WHITEMAN, PAUL

Orchestra Leader, Music Director, Radio & TV Personality
(1890–1967)

Paul Whiteman led the most popular band throughout the 1920’s and was given the moniker, “The King of Jazz,” in 1923, although that title is generally disputed. It must be said, however, that at the time, when the fox trot was coming into vogue, the dance was equated with jazz, and Whiteman capitalized on it by appending the two words to many of the tunes he recorded. Furthermore, he often hired some of the finest jazz musicians for his orchestra such as Bix Beiderbecke, Bunny Berigan, Joe Venuti, and Frank Trumbauer. And Whiteman gave Bing Crosby his start.

Whiteman made his first recording in 1920 and was hugely successful with “Whispering” and “Japanese Sandman.” The appeal of the orchestra was in its fresh instrumentation and its size—nine musicians were unusual for bands of the time. He was forward thinking when it came to the music as well, being the one who introduced both “Body and Soul” and “How Deep Is the Ocean”. Perhaps, most importantly, Whiteman was the first to use and credit arrangers, foremost among them Ferdé Grofé, who played a work, later to become “Grand Canyon Suite,” commissioned by Whiteman for his wedding ceremony in 1931.

This was not Whiteman’s first commissioned work. In 1924 he presented George Gershwin performing “Rhapsody in Blue” in a landmark concert in New York. Whiteman was also a star of radio and the subject of a film, The King of Jazz (1930). Although his style began to lose favor in the ‘30s, he continued to guest conduct, had his own television show, and served as music director of ABC.

-- Sandra Burlingame

Courtesy of JazzStandards.com

Albums featuring this artist are available for download from ClassicsOnline.com
CROSBY, Bing: Rhythm King (1926-1930)	8.120696
CROSBY, Bing: Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (1927-1931)	8.120697
GERSHWIN, George: Gershwin and Friends (1927-1951)	8.120664
GERSHWIN, George: Gershwin Plays Gershwin (1919-1931)	8.120510
HITS OF THE 1920s, Vol. 1 (1920): Whispering	8.120635
HITS OF THE 1920s, Vol. 2 (1921-1923)	8.120841
HITS OF THE 1930s, Vol. 1 (1930): Happy Days Are Here Again!	8.120634
HITS OF THE 1930s, Vol. 2 (1931-1933)	8.120842
HOLIDAY, Billie: Trav'lin' Light (1940-1944)	8.120701
PORTER, Cole: But in the Morning, No (1930-1943)	8.120627
RODGERS, Richard: Easy to Remember - Songs of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart (1925-1946)	8.120830
'S WONDERFUL - SONGS OF GEORGE GERSHWIN (1929-1949)	8.120828
TEAGARDEN, Jack: Texas Tea Party (1933-1950)	8.120585
WHITEMAN, Paul: Paul Whiteman and His Dance Band	8.120511
WHITEMAN, Paul: A Pops Concert (1927-1929)	8.120520
WHITEMAN, Paul: Music for Moderns (1927-1928)	8.120505