Harry James
Harry James | |
---|---|
Las Vegas, Nevada | |
Spouses | Joan Boyd
(m. 1967; div. 1970) |
Children | 5 |
Musical career | |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) |
|
Instrument(s) | Trumpet |
Years active | 1933–1983 |
Labels | |
Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983)[1] was an American musician who is best known as a trumpet-playing band leader who led a big band to great commercial success from 1939 to 1946. He broke up his band for a short period in 1947, but shortly after he reorganized and was active again with his band from then until his death in 1983. He was especially known among musicians for his technical proficiency as well as his tone, and was influential on new trumpet players from the late 1930s into the 1940s. He was also an actor in a number of films that usually featured his band.
Early life
Harry James was born in
James started taking trumpet lessons from his father at age eight, and by age twelve he was leading the second band in the Christy Brothers Circus, for which his family was then working.[3] James's father placed him on a strict daily practice schedule. At each session he was given several pages to learn from the Arban's book and was not allowed to pursue any other pastime until he had learned them.[5] While still a student at Dick Dowling Junior High School, he participated as a regular member of Beaumont High School's Royal Purple Band, and in May 1931 he took first place as trumpet soloist at the Texas Band Teacher's Association's Annual Eastern Division contest held in Temple, Texas.[6]
Career
In 1924, his family settled in
With financial backing from Goodman,
Bandleader
James' band was the first high-profile orchestra to feature vocalist Frank Sinatra, who signed a one-year, $75 a week contract with it in 1939 ($1,589 a week in 2022). James wanted to change Sinatra's name to 'Frankie Satin', but the singer refused.[14] Sinatra only worked seven months before leaving to join Tommy Dorsey's outfit.[15] The James band's featured female vocalist was Helen Forrest, and his later band included drummer Buddy Rich[15] and bassist Thurman Teague.[16][17] Johnny MacAfee was featured on the sax and vocals, and Corky Corcoran was a youthful sax prodigy.
Radio
James' orchestra succeeded Glenn Miller's on a program sponsored by Chesterfield Cigarettes in 1942, when Miller disbanded his orchestra to enter the Army. In 1945, James and his orchestra had a summer replacement program for Danny Kaye's program on CBS.[18] He also led the orchestra for Call for Music, which was broadcast on CBS February 13, 1948 – April 16, 1948, and on NBC April 20, 1948 – June 29, 1948.[19]
Film
James recorded many popular
Musical style and reception
Influences
With James's childhood spent as a musician in a traveling circus, he picked up a flamboyant style that utilized such techniques as heavy vibrato, half valve and lip glissandi, valve and lip trills, and valve tremolos. These techniques were popular at the time in what was known as
Move towards pop
After James left Benny Goodman's band in 1939 to form his own band, he soon found that leading a commercially viable musical group required a broader set of skills than those needed to be a gifted musician playing in someone else's band. The James band ran into financial trouble, and it became increasingly difficult for James to pay salaries and keep the band together. In 1940, James lost his contract with Columbia Records (he returned in 1941), and Frank Sinatra left the band that January. It was not long after this that James made a pivotal decision: he would adopt a "sweeter" style that added strings to the band, and the band would deliver tunes that were in more of a "pop" vein and less true to its jazz roots. From a commercial standpoint, the decision paid off as James soon enjoyed a string of chart-topping hits that provided commercial success for him and his band. Indeed, a U.S. Treasury report released in 1945 listed Harry James and Betty Grable as the highest-paid couple in the nation.[25]
While James remained commercially successful and personally committed to his music, some critics sought to find fault. In Peter Levinson's 1999 biography, Dan Morgenstern, the respected critic and Director of the Institute of Jazz Studies, called the 1941 release of the later Grammy Hall of Fame inducted "You Made Me Love You" "the record that the jazz critics never forgave Harry James for recording."[26] With James continuing to employ his flamboyant style on pop hits through the 1940s, his playing was often labeled as "schmaltzy"[27] and dismissed by the critics, although radio discs from this period reveal James's continued commitment to jazz. James's jazz releases during this period, while not as numerous, include a variety of modern arrangements from Neal Hefti, Frank Devenport, Johnny Richards and Jimmy Mundy that often inspired his musicians, and as bop surpassed swing by the late 1940s, James was surprisingly open to its influence.[28]
