Virtual Victrola - October 29 Edition - "In The Mood"

Today the Mike's Noise Virtual Victrola is proud to present four versions of "In The Mood" that you've probably never heard before, and in doing so I will trace the origins of the most popular big band tune of all time.

The famous melody of "In The Mood" was actually a favorite old riff that jazz musicians were playing as far back as the late 1920's.  It shows up on Wingy Manone's 1930 recording of "Tar Paper Stomp," and Fletcher Henderson's 1931 recording of "Hot and Anxious."  But it was saxophonist Joe Garland (1903 - 1977) who transformed this old lick into a hit tune.

During the 1920's and 1930's, many jazz musicians supplemented their income by writing songs, selling them to music publishers, and then shopping arrangements of the tunes to famous big bands.  In these early days, there were scores of licks and riffs and traditional songs that had become a part of the jazz repertoire because of their popularity with both musicians and their listening audiences.  Musician/songwriters mined these riffs for ideas to turn into compositions.  Undoubtedly Joe Garland's main riff for "In The Mood" was borrowed from his musical knowledge as a jazz saxophonist.

In 1935, Garland was playing sax with the Mills Blue Rhythm Band, an all-black big band that was led by Lucky Millinder but was financed and booked by music kingpin Irving Mills.  Garland penned and arranged a tune that he called "There's Rhythm in Harlem" for the band, which was the first incarnation of "In the Mood."  The band was full of good soloists including J. C. Higginbotham on trombone, Henry "Red" Allen on trumpet, and Garland himself taking a shot at some brief fills on baritone sax.
Download mills_blue_rhythm_band_theres_rhythm_in_harlem.mp3

Joe Garland found himself working for bandleader Edgar Hayes in 1938, and it is the Hayes orchestra that gets the honor of being the first band to record "In The Mood," which was Garland's expanded and retitled version of his tune.  Hayes' all-black Harlem-based band was a spinoff from the Mills Blue Rhythm Band, which had broken up the previous year.  The flip side of this record was "Stardust," and Hayes' version became a minor hit during 1938; still, "In The Mood" went largely unnoticed.  The only really notable member of the Hayes orchestra at this time (besides Garland, who still plays baritone sax on this recording) was drummer Kenny "Klook" Clarke, who went on to become the pioneer drummer of be-bop jazz.
Download edgar_hayes_in_the_mood.mp3

Looking for a wider audience for his tune, Joe Garland approached white bandleader Artie Shaw, who had just become an overnight sensation.  More importantly, though, was the fact that Shaw had a coast-to-coast radio wire.  Shaw liked "In the Mood," and played it during his broadcast radio shows in December 1938.  Shaw never recorded the tune, though; it's leisurely, strolling tempo, lengthy ensemble passages, and extended solos put the tune at over 6:00 long, bad enough for dancers and certainly too long to fit on a 78 rpm record.  This version of "In The Mood" by Artie Shaw was broadcast from the Blue Room of the Hotel Pennsylvania in NYC, Dec. 15, 1938.
Download artie_shaw_in_the_mood.mp3

Joe Garland also shopped "In The Mood" to Glenn Miller, who had just scored his first big hits with "Sunrise Serenade" and "Over The Rainbow."  Miller had a coast-to-coast radio wire too, and he liked Garland's tune.  But Miller had a much better idea of how to make "In The Mood" into a hit.  He trimmed most of the written-out ensemble parts, expanded the solo section, and added the now-famous diminishing fake endings.  The rest, as they say, is history.  Lyricist Andy Razaf added words to the tune, and it became the biggest selling record of 1940.  Garland didn't need to shop it around any more.

But that didn't stop other bands from recording it.  In January 1940, pianist Teddy Wilson's new big band waxed a Buster Harding arrangement of "In The Mood" for Columbia Records.  Harding's arrangement is a totally new set of musical thoughts based on Garland's theme, and the band's swinging performance is probably the best pure jazz performance of this tune.  Soloists in Wilson's band included Wilson himself on piano, Doc Cheatham on trumpet, and Ben Webster on tenor sax.
Download teddy_wilson_aho_in_the_mood.mp3

Incidentally, Joe Garland also wrote another classic big band hit, Les Brown's famous recording of  "Leap Frog."

If you'd like to hear an audio story about this tune, NPR's Weekend Edition produced one in 2000.  A RealMedia file of the story is available by clicking here.

10-30-05: I rewrote a few paragraphs to emphasize the fact that Joe Garland, though successful as both a musician and songwriter, was black.  Ironically, his work didn't make a lot of money until it was played by white bands.  And like so many other talented black musicians whose music was taken to the top of the charts by white bands, Garland never really got the recognition he deserved.
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** NEXT WEEK ** - November is the 100th anniversary of the birth of jazz trombonist and big band leader Tommy Dorsey.  I will dedicate the entire month of November to rare and remarkable recordings by Tommy Dorsey as both a trumpeter (!) and trombonist, and as a bandleader and as a sideman.

Comments

[Charlie]

Mike, thanks for this fascinating look at the evolution of a classic piece of music. In the Mood is a great melody, and I think I have only heard it done by Glenn Miller's band, and more modern imitators. Thanks especially for the MP3 links. Soon as I get to the office where I can use the T-1, I plan to listen to them all.

In the Mood is one of those tunes that takes me back instantly to movies I've seen of WWII. The bomber pilots are dancing with pretty girls in the USO club the night before the big raid, when they know some of them won't be coming back. Bitter sweet and haunting. Thanks again.

[Sarah Novak]

Very informative post. I enjoyed browsing this. Will be back soon.

[HP 14 inch netbook]

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