Johnny Long (musician)
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Johnny Long (September 12, 1914 (disputed) – October 31, 1972) was an American violinist and bandleader, known as "The Man Who's Long on Music". He was raised on a farm in
Newell, North Carolina Newell is an unincorporated community in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, United States. The community is located along the northeastern edge of Charlotte, and parts of it have been annexed by the city. Newell has a post office A post of ...
, currently a subdivision of
Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...
. He started practicing with the violin at the age of six, but injured two fingers on his left hand when he was bitten by a pig. He then learned to use his right hand to play the violin, and continued to do so until his death.


Music career

As a
freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...
at
Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...
, Long joined with ten other freshmen to create a school band named The Duke Collegians. He also joined Sigma Nu Fraternity. During their second year, they were adopted as the official school band. The band stayed together throughout their school years and, upon graduation, renamed themselves The Johnny Long Orchestra, with Long as the bandleader. For a number of years they toured the country and were eventually signed on to
Vocalion Records Vocalion Records is an American record company and label. History The label was founded in 1916 by the Aeolian Company, a maker of pianos and organs, as Aeolian-Vocalion; the company also sold phonographs under the Vocalion name. "Aeolian" was ...
(owned by
ARC ARC may refer to: Business * Aircraft Radio Corporation, a major avionics manufacturer from the 1920s to the '50s * Airlines Reporting Corporation, an airline-owned company that provides ticket distribution, reporting, and settlement services * ...
) in 1937 for the release of ''Just Like That''. They performed their first national radio broadcast in 1939 on '' The Fitch Summer Bandwagon Show'', which boosted their national popularity. This resulted in the band being signed on by
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 ...
. His orchestra earned the label "Miracle Band of the Year" thru a series of lengthy engagements at some of the top and locations in the country.''
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 ...
'', June 20, 1942
His Johnny Long Orchestra accompanied
Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...
on her
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 ...
recording of "Confessin' That I Love You". He was chosen to play the President's Birthday Ball in Washington in 1942, and also that his has been the only record of "Back Up the Red, White and Blue with God," official song of the Treasury's War Bond Dept. Under management of Decca, Long released a hit single, "
In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town "In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town" is a popular song written by Ira Schuster and Jack Little with lyrics by Joe Young, published in 1932. Ted Lewis and His Band performed it in the film ''The Crooner'' in 1932. His version was released as a sing ...
", that resulted in over one million sales. It was awarded a
gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
by the
RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
. This song quickly became the band's signature tune. This song, and numerous other hits, made the band one of the most successful big bands in the country during the 1940s. Other popular covers included "
My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time "My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time" is a 1945 popular song. The music was written by Vic Mizzy and the lyrics by Manny Curtis. The song was published in 1944 and was introduced in the 1944 film ''In Society'' by Marion Hutton. Notable re ...
" and "
Poor Butterfly "Poor Butterfly" is a popular song. It was inspired by Giacomo Puccini's opera ''Madame Butterfly'' and contains a brief musical quote from the Act two duet ''Tutti i fior'' in the verse. The music was written by Raymond Hubbell, the lyrics by ...
". One of the high points of his career was playing
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
s Birthday Ball in April 1941. However, as the big band style diminished over the years, so did Long's ensemble. Long continued to lead the band, with various members, up until his death in 1972. The cause of death was
melanoma Melanoma, also redundantly known as malignant melanoma, is a type of skin cancer that develops from the pigment-producing cells known as melanocytes. Melanomas typically occur in the skin, but may rarely occur in the mouth, intestines, or eye ( ...
. He is buried in the cemetery of King’s Church (formerly Newell Baptist Church) in Charlotte, North Carolina.


Film roles

While being supported by a strong musical following, Johnny Long and his band enjoyed a short film career. Their first big role was in the
Abbott & Costello Abbott may refer to: People *Abbott (surname) *Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849–1921), American painter and naturalist * Abbott and Costello, famous American vaudeville act Places Argentina * Abbott, Buenos Aires United States * Abbott, Arkansas ...
comedy, '' Hit the Ice'', where Long played a romantic male lead opposite
Ginny Simms Virginia Ellen SimmsSleeve notes from ''Ginny Simms – I'd Like To Set You To Music'', Jasmine JASCD 118, 2001. (May 25, 1913 – April 4, 1994) was an American popular singer and film actress. Simms sang with big bands and with Dinah Shore, ...
. The same year gave Long his last major movie role in ''Follies Girl''.


See also

* '' Beauty and the Beach'', a 1941 short film


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Long, Johnny 1914 births 1972 deaths American jazz bandleaders American jazz violinists Big band bandleaders American male violinists 20th-century American violinists Jazz musicians from North Carolina 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians