The Big Bands

by George T. Simon

In this book you will find an astounding 400 biographies that highlight the history and personnel of the great bands. It is organized into four sections: “The Big Bands--Then” (the scene, the leaders, the public, the musicians, vocalists, arrangers and businessmen, recordings, radio, movies and the press); “Inside the Big Bands” (profiles of 72 top bands); “Inside More of the Big Bands” (hundreds of additional profiles arranged by categories (“The Arranging Leaders,” “The Horn-playing Leaders,” etc.); and “The Big Bands Now.”

The Big Bands is one of the best books on the subject. It is both readable and an invaluable reference source for the study of jazz standards since many were written by big band leaders or musicians or were popularized through their performances and recordings. The index is comprehensive with names but lists no songs.

George T. Simon was one of the original organizers and members of the Glenn Miller Orchestra for which he played the drums. He was also one of the first writers for Metronome Magazine where he remained from 1935 until 1955.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, History, Reference, Biography

600 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1971

Reviews

[Lauren Stoolfire · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Big Bands by by George T. Simon is exactly what I needed. I love listening to this kind of music so this was awesome! I learned some about new to me bands and I'll have to check out their music soon.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A kick. Covers scads of swing-era musicians, including some who would range from obscure to forgotten. Written with lots of flair and opinion, yet seems quite fair even to people the author didn't much like. Several retrospective articles at the end of the book . . . Artie Shaw, Bennie Goodman, Harry James, etc. 30 years after the peak of the big-band era.

Am listening to lots of big-band stuff and have been going back to the book over and over. Alas, the library will want it back one of these days. I'd buy a copy if I ever run across one.

January 2017 -- and I did, for all of 50 cents at a thrift store. Super luck!

August 2020 -- this continues to be a great addition to my library. Useful when I was reading Benny Goodman bio this summer. Also went back and reread the Glenn Miller section; may get around to Simon's bio of Miller one of these days.

August 2023 -- am referring to this while listening to podcasts of "The Star-Spangled Radio Hour," a weekly series about 1930s - 1940s big bands produced by Dennis M. Spragg of The Glenn Miller Collections at the University of Colorado's American Music Research Center. While "The Star-Spangled Radio Hour" has existed for 15 or more years, the web site includes perhaps 100 of the best from the past (re-posted in the past three years) and new episodes weekly in 2023. As you would expect, there's lots in the podcasts featuring Glenn Miller, including his WW II GI musical groups, but also much info on and music from Tommy Dorsey and Artie Shaw and a good smattering of music from other bands. This book of Simon's has something about EVERYONE.

[Robert Pachella · Rating 4 out of 5]

An older compilation of much information on the big band era. If you like the music of the late thirties and forties, you will love it. But the second half of the book is more like an encyclopedia with an alphabetic listing of all the bands of the time period.

[Gary Laughrey]

Nice update of the original.

[Buddy Don · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is more of a reference work than a "good read," but it's of great interest if one wishes to learn more about the big bands of the swing era, 1936-1947. Simon was a reviewer for Metronome Magazine during the time indicated, so he has a very informed point of view, knowing many of the individuals about whom he writes personally. I'll be consulting this one a lot as I learn more about this amazing period in music.

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

This truly is the definitive guide to the music of the big bands written by a man who worked in the music industry during that era. George Simon knew the musicians that he wrote about. A nice discography is included for the record collectors.

[Ceejay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book a little bit at a time. If you are interested in the Big Band era of jazz,you can't do better than this book. There is a history (at times breif) of all the major big bands (and some of the also rans). This is truly an excellent reference book!

[Angela Hardy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, and dreamed of being the vocalist for a group like these...alas, I was born to late!

[Ted Gurley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Essential Big Band reference. Feature's profiles of the bands and the musicians.

[Faith Evangeline · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fabulous book for anyone who is fascinated by the music of the Big Band era! I found it tremendously informative.