[Dixielandjazz] "Living in a great big Way - Tommy Dorsey

[Stan Brager]

When I compare the musical output from Tommy's contemporaries such as Benny
Goodman, Bud Freeman and Jimmy Dorsey, I have to conclude that, as much as I
enjoy hearing Tommy play, he was not a jazz musician. I place brother Jimmy
in the jazz musician category.

Certainly, Tommy improvised his solos to a degree and they are well-formed
and logical. But something is missing (maybe it's a feeling of spontaneity)
and lacking that component, I can't call Tommy a jazz musician. He was more
inventive and creative than Glenn Miller was and there are those who call
Glenn a jazz musician also.

Stan
Stan Brager

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike" <mike at railroadstjazzwest.com>
To: <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 04, 2006 7:32 PM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] "Living in a great big Way - Tommy Dorsey


>     I think that Dorsey really was a jazz trombonist like the others you
> mentioned. His style was different.
>   Just like Teagarden's style was different from Kid Ory's and Miff
> Mole's was
>   different from J.J Johnson's. There isn't a right or wrong jazz improv
> solo. You say what you have to say and if people like it good, if not
> then oh well. He was an excellent phraser as you previous said and often
> played like a vocalist would sing.
>
>
>
> > Perhaps a view that there are "jazz musicians" and there are "musicians
who
> > also play jazz". Dorsey falls into the latter category if one agrees
with
> > that line of reasoning. Simply stated, if Dorsey was not much of a jazz
> > improviser, some are reluctant to call him a "Jazz Musician".
> >
> > Maybe splitting hairs, but I agree with Levinson that Dorsey was not a
jazz
> > trombonist in the sense that e.g. Ory, Teagarden, Mole, J.J. Johnson,
Cutty
> > Cutshall, Kai Winding, Curtis Fuller and all of the others were/are.
>
>
>
>