Dover, DE; Oct. 30,

Patchogue Theatre, Patchogue, NY.

Artie Shaw Orchestra directed by Matt Koza. Oct. 16, Central Auditorium, Findlay, OH;

Oct. 18, Carnegie Hall, Lewisburg, WV; Oct. 19, Myrtle Beach Convention Center, Myrtle

Beach, SC; Oct. 26, East Georgia College, Swainsboro, GA; Oct. 28, East Noble High

School, Kendalville, IN; Oct. 29, Indiana Theatre, Terre Haute, IN.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

Terry Gibbs, b.Oct. 13, 1924. Vibraphonist with Rich '48; Herman '48-'49; T. Dorsey '50;

Goodman '50-'52.

Paul Tanner, b.Oct. 15, 1917. Trombonist with Miller '38-'42; Miller Orch.-Beneke '46-'50;

Beneke '50-'51.

Norman Leyden, b.Oct. 17, 1917. Arranger with Miller AAF '44-'45; Miller Orch.-Beneke

'46-'49; Columbia "Once Upon a Time" LP with Johnny Desmond '59.

Betty Bennett, b.Oct. 23, 1921. Vocalist with Thornhill '46; Rey '47-'48; Ventura '49;

Herman '50; Barnet '52.

NEW IN-PRINT AND / OR ONLINE

David Bernhart. "Buddy Morrow," Big Band Academy of America / bigbandacademy.

blogspot.com, October 5, 2010. Bernhart comments, "Over the last year and a half or so,

I corresponded occasionally with Buddy's wife, Carol. The hope was that the BBAA could

honor Buddy at a Big Band Reunion, scheduling the event for a time when the Morrows

would be in L.A. to visit their daughter. While I'm disappointed that such an affair never

came to pass, the disappointment pales compared to the realization of the terrible hole

Buddy's death leaves in the musical landscape. There are just some personalities who

can't be replaced and Buddy was one of them, if anybody was."

Tony Eaton. "CD Reviews," [ Glenn Miller Society ] Moonlight Serenader, 3rd Edition 2010,

pp.7-8. Positive reviews of "Glenn Miller and the Army Airforces Band" (Sounds of

Yester Year [ UK ] DSOY 812) and "Garry Stevens Sings Again With Tex Beneke And The

Glenn Miller Orchestra 1946-1948 (Sounds of Yester Year [ UK ] DSOY 820).

---. "Downs Revisited," [ Glenn Miller Society ] Moonlight Serenader, 3rd Edition 2010,

pp.9-10. In part a mention of a hardcover version of Hunton Downs' controversial 2009

book about Glenn Miller's fate, now retitled The Glenn Miller Conspiracy: The Shocking

True Story of How He Died and Why (London, England: JR Books, 2010). Eaton says

that "the main difference is in the flow" and calls it "a re-shaped and arguably a more

readable mark 2, rather than a straight copy of the US paperback."

---. "What's New?," [ Glenn Miller Society ] Moonlight Serenader, 3rd Edition 2010, p.6.

Including the likely demolition of the Pennsylvania Hotel in New York City and the death

of Jack Parnell, a former Ted Heath musician, whom Eaton considers "one of Britain's

greatest post-war drummers."

Eloisa Ruano Gonzalez. "Buddy Morrow: Big-band trombonist found fame," Orlando [ FL ]

Sentinel, October 2, 2010. The Baldwin-Fairchild Funeral Home is in charge of

arrangements.

"Obituaries: Trombonist Buddy Morrow dies at 91," Los Angeles Times, October 4, 2010.

Daniel E. Slotnik. "Obituaries: Buddy Morrow, Trombonist and Bandleader, Dies at 91,"

New York Times, October 3, 2010, p.A26.

Roland Taylor. "Miller's Mighty Service Band: The ensemble in focus," [ Glenn Miller Society ]

Moonlight Serenader, 3rd Edition 2010, pp.2-5. The chronology of Glenn Miller's AAF

orchestra continues, now through August 12, 1944.

Paige VanVorst. "On the Jazz Beat Bookshelf," Jazzbeat, Volume 21 No. 2 & 3 2010,

p.25+. Various reviews including John Tumpak's When Swing Was the Thing: Personality

Profiles of the Big Band Era (Milwaukee, WI: Marquette University Press, 2009).

