The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert


The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert by Benny Goodman, Columbia Records catalogue item SL-160, is a two-disc LP of swing and jazz music recorded at Carnegie Hall in New York City on January 16, 1938. First issued in 1950, the recording captured the premiere performance given by a big band in the famed concert venue. The event has been described as "the single most important jazz or popular music concert in history: jazz's 'coming out' party to the world of 'respectable' music."
The title, mastered from preserved acetates, was among jazz's first double albums, first live recordings, and first to sell over a million copies. One of the earliest records of Benny Goodman music issued on the new long-playing format, the concert recording was also sold in a set of nine 45 rpm records in 1950 by Columbia. The subsequent discovery of the aluminum studio masters made from the original recording resulted in several high-quality CD reissues beginning in 1998.

The concert itself

In late 1937, Benny Goodman's publicist, Wynn Nathanson, suggested that Goodman and his band should play at the Carnegie Hall in New York City. If such a concert were to take place, then Goodman would be the first jazz bandleader to perform there. "Benny Goodman was initially hesitant about the concert, fearing for the worst; however, when his film Hollywood Hotel opened to critical and commercial success, he threw himself into the work. He cancelled several dates and insisted on holding rehearsals inside Carnegie Hall to familiarize the band with the lively acoustics."
The concert was held on the evening of January 16, 1938. It began with three contemporary numbers from the Goodman band—"Don't Be That Way", "Sometimes I'm Happy", and "One O'Clock Jump". They then played a history of jazz, starting with a Dixieland quartet performing "Sensation Rag", originally recorded by the Original [Dixieland Jazz Band] in 1918. The reaction of the audience, though polite, was tepid at the start but built steadily with each song. Then came a jam session on "Honeysuckle Rose" featuring members of the Count Basie and Duke Ellington bands as guests. As the concert went on, things livened up. The Goodman band and quartet took over the stage and performed the numbers that had made them famous. Some later trio and quartet numbers were well received, and the vocal by Martha Tilton on "Loch Lomond" provoked five curtain calls and cries for an encore. The encore forced Goodman to make his only audience announcement for the night, stating that they had no encore prepared but that Martha would return shortly with another number.
By the time the band reached the climactic piece "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)", success was assured. This performance featured playing by the tenor saxophonist Babe Russin, the trumpeter Harry James, and Goodman, backed by the drummer Gene Krupa. When Goodman finished his solo, he unexpectedly gave a solo to the pianist, Jess Stacy. "At the Carnegie Hall concert, after the usual theatrics, Jess Stacy was allowed to solo and, given the venue, what followed was appropriate," wrote David Rickert. "Used to just playing rhythm on the tune, he was unprepared for a turn in the spotlight, but what came out of his fingers was a graceful, impressionistic marvel with classical flourishes, yet still managed to swing. It was the best thing he ever did, and it's ironic that such a layered, nuanced performance came at the end of such a chaotic, bombastic tune."
The concert sold out weeks in advance, with the capacity 2,760 seats going for a top price of US$2.75 a seat.

Preservation

There is much confusion about how the live concert was recorded for posterity. The concert was recorded at request of Benny Goodman's friend Albert Marx as a gift to his wife, Helen Ward, with another copy as a gift to Goodman. For about twelve years Benny Goodman's copies sat in his closet until 1950, when he passed the masters to Columbia Records. Bill Savory was the original sound engineer for the first release of the performance. Savory claims that due to a lack of technical proficiency, Goodman would drag the record arm over the vinyl and in turn damage the original pressing. Due to this Bill Savory insisted that the pressing should be transferred to tape. Transferring the original recording to LPs via tape proved to be a challenge due to the limited size of the tapes which the concert was originally recorded to. Two numbers from the concert were completely omitted from the original pressing due to poor sound quality. At least three studios were involved in making a synchronized pair of acetates and a set of aluminum masters. Although it had long been believed the sound was captured by a single overhead mic at the hall, the notes to the 1998 release by Phil Schaap claim it was not working that evening and "at least three other mics were used." The acetates became the basis for the original 1950 double-LP album release. The higher quality metal masters were used for subsequent remasters. CD reissues based on the metal masters were released in 1998, 2002 and 2006.

Reception

The original 1950 long-playing double-album was very well received. As technology improved the material was re-released in digital format, with new versions produced both in the 1980s and 1990s.
The 1999 reissue received critical acclaim. Bruce Eder, writing for AllMusic, generally praised it, while noting the compromise between clear reproduction of sonic detail and retaining surface noise from the source material. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings includes the release in its "Core Collection", in addition to giving it a perfect four-star rating. Penguin authors Richard Cook and Brian Morton describe the release as "a model effort, masterminded by Phil Schaap, whose indomitable detective work finally tracked down the original acetates and gave us the music in the best sound we'll ever get; with powerful, even thrilling, ambience."

Track listings

1999 reissue

''Disc one, track 1 and disc two, tracks 20–28 are edited from comments recorded by Benny Goodman in 1950 and pressed onto a 12-inch 78 rpm record that was sent to radio station DJs at the time of the original double-album release. It was accompanied by a script suggesting ways to use it.''

Personnel

The Benny Goodman Orchestra

Additional performers