Original air date - Phantom Dancer :: 12:00pm 25th Aug 2020

Erskine Hawkins, that 20th Century Gabriel, from live 1940s radio is this week's Phantom Dancer non-stop swing jazz feature artist. Greg Poppleton has been bringing you The Phantom Dancer every week since 1985. It's your non-stop mix of swing and jazz from live 1920s-60s radio and TV every week. Hear The Phantom Dancer online from 12:04pm AEST Tuesday 25 August at https://2ser.com/phantom-dancer/ where you can also hear two years of archived shows. The finyl hour is vinyl.

ERSKINE

Erskine Ramsay Hawkins, 'the 20th Century Gabriel' was an American trumpeter, composer and big band leader from Birmingham, Alabama. His outstanding hit, 'Tuxedo Junction' (1939) written saxophonist and arranger Bill Johnson, has become a jazz standard. Vocalists who were featured with Erskine's orchestra include Ida James, Delores Brown, and Della Reese. Erskine Hawkins was named by his parents after Alabama industrialist Erskine Ramsay. The industrialist was rewarding parents who named their children after him with savings accounts. At high schoold he played in the band directed by Fess Whatley, a teacher who trained numerous African-American musicians, many of whom populated the bands of famed band leaders such as Duke Ellington, Lucky Millinder, Louis Armstrong and Skitch Henderson (of the NBC Orchestra).

HAWKINS

From 1936 to 1938, he recorded for Vocalion Records as 'Erskine Hawkins and his 'Bama State Collegians'. In 1938, he signed with RCA Victor Records and began recording on their Bluebird label as, 'Erskine Hawkins and his Orchestra'. In the late 1930s Hawkins and his Orchestra were one of the house bands at the Savoy Ballroom. They alternated with the Chick Webb band, and often used Tuxedo Junction as their sign-off song before the next band would take the stage, so that the dancing would continue uninterrupted. Hawkins also engaged in 'battles of the bands' with such bandleaders as Glenn Miller, Duke Ellington, and Lionel Hampton. In the mid 1940s, he was transferred to the main RCA Victor label, recording many of his greatest hits for both labels during this decade. He remained with them until 1950 when he switched over to Coral Records. He continued to record for many years. From 1967 - 93, Hawkins was trumpeter and band leader in the lobby bar and show nightclub at The Concord Resort Hotel in Kiamesha Lake, New York with his last performing group Joe Vitale piano, Dudly Watson bass, Sonny Rossi vocals and clarinet, and George Leary drums.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

A clip of Erskine Hawkins and his Orchestra from 1938. Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntL6dhIJRHM

