TENOR SAX

Jazz tenor sax swing and bop pioneer, Coleman Hawkins, is this week’s The Phantom Dancer feature artist with Greg Poppleton. You’ll hear him in a mix of live 1940 – 1950s broadcasts and commercial sides from New York and Hilversum in Holland.

Check out the full Phantom Dancer play list of swing and jazz mixed by Greg Poppleton from live 1920s-60s radio below is ready for your perusal below.

ONLINE

This week’s Phantom Dancer will be online right after the 11 June 2SER live mix at 2ser.com.
Hear the show live every Tuesday 12:04-2pm on 107.3 2SER Sydney

COLEMAN HAWKINS

Coleman Randolph Hawkins was an American jazz tenor saxophonist in the 1930s – 1960s. In the Swing Era he influenced generations of tenor players and he had a role in the development of bebop in the 1940s. Miles Davis said of Hawkins’ playing, “When I heard Hawk, I learned how to play ballads.”

EARLY DAYS

Hawkins took up the saxophone at age 9 after playing piano and cello. By age 14 in 1916 he was playing with local bands.

His first major gig was with Mamie Smith’s Jazz Hounds in 1921 when he settled in New York City. In 1923 he joined Fletcher Henderson’s Orchestra, where he remained until 1934, sometimes doubling on clarinet and bass saxophone. Hawkins’s playing changed significantly during Louis Armstrong’s tenure with the Henderson Orchestra (1924–25). In the late 1920s, Hawkins also participated in some of the earliest interracial recording sessions with the Mound City Blue Blowers. During his time with Henderson he became a star soloist with increasing prominence on records. While with the band, he and Henry ‘Red’ Allen recorded a series of small group sides for ARC (on their Perfect, Melotone, Romeo, and Oriole labels). Hawkins also recorded a number of solo recordings with either piano or a pick-up band of Henderson’s musicians in 1933–34, just prior to his period in Europe. He was also featured on a Benny Goodman session on February 2, 1934 for Columbia, which also featured Mildred Bailey as guest vocalist.

EUROPE

In late 1934, Hawkins accepted an invitation to play with Jack Hylton’s orchestra in London, and toured Europe as a soloist until 1939, performing and recording with Django Reinhardt and Benny Carter in Paris in 1937. You’ll hear one of these sides on this week’s Phantom Dancer.

Back in NYC, on October 11, 1939, he recorded a two-chorus solo of the pop standard ‘Body and Soul’, That became a landmark recording of the swing era and his radio theme. You’ll hear a 1940 radio version of it when he lead a big band in this week’s mix

FIRST BOP RECORD

Hawkins always had a keen ear for new talent and styles and he was the leader on what is generally considered to have been the first ever bebop recording session on February 16, 1944 including Dizzy Gillespie, Don Byas, Clyde Hart, Oscar Pettiford, and Max Roach. He maintained his eclectic approach to his music through much of his later career as you’ll hear in the 1950s radio aircheck in this week’s mix.

VIDEO

This week’s Phantom Dancer video of the week is Coleman Hawkins playing Lover Man is a film made in the 1950s with Johnny Guaneri, piano; Milt Hinton, bass; Barry Galbrath, guitar and Cozy Cole, drums. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uk2hRbHbc0M

11 JUNE PLAY LIST