Mr. Trumpet The Trials, Tribulations, and Triumph of Bunny Berigan

by Zirpolo, Michael P.

• ISBN13: 9780810881525
• ISBN10: 0810881527
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-09-29
• Publisher: Scarecrow Press

Summary

The life of jazz trumpeter Roland Bernard "Bunny" Berigan (1908-1942) resembles nothing less than an ancient Greek tragedy: a heroic figure who rises from obscurity to dizzying heights, touches greatness, becomes ensnared by circumstances, and comes to a disastrous early end. Berigan was intimately involved in the commercial music business of the 1930s and 1940s in New York City. Berigan was a charismatic performer, one of the few musicians in the history of jazz to advance the art. His trumpet artistry made a deep and lasting impression on almost everyone who heard him play, while the body of recorded work he left continues to evoke a wide range of emotions in those who hear it. Too often writings about the Swing Era skip over the interrelationship between the music business and the music that the giants of jazz created. In Mr. Trumpet: The Trials, Tribulations, and Triumph of Bunny Berigan, Michael Zirpolo takes on this difficult task, exploring connections between the business of music and contemporary music makers and the culture of social dancing that drove it all. Through detailed research and insightful analysis, Zirpolo rectifies many heretofore misunderstood events in Berigan's life and in the Swing Era more generally. In this panoramic examination of Berigan's personal and professional lives, Mr. Trumpet maps the great musician's role in what was a truly golden age of American popular music and jazz, offering close looks at some of his greatest performances and film work, comprehensive listings of all known broadcast recordings made by Berigan and his bands, as well as numerous previously unpublished photos of the great jazz artist.

Author Biography

Michael P. Zirpolo has been a practicing attorney since 1975. He has written numerous articles and presented many times on jazz musicians and the development of jazz from 1925 to 1960. He has served as a guest on radio programs and has digitally remastered vintage jazz recordings.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. ix
Beginnings: Home and Family	p. 1
Madison	p. 9
First Bite of the Apple	p. 17
Moving into the Big League	p. 23
The Next Step: Hal Kemp	p. 29
Manhattan Musical Merry-Go-Round	p. 34
Building a Reputation	p. 40
Whiteman Sideman	p. 53
The Birth of the Swing Era	p. 72
The Kingdom of Swing	p. 86
Swing Street	p. 108
Making it in Manhattan	p. 124
Big Band Berigan	p. 151
Balancing Act	p. 179
The Business of Success	p. 199
Maintenance	p. 225
Golden Boy	p. 241
Bad Boys and Bad Luck	p. 267
Enigma Variations: Part One	p. 288
Enigma Variations: Part Two	p. 332
Interlude	p. 365
On the Road for MCA	p. 401
The Last Roundup	p. 426
No Exit	p. 451
The Legend Begins	p. 477
Aircheck Recordings by Bunny Berigan and His Orchestra, 1937-1938	p. 498
Bunny Berigan and His Orchestra at the Paradise Restaurant	p. 505
1938 Thesaurus Radio Transcription Recordings by Bunny Berigan and His Orchestra	p. 507
Aircheck Recordings by Bunny Berigan and His Orchestra, 1939-1942	p. 513
Studio Talk	p. 517
Information Regarding the Film Syncopation	p. 519
General Index	p. 521
Name Index	p. 533
About the Author	p. 551
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