Return to Big Band jazz
After coasting through the mid-1950s, James made a complete reevaluation of where he was heading in his musical career. Count Basie provided the impetus by making a significant comeback with his newly formed "16 Men Swinging" band, and James wanted a band with a decided Basie flavor.[29] James signed with Capitol Records in 1955, and two years later, after releasing new studio versions of many of his previously released songs from Columbia Records, James recorded ten new tracks for an album entitled Wild About Harry!. This album was the first in a series released on Capitol, and continuing later on MGM, representative of the Basie style that James adopted during this period, with some of the arrangements provided by former Basie saxophonist and arranger Ernie Wilkins, whom James hired for his own band.[30]
While James never completely regained favor with jazz critics during his lifetime in spite of his return to more jazz-oriented releases in the late 1950s and into the 1960s, contemporary opinion of his work has shifted. Recent reissues such as Capitol's 2012 7-disc set The Capitol Vaults Jazz Series: Gene Krupa and Harry James have prompted new, more favorable analyses. In 2014, Marc Myers of JazzWax commented, "[James's] band of the mid-1940s was more modern than most of the majors, and in 1949 he led one of the finest bands of the year." And on James's releases from 1958 to 1961, Myers noted, "The James band during this period has been eclipsed by bands led by Basie, Maynard Ferguson and Stan Kenton. While each served up its own brand of magnificence, James produced more consistently brilliant tracks than the others... virtually everything James recorded during this period was an uncompromising, swinging gem."[31]
James felt strongly about the music he both played and recorded. In 1972 while in London, he did an interview with the English jazz critic Steve Voce, who asked if the biggest audience was for the commercial numbers he had recorded. James visibly bristled, replying "That would depend on for whom you are playing. If you're playing for a jazz audience, I'm pretty sure that some of the jazz things we do would be a lot more popular than 'Sleepy Lagoon,' and if we're playing at a country club or playing Vegas, in which we have many, many types of people, then I'm sure that 'Sleepy Lagoon' would be more popular at that particular time. But I really get bugged about these people talking about commercial tunes, because to me, if you're gonna be commercial, you're gonna stand on your head and make funny noises and do idiotic things. I don't think we've ever recorded or played one tune that I didn't particularly love to play. Otherwise, I wouldn't play it."[32]
Personal life
James was married three times, first to singer
James owned several
James was a heavy smoker, drinker, and gambler.[37] In 1983 he was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer, but continued to work. He played his last professional job, with the Harry James Orchestra, on June 26, 1983, in Los Angeles,[33] dying just nine days later in Las Vegas, Nevada[38] on July 5, 1983, at age 67. Frank Sinatra gave the eulogy at his funeral, held in Las Vegas.[37]
Filmography
- Hollywood Hotel (1937) (as himself, in Benny Goodman's band)
- Syncopation (1942) (as himself)
- Springtime in the Rockies (1942) (as himself)
- Private Buckaroo (1942) (as himself)
- Swing Fever (1943) (as himself)
- Best Foot Forward(1943) (as himself)
- Bathing Beauty (1944) (as himself)
- Two Girls and a Sailor (1944) (as himself)
- Do You Love Me (1946)
- If I'm Lucky (1946)
- Carnegie Hall (1947) (as himself)
- On Our Merry Way (1948) (as himself)
- I’ll Get By (1950) (as himself)
- The Benny Goodman Story (1956) (as himself)
- The Opposite Sex (1956) (as himself)
- Outlaw Queen (1957)
- Riot in Rhythm (1957) (short subject; as himself)
- The Big Beat (1958)
- The Ladies Man (1961) (as himself)
- The Sting II (1983)
Discography
The discography of Harry James includes 30 studio albums, 47 EPs, three soundtrack/stage and screen albums, and numerous live albums and compilation albums, along with contributions as sideman and appearances with other musicians.[39][40] James released over 200 singles during his career, with nine songs reaching number one, 32 in the top ten, and 70 in the top 100 on the U.S. pop charts, as well as seven charting on the U.S. R&B chart.[a][41][42][43]
- Notes
- The Harlem Hit Parade."
