Artie Shaw: Mixed Bag (LINER NOTES)

Artie Shaw Mixed Bag

[7] BEGIN THE BEGUINE (Cole Porter) (mx #5545)

[2] THE GLIDER

(Count Basie -Buster Harding) (mx #5419)

[3] LOVE OF MY LIFE

(Artie Shaw -Johnny Mercer) (mx #5416)

[4] LET'S WALK (Artie Shaw -George Siravo) (mx #5408)

[5] LOVE FOR SALE (Cole Porter) (mx #5636)

[6] MY HEART BELONGS TO DADDY (Cole Porter) (mx #5546)

vocal by Kitty Kallen

[8] GET OUT OF TOWN (Cole Porter) (mx #5542)

vocal by Mel Torme

[9] WHAT IS THIS THING CALLED LOVE? (Cole Porter) (mx #5548)

vocal by Mel Torme & the Mel-Tones

[10] GUILTY

(Richard Whiting -Harry Akst -Gus Kahn) (mx #5648)

vocal by Mel Torme & the Mel-Tones

[11] I'VE GOT THE SUN IN THE MORNING (Irving Berlin) (mx #5473)

vocal by Mel Torme & the Mel-Tones

[12] CHANGING MY TUNE

(George Gershwin -Ira Gershwin) (mx #5635)

vocal by Mel Torme & the Mel-Tones

[13] IT'S THE SAME OLD DREAM

(Jule Styne -Sammy Cahn) (mx #5702)

vocal by Mel Torme

[14] ANNIVERSARY SONG

(Al Jolson -Saul Chaplin) (mx #5649)

[15] FOR YOU, FOR ME, FOREVER MORE

(George Gershwin -Ira Gershwin) (mx #5629)

vocal by Mel Torme

[16] I BELIEVE

(Jule Styne -Sammy Cahn) (mx #5703)

vocal by Mel Torme

[17] WHEN YOU'RE AROUND (Artie Shaw -Johnny Lehman) (mx #5704)

vocal by Lillian Lane

[18] CONNECTICUT

(Hugh Martin -Ralph Blane) (mx #5651)

vocal by Ralph Blane

[19] SUNNY SIDE UP (Artie Shaw)

PERSONNEL AND RECORDING DATES:

It must be noted that discographies and record releases have been notoriously vague and inconsistent, and often obviously wrong, concerning personnel and dates for Artie Shaw's Musicraft recordings. The following represents the "best guess" scenario after considerable research and "averaging out" of available data. All performances were originally issued by Musicraft and were recorded in Hollywood, except for the last title, which was recorded in New York by Shaw himself.

Tracks [I]-[4]: Artie Shaw and His Orchestra:

Artie Shaw (clarinet) with:

Roy Eldridge, Stan Fishelson, Bernie Glow, George Schwartz (trumpets);

Harry Rodgers, Gus Dixon, Ollie Wilson, Bob Swift (trombones);

Rudy Tanza, Lou Prisby (alto sax);

Herbie Steward, Jon Walton (tenor sax);

Chuck Gentry (baritone sax);

Dodo Marmarosa (piano); Barney Kessel (guitar); Morris Rayman (bass); Lou Fromm (drums).

Recorded c. August-September 1945.

Track [11]: Artie Shaw (clarinet) with Studio Orchestra including a big band and 15-piece string section;

Mel Torme and The Mel-Tones (vocal).

Recorded April 30, 1946.

Tracks [6], [7], [9]: Artie Shaw (clarinet) with Studio Orchestra:

Manny Klein, Ray Linn, Clyde Harley (trumpets);

Si Zentner, another (trombone);

Skeets Herfurt (alto sax);

Chuck Gentry (baritone sax); 3 additional saxophones;

Harry Bluestone (violin); 8 additional violins; 3 violas; 3 cellos;

Milt Raskin (piano);

Dave Barbour (guitar);

Artie Shapiro (bass); Nick Fatool (drums);

Mel Torme, The Mel-Tones (Ginny O'Connorsince married to Henry Mancini - Betty Beveridge, Bernie Parks, Les Baxter), Kitty Kallen (vocals).

