Solo Hop is a 1935 instrumental composed by

Glenn Miller Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Arm ...

and released as a Columbia 78 single. The recording was part of Glenn Miller's earliest sessions as a leader recording under his own name.

Background

''Solo Hop'' was a Top Ten hit from the summer of 1935 according to the official Glenn Miller Orchestra webpage. Glenn Miller composed the instrumental for a pick-up band when he started recording for

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. "Solo Hop" featured an all-star line-up led by

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 ...

on trumpet, future bandleader

Claude Thornhill Claude Thornhill (August 10, 1908 – July 1, 1965) was an American pianist, arranger, composer, and bandleader. He composed the jazz and pop standards "Snowfall" and "I Wish I Had You". Early years Thornhill was the son of J. Chester Thornhill ...

on piano and future bandleader

Charlie Spivak Charlie Spivak (February 17, 1907 – March 1, 1982) was an American trumpeter and bandleader, best known for his big band in the 1940s. Early life The details of Spivak's birth are unclear. Some sources place it in Ukraine in 1907, and that h ...

on trumpet. The song was recorded on April 25, 1935 in New York City. It was released by Columbia as a 78 single backed with "In a Little Spanish Town", label number CO-3058-D, Matrix number 17382-1. According to th
tsort.info website
data base, based on the research of ''Billboard'' chart analyst

Joel Whitburn Joel Carver Whitburn (November 29, 1939 – June 14, 2022) was an American author and music historian, responsible for setting up the Record Research, Inc. series of books on record chart placings. Early life Joel Carver Whitburn was born in Wau ...

, "Solo Hop" reached number seven on the ''Billboard'' chart in 1935, staying on the charts for five weeks. ''Billboard'' did not have a national chart for singles until 1940. George Thomas Simon, a biographer and friend of Glenn Miller's, however, contradicts sources that claim it was a top ten hit and wrote that it was barely noticed by record buyers. The recording was reissued by

Biltmore Records Biltmore Records was a United States based record label active from 1949 through 1951. The label was headquartered in New York City. Biltmore Records were often reissues of recordings no longer in the catalogues of other labels. When RCA Victor f ...

as a 78, 1045, in the 1949-1951 period. The record was also released as a Columbia Records red label 78, 35881, as part of the "A Hot Jazz Classic" series in 1941, Columbia FB-1150, Columbia SEG 8709, Columbia 33 SX 1462, and Columbia 33 SX 1491 in the UK, Columbia C 83404 in Germany, Epic EG-7005, Epic LN-3236, Epic LG-3109, Epic LA 16002, Epic LA 16006,

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...

P-23588-H in Argentina, and as Philips BBR 8092 and BBL 7086 in the UK.

Personnel

The personnel on the "Solo Hop" session were Glenn Miller on trombone, Bunny Berigan and Charlie Spivak on trumpets, Claude Thornhill on piano, Eddie Miller on tenor saxophone,

Johnny Mince Johnny Mince (born John Henry Muenzenberger) (July 8, 1912 – December 23, 1994) was an American swing jazz clarinetist. Career Mince played with Joe Haymes from 1929 to 1934, and recorded with Red Norvo and Glenn Miller in 1935. He then worked ...

on clarinet and alto saxophone, Larry Hall on guitar, Delmar Kaplan on bass, and Ray Bauduc on drums. "Solo Hop" was arranged by Glenn Miller.Flower, John. ''Moonlight Serenade: A Bio-discography of the Glenn Miller Civilian Band''. New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House, 1972

Appearances on Compilations

"Solo Hop" has appeared on the following compilation albums: * ''The Glenn Miller Story, Vols. 1-2'', Avid Entertainment, 2004. * ''Glenn Miller and His Orchestra: 1935-1938'', Classics, 2004. * ''The Best of the Big Bands'', Sony Special Products, 1997. * ''The Complete Early Recordings'', Opus Kura, 2004. * ''Collector's Choice/Vintage Glenn Miller'', Columbia, 1990. * ''Radio Days, Vol. 2'', WNTS, 2008.

References

Sources

* Simon, George Thomas. ''Simon Says.'' New York: Galahad, 1971. . * Simon, George Thomas. ''Glenn Miller and His Orchestra''. NY: Crowell, 1974. * Flower, John. ''Moonlight Serenade: A Bio-discography of the Glenn Miller Civilian Band''. New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House, 1972.

External links

Online version, Jazz Anthology website.
{{Glenn Miller Glenn Miller songs 1935 songs Jazz songs Jazz compositions Swing music Instrumentals