Red Norvo (March 31, 1908 – April 6, 1999) was one of
jazz's early vibraphonists, known as "Mr. Swing". He helped establish
the xylophone, marimba and later the vibraphone as viable jazz instruments. His
major recordings were "Dance of the Octopus", "Bughouse",
"Knockin' on Wood", "Congo Blues", and "Hole in the
Wall".
Red Norvo was born Kenneth Norville in Beardstown, Illinois. The story goes that he sold his pet pony to help pay for his first marimba. Norvo's career began in Chicago with a band called "The Collegians", in 1925. He played with many other bands, including an all-marimba band on the vaudeville circuit, and the bands of Paul Whiteman, Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, and Woody Herman. Norvo recorded with Mildred Bailey (his wife), Billie Holiday, Dinah Shore and Frank Sinatra, among others. Together, Red and Mildred were known as "Mr. and Mrs. Swing." He also appeared in the film Screaming Mimi (1958), playing himself.
In 1933 he recorded two sessions for Brunswick under his
own name. The first "Knockin' On Wood" and "Hole In The
Wall" pleased Brunswick's recording director Jack Kapp and he was booked
for another session. This time, Kapp was out of town and Norvo went ahead and
recorded two of the earliest, most modern pieces of chamber jazz yet recorded;
Bix Beiderbecke's "In A Mist" and Norvo's own "Dance Of The
Octopus", accompanied by Benny Goodman in a rare performance playing a bass
clarinet, Dick McDonough on guitar and Artie Bernstein on slap bass. Kapp was
outraged when he heard them and tore up Norvo's contract and threw him out.
(Interestingly, this modern record remained in print all through the 1930s!)
Here’s
a red hot jazz classic by Red Norvo and featuring many great jazz artists such
as Bunny Berigan and Gene Krupa to name a few. Recorded Jan. 25, 1935.
Norvo recorded 8 modern swing sides for Columbia in
1934–1935, and 15 sides of Decca and their short-lived Champion label series in
1936 (strangely enough, Jack Kapp ran Decca, so they must've patched things up
by then).
Starting in 1936 through 1942, Norvo formed a Swing Orchestra
and recorded for ARC first on their Brunswick label, then Vocalion and finally
Columbia, after CBS bought out the ARC company. Featuring the brilliant
arrangements of Eddie Sauter and often featuring Mildred Bailey as vocalist,
this series of recordings were among the more sophisticated and elegant swing
records of the era.
In 1938, Red Norvo and His Orchestra reached number one
with their recordings of "Please Be Kind", which was number one for
two weeks, and "Says My Heart", with lead vocals by Mildred Bailey,
which was number one for four weeks on the pop charts, reaching number one
during the week of June 18, 1938.
In June 1945, while a member of the Benny Goodman Sextet,
he recorded a session for Comet records using a Sextet which featured members
of the Goodman group and also Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. He said:
"Bird and Diz were dirty words for musicians of my generation. But jazz
had always gone through changes and in 1945 we were in the middle of another
one. Bird and Diz were saying new things in an exciting way. I had a free hand
so I gambled".
In 1949, while trying to find work near home on the West
Coast and running into difficulties with large groups, Norvo formed a trio with
the novel combination of vibes, guitar, and bass. When the original guitarist
and bassist quit (Mundell Lowe and Red Kelly), he brought in two previously
little-known players. Tal Farlow became one of the most important of the
post-War generation of guitarists, in part because the demands of the trio led
him to explore new levels of both speed and harmonic richness on the
instrument. Farlow left the group in 1953 and guitarist Jimmy Raney took his
place. Charles Mingus's prominence as a bass player increased through this
group, though its repertoire did not reflect the major career he would develop
as a composer. Mingus left in 1951 and Red Mitchell replaced him. The Norvo,
Farlow and Mingus trio recorded two LPs for Savoy.
In 1959 Norvo's group played concerts in Australia with
Frank Sinatra; Blue Note released these recordings in 1997. Red Norvo and his
group also made several appearances on The Dinah Shore Chevy Show in the late
1950s and early '60s.
Norvo recorded and toured throughout his career until a
stroke in the mid-1980s forced him into retirement (although he developed
hearing problems long before his stroke). He died at a convalescent home in
Santa Monica, California at the age of 91. (info from Wikipedia)
1 comment:
For “Red Norvo Trio - Complete Recordings (Tal Farlow & Red Mitchell)” go here:
https://www.sendspace.com/file/teniyf
1 Whos Cares ? (Gershwin, Gershwin) 2:34
2 Let's fall in Love (Arlen, Koehler) 5:48
3 Old Devil Moon (Lane, Harburg) 4:57
4 Cabin in the Sky (LaTouche, Duke) 3:38
5 How Am I to Know ? (Parker, King) 4:40
6 That Old Black Magic (Arlen, Mercer) 4:27
7 What is this Thing Called Love ? (Porter) 5:00
8 I Brung You Finjans for Your Zarf (Norvo, Farlow) 2:33
9 My Funny Valentine (Rodgers, Hart) 5:16
10 Lullaby of Birdland (Shearing) 4:17
11 Farewell to Alms (Farlow) 5:23
12 Rea for Two (Youmans, Caesar) 5:07
13 Lullaby of the Leaves (Petkere) 5:25
14 Sweet Georgia Brown (Bernie, Casey, Pinkard) 3:55
15 Tenderly (Gross, Lawrence) 2:51
16 I Remember You (Schertzinger, Mercer) 3:25
17 Skylark (Carmichael, Mercer) 3:18
A big thank you to melanchthon @ Ploomy Sunday blogspot for original links
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