Georgie Auld is on tenor saxophone and George Arus is on trombone.
Buddy Rich is on drums, and he provides the grunting or shouting.
Rich exclaims (in rhythm) “hey, hey, yes, yes, yes, yes….aaaahhh!“
The most upbeat or fastest performance of the Swing Era?
This is my favorite Artie Shaw record (well, along with \"All The Things You Are\").
Buddy Rich had recently been the drummer in the Bunny Berigan band. He joined Shaw's band, and this is Buddy Rich at his best.
Recorded June 12, 1939. Around this time the Shaw band was in Hollywood making the feature film Dancing Co-ed for MGM.
\"Traffic Jam\" was written by Artie Shaw & Teddy McCrae. Teddy was one of Chick Webb’s saxophonists and arrangers. Teddy had already give Shaw the great “Back Bay Shuffle,” and Shaw asked for another McRae tune--maybe one that could showcase the dynamic Buddy Rich on drums.
Artie Shaw, clarinet; directing: John Best, first trumpet, Chuck Peterson and Bernie Privin, trumpets; George Arus, first trombone; Les Jenkins and Harry Rodgers, trombones; Les Robinson, first alto saxophone; Hank Freeman, alto and baritone saxophones; Tony Pastor and Georgie Auld, tenor saxophones; Bob Kitsis, piano; Al Avola, guitar; Sid Weiss, bass; Buddy Rich, drums.
Artie Shaw & His Orchestra \"Traffic Jam\" Bluebird B-10385 (1939)
Artie Shaw was born Arthur Jacob Arshawsky on May 23, 1910, in New York City's Lower East Side, the only child of Jewish immigrants from Russia and Austria. The family moved to New Haven, Connecticut.
Show business gave names to men at the top--Benny Goodman already was crowned \"King of Swing.\" Artie Shaw became known as \"King of the Clarinet.\"
Shaw as a bandleader scored his first big success in 1938 with Cole Porter's \"Begin the Beguine.\" One price he paid for success is that he felt forced to play this monster hit at every appearance. Billie Holiday had joined and left the outfit before Shaw's name became a household one due to the success of \"Begin the Beguine.\"
The press tried to create rivalry between Shaw and Goodman though the two men were friends, never rivals (the press would do the same 25 years later by creating a false rivalry between the Rolling Stones and the Beatles).
Shaw became frustrated with fans and the pressure of success. He walked off stage in 1939 during a gig in New York City (the Pennsylvania Hotel--November 18, 1939) and went to Mexico. Within months--March of 1940--Shaw resurfaced to fulfill contract obligations. He scored a hit with \"Frenesi,\" a song he discovered in Mexico.
In 1941 Shaw married the daughter of Jerome Kern. Her name was Elizabeth Kern--the marriage did not last.
Shaw left the business again in 1951 though by this time the big band craze was over. He devoted himself to writing, even penning the autobiographical book The Trouble With Cinderella.
Shaw died on December 30, 2004, in his Newbury Park home from complications related to diabetes.
Artie Shaw and His Orchestra \"Traffic Jam\" (1939) fastest tempo of swing era? Buddy Rich = great
