George Paxton (March 24, 1914 – April 19, 1989) was an American big band leader, saxophonist, arranger, and publisher during the 1930s and 1940s. He was president of Coed Records and a producer for the label.

Early career

He was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and grew up in Kearny, New Jersey, where he learned to play the saxophone at a young age and was influenced by the music of

Isham Jones Isham Edgar Jones (January 31, 1894 – October 19, 1956) was an American bandleader, saxophonist, bassist and songwriter. Career Jones was born in Coalton, Ohio, United States, to a musical and mining family. His father, Richard Isham Jones ...

, later attending the Juilliard School. In 1933, while still in high school, Paxton formed a six-man band with schoolmates Tony Mottola and Herbie Haymer. The three later moved to New York City, where Paxton was hired to write arrangements for band leader and Meadowbrook Inn owner Frank Dailey. In the late 1930s, Paxton got a job with

George Hall George Hall may refer to: People The arts * George Hall (actor) (1916–2002), Canadian-American actor * George Hall (musician) (c. 1893 – c. 1989), American bandleader * George Hall (cartoonist) (born 1960), Australian comic book writer and ...

's Orchestra as an arranger and tenor sax player. Paxton was able to convince Hall to hire his high school friend and skilled guitar player Tony Mottola for the group. In Hall's group, Paxton got to work with other talented young musicians like Johnny Guarnieri on piano and

Nick Fatool Nick Fatool (January 2, 1915 – September 26, 2000) was an American jazz drummer. Music career He was born in Millbury, Massachusetts, United States. Fatool first played professionally in Providence, Rhode Island, which he followed with time i ...

on drums. At this time, Paxton was also writing arrangements for Dolly Dawn and Her Dawn Patrol. In the early 1940s, Paxton arranged music for Bunny Berigan, Bea Wain, Charlie Spivak (along with Sonny Burke and

Nelson Riddle Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Records ...

), Ina Ray Hutton, Vaughn Monroe, and Sammy Kaye.

George Paxton and His Orchestra

After years of playing, arranging, and directing different groups around New York City, Paxton formed his own orchestra in 1944. The group became popular in New York City, and a ten-week engagement at the Roseland Ballroom turned into a one year run. Some of these performances were broadcast live on the radio, which helped gain the band some popularity. George Paxton and His Orchestra toured the East Coast of the United States and gained some acclaim by 1945. Vocalists included

Alan Dale Alan Hugh Dale (born 6 May 1947) is a New Zealand actor. As a child, Dale enjoyed theatre and rugby. After retiring from the sport, he took on a number of occupations, before deciding to become a professional actor at age 27. Dale subsequentl ...

, Liza Morrow, Dick Merrick, and Gene Williams. Standout musicians were trumpeter

Guy Key Guy or GUY may refer to: Personal names * Guy (given name) * Guy (surname) * That Guy (...), the New Zealand street performer Leigh Hart Places * Guy, Alberta, a Canadian hamlet * Guy, Arkansas, US, a city * Guy, Indiana, US, an unincorpo ...

(sometimes "Kee") and saxophonist Boomie Richman (sometimes "Richmond"), as well as Andrew Ackers (piano), Romeo Penque (sax), Max Herman (trumpet), Vern Whitney (trombone), Doc Goldberg (bass),

(drums), and others. The orchestra's primary label was Majestic, however their songs were also released on the Guild, Hit, and MGM labels. Some of Paxton's compositions and arrangements include: "Paxonia", "All of Me", "Streamliner", "This Can't Be Love", "I'm Coming Virginia", "Jug Night", and "I'm Gonna See My Baby", among others.

George Paxton, Inc.

In 1949, Paxton was offered the job directing the house orchestra at The Capitol Theater in New York City. While there, he started a music publishing company; George Paxton, Inc. One of his first publications was " There's No Tomorrow", which became a big hit for Tony Martin.

Coed Records

George Paxton and Marvin Cane formed Coed Records, Inc. in New York City in 1958, and had offices at 1619 Broadway in the Brill Building. Paxton produced many of the songs on this label, most of which were of the East Coast

Doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

group style, and some of these became hit songs of the day. Between 1958 and 1965, Coed's biggest acts included the Crests, the Rivieras, the Duprees,

the Harptones The Harptones are an American doo-wop group, which formed in Manhattan in 1953. The group never had a top forty pop hit, or a record on the US ''Billboard'' R&B chart, yet they are known for both their lead singer Willie Winfield and their pian ...

, and Adam Wade, among others. Paxton's big-band background came in particularly handy with the Duprees, who combined group vocals with deliberately nostalgic swing orchestra backing on hits like " You Belong to Me" and " Why Don't You Believe Me." allmusic ((( The Best of Coed Records > Overview )))/ref> Other highlights include the Crests' " Sixteen Candles" and three songs from the group's so-called "angel series," "The Angels Listened In," "Pretty Little Angel," and "Trouble in Paradise". In April 2010, the Coed Records catalogue was acquired by Los Angeles-based rights-management firm Beach Road Music, LLC.Baptista, Todd (March 2011). “Lost and Found”, '' Goldmine'', Volume 37, Issue 797, p. 97 As a credited songwriter for Coed Records, Paxton used the pseudonym "George Eddy" on songs including "

The Writing on the Wall "The writing on the wall" is an idiomatic expression that suggests a portent of doom or misfortune, based on the story of Belshazzar's feast in the book of Daniel. The Writing on the Wall, The Writing's on the Wall or similar titles may also refer ...

", a 1961 hit for Adam Wade which he co-wrote with Sandy Baron and Mark Barkan. Songs written by Mark Barkan, ''MusicVf.com''
Retrieved 12 May 2020

Death

According to a '' Palm Beach Post'' news wire dated April 22, 1989, George Paxton died on April 19, 1989, "the victim of an apparent

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paxton, George 1914 births 1989 suicides 1989 deaths American jazz bandleaders American jazz composers American male jazz composers American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists American music arrangers Record producers from Florida Big band bandleaders Jazz arrangers Juilliard School alumni Musicians from New Jersey People from Kearny, New Jersey Musicians from Jacksonville, Florida Swing arrangers Swing bandleaders Swing composers Swing saxophonists 20th-century jazz composers 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American saxophonists 20th-century American composers Majestic Records artists 20th-century American male musicians