Tex Wyndham. "Tommy Dorsey," Jazzbeat, Volume 21 No. 2 & 3 2010, pp.21-22.

Previews a forthcoming TD CD on the Circle label.

Jonathan Yardley. "Review of 'Hi De Ho,' Alyn Shipton's biography of Cab Calloway,"

Washington [ DC ] Post, Oct. 24, 2010. Yardley comments that Shipton "does a

workmanlike if uninspired job with Calloway, whose zest and brio shine through only

intermittently . . . Say it for Shipton, though, that he makes a solid case for Calloway as

a jazz musician as well as an entertainer . . . "

OCTOBER 2010

"BIG BAND NEWS"

compiled by Music Librarian CHRISTOPHER POPA

KEEPING THE

FLAME BURNING

As drummer and director of The Hal McIntyre Orchestra since 2004, Don Pentleton has been cautiously guarding the musical legacy of the late bandleader, who passed away in 1959.

"It's a kick for us to be able to play those wonderful swinging charts and those lovely, lush ballads," he tells me.

And Pentleton intends that McIntyre's music will continue to be heard for many more years to come.

Don Pentleton

"I think the biggest challenge in the current edition of the McIntyre orchestra is getting bookings and then getting the proper amount of money to cover payroll and transportation," Pentleton acknowledges. "So far we've been fortunate in that respect."

But that's not the only test which he faces - McIntyre was an alto saxophonist who stood in front of the band, while Pentleton is seated at a drum kit.

"Being a drummer / leader is a challenge," Pentleton admits. "Setting the proper tempo going into the tune, keeping the tempo steady and cueing the solos when we open it up and letting the soloists get their fair share of space. Our lead alto player does the cuts-offs and the conducting when needed."

Thankfully, Pentleton and The Hal McIntyre Orchestra have been received well in their concerts and dances around New England, including appearances in 2010 at the Amazing Things Center for the Arts in Framingham, MA; Elim Park Auditorium in Cheshire, CT; the Gannon Country Club in Lynn, MA; and Stanley Park in Westfield, MA. (The color photographs which accompany this article were taken during the band's program at Stanley Park.)

"We are delighted with the response the band receives during our performances," Pentleton reports. "The crowds are of course older but amazingly enough, we are seeing more young people who are interested in our style of music. During this summer, we've been playing before full houses which are always ready to be entertained."

The Hal McIntyre Orchestra

McIntyre, who formed his big band in 1941, respected and took inspiration from, in particular, fellow leader Duke Ellington. McIntyre's tasteful arrangers often tried to emulate Ellington's harmonic shades and tone colors in the band's music, giving him many lovely ballads to play on his Johnny Hodges-like alto sax.

"Hal always had the best arrangers available, Billy May among them," according to Pentleton. "We most enjoy playing his arrangement of Daisy May. Some of the others would include St. Louis Blues, 'Deed I Do, and I Can't Believe That You're in Love with Me."

"We're lucky in as much as we still have many of the original McIntyre arrangements in our book, although after many years of touring, some of the charts have been lost or, in some instances, taken. In that case, we've had to do record copies. One of the favorite parts of our performances is when I ask the musicians to hold up their copy of Hal's beautiful chart on Don't You Know I Care. It's in pretty rough shape... yellow, torn, and just about unreadable. The audiences love it."

McIntyre was co-composer with tenor saxophonist and arranger Dave Matthews on a number of originals for the band, such as The Commando's Serenade, Play No.49, and South Bayou Shuffle.

"Playing that book is a delight, it's so swinging and musical," Pentleton enthuses. "I enjoy seeing our members anxious to go to work, the audiences enjoying what we have to offer, especially the standards - Sentimental Journey, Moonlight in Vermont and so on. The other night we were playing a sold-out concert when I happened to look to the side of the hall and there were two couples dancing. It doesn't get better than that."

