Remembering Paul Whiteman, born on this day in 1890.

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Paul Whiteman (March 28, 1890, Denver, USA – December 29, Doylestown, USA) was an influential and renowned American conductor; his instrument was the violin, and his big band achieved great popularity in the 1920s for his work in variety and music hall. In 1924, he conducted the premiere of the work “Rhapsody in Blue,” which he had commissioned from composer George Gershwin.

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His band featured some of the best instrumentalists of that early jazz era, such as cornetist Bix Beiderbecke, trumpeters Red Nichols and Bunny Berigan, trombonists Jack Teagarden and Tommy Dorsey, saxophonists Frankie Trumbauer and Jimmy Dorsey, violinist Joe Venuti, guitarist Eddie Lang, and singer Mildred Bailey. Among others.

With the arrival of swing, Paul Whiteman’s popularity, whose orchestra was always criticized for its lack of swing, declined until he retired in the 1940s to become director of the American Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Paul Whiteman and his orchestra’s influence was significant throughout the 1920s and 1930s, although there were clearly orchestras, such as Fletcher Henderson’s, that surpassed them.

Paul Whiteman King Of Jazz | Golden Age Swing Big Band Dance Music

Track List:

00:00:00 Wang-Wang Blues 00:03:22 Everybody Step 00:06:44 I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise 00:09:53 Way Down Yonder in New Orleans 00:12:36 Nuthin’ But 00:15:21 Just One More Chance 00:18:32 Learn to Do the Strut 00:21:47 San 00:25:00 Dixie’s Favorite Son 00:27:34 Hard Hearted Hannah 00:30:42 Charleston 00:33.24 Footloose 00:36:49 The Rhythm Rag 00:39.22 Charlestonette 00:42:12 Bell Hoppin’ Blues 00:45:17 St. Louis Blues 00:48:33 Wistful and Blue 00:51:14 Muddy Water 00:54:23 I’m Coming Virginia 00:57:28 Side by Side 01:00:28 Love and Kisses 01:03:01 Magnolia

Paul Samuel Whitemanwas an American bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist.

As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 1930s, Paul Whiteman produced recordings that were immensely successful, and press notices often referred to him as the “King of Jazz”. His most popular recordings include “Whispering”, “Valencia”, “Three O’Clock in the Morning”, “In a Little Spanish Town”, and “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers”.

Paul Whiteman led a usually large ensemble and explored many styles of music, such as blending symphonic music and jazz, as in his debut of Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin. Whiteman recorded many jazz and pop standards during his career, including “Wang Wang Blues”, “Mississippi Mud”, “Rhapsody in Blue”, “Wonderful One”, “Hot Lips (He’s Got Hot Lips When He Plays Jazz)”, “Mississippi Suite”, “Grand Canyon Suite”, and “Trav’lin’ Light”. He co-wrote the 1925 jazz classic “Flamin’ Mamie”. His popularity faded in the swing music era of the mid-1930s, and by the 1940s he was semi-retired from music.

He experienced a revival and had a comeback in the 1950s with his own network television series, Paul Whiteman’s Goodyear Revue, which ran for three seasons on ABC. He also hosted the 1954 ABC talent contest show On the Boardwalk with Paul Whiteman. Whiteman’s place in the history of early jazz is somewhat controversial. Detractors suggest that his ornately orchestrated music was jazz in name only, lacking the genre’s improvisational and emotional depth, and co-opted the innovations of black musicians.

Defenders note that Paul Whiteman’s fondness for jazz was genuine. He worked with black musicians as much as was feasible during an era of racial segregation. His bands included many of the era’s most esteemed white musicians, and his groups handled jazz admirably as part of a larger repertoire.

Critic Scott Yanow declares that Whiteman’s orchestra “did play very good jazz…His superior dance band used some of the most technically skilled musicians of the era in a versatile show that included everything from pop tunes and waltzes to semi-classical works and jazz. Many of his recordings (particularly those with Beiderbecke) have been reissued numerous times and are more rewarding than his detractors would lead one to believe.”

In his autobiography, Duke Ellington declared, “Paul Whiteman was known as the King of Jazz, and no one as yet has come near carrying that title with more certainty and dignity.

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Rhapsody In Blue – Paul Whiteman & Gershwin at Cadogan Hall.

George Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue performed by pianist Nick Dawson with the Jazz Repertory Company conducted by Pete Long (and with clarinet solo by Mark Crooks). The piece was commissioned by Paul Whiteman in 1924 for his concert “An Experiment In Modern Music” at the Aeolian Hall in New York.

