Benny Goodman

Clarinetist and Band Leader

Any artist’s Carnegie Hall debut is an auspicious occasion. In Benny Goodman’s case, January 16, 1938, was not only the debut of a major star, but it also marked the first time people sat in a concert hall to hear swing music rather than dance to it. Moreover, the Goodman band was one of the first racially integrated groups to perform in front of a paying audience. Following this watershed moment, Goodman returned to Carnegie Hall more than two dozen times, his final concerts taking place on June 25, 1982. Even following his death in 1986, however, Goodman influenced the history of the Hall. The donation of one of Goodman’s clarinets to the Carnegie Hall Archives in 1991 was the trigger for the creation of the Rose Museum.

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Benny Goodman at Carnegie Hall

Carnegie Hall’s performance history database covers more than 50,000 concerts and events that occurred at Carnegie Hall from its opening in 1891 to the present. Explore events related to Benny Goodman (these links will open in a new tab with the performance history search tools):

• First Appearance: Benny Goodman and His Swing Orchestra, January 16, 1938
• Final Appearance: Kool Jazz Festival: Benny Goodman, Lionel Hampton, and Teddy Wilson, June 25, 1982
• Detailed Appearance History

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Sunday, January 16, 1938 at 8:30 PM

Main Hall

PRESENTED BY
Sol Hurok

Benny Goodman and His Swing Orchestra

Benny Goodman and His Orchestra

Edgar Sampson
(1902—1973)
Don't Be That Way

Vincent Youmans
(1898—1946)
Hit The Deck: Sometimes I'm Happy (1927)

Count Basie
(1904—1984)
One O'Clock Jump (1937)

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Benny Goodman


Goodman in 1942

Birth name: Benjamin David Goodman
Born: May 30, 1909; Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died: June 13, 1986 (aged 77); New York City, U.S.

Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American jazz clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing".

In the mid-1930s, Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in the United States. His concert at Carnegie Hall in New York City on January 16, 1938 is described by critic Bruce Eder as "the single most important jazz or popular music concert in history: jazz's 'coming out' party to the world of 'respectable' music."

Goodman's bands launched the careers of many major jazz artists. During an era of racial segregation, he led one of the first well-known integrated jazz groups. Goodman performed nearly to the end of his life while exploring an interest in classical music.

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Carnegie Hall concert
Main article: The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert

In late 1937, Goodman's publicist, Wynn Nathanson, attempted a publicity stunt by suggesting that Goodman and his band should play Carnegie Hall in New York City. If such a concert were to take place, then Goodman would be the first jazz bandleader to perform at Carnegie Hall. "Benny Goodman was initially hesitant about the concert, fearing for the worst; however, when his film Hollywood Hotel opened to rave reviews and giant lines, he threw himself into the work. He gave up several dates and insisted on holding rehearsals inside Carnegie Hall to familiarize the band with the lively acoustics."

The concert was held on the evening of January 16, 1938. It sold out weeks in advance, with the capacity 2,760 seats going for the top price of US$2.75 a seat, a high price at the time. The concert began with three contemporary numbers from the Goodman band—"Don't Be That Way," "Sometimes I'm Happy," and "One O'Clock Jump." They then played a history of jazz, starting with a Dixieland quartet performing "Sensation Rag", originally recorded by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band in 1918. Once again, the initial reaction of the audience, though polite, was tepid. Then came a jam session on "Honeysuckle Rose" featuring members of the Count Basie and Duke Ellington bands as guests. (The surprise of the session: Goodman handing a solo to Basie's guitarist Freddie Green, who was never a featured soloist but earned his reputation as the best rhythm guitarist in the genre—he responded with a striking round of chord improvisations.) As the concert went on, things livened up. The Goodman band and quartet took over the stage and performed the numbers that had made them famous. Some later trio and quartet numbers were well received, and the vocal by Martha Tilton on "Loch Lomond" provoked five curtain calls and cries for an encore. The encore forced Goodman to make his only audience announcement for the night, stating that they had no encore prepared but that Martha would return shortly with another number.

