Kenton Grabs Early Poll Lead ♦ Chicago—Very early returns in the 1950 Down Beat band poll show several new faces rising to contending positions in the various classifications, and the 1947 band winner, Stan Kenton, coming back to take a slight lead over Woody Herman, winner Im* year in a walk- COMBO—VOCAL All these results are baaed on se scattered returns, however, and Mills Brothers 33 several changes may be expected StaHiahten VOL 17—No. 24 CHICAGO. DECEMBER I. 1950 in the final tabulations. (Copyright, I9S0, Dowa Boot, lac.I Bring* Sidemen Along 10 Kenton, who finished fourth last year, leads Herman by a scant 31 votes, but also has several of his Golden Gale Quartet .. Ralph Flanagan Tries His Hand At Nick's sidemen at or near the top. Surprise first on trumpet is Chor detien .............. Maynard Ferguson, Stan’s high Delta Rhythm Bey* note specialist, leading Miles Davis by a slight margin, followed by Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gilles­ pie (voters this year are allowed MALE SINGER—NOT BAND to name any favorite, whether or Billy Er he I Ine ms not he is a leader). S3 Kenton drummer Shelly Manne 36 Frankie Laine 36 and arranger Pete Rugolo, plus vo­ Frank Sinatra calists Jay Johnson ana June Bind Crosby Bill Farrell Christy, also lead in their divisions. 18 18 Harri. leads 12 Bill Harris jumped to a com­ manding lead on trombone, with Tommy Dorsey and Kai Winding Doi in the place and show spots. Buddy DeFranco, Count Basie clarinetist, leads Benny Goodman GIRL SINGER—NOT BAND and Woody Herman. Charlie Parker, not eligible last Ella Fltsgerald New York—Ralph Flanagan's versatility seems to recent Sunday afternoon. Others above are PeeWee year, leads the alto men by 50 38 astonish the boy* ut Nick’*, Greenwich village Dixie- Erwin, trumpet: Andy Russo, trombone; Cliff Lee­ votes, with Lee Konitz and peren­ Doria Day ... land tavern. Pianist Flanagan and hi* clarinetist, man, drum*, und Jack Fay, baa*. Flanagan and hand nial winner Johnny Hodges mak- Steve Benoric, sat in with the Dixie regulars one are currently deep in one-niter*. ing it close fight for the second HUH. Holiday spot. Flip Behind Gets Jo Stafford .. And Flip Phillips, who took the Dinah Shor« ... IO Edict Bans Peanuts Hucko Big Cog tenor sax plaque the last two years, finds it much rougher going this Off-The-Air time, with Stan Getz leading him In NewJoe Bushkin Unit by 60 votes. Coleman Hawkins, KING OF CORN Charlie Ventura, and Lester Young Recordings By JOHN S. WILSON 183 trail in that order. 96 New York — A recently-handed- New York—The latest step in the currently-booming career First two places in the ’50 bari­ down New York supreme court of Joe Bushkin was given to the world at Cafe Society in Oc­ tone slot are repeating thus far, with Serge Chaloff and Harry Car­ ruling has opened the way for the tober. The new development is Bushkin with strings. More prosecution of companies and indi­ ney ahead of the pack. Gerry Mul­ Eddy Howard viduals who make a practice of exactly, it ie Bushkin with strings und clarinet. The results ligan has climbed to third. selling off-the-air recordings and were happy—frequently extremely® ■ “ 1 Oscar Peterson, who received happy—but they leave the listener dubbings of major label dies. Another One? only 10 votes in the entire poll last ALL-STAR BAND In a suit brought by the Metro­ with a question in hi. mind, u year, trails George Shearing by question which has nothing to do politan Opera association and Co­ only one vote, with Erroll Garner FRUMPET lumbia records against the Wag­ with Joe’s personal talents. just slightly behind. Rest of the The new Bushkin repertoire rhythm section is headed by last Milee Davis ............ ner-Nichols Recorder Corp., Judge Fiddles Back Diz S3 Henry Clay Greenberg ruled that Comes in three sections, even as the year’s leaders: Billy Bauer, gui­ Louis Armstrong .39 Wagner-Nichols’ merchandising of combo is in three sections. Section tar; Eddie Safranski, bass, and one is nothing more nor less than 33 off-the-air recordings is illegal, and On New Releases Manne, drums. Closest battle is -33 that dubbings constitute “unlawful the Bushkin trio which built a between Bauer and Shearingite Howard MeGhoe 29 appropriation” of private rights. large following during its summer- Hollywood — Playing footsies Chuck Wayne. Shorty Rogers ... .14 long stand at the Park Sheraton with fiddles has become a popular Billy Butterfield . .12 Judge Greenberg’s ruling, the Ziggy Elmao ..... 