Woody Herman

Birth : 1913-05-16, Milwaukee, WI

Death : 1987-10-29

History

Legendary clarinetist, composer ("At the Woodchoppers' Ball"), singer and bandleader (the Thundering Herd(s) ), educated at Marquette University. He was a clarinetist in the orchestras of Joey Lichter, Harry Sosnik, Gus Arnheim, and Indiana Jones, then formed his own orchestra, appearing in hotels, theatres and ballrooms. He toured Europe in 1954, Europe, and Latin America in 1958 (under the auspices of the US State Department), and made many records. Joining ASCAP in 1945, his chief musical collaborators included Chubby Jackson and Ralph Burns, and his other popular-song and instrumental compositions include "Apple Honey", "Goosey Gander", "Northwest Passage", "River Bed Blues", "Blues on Parade", "Blowin' Up a Storm", "Music by the Moon", "Early Autumn", "A Kiss Goodnight", "Your Father's Moustache", "Wild Root", "I Remember Duke", and "Misty Morning".

Profile

Movies

Jazz Icons: Woody Herman Live in '64

Woody Herman features a blistering one-hour concert from 1964 showcasing one of the very hottest line-ups of the “Swinging Herd,” including trumpeter Bill Chase, trombonist Phil Wilson and the amazing saxophonist Sal Nistico on the front line, as well as drummer Jake Hanna, bassist Chuck Andrus and pianist-arranger Nat Pierce in the rhythm section. Woody and his band roar throughout the entire show which includes standards such as Lonesome Old Town and After You've Gone as well as new originals including Charles Mingus's Better Git It in Your Soul.

Louis Prima: The Wildest!

Himself (archive footage)

Documentary about the mid-20th century Vegas bandleader and trumpeter Louis Prima, who showed the world what a rock show could be.

Woody Herman's Swinging Herd live in England

Clarinettiste

Winter Meeting

Leader - Woody Herman and His Orchestra

A repressed poetess and an embittered war hero help each other cope with their problems.

Rhapsody in Wood

Himself

Woody Herman spins a fairy tale about how his Woodchopper Grandpappy Herman chopped the wood necessary to form the clarinet Woody inherited and uses. Grandpappy formed it and put out magical enchanting sounds like the Pied Piper.

New Orleans

Original Music Composer

A gambling hall owner relocates from New Orleans to Chicago and entertains his patrons with hot jazz by Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Woody Herman, and others.

New Orleans

Himself

A gambling hall owner relocates from New Orleans to Chicago and entertains his patrons with hot jazz by Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Woody Herman, and others.

Sensations of 1945

Woody Herman

As dancer Ginny Walker performs on stage, a veiled woman in the audience stands up, accuses Ginny of stealing her husband and then fires a gun at her. After Ginny collapses and is taken to her dressing room, the woman, Julia Westcolt, a friend of Ginny's, dashes backstage, discards her veil, and then congratulates her friend on their successful publicity stunt. When Ginny's press agents, Gus Crane and his son Junior, visit their client backstage, she brags about her feat and chides them for not being more creative in promoting her. Horrified at Ginny's brashness, Junior, a conservative Harvard graduate, chastises her and leaves the room.

Wintertime

Himself (leader, Woody Herman and His Orchestra)

Nora and her uncle get railroaded into spending the night at a broken-down hotel in Canada. After Nora falls for the handsome owner, she convinces her uncle to invest in the inn and modernize it. After the hotel opens, Nora's uncle faces financial ruin and her romance hit a snag in the form of pretty reporter.

What's Cookin'?

Woody Herman - Orchestra Leader

J. P. Courtney wants to update the music on the radio program he sponsors, but his wife, Agatha Courtney, is the final authority and addicted to the classics and won't allow him to replace Professor Bistell and his symphonic orchestra. Conspiring with his daughter Sue and her friends, Marvo the Great, the Andrews Sisters, Anne Payne and bandleader Woody Herman, they devise a sabotage plot that gets rid of Professor Bistell, and a new sound is soon heard on the program.

Woody Herman & His Orchestra

Woody Herman's orchestra plays five tunes, and guest performers sing and dance.