The story behind puzzle No. 54
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra · Single · Victor · 1937
Gene Krupa's tom-toms, a swing band at full tilt, and more than eight minutes of music at a time when most records lasted three.
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra recorded Sing, Sing, Sing in Hollywood on July 6, 1937, for Victor. It ran 8 minutes and 43 seconds and filled both sides of a 12-inch 78.
The 1937 recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1982.
Louis Prima wrote Sing, Sing, Sing. Jimmy Mundy's arrangement for Goodman also worked in Christopher Columbus, a piece Chu Berry wrote for Fletcher Henderson's band.
When the band played it at Carnegie Hall in January 1938, with solos made up on the spot, it stretched to 12 minutes and 30 seconds.
The drums carry the whole piece. Listen to Krupa's tom-toms pound out the beat under the horns, then take over completely in his solo passages.
Listen for the moments when the horns drop out and Krupa drives the band almost by himself.
Who's on it
Keep listening
Find the 1938 Carnegie Hall concert recording to hear how much longer and wilder the band made it live.
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