Essentials

Louis Prima (December 7, 1910 – August 24, 1978) was an Italian-American singer, trumpter, actor and bandleader. Along with Louis Armstrong and Louis Jordan, he was one of the three famous trumpeting and singing Louis’ of the swing era. Comparisons

Artie Shaw was an American jazz clarinetist, composer and bandleader. He started out playing the saxophone when he was 13, but by age 16 had switched to the clarinet, the instrument for which he became famous. During the 1930s he

LaVerne, Maxene and Patricia Andrews were three sisters from Minnesota who developed a harmonic style of singing and specialized in swing and boogie-woogie styles, and rose to international fame during the WWII era. With Laverne singing contraalto, Maxene singing soprano

Okay, here’s a set of music that is essential to any serious lindy hopper’s music collection: Slim & Slam. Slim & Slam was a 1930s musical partnership formed by Bulee “Slim” Gaillard (vocals, guitar and piano) and Leroy Elliott “Slam”

Fats Waller (1904-1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer and comedic entertainer. Widely recognized as a master of stride piano — Waller was one of the most popular performers of his era and was also a prolific songwriter. A

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004), known by his stage name Ray Charles, was an American pianist and singer who shaped the sound of rhythm and blues. He brought a soulful sound to country music, pop

Larry Clinton (August 17, 1909 – May 2, 1985) was a trumpeter who became a prominent American bandleader. His practice of rearranging the works of famous composers like Debussy and Tchaikovsky and adding lyrics was known as “swinging the classics”.

This past Thursday (March 27, 2008) at the 9:20, San Francisco dancers experienced the classy and powerhouse sound of one of the great contemporary big bands: George Gee and His Jump, Jive & Wailers. It was an interesting contrast to

Lionel Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. “Hamp” ranks among the great names in jazz history, having worked with a who’s who of jazz musicians, from Benny Goodman and Buddy Rich to Charlie Parker and Quincy

Believe it or not, I was initially unimpressed by Duke Ellington when I first started collecting swing music; since then, I’ve learned the error of my ways. The Duke had such a long music career that spanned decades and many