Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) 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 major ...

clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his death in 1987. His bands often played music that was cutting edge and experimental; their recordings received numerous

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

nominations.

Early life and career

Herman was born in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

, on May 16, 1913. His parents were Otto and Myrtle (Bartoszewicz) Herrmann. His mother was born in Poland. His father had a deep love for show business and this influenced Woody at an early age. As a child he worked as a singer and tap-dancer in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

, then started to play the clarinet and saxophone by age 12. In 1931 he met Charlotte Neste, an aspiring actress; the couple married on September 27, 1936. Woody Herman joined the Tom Gerun band and his first recorded vocals were "Lonesome Me" and "My Heart's at Ease". Herman also performed with the Harry Sosnick orchestra,

Gus Arnheim Gus Arnheim (September 4, 1897 – January 19, 1955) was an American pianist and an early popular band leader. He is noted for writing several songs with his first hit being "I Cried for You" from 1923. He was most popular in the 1920s and 1930s. He ...

and Isham Jones. Isham Jones wrote many popular songs, including "It Had to Be You" and at some point was tiring of the demands of leading a band. Jones wanted to live off the residuals of his songs; Herman saw the chance to lead his former band and eventually acquired the remains of the orchestra after Jones' retirement.

The Band That Plays The Blues, 1936–43

Herman's first band became known for its orchestrations of the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

, and was sometimes billed as "The Band That Plays The Blues". This band recorded for the

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

label, at first serving as a cover band, doing songs by other Decca artists. The first song recorded was "Wintertime Dreams" on November 6, 1936. In January 1937, George T. Simon ended a review of the band with the words: "This Herman outfit bears watching; not only because it's fun listening to in its present stages, but also because it's bound to reach even greater stages." After two and a half years on the label, the band had its first hit, "

Woodchopper's Ball "Woodchopper's Ball", also known as "At the Woodchopper's Ball" is a 1939 jazz composition by Joe Bishop and Woody Herman. The up-tempo blues tune in D-flat major was the Woody Herman Orchestra's biggest hit, as well as the most popular composition ...

" recorded in 1939. Herman remembered that "Woodchopper's Ball" started out slowly. " was really a sleeper. But Decca kept re-releasing it, and over a period of three or four years it became a hit. Eventually it sold more than five million copies—the biggest hit I ever had." In January 1942, Herman would have his highest rated single (No. 1 in the ''Billboard'' charts), singing

Harold Arlen Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck; February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American composer of popular music, who composed over 500 songs, a number of which have become known worldwide. In addition to composing the songs for the 1939 film ...

's " Blues in the Night" backed by his orchestra. Other hits for the band include "Blue Flame" and "

Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me "Do Nothing till You Hear from Me" (also written as "Do Nothin' Til You Hear from Me") is a song with music by Duke Ellington and lyrics by Bob Russell. It originated as a 1940 instrumental ("Concerto for Cootie") that was designed to highlight t ...

". Musicians and arrangers that stood out included Cappy Lewis on trumpet and saxophonist/arranger

Deane Kincaide Robert Deane Kincaide (March 18, 1911 – August 14, 1992) was an American jazz reedman. Kincaide was born in Houston, Texas, United States, but raised in Decatur, Illinois, and began playing professionally and working as an arranger in the early ...

.Visser 17 "

The Golden Wedding "''La Cinquantaine''" (French "the fiftieth anniversary") is a piece of music which was composed by Jean Gabriel-Marie in 1887. A swing arrangement of the work by James "Jiggs" Noble, recorded in New York City in late 1940 or early 1941 by Woody H ...

" (1941), arranged by James "Jiggs" Noble, featured an extended (34 bars) drum solo by

Frankie Carlson Frankie may refer to: People *Frankie (musician), indie pop musician from Los Angeles, California * Frankie Abernathy (1981–2007), American MTV Real World cast member * Frankie Adams (born 1994), Samoan New Zealand actress *Frankie Avalon (born ...

Be-bop and the First Herd, 1944–46

The trumpeter

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

wrote three arrangements for Herman, "

Woody'n You "Woody 'n' You", is a 1942 jazz standard written by Dizzy Gillespie as an homage to Woody Herman. It was one of three arrangements Gillespie made for Herman's big band, although it was not used at the time; the other two were "Swing Shift" and "Down ...