Recorded c. June 1946.

Track [8]: Artie Shaw (clarinet) with Studio Orchestra: Harry Bluestone, concertmaster & violin; 7 additional violins; 4 violas; 4 cellos; 2 bassists; 4 French horns; 1 flute; 1 oboe; 2 bassoons; 5 saxes doubling clarinets; Milt Raskin (piano); Dave Barbour (guitar); Artie Shapiro (bass); Nick Fatool (drums); Mel Torme (vocal).

Recorded c. June 1946.

Tracks [5], [10], [12]-[18]:

Artie Shaw (clarinet); Studio Orchestra (big band and strings);

Lillian Lane, Ralph Blane, Mel Torme, MelTones (vocals).

Recorded c. August-November 1946

Track [19]:

Artie Shaw and His Gramercy Five: Artie Shaw (clarinet); Joe Roland (vibes); Hank Jones (piano); Tai Farlow (guitar); Tommy Potter (bass); Irv Kluger (drums).

Recorded in New York, c. February-March 1954.

The material on this CD dates from the later half of Artie Shaw's career as a bandleader, which had begun in 1936 and ended ·with his retirement in 1954. Some appreciation of the contours of this career is helpful in appreciating what this music represents. Always presenting tasteful and often unusually deep interpretations of big-band jazz and dance music, and featuring his exquisite and frequently profound clarinet improvisations, Shaw's career climaxed in his rise to superstar status as the most popular musician in North America at the height of the Swing Era, during 1938-39. At that point, however, long disillusioned by the music business and articulately critical of the whole scene, Shaw walked out on his career while at the pinnacle of success.

Returning after a rest with fresh new ideas and still in demand, he was able to experiment with string sections and other new approaches in his music which foreshadowed later developments, but everything was interrupted by World War Two. Shaw joined the Navy, was asked to lead a band, and requested assignment to touring battle zones where servicemen most needed a morale boost. After returning from his 1942-43 tour of the South Pacific war area entertaining the troops with his Navy Band #501, "The Rangers", Artie Shaw was named "Musician of the Year" by "Metronome" and given an award by "Esquire" magazine for having the outstanding service band, and for his part in raising the morale of the men at war overseas.

Shaw was still at the peak of the fame and notoriety earned by his pre-war success and subsequent highly publicized walkouts from, and returns to, his musical career. His ongoing iconoclasm toward the music industry, with its commercial values and emphasis on entertainment over art, coupled with his glamorous romantic image resulting from various Hollywood adventures and his sudden marriage/divorce with the rising young movie star Lana Turner in 1940, all had served to build his reputation. Yet, returning from his successful and greatly appreciated Navy tour to his new wife (Jerome Kern's daughter Elizabeth, whom he married in 1942) and their infant son, Steve, Shaw was nevertheless depressed, discouraged and exhausted due to his view of the war and its effects.

Jazz had also undergone changes during the war years, while Shaw and his Navy band were in the Pacific. "Bop" was emerging as an avant garde, primarily small combo style, and big bands were on the demise as the popular singers were taking over the public's attention. Despite this, the big band scene was rich with modern sounding new musical ideas in arranging and soloing, and many new bands were making spectacular records and broadcasts. However, the distinction between creative jazz and popular music, which had overlapped and blurred together only during the peak of the Swing Era, was again becoming clearer.

When Artie Shaw formed a new band in the fall of 1944, it was crisply modern and peppered with exciting soloists. Most significant was trumpet master Roy Eldridge, one of the great figures of jazz history. The young moderns were represented by guitarist Barney Kessel and pianist Dodo Marmarosa, both of whom would be in the forefront of new developments over the next few years. Later the band also boasted tenor saxophonist Herbie Steward, another significant soloist in the immediate future of the art form, with a style suggestive of Shaw's old jamming partner Lester Young.

The band's records for Victor were among the best of Shaw's career, but did not sell as well as those he had made during the peak of the Swing Era. The RCA Victor executives were pressing Shaw for more commercial pop material. In response, Shaw left the company, and later signed with Musicraft, a label to which Shaw also attracted such contemporary bands as those led by Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie and Boyd Raeburn.

Meanwhile, Shaw documented his superb big band with one more studio session at his own expense. Eventually, these recordings appeared on Musicraft. The six tunes recorded that day included the four which open this CD: Buster Harding's "The Hornet" and "The Glider" (both powerful jazz arrangements) and Shaw's "Love of My Life" (the tune written for the 1940 movie "Second Chorus" for Fred Astaire to sing to

Paulette Goddard, done here as an instrumental) and "Let's Walk," another dynamic jazz number composed by Shaw and George Siravo. Shaw noted,

There were several arrangers in and out of that band I'd hired because I liked their work. Buster Harding was one, and George Siravo was another. On "Let's Walk" I gave George the theme I'd composed and told him what I wanted to do with it, and then he orchestrated it. The leader is an editor; the arrangers did what I asked, and I'd adjust that in rehearsal, to determine how it was played, and so forth.

Shaw has spoken highly of Roy Eldridge's solos on all these performances, and his muted section lead on 'The Glider" and "Let's Walk". Nevertheless, discographies have consistently omitted Eldridge from the personnel of this session and date it as occurring in mid-November 1945, after Eldridge had left the band. Eldridge has also consistently been left out of the personnel listings in the liner notes to previous issues of this material (which also sometimes erred in citing a string section present). Concerning this, Shaw simply stated,

I don't see how anyone could miss Roy. It's definitely him on there. Also there must be something wrong with that dating, as the session definitely occurred before Roy left the band; after the Victors, and before Roy left.

and creative, and Herbie Steward has characteristic tenor solos on "The Glider" and "Love of My Life". The brief trombone solo leading into the trombone choir passage on "Love of My Life" was by Ollie Wilson. Shaw told a story about Wilson that illustrates Shaw's attitude toward the development of the music:

Ollie was just a kid, around 17 years old, when I hired him for that band, but he could do anything. When you had a hit record, the solos tended to get "frozen" because people then expected to hear that. Jack Jenney had a solo on "Star Dust" back in 1940 that was technically astonishing for its time. When I asked Ollie if he could play it, he said "Sure!" and just did it, no problem. That's true progress; something very original, technically difficult and surprising is created, and a few years later everyone takes it for granted as part of what you need to know to even be in the game.

Around mid-November 1945, Shaw disbanded. The 1944-45 band had lasted just over a year, and provided many magnificent recordings documenting this phase of Shaw's music, these earliest Musicrafts among them.

During 1946, Artie Shaw did not have a regular working unit, but he was recording frequently for Musicraft using studio musicians. Dave Klein would organize the studio orchestras for him. Shaw would sketch the arrangements, and Sonny Burke, who was also recording director, orchestrated most of them (a few were also done

Shaw's solos on these performances are exciting

by Dick

Jones).

Mel Torme was responsible for orchestrating the Mel-Tones' work within Shaw's arrangements. Shaw stated, "We all worked together on the details."

In all, 22 titles plus a 3-disc set of children’s records were recorded for the label between April and November 1946. Most of these records featured only decorated melody statements from Shaw's clarinet and various vocalists, in a lush, big-bandwith-strings setting. Only six titles were instrumentals. In view of Shaw's often-stated negative views on vocalists and pop tunes, this would seem surprising. In discussing these sessions, Shaw said that he was again trying an experiment.

I was interested in recording some jazz-flavored pop music. That's all I wanted to do and I think it worked well. Using a vocal group as another section was a new idea; with four sections for texture and accompaniment - brass, reeds, strings and voices - there was a wider palette of tonal colors. I particularly liked "Guilty" as a treatment of a pop tune. I did the intro to "What ls This Thing Called Love?" myself -Sonny Burke orchestrated the rest of the arrangement -- and I thought that was pretty effective. But it was a mixed bag. Some of those tunes were so vacuous. It may be difficult to understand the context of the rest of the Musicraft material on this CD

without some grasp of the pop music climate of the day. Shaw noted,

There was tremendous pressure to record pop material on all musicians, from all directions. Anything else wouldn't sell. Sentimental singers were on the ascent. The public couldn't grasp complex sophistication. I stayed close to the melody, decorating only slightly, on these performances. Today, I suppose this music sounds out of context, and it's difficult to appreciate. The aesthetic mindset of the times has changed, so it has to be understood in context. The tastes of the day included a bigband framework, lush strings, clearly sung lyrics. I thought Mel Torme was the best of the new young singers, and he was doing some very musical things with his vocal group, the MelTones. Listen to what else was going on in pop music at the time! Then, it becomes clearer what we were up against, trying to do, and improve on.

The initial session, generally dated April 30, 1946, produced two titles. One became a hit: Irving Berlin's "I've Got the Sun in the Morning" with an interesting arrangement featuring Shaw's clarinet weaving in and out of the proceedings, and shifting textures from voices, strings and the band. Mel Torme has commented (in Brigitte Berman's Academy Award-winning film on Artie Shaw, "Time is All You've Got") on his articulating "T'I'm all right" at one point in the lyrics, at Shaw's suggestion. "I got more comments on that!" he said. "But it was pure Artie!"

The other piece from that session, not included in this set, followed a simpler arranging pattern also used in most of the remaining Musicraft vocals recorded by Shaw that year. During the first half of the performance, Shaw would clearly play the melody with his characteristic gorgeous, full tone, using light decorations, with shifting background settings and fills from the various sections. Then, the singer would take over for the rest of the performance, with similar backing. The clarity and sense of form in these presentations have an almost classic aura of appropriateness and balance.

Only two other titles in the series followed the more complex arranging of "I've Got the Sun in the Morning": "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" (with Kitty Kallen's effective singing) and "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (again with Mel and the MelTones). Both were part of the series of Cole Porter tunes recorded in June 1946 for a 4-record Musicraft album titled "Artie Shaw Plays Cole Porter" and both were also hits. Shaw noted that Porter himself was so intrigued by Shaw's arrangement of "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" with Shaw's old friend Harry Bluestone playing Shaw's soulful violin introduction and the interweaving of Shaw's theme, "Nightmare", with the vocal, that he called it his favorite recording of the tune.

Originally, the set included this version of "Begin the Beguine" which was rearranged by Artie to include a string section and with Skeets Herfurt playing an alto sax solo loosely following the original tenor solo by Tony Pastor (on Shaw's hit version for Bluebird in 1938). While this performance makes an interesting contrast to the earlier record, news in the musical press that season revealed that Shaw's old contract with RCA temporarily ruled out his recording "Begin the Beguine" for any other label. Consequently, the Cole Porter set had to be withdrawn, and another Porter tune recorded and substituted for "Begin the Beguine".

As mentioned earlier, Shaw did not have a regular working group at that time. Nevertheless, making another Cole Porter record would not have been a problem despite having to choose a tune, create an arrangement, assemble and rehearse a studio group, and record it, if Shaw had not been having some work done on his teeth at precisely that time, leaving him unable to play. Musicraft proceeded with the session anyway, recording the ensemble and arranging for Shaw to come into the studio later to overdub his solos.

Only five of the nine Cole Porter tunes recorded for this series are included on this CD, but these include two of the instrumentals which have an interesting story associated with them.

