Biography
Benny Goodman emerged as the Swing Era's initial prominent orchestra leader, receiving the nickname "The King of Swing" as his ascent signaled the period's launch. An expert clarinetist, his singular style shaped both his large ensemble and the smaller groups he directed at the same time. The dominant personality across the Swing Era's opening phase, he sustained performances through the five decades leading to his death.
Born to Russian immigrants David Goodman, a tailor, and Dora Rezinsky Goodman, he started clarinet instruction at age ten in a synagogue before joining the ensemble at Hull House, a settlement residence. His professional debut occurred at twelve, after which he left high school at fourteen to pursue music full time. In August 1925, at sixteen, he entered the Ben Pollack band, producing his initial released group recordings with them in December 1926. January 1928 brought his first sessions issued under his own name. Departing Pollack in September 1929 at age twenty, he relocated to New York for freelance work across recording dates, radio broadcasts, and Broadway pit orchestras. He also cut sides under his own name with assembled groups, first charting with "He's Not Worth Your Tears" (vocal by Scrappy Lambert) on Melotone Records in January 1931. Signing with Columbia Records in fall 1934, he reached the Top Ten in early 1934 via "Ain't Cha Glad?" (vocal by Jack Teagarden), "Riffin' the Scotch" (vocal by Billie Holiday), and "Ol' Pappy" (vocal by Mildred Bailey), followed by "I Ain't Lazy, I'm Just Dreamin'" (vocal by Jack Teagarden) that spring.
These recording achievements and an engagement at Billy Rose's Music Hall prompted Goodman to form a standing orchestra, which debuted on June 1, 1934. His instrumental "Moon Glow" attained number one in July, while two further Top Ten entries arrived that fall with the instrumentals "Take My Word" and "Bugle Call Rag." Following a four-and-a-half-month Music Hall engagement, he joined NBC's Saturday-night Let's Dance program for its final hour. Across the six months on air he accumulated another six Columbia Top Ten hits before moving to RCA Victor, where five additional Top Ten successes appeared by year's end.
After Let's Dance concluded, Goodman launched a national tour in summer 1935. Limited success marked the early leg until the West Coast, where the program had aired three hours earlier than on the East Coast. His August 21, 1935, appearance at the Palomar Ballroom near Los Angeles proved a landmark triumph, later recalled as the Swing Era's official start. He then began a six-month residency at Chicago's Congress Hotel in November. Fifteen Top Ten hits followed in 1936, among them the number ones "It's Been So Long," "Goody-Goody," "The Glory of Love," "These Foolish Things Remind Me of You," and "You Turned the Tables on Me" (all vocals by Helen Ward). He hosted The Camel Caravan radio series through the close of 1939, while the orchestra made its screen debut in October 1936 with The Big Broadcast of 1937. That same month he opened a residency at New York's Pennsylvania Hotel.
Goodman's next chart-topper arrived in February 1937, introducing vocals by Ella Fitzgerald and trumpet work by Harry James. It launched six Top Ten entries that year, including the number one "This Year's Kisses" (vocal by Margaret McCrae). December brought another film appearance in Hollywood Hotel. Peak 1930s recognition arrived with the January 16, 1938, Carnegie Hall concert, yet fourteen Top Ten hits followed during the year, encompassing the number ones "Don't Be That Way" (instrumental) and "I Let a Song Go out of My Heart" (vocal by Martha Tilton) plus the instrumental "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)," later inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
By 1939 major soloists including Gene Krupa and Harry James had departed to form their own bands, and new leaders such as Artie Shaw and Glenn Miller presented strong competition. Still, Goodman secured eight Top Ten hits, among them the chart-topper "And the Angels Sing" (vocal by Martha Tilton), another Grammy Hall of Fame selection. He returned to Columbia Records that fall. November found him leading a sextet in the short-lived Broadway musical Swingin' the Dream, which nonetheless supplied "Darn That Dream" (vocal by Mildred Bailey), a number-one hit in March 1940. Only two further Top Ten entries appeared that year as illness slowed activity; he disbanded temporarily in July for slipped-disk surgery and reorganized in October. Two Top Ten hits arrived in 1941, one being the number one "There'll Be Some Changes Made" (vocal by Louise Tobin), alongside a new radio series. Three Top Ten successes followed in 1942, including the number ones "Somebody Else Is Taking My Place" (vocal by Peggy Lee) and the instrumental "Jersey Bounce." He also appeared in the May release Syncopation.
U.S. entry into World War II and the American Federation of Musicians recording ban of August 1942 created widespread difficulties. Goodman still placed a pair of Top Ten hits, one the number one "Taking a Chance on Love" (vocal by Helen Forrest), in 1943 using pre-ban material. Free time allowed film work in The Powers Girl (January), Stage Door Canteen (July), and The Gang's All Here (December).