", "Swing Shift" and "Down Under". These were arranged in 1942. "Woody'n You" was not used at the time. "Down Under" was recorded July 24, 1942. Herman's commissioning Gillespie to write arrangements for the band and hiring

Ralph Burns Ralph Joseph P. Burns (June 29, 1922 – November 21, 2001) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. Early life Burns was born in Newton, Massachusetts, United States, where he began playing the piano as a child. In 1938, he attend ...

as a staff arranger heralded a change in the style of music the band was playing. In February 1945, the band started a contract with

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 ...

. Herman liked what drew many artists to Columbia,

Liederkranz Hall The Liederkranz of New York City is an organization devoted to cultural and social exchange as well as the sponsorship of musical events. Its activities are dedicated to the support, development and preservation of culture in New York City. Its obj ...

, at the time the best recording venue in New York City. The first side Herman recorded was "Laura", the theme song of the 1944 movie. Herman's version was so successful that it made Columbia hold from release the arrangement that

Harry James Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983) was an American musician who is best known as a trumpet-playing band leader who led a big band from 1939 to 1946. He broke up his band for a short period in 1947 but shortly after he reorganized ...

had recorded days earlier. The Columbia contract coincided with a change in the band's repertoire. The 1944 group, which he called the First Herd, was known for its

progressive jazz Progressive music is music that attempts to expand existing stylistic boundaries associated with specific music genre, genres of music. The word comes from the basic concept of ":wiktionary:progress, progress", which refers to advancements thr ...

. The First Herd's music was heavily influenced by

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

and

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

. Its lively, swinging arrangements, combining bop themes with swing rhythm parts, were greatly admired. As of February 1945, the personnel included

Sonny Berman Saul "Sonny" Berman (April 21, 1925 – January 16, 1947) was an American jazz trumpeter. Berman was born in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. He began touring at age sixteen and performed with Louis Prima, Harry James and Benny Goodman, but ...

Pete Candoli Pete Candoli (born Walter Joseph Candoli; June 28, 1923 – January 11, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played with the big bands of Woody Herman and Stan Kenton and worked in the studios of the recording and television industries. Ca ...

, Bill Harris,

Flip Phillips Joseph Edward Filippelli (March 26, 1915 – August 17, 2001), known professionally as Flip Phillips, was an American jazz tenor saxophone and clarinet player. He is best remembered for his work with Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic conce ...

Billy Bauer Billy Bauer (November 14, 1915 – June 17, 2005) was an American jazz guitarist. Life William Henry Bauer was born in New York City. He played ukulele and banjo as a child before switching to guitar. He played with the Jerry Wald band and r ...

(later replaced by

Chuck Wayne Chuck Wayne (February 27, 1923 – July 29, 1997) was an American jazz guitarist. He came to prominence in the 1940s, and was among the earliest jazz guitarists to play in the bebop style. Wayne was a member of Woody Herman's First Herd, the f ...

, and Davey Tough.Lees 109 On February 26, 1945, in New York City, the Woody Herman band recorded "Caldonia".Clancy 68

Neal Hefti Neal Paul Hefti (October 29, 1922 – October 11, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and arranger. He wrote music for '' The Odd Couple'' movie and TV series and for the ''Batman'' TV series. He began arranging professionally in his ...

and Ralph Burns collaborated on the arrangement of "Caldonia" that the Herman band used. "Ralph caught

Louis Jordan Louis Thomas Jordan (July 8, 1908 – February 4, 1975) was an American saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and bandleader who was popular from the late 1930s to the early 1950s. Known as " the King of the Jukebox", he earned his high ...

inging "Caldonia"in an act and wrote the opening twelve bars and the eight bar tag." "But the most amazing thing on the record was a soaring eight bar passage by trumpets near the end." These eight measures have wrongly been attributed to a Gillespie solo, but were in fact originally written by

. George T. Simon compares Hefti with Gillespie in a 1944 review for ''

Metronome A metronome, from ancient Greek μέτρον (''métron'', "measure") and νομός (nomós, "custom", "melody") is a device that produces an audible click or other sound at a regular interval that can be set by the user, typically in beats pe ...

