Music request: Late 40's roadhouse jukebox

[Talbot]

Apols for the strange request.

I was re watching 'The Asphalt Jungle (1950)' last night, and there is a scene towards the end where some kids are jitterbugging

Can anyone tell me if this music has a specific type/genre so I can track down more? I have a fair amount of noir already.

I'm thinking something akin to Woody Herman's third herd, but keen to hear other artists

Roadhouse Jazz maybe???

All assistance appreciated

 

[Mighty44]

You nailed it with Woody Herman—this sounds exactly like the band from that era. There were other great bop influenced bands in the late 40s but many of them, like Goodman’s, were short lived and under recorded but worth seeking out. Dizzy Gillespie’s 40s big band was hugely influential. Artie Shaw had a pretty good bop band for just a year or so (about as long as Goodman’s). Everyone was trying to adapt to the new sounds but the bottom was falling out of the band business and most bandleaders couldn’t afford to keep their big bands going.

I’m not a Stan Kenton fan but he was a giant presence at the time and has some of this sound with lots of horns and high notes-but much less swinging than Widdy Herman. Neil Hefti brought a similar arranging concept to Count Basie—The Atomic Basie is probably the best example.

All that said—if you want to listen to roadhouse music from the late 40s, it probably wasn’t big band music the folks were listening to on Saturday night but more like Louis Jordan’s band. Cootie Williams and Jonah Jones also led pretty great groups in the late 40s that played stripped down dance music. Another, very different, roadhouse group was Bob Wills small late 40s band heard on the Tiffany Transcriptions—not as swinging as his Western swing big bands from a few years before, but great roadhouse beer-drinking and dancing music.

Hope that gives you something you don’t already know.

Cheers,

David

 

[Mighty44]

Here’s Artie Shaw’s bop band:

This collection Dizzy’s big band as well as some great small group sides:

Basie:

 

[Talbot]

David, many thanks for the reply.

Your effort in putting it together is also appreciated.

The fang of the tone arm cobra will ride these hep grooves. Vouty Macreeny Mo!