Big Band Bash

There were some fantastic songs composed in the years of 1936 and 1937. Composers Gershwin, Rogers, Kern and Duke wrote many hit songs that are still being played today. Benny Goodman's big hit Sing, Sing, Sing was recorded in 1937 and I have included both parts. There was one song I didn't have time for but I only found one big band version. Someday My Prince Will Come is a popular jazz standard but was not recorded by many big bands. I hope you enjoy this potpourri of 1930's popular songs as played by many different big bands. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

The 1930's was a time in popular music that saw many changes. Jazz standards are musical compositions that are widely known, performed and recorded by jazz artists as part of the genre's musical repertoire. In the 1930s, swing jazz emerged as a dominant form in American music. Today, we focus on the years of 1934 and 1935. The number of hit songs from these two years had dwindled down in part because of the Great Depressions. But nevertheless, there were some great songs composed then and we'll learn a little bit about them as we listen to performances by the big bands. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

The 1930's was a decade of great songs by great American composers. For the next five weeks we'll be listening to those great standards performed by different bands. This is part 2 in the series as we examine those catchy songs from 1932 and 1933. The Great Depression was gathering momentum and it affected the song writers of Tin Pan Alley. The number of hit songs started to decrease as we'll see in the next few parts in the series. There were some great songs composed during 1932 and 1933 and I hope you enjoy the selections. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

The 1930's was a decade of great songs by great American composers. For the next five weeks we'll be listening to those great standards performed by different bands. While putting this show together I tried to use recordings by bands that were not as popular as the ones who recorded the definitive version. On the show today we'll be listening to songs composed during the years of 1930 and 1931. There were some great songs composed then and I hope you'll join me as we listen to and learn about them. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

This week, I'm going to be playing the third and final record in this three record set that features many hits from the RCA Bluebird record label. When I was a youngster my dad bought a three record set called The Big Bands. In it were songs that went along with a book by George T. Simon. Each record was devoted to a particular record label. The three labels were Decca, Columbia, and RCA Bluebird. It was a nice set with a lot of the hits from the big band era. I came across this set the other day and thought it would be great to hear all those great old songs again. We'll be hearing songs from Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey and many others. I hope you enjoy all the bands this week that were part of the RCA Bluebird family. Please visit this podcast at http://www.fgmiller.com/bbb/

This week, I'm going to be playing the second record in the three record set that features many hits from the Columbia record label. When I was a youngster, my dad bought a three record set called The Big Bands. In it were songs that went along with a book by George T. Simon. Each record was devoted to a particular record label. The three labels were Decca, Columbia, and RCA Bluebird. It was a nice set with a lot of the hits from the big band era. We'll be hearing from Harry James, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman and many others. I hope you enjoy all the bands this week that were part of the Columbia family. Please visit this podcast at http://www.fgmiller.com/bbb/

Hello everyone. When I was growing up, my father had purchased a 3 record set call The Big Bands. What was unique about this set was that each of the records had hits from one of the record labels issuing records back then. Record one had hits issued on the Decca label, record two had hits from Columbia and record three had hits from RCA Blurbird. So for the next three weeks I hope you will enjoy leaning about those record labels as I present a potpourri of songs issued from those great record companies. I can just remember back and hear my dad playing those records and smiling at the many memories he must have had. Please visit this podcast at http://www.fgmiller.com/bbb/

It has been awhile since I presented a program on the late Stan Kenton so I wanted to go back and revisit some of his music again. As a musician it was his band from the 1950's that I enjoyed listening to the most. However, on today's show I'm going back to those great Kenton classics from the 1940's. I have really come to enjoy the vocals of Anita O'day and June Christy when they were the vocalists with his band. I hope you will enjoy listening to this great music and learning about the career of the late Stan Kenton. Please visit this podcast at http://www.fgmiller.com/bbb/

This week we will be celebrating the birthday of bandleader Bob Crosby. He was born on August 23, 1913 and led one of the most popular big bands during the dance band era. He had some very exciting sidemen in the band. Musicians like Bob Haggart, Ray Bauduc, Eddie, Miller, Irving Fazola, and Yank Lawson were some of the people who passed through the band. Bob was not an instrumentalist but rather a very good vocalist and front man. I hope you enjoy our Bob Crosby birthday salute.Please visit this podcast at http://www.fgmiller.com/bbb/

This week's show is a look at some of the Big Band Theme Songs. Just as today's television theme songs identify the show, a big band's theme song helped to identify the band that was on the radio. Some theme songs were originals and some were borrowed from others. We'll be hearing lots of theme songs today on our show so I hope some of these are your favorites. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

