Rating:
Genre:
Jazz
Release Date: 05/09/2006
Georgie Auld and His Hollywood All Stars made a series of spiffy recordings during the autumn of 1955 and the spring of 1956 at the
Capitol Studios on Vine Street in Hollywood, CA, using swank arrangements by
Billy May. "Swank" is an apt descriptor for the sound of this band; the word has been traced back to the Middle Dutch "swanc" which translates as "supple"; there is also a link with the Old High German word "swingan" meaning "to swing."
Billy May liked to employ dramatic flourishes and brusque, brassy maneuvers, with dazzling blasts from the trumpets and beefy bursts from the tenor and baritone saxophones over long deep basement tones from the trombones.
Auld seemed to revel in this kind of a setting; the '50s were the golden age of showy sax with glitzy accompaniment. One prevailing rhythmic device was the "dip," a favorite formula for
Earl Bostic that was soon being utilized by
Jimmy Dorsey and dozens of popular saxophonists, including
Boots Randolph. Kindred bandleaders who carried on in similar fashion during the '50s were
Les Brown,
Charlie Barnet,
Billy Vaughn,
Les Elgart and
Henry Mancini.
Georgie Auld and His Hollywood All Stars included
Maynard Ferguson,
Si Zentner,
Frank Rosolino,
Willie Smith,
Babe Russin,
Barney Kessel and
André Previn. Showy, campy and at times rather explosive, this music is guaranteed to wake everyone up and maybe activate a latent sense of humor.
~arwulf arwulf, All Music Guide
;)
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