12 first of its kind, is seen as an open­ hotel here. Currently it has Morey and lucrative pastime with jazz Bobby Hackett . .12 ing wedge in some of the major Feld on drums and Sid Weiss on musicians lately, since Norman The miscellaneous instrument 10 Granz started it all with the Char­ record companies’ fight to stop the bass giving Joe very able backing. category, added just this year, increasing amount of “bootleg” The trio, nf course, is primarily lie Parker with String» album. Joe finds four vibists in the top spots, Charlie Spivak .... Bill Davison ......... records which have been appear­ Joe, his rippling fingers, nis voice, Bushkin followed, and now Dizzy with Terry Gibbs ahead, followed ing on the market. and his personality. Gillespie has entered the picture. by Red Norvo, Lionel Hampton, Discovery is releasing eight sides Judge Greenberg stated, “Cast More Certainly Vocally and Marjorie Hyams. TROMBONE in its proper environment, we have Diz recently cut on the west coast George Shearing again leads the The hands produce a high grade with a 23-piece band. Bill HarHa _____ ____________ .163 here a business venture purposed of piano music, occasionally a lit­ combos, Sarah Vaughan and Billy Tommy Dom, . to gather in the harvest, the seeds Featuring the usual string sec­ Eckstine the singers not with Kai WIndias ............... tle overdressed but almost always tion, the group included oboes, 33 of which were planted and nur­ bands, the Pied Pipers top the vo­ moving along at a swinging gait. Milt Borwhart 30 tured by others at great expense flutes, and English horns as well. cal combos, and Spike Jones is The voice has taken on more cer­ Conducted and arranged by John­ 26 and with consummate skill.” tainty and is reaching a point aiming for another King of Com ny Richards, the sides are mostly title. 13 where it is becoming an asset in standards, with a few workings Not Final the whispered croak school of sing­ over of themes by Tchaikovsky It must emphasized that these ing. The personality is pleasant and Rachmaninoff thrown in. KM Ory ....................... results are not definitive, as sacks Eckstine Signs even if, at times, it is heaved at Discs are available on all three (None Under 5 Listed) you like a knuckleball. speeds. full of ballots were yet to be $1 Million Disc, Section two in the repertoire counted and tabulated at press- CLARINET brings in the strings. This is prac­ time, and many more were ex­ Buddy DeFranco ............................... 163 Benny Goodman ................................ tically the same as section one, ex­ pected. 129 Woody Herman ................................. 33 Pics, TV Pact cept that Joe plays in front of the Ballots must be postmarked not Artlo Shaw ............................................ later than midnight Nov. 20 to be . 32 New York—MGM records signed lush, sustained harmonics of the New Barnet Ork Barney Bigard .................................... fiddle section. For the most part, counted. Jimmy Hamilton .................................. its biggest disc deal to date when Abe Moat -............................................ Joe’s arrangements confine them­ Edmund HaU .............................. ......... Billy Eckstine re-signed with the FAVORITE BAND company with a contract that will selves to the usual, elementary use To Sport Strings Peanut# Hucko.......... ................_...... net the singer an estimated $1 mil­ of strings in groups of this sort. Hollywood — The new “mysteir Sua Kaatos ...............................167 .... ......(None Under 5 Listed) lion over a 10-year period. Nego­ The bow boys are relegated to pro­ band” to be launched by Charlie .136 (Modulate to Page 19) ducing a hum in back of the piano. 60 tiated by Eckstine’s manager, Milt Barnet as soon as he can get the Duke EIHngloi Ebbins, the contract calls for a Occasionally they get a livelier and "right kind of recording deal” will 39 more engaging idea to toy with, contain strings. That was the only S3 yearly guarantee of $52,000 a year 32 over a 5-year period, to be paid but not often enough. information available at the Bar- Fran Warren within 10 years. Principal result is that Joe gets net camp. 13 In a separate deal with the la­ a different sound to play against Bob Dawes, sax man who handles On The Cover than he does with just the trio but, the managerial headaches for Bar- Charlie Barnet bel’s parent company, MGM pic­ Fran Warren, a recent bride at best, it is not a particularly in-ii net, said: “Charlie knows he has Lionel Hampton tures, Billy has been signed to do and the cover subject for thio a movie next summer which will teresting sound and currently it to remodel the band into a more has been so overdone, particularly commercial style, but he doesn’t Dissy Gillespie ......................... _........ issue, ha. been making great mean another $75,000 in the Eck­ Charlie Ventura ................................... stride, as a singer this year, un­ stine coffers. on vocal records, that it has little want to come up with another im­ Tes Beneke .................................« to recommend it. itation of Glenn Miller, and he Elliot Lawrence ................................... der the management of Bar­ Also in the works is a William bara Belle and with a Victor Morris agency prepared TV and New Complexion wants the music to be interesting (None Under S Listed) enough so the fellows in the band promotional campaign expedit­ radio package for the singer.