'' magazine saying, "Like Dizzy .. Hefti has an abundance of good ideas, with which he has aided Ralph Burns immensely". In 1946, the band won ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'', ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' and ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

'' polls for best band, nominated by their peers in the big band business. Classical composer

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

wrote the '' Ebony Concerto'', one in a series of compositions commissioned by Herman with solo clarinet, for this band in 1945. Herman recorded the work at Belock Recording Studio in Bayside, New York. Herman called it a "very delicate and a very sad piece." Stravinsky felt that the jazz musicians would have a hard time with the various time signatures. Saxophonist Flip Philips said: "During the rehearsal ..there was a passage I had to play there and I was playing it soft, and Stravinsky said 'Play it, here I am!' and I blew it louder and he threw me a kiss!" Stravinsky observed the massive amount of smoking at the recording session: "the atmosphere looked like Pernod clouded by water." ''Ebony Concerto'' was performed live by the Herman band on March 25, 1946, at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

. Despite the Carnegie Hall success and other triumphs, Herman was forced to disband the orchestra in 1946 at the height of its success. This was his only financially successful band; he left it to spend more time with his wife and family. During this time, he and his family had just moved into the former Hollywood home of

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...

and Lauren Bacall. One reason Herman may have disbanded was his wife Charlotte's growing alcoholism and pill addiction. Charlotte Herman joined

Alcoholics Anonymous Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is an international mutual aid fellowship of alcoholics dedicated to abstinence-based recovery from alcoholism through its spiritually-inclined Twelve Step program. Following its Twelve Traditions, AA is non-professi ...

and gave up everything she was addicted to. Woody said, laughing: "I went to an AA meeting with Charlotte and my old band was sitting there."Lees 147 Many critics cite December 1946 as the actual date the big-band era ended, when seven other bands, in addition to Herman's, dissolved.

"The Four Brothers Band" and more Herds, 1947–69

In 1947, Herman organized the Second Herd. This band was also known as "The Four Brothers Band". This derives from the song recorded December 27, 1947, for Columbia Records, " Four Brothers", written by

Jimmy Giuffre James Peter Giuffre (, ; April 26, 1921 – April 24, 2008) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He is known for developing forms of jazz which allowed for free interplay between the musicians, anticipating f ...

, featuring the saxophone section of

Zoot Sims John Haley "Zoot" Sims (October 29, 1925 – March 23, 1985) was an American jazz saxophonist, playing mainly tenor but also alto (and, later, soprano) saxophone. He first gained attention in the "Four Brothers" sax section of Woody Herman's big ...

Serge Chaloff Serge Chaloff (November 24, 1923 – July 16, 1957) was an American jazz baritone saxophonist. The first and greatest bebop baritonist, Chaloff has been described as 'the most expressive and openly emotive baritone saxophonist jazz has ever ...

Herbie Steward Herbert Bickford "Herbie" Steward (May 7, 1926 Los Angeles, California, United States – August 9, 2003 Clearlake, California) was an American jazz saxophonist. He was widely known for being one of the tenor saxophone players in Four Brother ...

, and

Stan Getz Stanley Getz (February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of ...

.Clancy 121 The other musicians of this band included

Al Cohn Al Cohn (November 24, 1925 – February 15, 1988) was an American jazz saxophonist, arranger and composer. He came to prominence in the band of clarinetist Woody Herman and was known for his longtime musical partnership with fellow saxophonist ...

Gene Ammons Eugene "Jug" Ammons (April 14, 1925 – August 6, 1974), also known as "The Boss", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. The son of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons, Gene Ammons is remembered for his accessible music, steeped in soul and ...

, Lou Levy,

Oscar Pettiford Oscar Pettiford (September 30, 1922 – September 8, 1960) was an American jazz double bassist, cellist and composer. He was one of the earliest musicians to work in the bebop idiom. Biography Pettiford was born in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, United ...