Here is, at this writing, the complete personnel of The Hal McIntyre Orchestra: Dave Burdett (2nd trumpet / jazz soloist), Dennis Perricio (lead trumpet), Everett Longstreth (third trumpet / arranger), Walt Bostian (2nd trombone / jazz soloist), Steve Piermarini (lead trombone / vocal conductor), Tim Kelly (bass trombone), Ed Harlow (1st tenor saxophone / jazz soloist), Sid D'Urbano (2nd alto saxophone / flute / clarinet), Tom Ferrente (lead alto saxophone / Hal McIntyre soloist), Paul Elman (2nd tenor saxophone / band manager), Arthur Bakopolus (baritone saxophone), John Acaro (piano), Stephen Arsenault (bass), Don Pentleton (drums / leader), and Steve Marvin (vocals).

McIntyre, on clarinet, and his original drummer, Ralph Tilkin, promoting Slingerland drums in the 1940s

"Many people have approached us with Hal McIntyre autographs they got from Hal when he played in their area back in the day," Pentleton says.

Those long-time fans might be pleased to know that McIntyre is represented on CD by no fewer than six titles, such as "Hal McIntyre: The Issued Recordings 1941-1947" (Jazz Band [ UK ] EBCD 2170), "Hal McIntyre and His Orchestra: 1942" (Circle CCD-8), and, most recently, "Free and Easy" (Hindsight HCD-284) and "Lullaby of Birdland" (Hindsight HCD-285).

"We are selling quite a few McIntyre CDs on our location dates," Pentleton notes. "This income helps a lot, it helps to keep us in business."

However, plans for a compact disc of today's McIntyre band are on hold.

"As far as a CD of this edition of The Hal McIntyre Orchestra goes, I don't think we'll be addressing that issue at this time," Pentleton responds. "It takes a major investment to do it properly.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Former Stan Kenton saxophonist Lee Konitz continues to make music at age 82. On the 28th and 29th of last month in San Francisco and LaJolla, CA, he performed with three young men, billed as the "Lee Konitz New Quartet."

Music critic George Varga commented, "One of the most forward-looking alto saxophonists around, Konitz is able to take even the most weathered standards, some nearly as old as him, and make them fresh and vital through his improvisational ingenuity and refusal to rely on stock phrases."

Lee Konitz [ 2nd from l. ] in 2010

with the rest of the Lee Konitz New Quartet.

ALSO OF NOTE

Honoring the memory of Louie Bellson in the town of his boyhood home, the inaugural running of the "Louie Bellson 5K Memorial Drum Roll" will take place on the 16th of this month in Moline, IL. Proceeds go to support music education in Illinois Quad City public schools.

Les Brown will be posthumously inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame on the 7th of this month. The ceremony will take place on the North Carolina Research Campus, and the Hall itself is at 109 West A St. in Kannapolis, NC.

And the late Dizzy Gillespie was remembered on the 21st of this month, his birthday, with a Google "doodle" - that is, an abstract illustration of him, in the shape of the Google logo on their website.

NEW COMPACT DISCS

Bernie Cummins. "Original 20s - 30s Hot Dance Music," Vintage Music Productions 321.

Recorded 1927-30 on Brunswick or Victor.

Duke Ellington. "At the Cotton Club," Storyville [ Den ] 1038415. 2-CDs, including nine

transmissions from the Cotton Club on Lenox Ave. in New York City; an April 29, 1938

broadcast from the Konserthuset in Stockholm; and a 1933 newsreel film clip from the

Cotton Club.

Dizzy Gillespie. "Performance," Universal 66118. 16 tunes done in 1945-47.

Benny Goodman. "The Complete Benny in Brussels," Solar Records 66125. 3-CDs,

including the material from the rare 5-LP Westinghouse "Brussels" souvenir set.

Harry James. "Performance," Universal 66117. 15 selections from the 1940s.

Glenn Miller. "Jazz for Kids," HiHi Records / Victor [ Japan ] VICJ-61639.

Teddy Wilson. "Solo / Big Band," Storyville [ Den ] 1088607. 8 CDs, including studio

sessions, transcriptions, radio broadcasts, and live performances spanning 1939 to

1983.

SNEAK PEEK

Next month I will review a new CD reissue of stereo recordings made in 1957 by many of the famous big band sidemen, playing some of the most famous hits of Glenn Miller and the Dorsey brothers.

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