Goodman disbanded in March 1944. September brought an appearance in Sweet and Low-Down, while December 7 opened the 182-performance Broadway revue Seven Lively Arts featuring his quintet. With the musicians-union strike resolved he resumed studio work. The compilation Hot Jazz reached the Top Ten on the new album charts in April 1945. Re-forming his big band, he scored three Top Ten hits that year, among them "Gotta Be This or That" (vocal by Benny Goodman), which nearly hit number one. "Symphony" (vocal by Liza Morrow) came equally close in early 1946, while Benny Goodman Sextet Session topped the album charts in May 1946. He hosted a 1946-1947 radio series with Victor Borge and continued recording after switching to Capitol Records. October 1948 saw the film A Song Is Born, during which he experimented with bebop in his large ensemble. December 1949 brought another disbandment, though temporary groups continued for tours and sessions.
Even as popular music shifted after 1950, audiences remained attached to his earlier catalog. A recording of the 1938 Carnegie Hall concert surfaced and Columbia issued it on LP in November 1950 as Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert, Vol. 1 & 2. It charted for a year, becoming the best-selling jazz album to that point, and later entered the Grammy Hall of Fame. A follow-up of airchecks, Benny Goodman 1937-1938: Jazz Concert No. 2, reached number one in December 1952. The 12-inch LP format prompted re-recordings for the Capitol album B.G. in Hi-Fi, which entered the Top Ten in March 1955. One year later another Top Ten album of re-recordings accompanied the soundtrack to his film biography, The Benny Goodman Story, in which Steve Allen portrayed him while Goodman supplied the clarinet parts.
A 1956-1957 Far East tour preceded increased overseas performances. The 1962 U.S.S.R. tour yielded the chart album Benny Goodman in Moscow. RCA Victor reunited the 1930s Benny Goodman Quartet—Goodman, Gene Krupa, Teddy Wilson, and Lionel Hampton—for the 1964 chart album Together Again! Later years brought fewer recordings, though Benny Goodman Today, captured live in Stockholm, charted in 1971. His final pre-death release, the television soundtrack Let's Dance, earned a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band.
Goodman's long career and especially strong 1930s-1940s success produced an extensive discography. Core recordings reside on Columbia and RCA Victor, while Music Masters has issued archival material from his personal collection and numerous smaller labels have released airchecks. These sides continue to showcase Goodman's exceptional abilities as instrumentalist and bandleader.
Born to Russian immigrants David Goodman, a tailor, and Dora Rezinsky Goodman, he started clarinet instruction at age ten in a synagogue before joining the ensemble at Hull House, a settlement residence. His professional debut occurred at twelve, after which he left high school at fourteen to pursue music full time. In August 1925, at sixteen, he entered the Ben Pollack band, producing his initial released group recordings with them in December 1926. January 1928 brought his first sessions issued under his own name. Departing Pollack in September 1929 at age twenty, he relocated to New York for freelance work across recording dates, radio broadcasts, and Broadway pit orchestras. He also cut sides under his own name with assembled groups, first charting with "He's Not Worth Your Tears" (vocal by Scrappy Lambert) on Melotone Records in January 1931. Signing with Columbia Records in fall 1934, he reached the Top Ten in early 1934 via "Ain't Cha Glad?" (vocal by Jack Teagarden), "Riffin' the Scotch" (vocal by Billie Holiday), and "Ol' Pappy" (vocal by Mildred Bailey), followed by "I Ain't Lazy, I'm Just Dreamin'" (vocal by Jack Teagarden) that spring.
These recording achievements and an engagement at Billy Rose's Music Hall prompted Goodman to form a standing orchestra, which debuted on June 1, 1934. His instrumental "Moon Glow" attained number one in July, while two further Top Ten entries arrived that fall with the instrumentals "Take My Word" and "Bugle Call Rag." Following a four-and-a-half-month Music Hall engagement, he joined NBC's Saturday-night Let's Dance program for its final hour. Across the six months on air he accumulated another six Columbia Top Ten hits before moving to RCA Victor, where five additional Top Ten successes appeared by year's end.
After Let's Dance concluded, Goodman launched a national tour in summer 1935. Limited success marked the early leg until the West Coast, where the program had aired three hours earlier than on the East Coast. His August 21, 1935, appearance at the Palomar Ballroom near Los Angeles proved a landmark triumph, later recalled as the Swing Era's official start. He then began a six-month residency at Chicago's Congress Hotel in November. Fifteen Top Ten hits followed in 1936, among them the number ones "It's Been So Long," "Goody-Goody," "The Glory of Love," "These Foolish Things Remind Me of You," and "You Turned the Tables on Me" (all vocals by Helen Ward). He hosted The Camel Caravan radio series through the close of 1939, while the orchestra made its screen debut in October 1936 with The Big Broadcast of 1937. That same month he opened a residency at New York's Pennsylvania Hotel.