The version here is Ferde Grofé’s original arrangement for Whiteman’s orchestra (it has subsequently been re- orchestrated for full symphony orchestra). This performance is taken from “ The Music of The King of Jazz Paul Whiteman – Bix, Bing and Rhapsody in Blue” . It was the centrepiece of Richard Pite’s Jazz Repertory Company’s concert at London’s Cadogan Hall as part of the 2015 EFG London Jazz Festival.

Paul Whiteman Compositions

Whiteman composed the standard “Wonderful One” in 1922 with Ferde Grofé and Dorothy Terris (also known as Theodora Morse), based on a theme by film director Marshall Neilan. The songwriting credit is assigned as music composed by Paul Whiteman, Ferde Grofé, and Marshall Neilan, with lyrics by Dorothy Terriss. The single reached No. 3 on Billboard in May 1923, staying on the charts for 5 weeks. “(My) Wonderful One” was recorded by Gertrude Moody, Edward Miller, Martha Pryor, Mel Torme, Doris Day, Woody Herman, Helen Moretti, John McCormack; it was released as Victor 961.

Jan Garber and His Orchestra, and Ira Sullivan with Tony Castellano also recorded the song. Henry Burr recorded it in 1924 and Glenn Miller and his Orchestra in 1940. On the sheet music published in 1922 by Leo Feist it is described as a “Waltz Song” and “Paul Whiteman’s Sensational Waltz Hit” and is dedicated “To Julie”. “Wonderful One” appeared in the following movies: The Chump Champ (1950), Little ‘Tinker (1948), Red Hot Riding Hood (1943), Sufferin’ Cats (1943), Design for Scandal (1941), Strike Up the Band (1940), and Westward Passage (1932).

“I’ve Waited So Long” was composed with Irving Bibo and Howard Johnson and copyrighted in 1920. Paul Whiteman also arranged the song. “How I Miss You Mammy, No One Knows” was composed with Billy Munro and Marcel Klauber in 1920 and arranged by Marcel Klauber.

The 1924 song “You’re the One” was composed by Paul Whiteman, Ferde Grofé, and Ben Russell in 1924 and copyrighted on February 1, 1924.

He co-wrote the music for the song “Madeline, Be Mine” in 1924 with Abel Baer with lyrics by Cliff Friend.

Whiteman composed the piano work “Dreaming The Waltz Away” with Fred Rose in 1926. Organist Jesse Crawford recorded the song on October 4–5, 1926, in Chicago, Illinois, and released it as a 78 on Victor Records, 20363. Crawford played the instrumental on a Wurlitzer organ. The recording was also released in the UK by His Master’s Voice as B2430.

In Louis Armstrong & Paul Whiteman: Two Kings of Jazz (2004), Joshua Berrett wrote that “Whiteman Stomp” was credited to Fats Waller, Alphonso Trent, and Paul Whiteman. Lyricist Jo Trent is the co-author. The Fletcher Henderson Orchestra first recorded “Whiteman Stomp” on May 11, 1927, and released it as Columbia 1059-D. The Fletcher Henderson recording lists the songwriters as “Fats Waller/Jo Trent/Paul Whiteman”. Paul Whiteman recorded the song on August 11, 1927, and released it as Victor 21119.

On May 31, 1924, the song “String Beans” was copyrighted, with words and music by Vincent Rose, Harry Owens, and Paul Whiteman.

In 1927, Paul Whiteman co-wrote the song “Wide Open Spaces” with Byron Gay and Richard A. Whiting. The Colonial Club Orchestra released a recording of the song on Brunswick Records in 1927 as 3549-A with Irving Kaufman on vocals.

In 1920, he co-wrote the music to the song “Bonnie Lassie” with Joseph H. Santly with lyrics by John W. Bratton. The song was recorded by Charles Hart who released it as an Okeh 78 single, 4244.

Whiteman also co-wrote the popular song “My Fantasy” with Leo Edwards and Jack Meskill, which is a musical adaptation of the Polovtsian Dances theme from the opera Prince Igor by Alexander Borodin. The Paul Whiteman Orchestra recorded “My Fantasy” with Joan Edwards on vocals in 1939 and released it as a 78 single on Decca Records. Artie Shaw also recorded the song and released it as a single on Victor Records in March 1940 with Pauline Byrns on vocals.