August 24, 1904 is the birthday of the late bandleader William Count Basie. To celebrate his birthday, I have pulled out a program I produced back in 2013. I decided to focus on the year of 1939 and play many of the songs recorded by the Basie band during that year. I am a big fan of the Basie band as my father had a couple of his records and as I grew older I began to explore the history and recordings of the man known as Count Basie. In addition to Basie, there were those great sidemen of his to spotlight. Musicians like Lester Young, Helen Humes, Buck Clayton, Dickie Wells, and Jo Jones make this a really great year for the Count. This is a good program and I hope you enjoy the music as well as a brief biography of the William Bill Basie known in the big band circle as Count. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. The Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands was the Coca-Cola Company’s big band legacy and its contribution to the war effort. An outstanding collection of 25 of America’s most popular big bands broadcasting live from military bases and defense plants from coast-to-coast during World War II. This week we will listen to four of these live radio remotes featuring the bands of Les Brown, Bob Chester, Jan Savitt, and Gene Krupa This is a glimpse back in time to hear four great bands on the radio at the close of WW2. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. I am working on some new shows that are not quite finished. So here is a show i produced back in 2013 and it features the vocal groups from the big band era. Some of the groups were solo acts and others sang as part of the band. Who could forget groups like the Andrews Sisters, the Ink Spots, the Mills Brothers, the Pied Pipers and the Modernaires? In addition, I tried to give a little history of each group. I hope you enjoy all the vocal groups this week solo and as part of the band. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. August 10, 1908 is the birthday of the late bandleader Claude Thornhill. It has been awhile since I have played some of the great recordings made by the Thornhill orchestra, so to remember Claude on his birthday here is a show I produced about ten years ago remembering Claude on his birthday. I had never heard of Claude when a fellow Big Band lover asked me if I had ever listened to his music. I obtained a couple of his lp's (lp stood for long playing back then) and really enjoyed what I heard. To celebrate his birthday we'll revisit some of that great music. I hope you enjoy it as well as learning a little bit about this great musician. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Back during World War Two, it took a lot of money to produce the materials, grow the food and make all the things that the soldiers needed to use in combat. So to help raise money, the United States Government sold bonds. A simple example is that you bought a bond for $10 and waited until it matured and then the government would give you back $11. You made interest for loaning the government money. I know this is a simplistic example but during WW2 many cities would have bond rallies and bring in name bands to play while the bonds were being sold. Today's show features two broadcasts by the Tommy Dorsey orchestra at two different rallies. The first broadcast has Frank Sinatra as the featured vocalist and the second features Dick Haymes. I hope you enjoy this trip into the past and enjoy the music of Tommy Dorsey. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. On July 21, 2023 the vocalist Tony Bennett passed away in his Manhattan apartment. He was 96 years old. Tony was a great singer and an interpreter of the Great American Songbook. He recorded in many genres and even made some recordings with big bands. On the program today, I would like to remember Tony with some of his early hits and some recordings with some big bands and some assorted songs. I will also take a look at Tony's career from Tony's New York Times' obituary. I hope you enjoy the music as we remember the man Frank Sinatra called his favorite singer. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. Today's program features the great big band of Harry James. The selections were taken from various radio broadcasts between the years of 1943 and 1953. There are a lot of great performances in this set from the James band. I don't do much talking on the show as all the songs are introduced by the announcer present at the broadcasts. So sit back, and relax and enjoy the sound of Harry James and His Music Makers, as he was billed, between the years of 1943 and 1953. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. This week's show is a potpourri show featuring songs about the summer season. I do this type of show on the jazz program I host at the radio station that I work part-time at. I haven't done too many seasonal song shows on this program. I tried to find songs that have the words summer, June, July, August, or hot in the song titles. There are lots of different bands on the show today so I hope you enjoy the songs of summer show. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. Today's show is a repeat of the Patriotic Show that I produced for last year. Since I didn't get to air it before the Fourth of July I decided to run it today. This was the first all patriotic show I ever produced and it has words like America, Patriot, liberty, freedom etc. in the titles. I also give a little history about the Fourth of July and it's importance. I hope you enjoy the music and I hope you had a great Fourth as I celebrate the Fourth of July one week late. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com

Hello everyone. This week we wrap up the four part imaginary assignment to create a four cd set of the Best of The Big Bands. This is the final part. I have picked out the final 16 numbers from the best of the big bands and I think you will recognize most of them. This was a fun series to put together and I hope I picked out several of your favorite bands and songs. Next week we will start some new programs with different subjects and bands. Please visit this podcast at http://bigbandbashfm.blogspot.com