Charlie Barnet

Charlie Barnet stood apart from most jazz figures in multiple respects. Born into wealth as one of the rare millionaires in the field, he lived much of his life as a bon vivant, accumulating numerous former spouses along with a store of colorful stories. Among the limited number of white swing-era bandleaders, he openly championed Duke Ellington’s music while also holding Count Basie in high esteem. He broke ground by directing racially mixed ensembles starting as early as 1935. Although he built his primary identity on tenor saxophone—crafting a personal voice rooted in Coleman Hawkins’s approach—Barnet proved equally adept at channeling Johnny Hodges’s alto style and stood virtually alone, aside from Sidney Bechet, as a soprano saxophonist active throughout the 1930s and 1940s.

His real influence in jazz nevertheless remained concentrated within roughly a ten-year span from 1939 to 1949. Despite family pressure to pursue law, Barnet was already working as a professional musician at sixteen and ultimately earned more from music than he likely would have in any other field. He reached New York in 1932 and began directing groups on record dates the next year, yet his path stayed unsettled until 1939. Several of his initial releases hold interest, though others leaned heavily commercial while he searched for an audience. One standout moment came as a sideman on Red Norvo’s 1934 session that also featured Artie Shaw and Teddy Wilson.

The 1939 hit recording of “Cherokee,” paired with a triumphant engagement at New York’s Famous Door, quickly elevated Barnet to national recognition. Over the following years his ensembles included such notable players as trumpeter Bobby Burnet, who appeared on numerous Bluebird sides, guitarist Bus Etri, drummer Cliff Leeman, vocalists Lena Horne, Francis Wayne, and Kay Starr, pianist Dodo Marmarosa, clarinetist Buddy DeFranco, guitarist Barney Kessel, and trumpeter Roy Eldridge. At the peak of his popularity between 1939 and 1942, the orchestra frequently delivered performances that closely mirrored Ellington’s sound; the later Decca recordings made from 1942 to 1946 maintained strong artistic value, highlighted by the best-selling “Skyliner.”

By 1947 Barnet had begun steering toward bebop, with Clark Terry serving as his featured trumpeter that year. In 1949 the trumpet section—known for its high-register firepower—comprised Maynard Ferguson, Doc Severinsen, Rolf Ericson, and Ray Wetzel. Interest soon faded, however, and he disbanded the group near the close of 1949. For the rest of his life Barnet remained largely retired from full-time leadership, though he periodically assembled swing-oriented orchestras for brief tours and one-off appearances, with his final recording dating from 1966.