Did Stan Kenton Swing? You Bet Your Walkin' Shoes He Did . . .

[RSS Feed Guy]

I've been listening to a lot of m: Stan Kenton's music recently while coming to grips with the age-old question, did the Kenton orchestra really swing? The answer, to me, is a no-brainer: Yes, Kenton swung. Liberally and often. [Note: This of course depends on how "swinging" is defined; opinions may vary]. In his own way-although he'd have been loath to admit it-Kenton's series of orchestras swung as hard as anyone, even Basie, Herman or Rich. For assurance, one need look no further than some of the arrangers Kenton employed-die-hard swingers such as m: Shorty Rogers, m: Bill Holman, m: Gerry Mulligan and m: Marty Paich, to name a few. There's no doubt that Bill Russo could muster a swinging groove too, as could m: Pete Rugolo, m: Johnny Richards, m: Gene Roland, Dee Barton, m: Manny Albam, m: Neal Hefti, m: Willie Maiden, m: Lennie Niehaus, m: Hank Levy, m: Bob Curnow and their kin. With master craftsmen of their stature calling the tunes and writing the charts, how could any band not swing...

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