Terry Gibbs Terry Gibbs (born Julius Gubenko; October 13, 1924) is an American jazz vibraphonist and band leader. He has performed or recorded with Tommy Dorsey, Chubby Jackson,Theroux, Gary"Gibbs, Terry".''Grove Music Online''. Oxford University Press. R ...

, and

Shelly Manne Sheldon "Shelly" Manne (June 11, 1920 – September 26, 1984) was an American jazz drummer. Most frequently associated with West Coast jazz, he was known for his versatility and also played in a number of other styles, including Dixieland, s ...

. Among this band's hits were "

Early Autumn ''Early Autumn'' is a 1926 novel by Louis Bromfield. It won the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1927. In 1956, producer Benedict Bogeaus announced that he was adapting the book into a film to be titled "Conquest," but the film was never made. ...

", and "The Goof and I". The band was popular enough that they went to Hollywood in the mid-1940s. Herman and his band appear in the movie ''

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

'' (1947) with

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop si ...

and

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

. In 1947, Herman was Emcee and also played at the third Cavalcade of Jazz concert held at

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago Wh ...

in Los Angeles which was produced by

Leon Hefflin, Sr. Leon Norman Hefflin, Sr. (August 17, 1898 – November 20, 1975) was a pioneering African-American producer, director, business owner, furniture manufacturer, and entrepreneur. After losing his large and successful manufacturing business in the ...

on September 7, 1947. The Valdez Orchestra, The Blenders,

T-Bone Walker Aaron Thibeaux "T-Bone" Walker (May 28, 1910 – March 16, 1975) was an American blues musician, composer, songwriter and bandleader, who was a pioneer and innovator of the jump blues, West Coast blues, and electric blues sounds. In 2018 ''Roll ...

, Slim Gaillard,

The Honeydrippers The Honeydrippers were an English rock and roll band of the 1980s, deriving their name from Roosevelt Sykes, an American blues singer also known as "Honeydripper". Former Led Zeppelin lead singer Robert Plant formed the group in 1981 to sati ...

, Johnny Otis and his Orchestra, Sarah Vaughn and the Three Blazers also performed that same day. Woody Herman

Herman's other bands include the Third Herd (1950–56) and various later editions during the 1960s. In the 1950s, the Third Herd successfully toured Europe. He was known for hiring the best young musicians and using their arrangements. In the early and mid 1960s, Herman fronted a Herd featuring

Michael Moore Michael Francis Moore (born April 23, 1954) is an American filmmaker, author and left-wing activist. His works frequently address the topics of globalization and capitalism. Moore won the 2002 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for ' ...

, drummer

Jake Hanna Jake Hanna (April 4, 1931 – February 12, 2010) was an American jazz drummer. He was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts, United States. Hanna first performed in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the house drummer at Storyville nightclub in Boston, ...

, tenor saxophonist

Sal Nistico Sal, SAL, or S.A.L. may refer to: Personal name * Sal (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname Places * Sal, Cape Verde, an island and municipality * Sal, Iran, a village in East Azerbaijan Province * Ca ...

, trombonists Phil Wilson and Henry Southall and trumpeters like

Bill Chase Bill Chase (October 20, 1934 – August 9, 1974) was an American trumpeter and leader of the jazz-rock band Chase (band), Chase. Biography Bill Chase was born William Edward Chiaiese on October 20, 1934, to an Italian-American family in Squ ...

, Paul Fontaine and

Duško Gojković Duško Gojković ( sr-Cyrl, Душко Гојковић; born 14 October 1931) is a Serbian and Yugoslav jazz trumpeter, composer, and arranger. Biography Gojković was born in Jajce (ex-Yugoslavia, now in Bosnia-Herzegovina). He studied at the ...

. By 1968, the Herman library came to be heavily influenced by

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

. He was also known to feature brass and woodwind instruments rarely associated with jazz, such as the bassoon, oboe or French horn. In concert, as the evening wore on and the crowd started dissipating, Herman would often leave the stage and let the band continue the last set on its own; but Terry Gibbs confirmed that the band never sounded the same without Herman being present.