It should be kept in mind that, while the practice of overdubbing has since become so common in the recording industry that nowadays almost all recordings are being made utilizing extensive overdubbing and splicing techniques, at that time it was virtually unheard of. Although Sidney Bechel had made a "one-man band" record in

1941 by overdubbing all the parts, and soundtracks for films were routinely made in the movie studios in this way, in those days of 78 rpm singles, records were being made from intact performances taken directly from the masters. If anything wasn't quite right, the whole performance was simply done again. Consequently, on this occasion Shaw was inadvertently pioneering a recording technique that has since become commonplace. "I just went into the studio a week or so later, listened to the background on earphones, and played along. It was strictly a matter of expediency," he noted. The media reported that the procedure had gone so well, Musicraft and other labels were considering using the technique more often.

The Cole Porter tune chosen for replacing "Begin the Beguine" in the album was "Love for Sale" which includes a fine tenor sax solo by Babe Russin. Shaw observed,

Babe was a great player. He and I were in a band together on my first gig in New York after getting my union card, with Red Nichols in the summer of 1931. We did some other things together in the studios in the thirties, also. It was good to have him along.

The remaining Cole Porter composition in this set is "Get Out of Town" with Mel Torme singing, this time without the Mel-Tones. Shaw arranged this in a concert-like strings-and-woodwinds setting. The studio orchestra was organized by Dave Klein, with Harry Bluestone as concertmaster. There

were four tunes in the original Cole Porter album using this instrumentation, an interesting and attractive texture for this type of song, but Shaw feels the orchestra tended to be a little stiff. He stated, It's hard to get musicians of that background to phrase with the kind of jazz feeling I wanted. There would have to have been a lot more rehearsing, or a few months on the road, to get it to flow properly.

Nevertheless, "Get Out of Town" has a moody atmosphere that seems well suited to the melody and lyrics, with a sensitive treatment from Torme.

Between the June 1946 sessions that produced the original Cole Porter album and the September 1946 overdubbing session to create "Love for Sale" to fill out the album, Shaw was involved in the production of the set of children’s records for which he composed and arranged a setting for his version of "The Pied Piper of Hamelin." Actually, Shaw had written the music prior to the war, but it was not until July 1946 that the material could be performed, first on two special radio broadcasts and then in the studios for Musicraft. This was a very popular set of children’s records (I myself had a copy as a child, which I gradually wore out). As the summer continued, Shaw continued recording material for Musicraft, following the simpler arranging pattern already described, often also featuring Mel Torme with or without the MelTones. The only other instrumental in this series was the short, crisp version of "Anniversary Song"

with its remarkably effective Shaw clarinet solo, included here among a series of the Torme features recorded later that summer and fall.

It should be obvious that the lyrics and mood of these songs are radically different from the philosophies offered by pop music of later decades. It does not take a sociologist/musicologist to notice that not only innocence was lost. Observing the relative level of subtlety and sophistication in Shaw's music of the mid-1940s, even in this pop material, compared with the styles of its pophit successors, is sufficient to inspire gloomy contemplation of todays decline and decadence, rather than progress. Nevertheless it must also be stressed that this was some of the best pop music of the day; much of the rest of the pop music of the era was extremely silly and vacuous. This is what Shaw was referring to in noting that this material must be understood in context. There is more than one thesis' worth of insights in all this for students of popular culture!

It is worth noting that, in this series, there are two tunes each by the songwriting teams of George and Ira Gershwin, and Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn. It should be recalled that Shaw had a policy of seeking out the best pop material by the best pop composers of the day, and a reputation for providing tasteful and appropriate treatments of this material. In composers like Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, George Gershwin, and Jule Styne (to name only a few represented on this CD), Shaw

has tagged some of the most noted melodists. Irving Berlin and Cole Porter, of course, composed their own lyrics as well, and along with Ira Gershwin and Sammy Cahn provided many of the more witty and clever words being sung in the pop music of that era.