By the time the band got to the climactic piece "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)", success was assured. This performance featured playing by the tenor saxophonist Babe Russin, the trumpeter Harry James, and Goodman, backed by the drummer Gene Krupa. When Goodman finished his solo, he unexpectedly gave a solo to the pianist, Jess Stacy. "At the Carnegie Hall concert, after the usual theatrics, Jess Stacy was allowed to solo and, given the venue, what followed was appropriate," wrote David Rickert. "Used to just playing rhythm on the tune, he was unprepared for a turn in the spotlight, but what came out of his fingers was a graceful, impressionistic marvel with classical flourishes, yet still managed to swing. It was the best thing he ever did, and it's ironic that such a layered, nuanced performance came at the end of such a chaotic, bombastic tune."

The 1938 concert is regarded as one of the most significant in jazz history. After years of work by musicians from all over the country, jazz had finally been accepted by mainstream audiences. Recordings of the concert were made, but even by the technology of the day the equipment used was not of the finest quality. Acetate recordings of the concert were made, and aluminum studio masters were also cut.

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The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert


Live album by Benny Goodman

Released: 1950; November 2, 1999 (Reissue)
Recorded: January 16, 1938
Genre: Jazz
Length: Disc One 48:59; Disc Two 53:05 (Original release)
Label: Columbia; Legacy Recordings
Producer: George Avakian (1950)

The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert by Benny Goodman, Columbia Records catalogue item SL-160, is a two-disc LP of swing and jazz music recorded at Carnegie Hall in New York City on January 16, 1938. First issued in 1950, the landmark recording captured the premiere performance given by a big band in the famed concert venue. The event has been described as "the single most important jazz or popular music concert in history: jazz's 'coming out' party to the world of 'respectable' music." Both critical and public reception of the performances was outstanding.

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12-min version of "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)" live @ Carnegie Hall, 1938

InkyGhost723
555 subscribers

369,917 views Jun 1, 2012
Can you believe no-one else had uploaded the incredible 12-minute version of "Sing Sing Sing" onto YouTube? I thought I'd better do it, before my poor grandfather started rolling in his grave (he used to play this record til our ears bled!).

Benny Goodman: clarinet
Harry James, Ziggy Elman, and Chris Griffin: trumpets
Red Ballard and Vernon Brown: trombones
Hymie Schertzer and George Koenig; alto saxophones
Art Rollini and Babe Russin: tenor saxophones
Jess Stacy: piano
Allan Reuss: guitar
Harry Goodman: bass
Gene Krupa: drums
Composed by Louis Prima
Arranged by Jimmy Mundy (who incorporated "Christopher Columbus", a piece written by Chu Berry for the Fletcher Henderson band, into the piece)
Live from Carnegie Hall, New York, 1938

(Visual accompaniment -- "New York: The Wonder City" (1938) -- it was slightly longer than the music, so I just let it run, in case you wanted to see the rest!)

NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED!

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saint john hunt
2 years ago

My father, E Howard Hunt (Watergate and CIA/JFK, was a close personal frien of Gene Krupa, the drummer on this classic tune. Whenever Gene performed near Washington DC he would stay with us in Potomac, MD. I sat and listened to Gene and my father many times talking about the old days. E Howard Hunt was an exceptional musician. He had a perfect pitch ear and played piano as well as trumpet. In fact he played the Harry James trumpet part in this tune in his college band, the Frank Rollins Jazz Band, from Brown University. Hunt could play the James solo note for note. I listened to this tune many times with him at our home, before Watergate destroyed our family.

"Don't Be That Way" (1938) Benny Goodman-Carnegie Hall

Michael Zirpolo
397 subscribers

31,416 views Dec 29, 2016
Benny Goodman's Carnegie Hall recording of "Don't Be That Way" (1938)

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Carnegie Hall 1938 Concert on Columbia.

lrh1966
20.1K subscribers

72,882 views Aug 5, 2012
This is from a Maxell-XLS2 chrome cassette tape obtained from local thrift shop, and the artists featured along with Benny Goodman are: Harry James, Count Basie, Teddy Wilson, Gene Krupa, Lionel Hampton, Cootie Williams, Bobby Hackett.

Transferred to digital using stereo gear on background photo.

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