Goodman's next chart-topper arrived in February 1937, introducing vocals by Ella Fitzgerald and trumpet work by Harry James. It launched six Top Ten entries that year, including the number one "This Year's Kisses" (vocal by Margaret McCrae). December brought another film appearance in Hollywood Hotel. Peak 1930s recognition arrived with the January 16, 1938, Carnegie Hall concert, yet fourteen Top Ten hits followed during the year, encompassing the number ones "Don't Be That Way" (instrumental) and "I Let a Song Go out of My Heart" (vocal by Martha Tilton) plus the instrumental "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)," later inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
By 1939 major soloists including Gene Krupa and Harry James had departed to form their own bands, and new leaders such as Artie Shaw and Glenn Miller presented strong competition. Still, Goodman secured eight Top Ten hits, among them the chart-topper "And the Angels Sing" (vocal by Martha Tilton), another Grammy Hall of Fame selection. He returned to Columbia Records that fall. November found him leading a sextet in the short-lived Broadway musical Swingin' the Dream, which nonetheless supplied "Darn That Dream" (vocal by Mildred Bailey), a number-one hit in March 1940. Only two further Top Ten entries appeared that year as illness slowed activity; he disbanded temporarily in July for slipped-disk surgery and reorganized in October. Two Top Ten hits arrived in 1941, one being the number one "There'll Be Some Changes Made" (vocal by Louise Tobin), alongside a new radio series. Three Top Ten successes followed in 1942, including the number ones "Somebody Else Is Taking My Place" (vocal by Peggy Lee) and the instrumental "Jersey Bounce." He also appeared in the May release Syncopation.
U.S. entry into World War II and the American Federation of Musicians recording ban of August 1942 created widespread difficulties. Goodman still placed a pair of Top Ten hits, one the number one "Taking a Chance on Love" (vocal by Helen Forrest), in 1943 using pre-ban material. Free time allowed film work in The Powers Girl (January), Stage Door Canteen (July), and The Gang's All Here (December).
Goodman disbanded in March 1944. September brought an appearance in Sweet and Low-Down, while December 7 opened the 182-performance Broadway revue Seven Lively Arts featuring his quintet. With the musicians-union strike resolved he resumed studio work. The compilation Hot Jazz reached the Top Ten on the new album charts in April 1945. Re-forming his big band, he scored three Top Ten hits that year, among them "Gotta Be This or That" (vocal by Benny Goodman), which nearly hit number one. "Symphony" (vocal by Liza Morrow) came equally close in early 1946, while Benny Goodman Sextet Session topped the album charts in May 1946. He hosted a 1946-1947 radio series with Victor Borge and continued recording after switching to Capitol Records. October 1948 saw the film A Song Is Born, during which he experimented with bebop in his large ensemble. December 1949 brought another disbandment, though temporary groups continued for tours and sessions.
Even as popular music shifted after 1950, audiences remained attached to his earlier catalog. A recording of the 1938 Carnegie Hall concert surfaced and Columbia issued it on LP in November 1950 as Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert, Vol. 1 & 2. It charted for a year, becoming the best-selling jazz album to that point, and later entered the Grammy Hall of Fame. A follow-up of airchecks, Benny Goodman 1937-1938: Jazz Concert No. 2, reached number one in December 1952. The 12-inch LP format prompted re-recordings for the Capitol album B.G. in Hi-Fi, which entered the Top Ten in March 1955. One year later another Top Ten album of re-recordings accompanied the soundtrack to his film biography, The Benny Goodman Story, in which Steve Allen portrayed him while Goodman supplied the clarinet parts.
A 1956-1957 Far East tour preceded increased overseas performances. The 1962 U.S.S.R. tour yielded the chart album Benny Goodman in Moscow. RCA Victor reunited the 1930s Benny Goodman Quartet—Goodman, Gene Krupa, Teddy Wilson, and Lionel Hampton—for the 1964 chart album Together Again! Later years brought fewer recordings, though Benny Goodman Today, captured live in Stockholm, charted in 1971. His final pre-death release, the television soundtrack Let's Dance, earned a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band.
Goodman's long career and especially strong 1930s-1940s success produced an extensive discography. Core recordings reside on Columbia and RCA Victor, while Music Masters has issued archival material from his personal collection and numerous smaller labels have released airchecks. These sides continue to showcase Goodman's exceptional abilities as instrumentalist and bandleader.
Albums
Live
