James Hal Kemp (March 27, 1904 – December 21, 1940) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

alto saxophonist The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor ...

, clarinetist, bandleader, composer, and arranger.

Biography

Hal Kemp was born in

Marion, Alabama Marion is a city in, and the county seat of, Perry County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city is 3,686, up 4.8% over 2000. First known as Muckle Ridge, the city was renamed for a hero of the American Revolu ...

. He formed his first band in high school, and by the age of 19 led a

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

band, the Carolina Club Orchestra. They sailed to England, where they made their first recordings in London, and on their return journey made the acquaintance of

the Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers o ...

, who performed with them. As a result, the band was mentioned in US press reports, and on their return received several offers of contracts. In 1927, Kemp formed his own orchestra, which at various times featured

Skinnay Ennis Edgar Clyde "Skinnay" Ennis Jr. (August 13, 1907 – June 3, 1963) was an American jazz and pop music bandleader and singer. Early years The son of Mr. and Mrs. E.C. Ennis, he was born Edgar Clyde Ennis Jr. in Salisbury, North Carolina, United S ...

Bunny Berigan Roland Bernard "Bunny" Berigan (November 2, 1908 – June 2, 1942) was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader who rose to fame during the swing era. His career and influence were shortened by alcoholism, and ended with his early demise at the ...

, and

John Scott Trotter John Scott Trotter Jr. (June 14, 1908 – October 29, 1975), also known as "Uncle John", was an American arranger, composer and orchestra leader. Trotter was best known for conducting the John Scott Trotter Orchestra which backed singer and ...

, and the band became a popular jazz orchestra in the late 1920s. Biography by Bruce Eder, ''Allmusic.com''
Retrieved 3 March 2020 Hal Kemp: Biography, ''Parabrisas.com''
Retrieved 3 March 2020 In the 1930s, with the economic and social challenges of the Great Depression, Kemp's band became better known for more soothing "sweet"

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded da ...

. From 1932 to 1934, they performed at the Blackhawk Restaurant in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and appeared regularly on radio broadcasts. They became well-known nationally, and secured a contract with

Brunswick Records Brunswick Records is an American record label founded in 1916. History From 1916 Records under the Brunswick label were first produced by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, a company based in Dubuque, Iowa which had been manufacturing prod ...

. Most of the vocals on their recordings were by Skinnay Ennis, whose vocal style and the arrangements by Trotter, which featured staccato triplets by the trumpeters and clarinets played through

megaphone A megaphone, speaking-trumpet, bullhorn, blowhorn, or loudhailer is usually a portable or hand-held, cone-shaped acoustic horn used to amplify a person's voice or other sounds and direct it in a given direction. The sound is introduced int ...

s, gave Kemp's records a distinctive sound. Kemp and his orchestra had a number of hit records, including "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" (1933), "In the Middle of a Kiss" (1935), "There's a Small Hotel" (1936), "When I'm With You" (1936), "This Year's Kisses" (1937), and "

Where or When "Where or When" is a show tune from the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical ''Babes in Arms''. It was first performed by Ray Heatherton and Mitzi Green. That same year, Hal Kemp recorded a popular version. The song also appeared in the film version o ...

" (1937). From 1937, Kemp recorded for

Victor Records The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer that operated independently from 1901 until 1929, when it was acquired by the Radio Corporation of America and subsequently operated as a subsidi ...

. His other recordings included "Got A Date With An Angel", "Heart Of Stone", "Lamplight", "The Music Goes 'Round And Around", "You're The Top", "Bolero", "Gloomy Sunday", "Lullaby Of Broadway", and many others. In 1936, John Scott Trotter left, being succeeded as arranger by

Hal Mooney Hal Mooney, born Harold Mooney (February 4, 1911 – March 23, 1995), was an American composer and arranger. Early life and career Hal Mooney was born in Brooklyn, New York. As a young man, Mooney was a professional pianist. He attended Brook ...

and

Lou Busch Lou may refer to: __NOTOC__ Personal name * Lou (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Lou (German singer) * Lou (French singer) * Lou (surname 娄), the 229th most common surname in China * Lou (surname 楼), the 269th most co ...

. Ennis left in 1938, and Bob Allen became the band's featured singer. With the rising popularity of swing bands such as those of Benny Goodman and

Tommy Dorsey Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-toned trombo ...

, the popularity of Kemp's orchestra declined and there were many changes in band membership, though they continued to make film appearances. Hal Kemp died in

Madera, California Madera (Spanish language, Spanish for "Wood") is a city and county seat of Madera County, California, Madera County, California. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 66,224. Located in the San Joaquin Valley, Madera i ...

in 1940, aged 36, following a road accident while driving from

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

to a performance in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

in foggy conditions. His car was hit by an oncoming truck, and he died in hospital from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

two days later. The orchestra remained operational for some time after Kemp's death, led by singer

Art Jarrett Arthur L. Jarrett Jr. (July 20, 1907 – July 23, 1987) born to stage actor and playwright Arthur L. Jarrett Sr. (1884–1960). Art Jr. was an American singer, actor, and bandleader in the 1930s and 1940s. Early career Near the end of the 19 ...

, but disbanded in the early 1940s.

Marriages and Family

Hal Kemp was married twice. In 1932 he wed Bessie Slaughter, of

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

. They had two children — daughter Sally, and son Hal Jr. The couple were divorced in July, 1938. Kemp married again on January 13, 1939, to New York Society debutante Martha Stephenson, in Pittsburgh. They had one daughter, Helen Stephenson Kemp.

References

External links

Hal Kemp recordings
at the Discography of American Historical Recordings. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kemp, Hal Dance band bandleaders Swing saxophonists Swing clarinetists Swing bandleaders American jazz alto saxophonists American male saxophonists American jazz clarinetists American jazz bandleaders American jazz composers American male jazz composers American music arrangers Big band bandleaders 1904 births 1940 deaths University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni People from Marion, Alabama Road incident deaths in California Vocalion Records artists RCA Victor artists 20th-century American composers 20th-century American saxophonists Jazz musicians from Alabama 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century jazz composers Deaths from pneumonia in California American expatriate musicians American expatriates in England