Benny Goodman

Benny Goodman and His First Band:
Benny Goodman’s first band included band members Gene Krupa, Bunny Berigan and Jess Stacy. The music they played was Dixie, ragtime and southern jazz. During the mid thirties, Benny Goodman auditioned for “Let’s Dance” on NBC, which was a radio program that was well regarded and featured several different styles of dance music. Once he was on that show, he became a household name across all of America. What his music did was to get America up and dancing. It was the age of swing and Benny Goodman ruled the roost, getting the music across to all who wanted to listen. Little wonder that Time magazine was to later dub him the King of Swing.

Music Scores:
Benny Goodman also recorded a lot of musical soundtracks that were used for movie shots - there were even some fans that were convinced that the clarinet that Benny Goodman had was able to be heard among the soundtrack of Charlie Chaplin’s comedy “One A.M.” that was released into the theaters in 34.

The Later Years of Benny Goodman:
After Benny Goodman had won several winning polls over the years as the absolute best clarinetist, he was inducted into the Jazz Hall of Fame in ’57. At this time, he continued to play, making records as well as in small groups. However, the only exception to the pattern he had was the collaboration in the seventies with George Benson.

Down through the ages and over the years, Benny Goodman was a really good man that knew exactly what he wanted and he knew exactly how to get it. He was very successful at what he done and there was never a dull moment anytime with him around.