Selected singles
- "Ain't She Sweet"
- "All or Nothing at All" (1939)
- "Back Beat Boogie" (1939) (Columbia 35456)[44]
- "Blues in the Night" (1941) (Columbia 36500)[45]
- "Boo-Woo" (1939) (Brunswick 8318/B24060, Columbia 35958/C44-1)
- "Cheek to Cheek"
- "Ciribiribin" (1939) – another million selling disc[46]
- "Cry Me a River"
- "Don'cha Go 'Way Mad" (with the Skylarks)
- "Flight of the Bumblebee"
- "Hernando's Hideaway" (1955)
- "Honeysuckle Rose"
- "I Cried for You" (1942)
- "I Don't Want to Walk Without You" (1942)
- "I Had the Craziest Dream" – a million selling gold disc.[47]
- "I'll Be Around"
- "I'll Get By (As Long as I Have You)" (1940)
- "I Need You Now"
- "It All Depends on You"
- "It's Been a Long, Long Time" (1945)
- "I've Heard That Song Before" (1942) – another million selling record.[48]
- "Life Goes to a Party"
- "Manhattan"
- "The Mole"
- "My Buddy" (1939)
- "Oh My Pa-Pa (O Mein Papa)"
- "The Nearness of You"
- "One O'Clock Jump" (1938) – James' first million seller[49]
- "Sing, Sing, Sing" (1937)
- "Sleepy Lagoon" (1942)
- "Somebody Loves Me"
- "That Old Feeling"
- "Too Marvelous for Words" (1943)
- "Truly" (with Gilda Maiken and The Skylarks)
- "Trumpet Blues and Cantabile"
- "(Up a) Lazy River"
- "Velvet Moon"
- "When Your Lover Has Gone" (1944)
- "Where or When"
- "Woo-Woo" (1939) (Brunswick 8318/B24061, Columbia 35958/C44-2)
- "You Made Me Love You" (1941) – a million selling gold disc.[47]
- "You've Changed" (1941)
Selected albums
- Young Man with a Horn (Columbia CL 6106, 1950)[51]
- Jazz Session (Columbia CL 669, 1955)[52]
- Wild About Harry! (Capitol T/ST 874, 1957)[53]
- The New James (Capitol T/ST 1037, 1958)[54]
- Harry's Choice! (Capitol T/ST 1093, 1958)[55]
- Trumpet Rhapsody And Other Great Instrumentals (Harmony HL 7162, 1959)
- Harry James and His New Swingin' Band (MGM E/SE 3778, 1959)[56]
- Harry James...Today! (MGM E/SE 3848, 1960)[57]
- The Spectacular Sound of Harry James (MGM E/SE 3897, 1961)[58]
- Harry James Plays Neal Hefti (MGM E/SE 3972, 1961)[59]
- Requests On-The-Road (MGM E/SE 4003, 1962)[60]
- The King James Version (Sheffield Lab LAB-3, 1976)[61]
- Comin' From A Good Place (Sheffield Lab LAB-6, 1977)[62]
- Still Harry After All These Years (Sheffield Lab LAB-11, 1979)[63]
- Snooty Fruity (Columbia CK 45447, 1990)[64]
- Record Session '39–'42 (Hep CD1068 [Scotland], 1999)[65]
- Feet Draggin' Blues '44–'47 (Hep CD62 [England], 1999)[66]
Awards
Grammy Hall of Fame
As of 2016, two recordings of Harry James had been inducted into the
Year recorded | Title | Genre | Label | Year inducted |
---|---|---|---|---|
1942 | Trumpet Blues and Cantabile | Jazz (Album) | Columbia | 1999 |
1941 | You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want to Do It) | Pop (Single) | Columbia | 2010 |
Readers' polls
A similar annual readers' poll conducted by
Honors and inductions
For his contribution to the motion picture industry James was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6683 Hollywood Boulevard on February 8, 1960.[72]
He was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1983.
Writings
- Harry James Studies & Improvisations for Trumpet, Harry James, ed. Elmer F. Gottschalk, New York: Robbins Music, 1939
- Harry James Trumpet Method, Harry James, Everette James, ed. Jay Arnold, New York: Robbins Music, 1941
See also
References
- ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
- ^ The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Harry James - American Musician". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved October 16, 2018.
- ^ a b c William Ruhlmann. "Harry James | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
- ISBN 0-19-514239-X.
- ^ Levinson 1999, p. 11.
- ^ Levinson 1999, p. 13.
- ^ "Texas Historic Sites Atlas". Texas Historical Commission. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ Harry James and his big band. Touchoftonga.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-21.