"The Young Thundering Herds", 1970–87

In the early 1970s, he toured frequently and began to work more in

jazz education Each style and era of jazz adopted new techniques to help educate younger musicians. Early forms of jazz education were more informal. Since the first degree program was founded in 1947, the rise of institutionalized jazz education, resulted in ja ...

, offering workshops and taking on younger sidemen. For this reason, he got the nickname Road Father and the bands were known as the "Young Thundering Herds." In January 1973, Herman was one of the featured halftime performers at Super Bowl VII. In 1974, Woody Herman's band appeared without their leader for

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

's television special '' The Main Event'' and album '' The Main Event – Live''. Both were recorded mainly on October 13, 1974, at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

in New York City. On November 20, 1976, a reconstituted Woody Herman band played at Carnegie Hall in New York City, celebrating Herman's fortieth anniversary as a bandleader. By the 1980s, Herman had returned to more straight-ahead jazz but augmented with rock and fusion. Herman signed a recording contract with

Concord Records Concord Records is an American record label owned by Concord and based in Los Angeles, California. Concord Records was launched in 1995 as an imprint designed to reach beyond the company's foundational Concord Jazz label. The label's artists have ...

around 1980. In 1981, John S. Wilson reviewed one of Herman's first Concord recordings ''Woody Herman Presents a Concord Jam, Vol. I''. Wilson's review says that the recording presents a band that is less frenetic than his bands from the forties to the seventies. Instead, it takes the listener back to the relaxed style of Herman's first band of the thirties that recorded for Decca.

Timeline of Woody Herman Bands

ImageSize = width:1000 height:200 PlotArea = left:150 bottom:120 top:0 right:14 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1936 till:31/12/1987 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = increment:5 start:1936 ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1936 Colors = id:bbb value:black legend:Band That Plays The Blues id:bebop value:red legend:Bebop/First Herd id:fb value:green legend:Four Brothers id:yth value:blue legend:Young Thundering Herds LineData = at:01/01/1936 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1941 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1945 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1951 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1956 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1961 color:black layer:back at:01/01/1966 color:black layer:back at:01/09/1971 color:black layer:back at:01/09/1976 color:black layer:back at:01/09/1981 color:black layer:back at:31/12/1987 color:black layer:back PlotData = width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,–4) bar:Band That Plays The Blues from:01/10/1936 till: 01/10/1944 color:bbb bar:Bebop/First Herd from:01/10/1944 till: 08/10/1947 color:bebop bar:Four Brothers from:01/10/1947 till: 31/12/1969 color:fb bar:Young Thundering Herds from:08/10/1970 till: 31/12/1987 color:yth

Last years

Herman continued to perform into the 1980s, after the death of his wife and with his health in decline, chiefly to pay back taxes that were owed because of his business manager's bookkeeping in the 1960s. Herman owed the

IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory tax ...

millions of dollars and was in danger of eviction from his home. With this added stress, Herman still kept performing. In a December 5, 1985, review of the band at the Blue Note jazz club for ''The New York Times'', John S. Wilson pointed out: "In a one-hour set, Mr. Herman is able to show off his latest batch of young stars—the baritone saxophonist Mike Brignola, the bassist Bill Moring, the pianist Brad Williams, the trumpeter Ron Stout—and to remind listeners that one of his own basic charms is the dry humor with which he shouts the blues." Wilson also spoke about arrangements by Bill Holman and

John Fedchock John William Fedchock (born September 18, 1957) is an American jazz trombonist, bandleader, and arranger. Early life and education Fedchock was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He studied at Ohio State University and the Eastman School of Music at the ...

for special attention. Wilson spoke of the continuing influence of

on Woody Herman bands from the 1940s to the 1980s. Before Woody Herman died in 1987 he delegated most of his duties to leader of the reed section,

Frank Tiberi Frank Tiberi (born December 4, 1928) is an American saxophonist and the leader of the Woody Herman Orchestra. He was born in Camden, New Jersey, United States. He was picked by Woody Herman shortly before Herman's death and has led the band sinc ...

. Tiberi leads the current version of the Woody Herman orchestra. Tiberi said at the time of Herman's death that he would not change the band's repertoire or library. Herman died on October 29, 1987, and had a Catholic funeral on November 2 at St. Victor's in

West Hollywood, California West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most ...