Artie Shaw is not often remembered among the roster of major songwriters of this era, but he actually composed many stunningly beautiful pieces in the song style of the day, recording quite a few of them with his bands during his career, such as the instrumental version of "Love of My Life" included in this CD. He composed two numbers for the later Musicraft series of recordings, both with lyrics by Johnny Lehman. "When You're Around" (sung here in an attractive version by Lillian Lane) has a typically engaging Shaw melodic line.

"Connecticut" has its cheerful lyrics sung by their composer, Ralph Blane. Shaw recalled,

This guy came in with his new song one day and I liked it, so when we were about to record it I said, "OK, why don't you sing it." He was quite surprised, but I think he did a pretty good job."

"Connecticut" was among the last of the Musicrafts done that fall; most discographies date it from October 18th. (The last session, including matrices #5702-5704, is usually dated November 8, 1946). Shaw then retired from music once again, married the bestselling novelist Kathleen

Winsor, and settled into an estate in -coincidentally -- Connecticut, where he devoted himself to writing (fiction, not music), and metamorphosizing his clarinet approach to suit the classical idiom.

Artie Shaw did not return to performing until 1949. He began that year by making some remarkable recordings and appearances in the classical, and (some years later) 'Third Stream," idioms. That same year he also led a new, artistically powerful but uncommercial big band: see the CD "Artie Shaw '1949"' (MHS 512837), reissued as "Artie Shaw: Last Recordings Vol. II" (MHS 512837). He then spent the early 1950s alternately touring and recording with nostalgia units and recording (mostly pop material) for Decca, and retiring again to his new farm in upstate New York to write his remarkable autobiography, "The Trouble with Cinderella".

Then, in the fall of 1953, Shaw surprised the jazz world by reappearing with a new, inspiring small group, a sextet billed as "Artie Shaw and his

Then, in the fall of 1953, Shaw surprised the jazz world by reappearing with a new, inspiring small group, a sextet billed as "Artie Shaw and his Gramercy Five" (the name, taken from the New York City telephone exchange, which he had been using for small groups appearing with his big bands since 1940). The combo was an all-star unit, with a modern approach, and Shaw was playing better than ever, with a new approach to the clarinet: see the 2-CD sets "Artie Shaw: Last Recordings" (MHS 523018) and "Artie Shaw: More Last Recordings" (MHS 523444). Shaw recorded this group himself after hours while they were working at the Embers in New York City in late February and early March 1954. One noteworthy title, composed by Shaw, was left out of these collections. Shaw thought it would be an interesting final number for this CD, to show his jazz orientation, unfettered by pop concerns and the time-limit restraints of 78 rpm records, and incidentally to confirm the title "Mixed Bag""Sort of like throwing a walnut in with a bag of cashews," he joked.

"Sunny Side Up" features the group "stretching out" nicely on this version, with good solo work from all members. (There was a much shorter and less complex version issued on a 78 rpm record on the Clef label, which so far has never been reissued). After the ensemble states the theme, Hank Jones leads off with a nice piano solo, followed by Joe Roland's tasteful vibes. Shaw then trades four-bar phrases with Tai Farlow before each of them solos at length, with Farlow's guitar work characteristically intriguing. Shaw then trades fours with Kluger (on brushes). Then, some extensive and witty interplay between the ensemble and Tommy Potter's beautifully captured bass work occurs, followed by similar exchanges between the ensemble and Kluger. Finally, the ensemble restates the theme before closing the performance.

The differences between Shaw's straight-ahead post-war big band work, his treatment of pop tunes with singers and string sections in 1946, and his later, modern small combo jazz approach, show three widely different aspects of his musical personality, truly a "mixed bag" illustrating especially his supreme competence and mastery of all three musical approaches. It should also be kept in mind that there were several other approaches to music within which he chose to express himself during his career as a bandleader, which provided a genuinely rich and multifaceted legacy that rewards careful exploration.

- Vladimir Simosko