- ^ Herrmann, Cynthia (December 11, 2013). "Sheffield Lab Recordings Releases The Harry James Sessions: Harry James and His Big Band". PRWeb. Sheffield Lab. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
- ^ Gilliland 1994, tape 2, side B.
- ^ Billboard, July 18, 1942
- ^ "James, Harry (Haag)". Jazz.com. Archived from the original on October 4, 2012.
- ^ "The Life of Harry James". Fredradke.com. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
- ^ "The Night Sinatra Happened". vanityfair.com. September 20, 2010. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
- ^ OCLC 31611854. Tape 1, side A.
- The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. Oxford, 1994, pp. 1193-1194.
- ^ "Collection: George and Barbara Erff collection on Harry James | Archival Collections". archivesspace.libraries.rutgers.edu. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- ^ "Harry James". IMDb.com. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
- ^ Robinson, Joanna (April 26, 2019). "Avengers: The Hidden Meaning Behind That Final Endgame Song". Vanity Fair. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
- ^ "W W Norton & Company Study Space: Jazz, Ch 12 Cool Jazz and Hard Bop". wwnorton.com / Scott DeVeaux and Gary Giddins. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ The Merv Griffin Show. November 15, 1977.
- ^ Levinson 1999, p. 50.
- ^ "Hollywood Star Walk: Harry James". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ Levinson 1999, p. 94.
- ISBN 0-87930-600-9.
- ^ Yanow, Scott. "1948-1949". AllMusic. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
- ^ Levinson 1999, p. 195.
- ^ "Harry James And His Orchestra – Wild About Harry". Discogs. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
- ^ "Harry James: 1958–'61". jazzwax.com / Marc Myers. Archived from the original on February 2, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ Levinson 1999, p. 251.
- ^ a b Wilson, John (July 6, 1983). "Harry James, Trumpeter and Band Leader, Dies at 67". The New York Times. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
- ^ UPI wirestory published nationally Dec.28, 1967
- ^ AP wirephoto published nationally Dec.28, 1967
- ^ "The Lucy Desi Comedy Hour Lucy Wins A Racehorse". IMDb.com. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
- ^ a b Phil Gallo (June 5, 2000). "Trumpet Blues: The Life of Harry James". Variety.com. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
- ^ "The Dead Rock Stars Club". Thedeadrockstarsclub.com. Retrieved July 17, 2008.
- ^ Popa, Christopher. "Collector's Checklists: Harry James 33s". Big Band Library.com. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
- ^ "Recordings by 'Harry James And His Orch'/'Harry James'/'Harry James And His Orchestra'". The Honking Duck. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
- ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
- ^ "Music VF, US & UK hits charts". MusicVF.com. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
- ^ Kowal, Barry. "Hits of All Decades". hitsofalldecades.com. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
- ^ "Harry James And His Orchestra – Night Special / Back Beat Boogie". Discogs. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
- ^ Orodenker, M.H. (February 7, 1942). "On the Records" (PDF). Billboard. p. 22. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
- ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ "Various – Boogie Woogie". Discogs. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "Columbia 10-inch Album Discography, Part 2: Main Series (CL 6100 to CL 6199) 1950– 1952". Both Sides Now Publications. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
- ^ "Jazz Session". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Wild About Harry". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "The New James". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Harry's Choice". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Reviews and Ratings of New Albums". Billboard. August 17, 1959. p. 30. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Harry James...Today!". Allmusic. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
- ^ "The Spectacular Sound of Harry James". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Harry James Plays Neal Hefti". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Requests on the Road". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "The King James Version". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Comin' From A Good Place". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Still Harry After All These Years". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Snooty Fruity". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Record Session: 1939-1942". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Feet Draggin' Blues, 1944-1947". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
- ^ "Grammy Hall of Fame". Grammy.com. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ^ "1937 DownBeat Readers Poll". Downbeat Magazine. Archived from the original on January 6, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
- ^ "1938 DownBeat Readers Poll". Downbeat Magazine. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
- ^ "1939 DownBeat Readers Poll". Downbeat Magazine. Archived from the original on January 6, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
- ^ "1942 DownBeat Readers Poll". Downbeat Magazine. Archived from the original on January 5, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
- ^ "Harry James". Official Website, Hollywood Walk of Fame. Retrieved December 29, 2015.