. He is interred in a niche in the columbarium behind the Cathedral Mausoleum in the

Hollywood Forever Cemetery Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a full-service cemetery, funeral home, crematory, and cultural events center which regularly hosts community events such as live music and summer movie screenings. It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Angeles ...

. Awards won by the Woody Herman orchestras with major publications: "Voted best swing band in 1945 ''DownBeat'' poll; Silver Award by critics in 1946 and 1947 ''Esquire'' polls; won ''Metronome'' poll, band division, 1946 and 1953. A documentary film titled ''Woody Herman: Blue Flame – Portrait of a Jazz Legend'' was released on DVD in late 2012 by the jazz documentary filmmaker Graham Carter, owner of Jazzed Media, to salute Herman and his centenary in May 2013.

Gold records and charts (singles and albums)

Gold Records *1939 ''

'' (

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

) instrumental *1945 '' Laura'' (

) vocal by Woody Herman

Hits as charted singles

(Songs that reached the top of the US or UK charts) Between 1937 and 1956, Herman had numerous hits on ''Billboard''s charts.

Hits as charted albums

(Albums charting history with ''Billboard'' magazine)

Grammy Awards

Grammy Awards (albums) , - , rowspan="2", , rowspan="2", '' Encore: Woody Herman, 1963'' , Best Performance by an orchestra – for dancing , , - , rowspan="14", Best Jazz Performance – Large Group (Instrumental) , , - , , ''Woody Herman '64'' , , - , , ''Woody's Winners'' , , - , , ''Woody Live – East And West'' , , - , , ''Concerto For Herd'' , , - , , ''Light My Fire'' , , - , , ''Woody'' , , - , , ''Giant Steps'' , , - , , ''Thundering Herd'' , , - , , ''The 40th Anniversary, Carnegie Hall Concert'' , , - , , ''Live At The Concord Jazz Festival 1981'' , , - , , ''World Class'' , , - , , ''50th Anniversary Tour'' , , - , , ''Woody's Gold Star'' , Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award , - , , 1987 , , , Woody Herman , , Lifetime Achievement Award , ,

Further awards and honors

*Honored on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Californ ...

(Recording – 6805 Hollywood Blvd.) *Woody Herman Music Archives established at the University of Houston School of Music, 1974 *Honorary doctorate,

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

, 1977.

Discography

Studio albums

*''Blues On Parade'' –

(1940) *''Sequence In Jazz'' – Columbia (1948) (with the First Herd) *''Swinging with the Woodchoppers'' – Dial (1950) (with the First Herd) *''Blue Prelude'' –

Coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

(1950) *''At Carnegie Hall, 1946 Vol. I'' –

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

(1952) (with the First Herd) * ''Woody Herman Goes Native'' –

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

(1953) *''Four Shades of Blue'' Columbia (1953) *''The 3 Herds'' Columbia (1954) *''Men From Mars''

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

(1954) *''Music For Tired Lovers'' – Columbia (1955) *''Ridin' Herd'' – Columbia (1955) *''The Woody Herman Band!'' –

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

(1955) *''Road Band!'' –

(1955) *''HI FI-ing Herd'' –

(1955) *''Jackpot!'' –

(1956) *''Blues Groove'' –

(1956) *''Hi-Fi Drums'' –

(1956) * ''Twelve Shades of Blue'' Columbia (1955) *''Songs For Hip Lovers'' –

Verve Verve may refer to: Music * The Verve, an English rock band * ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve * ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album) * Verve Records, an American jazz record label Businesses * Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...

(1957) *''Woody Herman '58 featuring The Preacher'' (Verve, 1958) *''Jazz, The Utmost!'' – Columbia (1958) *''Moody Woody'' –

Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow heigh ...

(1958) *''Herman's Heat & Puente's Beat!'' –

(1958) *''The Herd Rides Again – in Stereo'' –

(1958) *''Woody Herman Sextet At The Roundtable'' –

Roulette Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning ''little wheel'' which was likely developed from the Italian game Biribi''.'' In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various groupings of numbers, the ...

