mmilovan Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 (edited) Hello people, I've just obtained one CD (one of them crappy labels with no discographical infos), and was amazed by the quality of music. It's Les Brown. I think very little is known about him, but soloist and arrangements were very fine. He had some perfect tenor sax soloist that reminds of Lester Young so much, and other good trumpet players that played just as Harry James or Roy Eldridge. Arrangements for that band were simmilar to Kenton's charts, still some of them were more dance oriented, but not mellowed and melt into strings section like Tommy Dorsey's. More swing oriented, and always with strong jazz content, even they played that old dance tunes such as: Ramona, Amapola, etc - what is quite rare among all dance band not to step in banality of the tunes itself. Section work was on highest levels, and the band can swing! As far as I know, Les Brown had that "Sentimental Journey" hit... Any fans? Any more facts? Was Les Brown only chief figure or he played some instrument as well... Recommendations? BTW I begin to discover that fantastic world of long-forgotten swing-jazz bands... Edited June 17, 2005 by mmilovan Quote
JSngry Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 http://www.musicweb-international.com/ency...edia/b/B273.HTM http://www.jazzhouse.org/gone/lastpost2.php3?edit=978946033 http://www.lesbrownsbandofrenown.com/ http://www.bandsofrenown.com/default.htm Les Brown always had a good band, full of decent jazz players who were also expert section players. The arrangements were always top-flight as well. It was a dance band all the way, but one which went about its particular business in its particular niche about as well as could be done. Quote
king ubu Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 I have this one here: Enjoyable, swinging music. As Sangrey put it: very good for what it is! Not music I could listen to all the time, but when the mood is right, it's perfect. Quote
brownie Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 Not really familiar with the Les Brown Orchestra. One album I like very much is the Les Brown All Stars date that was released on Capitol. A 1955 album that highlighted four of the main soloists from the band: Don Fagerquist, Ronny Lang, Dave Pell and Ray Sims. Ray's brother Zoot played on the Fagerquist section of the album, not on his brother's! The other Les Brown date I enjoyed was the Concert at the Palladium, a Coral 2LP box from a 1953 concert in Hollywood. The box included a four-page booklet (with notes by Leonard Feather) that had a blank page for autograph-seekers! Many of the musicians from the Les Brown band were featured in the marvelous albums led by Dave Pell in the fifties Quote
king ubu Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 Not really familiar with the Les Brown Orchestra. One album I like very much is the Les Brown All Stars date that was released on Capitol. A 1955 album that highlighted four of the main soloists from the band: Don Fagerquist, Ronny Lang, Dave Pell and Ray Sims. Ray's brother Zoot played on the Fagerquist section of the album, not on his brother's! The other Les Brown date I enjoyed was the Concert at the Palladium, a Coral 2LP box from a 1953 concert in Hollywood. The box included a four-page booklet (with notes by Leonard Feather) that had a blank page for autograph-seekers! Many of the musicians from the Les Brown band were featured in the marvelous albums led by Dave Pell in the fifties ← Since Pell is being mentioned, allow me a short departure from the topic. Is this the same Dave Pell? (available here: http://www.basichip.com/) Quote
brownie Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 I would say it is the same Dave Pell. Never saw (or heard) that one. Probably not one of the 'marvelous' albums I had in mind. Fresh Sound reissued mast of those ones. Quote
king ubu Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 I would say it is the same Dave Pell. Never saw (or heard) that one. Probably not one of the 'marvelous' albums I had in mind. Fresh Sound reissued mast of those ones. ← You can listen when you follow my link - extremely crappy of-its-time music in the worst sense! I only have that Blue Note Pell disc (with the added Fagerquist session), and I would like to hear a few more! Will have to save some money, I assume... Quote
brownie Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 Some recommended Dave Pell from his Les Brown days: - 'I Had the Craziest Dream' (Capitol), with Don Fagerquist, Bob Gordon, - 'A Pell of a Time' (Victor), with Jack Sheldon, Pepper Adams, Mel Lewis, - 'The Big Small Bands' (Capitol), with Fagerquist, Sheldon, Art Pepper, etc... also the two Atlantic albums 'Jazz and Romantic Places', and 'Love Story'. Mind you, far from essential albums but easy listening jazz in the best sense of the word... Quote
ghost of miles Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 I have this one here: Enjoyable, swinging music. As Sangrey put it: very good for what it is! Not music I could listen to all the time, but when the mood is right, it's perfect. ← I have that one as well... I also have the Columbia BEST OF THE BIG BANDS comp as well as THE UNCOLLECTED LES BROWN V. 2 on Hindsight, which has a couple of interesting "bop-influenced" numbers (can't remember the name of the pianist--Joe Lippman? Whoever it was behind those numbers really sparked my interest). Thanks for introducing this topic--I tried to raise it a couple of years ago and failed miserably in my attempt to get a bite! G. Schuller really does speak well of the band. Quote
SGUD missile Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 In addition to the Les Brown band ( which was quite well known back in the 40s/50s ) other "lesser know " big bands worth investigating: The Sauter /Finegan Orchestra Claude Thornhill Boyd Rayburn Bbobby Sherwood Billy Butterfield Quote
ghost of miles Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 In addition to the Les Brown band ( which was quite well known back in the 40s/50s ) other "lesser know " big bands worth investigating: The Sauter /Finegan Orchestra Claude Thornhill Boyd Rayburn Bbobby Sherwood Billy Butterfield ← Yes to all of the above! Just recently got a CD of Bobby Sherwood radio broadcasts, w/Zoot Sims featured on a couple of tunes. I love Thornhill and Raeburn... as you well know... and Butterfield's another bb that I enjoy. I have BEST OF SAUTER-FINEGAN and hope to eventually track down more. Quote