25 AUGUST PLAY LIST

Play List - The Phantom Dancer 107.3 2SER-FM Sydney, Live Stream, Digital Radio Community Radio Network Show CRN #451
107.3 2SER Tuesday 25 August 2020 After the 2SER 12 noon news, 12:04 - 2:00pm (+10 hours GMT) and Saturdays 5 - 5:55pm National Program: 1ART ArtsoundFM Canberra Sunday 10 - 11pm 5GTR Mt Gambier Monday 2:30 - 3:30am 3MBR Murrayville Monday 3 - 4am 4NAG Keppel FM Monday 3 - 4am 2SEA Eden Monday 3 - 4am 2MIA Griffith Monday 3 - 4pm 2BAR Edge FM Bega Monday 3 - 4pm 3VKV Alpine Radio Monday 6 - 7pm 7MID Oatlands Tuesday 8 - 9pm 2MCE Bathurst / Orange / Central West NSW Wednesday 9 - 10am 2ARM Armidale Friday 12 - 1pm 7LTN Launceston Sunday 5 - 6am 3MGB Mallacoota Sunday 5 - 6am 6GME Radio Goolarri Broome Sunday 5 - 6am
Set 1	1950s Big Bands on Radio
Open + Leap Frog +	Les Brown Orchestra	'All-Star Parade of Bands' Palladium Ballroom KFI NBC LA 12 Oct 1953
Nina Never Knew	Sauter - Finegan Orchestra (voc) Andy Roberts	'All-Star Parade of Bands' Blue Note WMAQ NBC Chicago 12 Sep 1953
Scianina Mia + Close	Ralph Flanagan Orchestra	'Treasury Bandstand' Cafe Rouge Hotel Statler WCBS CBS New York City 1950
Set 2	Radio Jazz from the late 1920s
To-Wa-Bac-A-Wa	Louis Dumaine's Jazzola Eight	Comm Rec New Orleans 7 Mar 1927
Shut The Door They're Coming Through The Window	Murray and Scanlon (voc) Colonial Club Orchestra	'Brunswick Brevities' Radio Transcription New York Nov 1929
Jazz Me Blues	Little Buster and the Corn Poppers (Red Nichols)	'Dickenson Program' Radio Transcription New York Nov 1929
Set 3	Three Unique Jazz Guitarists on 1930s-50s Radio
Djangology	Django Reinhardt and the Air Transport Command Band	'AFN Bandstand' AFN Paris 26 Oct 1945
Chick a la Swing	Carl Kress and Dick McDonough	'Saturday Night Swing Club' WABC CBS NY 12 Jun 1937
You Don't Know What Love Is	Tal Farlow (g) Trio	'All-Star Parade of Bands' Composer Club WRCA NBC NY 23 Apr 1956
Set 4	Holding The 8 Bar Vocal Note on Radio
In The Evening When The Sun Goes Down	Count Basie Orchestra (voc) Joe Williams	'Al Freed Rock 'n' Roll Dance Party' KFWB CBS Hollywood 1956
Meniana Ae	Harry Owens Orchestra (voc) Eddie Bush	'Sweet Leilani Time' Mural Room Hotel St Francis KGO NBC San Francisco 1946
Ev'ry Day	Count Basie Orchestra (voc) Joe Williams	'Al Freed Rock 'n' Roll Dance Party' KFWB CBS Hollywood 1956
I'll See You In My Dreams	Greg Poppleton (voc) and the Bakelite Broadcasters	'Back In Your Own Backyard' Bandcamp
Set 5	1930s Jazz Bands and Singers on the Radio
Minor Mania	Claude Hopkins Orchestra	Radio Transcription New York City 1935
Swinging On The Strings	The Inkspots	WEAF NBC Red NY 9 Aug 1935
One, Two, Button Your Shoe	Duke Ellington Orchestra (voc) Ivie Anderson	Cotton Club WABC CBS NY 18 Mar 1937
St Louis Blues	Count Basie Orchestra (voc) Jimmy Rushing	Hotel William Penn WCAE NBC Pittsburgh 8 Feb 1937
Set 6	Women Jazz Stars on 1940s-50s Radio
Once In A While	Sarah Vaughan (voc) Jimmy Jones (piano)	'Jazz Club USA' Carnegie Hall, New York City Voice of America 25 Dec 1949
I Cover The Waterfront	Billie Holliday	Storyville Club WMEX Boston 29 Oct 1951
There'll Be A Jubilee	Dinah Washington (voc) Lionel Hampton Orchestra	'One Night Stand' Trianon Ballroom Southgate Ca AFRS Re-broadcast 16 Jun 1944
Deed I Do	Lena Horne (voc) Fletcher Henderson Orchestra	'Jubilee' AFRS Re-broadcast Hollywood 1944
Set 7	Erskine Hawkins - The 20th Century Gabriel on Radio
Baltimore Bounce	Erskine Hawkins Orchestra	Comm Rec New York City 20 Dec 1939
Open + Eelibuj Boogie	Erskine Hawkins Orchestra	'Jubilee' AFRS Hollywood 1943
Uncle Bud	Erskine Hawkins Orchestra	Aircheck New York City Jun 1942
It's Dawn Again	Erskine Hawkins Orchestra	'One Night Stand' Blue Room Hotel Lincoln NY AFRS Re-broadcast 1 May 1946
Set 8	Jump Blues on 1944-45 Radio
Hey Lawdy Mama	Miss Rhapsody	Comm Rec New York City 6 Jul 1944
How High The Moon	Jubilee All-Stars	'Jubilee' AFRS Hollywood Oct 1945
Dee Dee's Dance	Herbie Fields Orchestra	Comm Rec New York City 19 Dec 1944
Jam Session Blues	Johnny Otis Orchestra (voc) Ivie Anderson and Joe Turner	'Jubilee' AFRS Hollywood Oct 1945