(1959) *''The Fourth Herd'' – Jazzland (1960) *''The New Swingin' Herman Herd'' –

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

(1960) * ''Woody Herman's Big New Herd – At The Monterey Jazz Festival''

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

(1960) *''Swing Low, Sweet Clarinet'' –

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 ...

(1962) *''

Woody Herman–1963 ''Woody Herman–1963'' is a 1963 studio album by Woody Herman and his big band. The album peaked at 136 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Reception Ken Dryden reviewed the album for Allmusic and wrote that "While this is hardly "the Swingin'est Big Ba ...

'' –

(1962) *'' Encore Woody Herman–1963'' –

(1963) *''Hey! Heard The Herd?'' –

(1963) *''Woody Herman: 1964'' –

(1964) *''The Swinging Herman Herd-Recorded Live'' –

(1964) *''Woody's Big Band Goodies'' –

(1965) *''Woody's Winners'' – Columbia (1965) *''My Kind of Broadway'' Columbia (1965) *''The Jazz Swinger'' – Columbia (1966) *''Woody Live East And West'' – Columbia (1967) *''Jazz Hoot'' – Columbia (1967) *''Concerto for Herd – At the Monterey Jazz Festival''

(1968) *''Light My Fire'' –

Cadet A cadet is an officer trainee or candidate. The term is frequently used to refer to those training to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. Its meaning may vary between countries which can include youths in ...

(1968) *''Somewhere'' –

(1969) *''Heavy Exposure'' –

(1970) *''Woody'' –

(1970) *''Brand New'' –

Fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

(1971) *''The Raven Speaks'' –

(1972) *''Giant Steps'' –

(1973) *''Thundering Herd'' –

(1974) *''Herd At Montreux'' –

(1974) *''Children of Lima'' –

(1975) *''King Cobra'' –

(1976) *''The 40th Anniversary, Carnegie Hall Concert'' –

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

(1977) *''Road Father'' –

Century A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. A centennial or ...

(1978) *''Flip Phillips/Woody Herman – Together''

(1978) *''Chick, Donald, Walter, and Woodrow''

(1978) *''Woody Herman Presents A Concord Jam Volume 1'' –

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

(1981) *''Feelin' So Blue'' –

(1981) *''Aurex Jazz Festival '82'' – Eastworld/Toshiba (1982) *''Live At The Concord Jazz Festival'' –

(1982) *''Presents Volume 2 ...Four Others'' –

(1982) *''Rosemary Clooney/Woody Herman – My Buddy'' –

(1983) *''World Class'' –

(1984) *''50th Anniversary Tour'' –

(1986) *''Woody's Gold Star'' –

(1987)

As sideman

;With

Buck Clayton Wilbur Dorsey "Buck" Clayton (November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter who was a member of Count Basie's orchestra. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong, first hearing the record "Confessin' That I Love You" ...

*'' How Hi the Fi'' (Columbia, 1954) *''

Jumpin' at the Woodside "Jumpin' at the Woodside" is a song first recorded in 1938 by the Count Basie Orchestra, and considered one of the band's signature tunes. When first released it reached number 11 on the ''Billboard'' charts and remained on them for four weeks. ...

'' (Columbia, 1955)

References

External links

PBS – JAZZ A Film By Ken BurnsWoody Herman Biography
* * ttps://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/204456 Woody Herman recordingsat the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...

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The Complete Columbia Recordings of Woody Herman And His Orchestra & Woodchoppers 1945-1947 (Mosaic Records) Loren Schoenberg
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Doug Ramsey-The Complete Capitol Recordings of Woody Herman(Mosaic Records)
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Herman, Woody Big band bandleaders Cool jazz clarinetists Swing clarinetists Cool jazz saxophonists Swing saxophonists American jazz bandleaders American jazz clarinetists Vaudeville performers Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Musicians from Milwaukee Capitol Records artists Decca Records artists Kent Records artists 1913 births 1987 deaths Concord Records artists Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery 20th-century American musicians 20th-century clarinetists 20th-century saxophonists American people of Polish descent Hep Records artists American Roman Catholics Catholics from Wisconsin