JSngry Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 Throw in some of the Les & Larry Elgart stuff to the list. They recorded a bunch of "pop" crap for Columbia, but they also had a good dance band book full of modern-ish arrangements of standards and such. Also, it was another one of those bands that was usally stocked with jazz players who did the gig for buckage. Whatever the motivation, though, the results were definitely not the usual stodgy dance band dreck, at least not when the charts and material weren't. Quote
ghost of miles Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 Throw in some of the Les & Larry Elgart stuff to the list. They recorded a bunch of "pop" crap for Columbia, but they also had a good dance band book full of modern-ish arrangements of standards and such. Also, it was another one of those bands that was usally stocked with jazz players who did the gig for buckage. Whatever the motivation, though, the results were definitely not the usual stodgy dance band dreck, at least not when the charts and material weren't. ← Yes! I picked up yet another BEST OF THE BIG BANDS, this one an Elgart CD, through either BMG or Columbia House... I'll be spinning some tunes from it on a Big Bands program next month. Quote
Clunky Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 does the Herb Pomeroy Orchestra belong here too ?? Quote
mmilovan Posted June 17, 2005 Author Report Posted June 17, 2005 (edited) You can listen when you follow my link - extremely crappy of-its-time music in the worst sense! I only have that Blue Note Pell disc (with the added Fagerquist session), and I would like to hear a few more! Will have to save some money, I assume... How does Dave Pell sounds to you, like Lester? These recordings I own from undocumented compilation has that reed player all the way, and he is very good while doing that emulation of Pres... Edited June 17, 2005 by mmilovan Quote
king ubu Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 You can listen when you follow my link - extremely crappy of-its-time music in the worst sense! I only have that Blue Note Pell disc (with the added Fagerquist session), and I would like to hear a few more! Will have to save some money, I assume... ← How does Dave Pell sounds to you, like Lester? These recordings I own from undocumented compilation has that reed player all the way, and he is very good while doing that emulation of Pres... ← Quote
mmilovan Posted June 17, 2005 Author Report Posted June 17, 2005 (edited) Since Pell is being mentioned, allow me a short departure from the topic. Is this the same Dave Pell? (available here: http://www.basichip.com/) ← Now this is pure CRAAAP! Reminds me of the same thing going by Ray Coniff, and he was in Artie Shaw's trombone section. Well, how much garbage once good jazz musicians produced later in theirs years when departured from jazz...? Edited June 17, 2005 by mmilovan Quote
JSngry Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 Milan, the odds are that the Lestorian tenor player you have on your Brown disc is either Pell (who later on formed the Prez Conference group, remember) or Ted Nash. Probably Pell. Quote
mmilovan Posted June 17, 2005 Author Report Posted June 17, 2005 (edited) Milan, the odds are that the Lestorian tenor player you have on your Brown disc is either Pell (who later on formed the Prez Conference group, remember) or Ted Nash. Probably Pell. ← Thanks - I'll keep that in mind and look for more Pell. But not his group of singers... Don't know how I survived listening to tracks on that pop Coniffesque LP from 1960's-70's, Flurin linked us to Edited June 17, 2005 by mmilovan Quote
JSngry Posted June 17, 2005 Report Posted June 17, 2005 Back to Les Brown, I'm sure that the name is familiar to many the world over for his long association w/Bob Hope. But I'm not aware of Hope ever giving the band any space on his numerous TV shows/specials. Maybe when they appeared live he used them as a warm-up. But Brown had a history (and a band) long before the Hope affiliation. Quote
Stereojack Posted June 18, 2005 Report Posted June 18, 2005 Brown's band usually followed a pattern of dance-oriented swing, often featuring fine arrangemants. One on which they really outdid themselves is "Jazz Songbook" (Coral), a late 1950's LP on which six guest soloists are brought in, each given two feature pieces. The soloists are Zoot Sims, Frank Rosolino, Buddy DeFranco, Terry Gibbs, Don Fagerquist, & Ronnie Lang. If you can find this one, it's a winner all the way. Quote
MartyJazz Posted June 18, 2005 Report Posted June 18, 2005 Back to Les Brown, I'm sure that the name is familiar to many the world over for his long association w/Bob Hope. But I'm not aware of Hope ever giving the band any space on his numerous TV shows/specials. Maybe when they appeared live he used them as a warm-up. But Brown had a history (and a band) long before the Hope affiliation. ← Well, I do remember once Hope giving a Brown a feature spot with the announcement: "How about some MORE music and LES Brown"! Quote
Randy Twizzle Posted June 18, 2005 Report Posted June 18, 2005 I once saw an early Hope TV special from 1950 or 51 where Brown's band was featured for a complete version of "I've got My Love to Keep Me Warm." I suppose in the early 50s a big band selection was still considered something viewers might be interested in, but in the 60s and 70s during those endless Bob Hope specials that many of us grew up with, big band music would have taken precious time away from those awful sketches. (Anybody remember the show with Mark Spitz and Bobby Fisher?) Quote
Dave James Posted June 18, 2005 Report Posted June 18, 2005 Well, Ozzie Nelson - yes, that Ozzie Nelson; Eagle Scout, quarterback for the Duke University football team and Juris Doctor - had a semi-popular sweet band in the '30's. His vocalist? Harriet Hillier. Sound familiar? I've seen films of these guys and, while they were pretty derivative, they could swing. Up over and out. Quote
Randy Twizzle Posted June 18, 2005 Report Posted June 18, 2005 Well, Ozzie Nelson - yes, that Ozzie Nelson; Eagle Scout, quarterback for the Duke University football team and Juris Doctor - ← Ozzie attended Rutgers, where he also played football and earned a law degree. He's in the school's Hall of Distinguised Alumni. Quote
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