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Jazz Profiles By John Twomey
(Toomee)

Woody Herman: Leader of the 'Thundering Herds' Parts 1 & 2
Harry James: 'The Man with The Horn'
Billy Strayhorn: 'Portrait of a Silk Thread'
The troubled genius of Stan Getz
Who was Glenn Miller?
'Let Me Off Uptown': The life of Gene Krupa

Jazz Embers

Excerpts featuring Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Fats Waller, Dave Brubeck, Lou Levy, Gerry Mulligan, Buddy Rich, Chu Berry, Harry James, Milt Hinton,Tommy Dorsey, Bix Beiderbecke, Mel Torme, Anita O'Day, Terry Gibbs, Benny Goodman, Cab Calloway, Woody Herman, Charlie Barnet, and Glenn Miller.

The JT Gang rehearses "Groovin' Hard" by Don Menza.

Jack Twomey

The Jazz Thunder Big Band plays a first run-thru of a never commercially recorded Woody Herman Be Bop chart called "Oh Henry" (Fuller-Henry). Trombone solo: Joe McDonough. Trumpet solo: Charlie Franklin. Arrangement transcribed by Peter Anderson for Jack Twomey.

The Jazz Thunder Big Band in a first run-thru of another never commercially recorded 1946 Woody Herman Be Bop arrangement of "Lullaby In Rhythm". (Goodman, Sampson, Profit, Hirsch) Tenor Saxophone solo: Mitch Endick. Baritone Saxophone solo: Jonah Parzen-Johnson. Trombone solo: Matt McDonald. Clarinet solo: Peter Anderson. Arrangement transcribed by Peter Anderson for Jack Twomey. See the video on YouTube by keying in Jack Twomey.

Benny Goodman and I walked across the parking lot of the Valley Forge Music Fair after a performance in October, 1974. He was tall, and wore a long light brown camelhair coat. He examined the book I had asked him to sign, holding it under the single lightbulb over the stage door exit so he could read the title. I asked him why one of his records (Popcorn Man) was pulled from the shelves of record stores on its release date in 1937, a fact noted on an album I owned. While walking, he looked at me and asked "What was on the other side of that disc?" I said I had no idea. The tune had been released only in LP format 20 years later. He said, "Well, it was the other side of the record. Something was wrong with that".

The Jazz Thunder Big Band plays a Pete Myers chart of Cole Porter's "Love For Sale". This was a Buddy Rich Band standard. No one can match Buddy, but we like to keep some traditions alive.

The Jazz Thunder Band plays Neil Hefti's "Rainbow Kiss", featuring Barry Bryson on trumpet. Arrangement transcribed by Peter Anderson for Jack Twomey.

Thad Jones' "Big Dipper", as performed by The Jazz Thunder Big Band. Trumpet solo: Barry Bryson.

Here's some straight-ahead contemporary swing: Jazz Thunder performs "Winding Way" by Matt Harris.

The 'Golden Glow of the Front Row' of Trombones & Saxophones in the Jack Twomey/Jazz Thunder Big Band:(L-R) Ron Hay, Michael Engstrom, Alex Jeun. Saxophones: Peter Anderson, Bob Curtis, Tim Hunt.

The New York City based Jazz Thunder Big Band was formed in 1990 by Swing drummer Jack Twomey. Spend some rehearsal time with the band on YouTube. Have a look and listen to our sound- maybe we're just what you need for your next event. To book The Jazz Thunder Big Band or The Royal Manhattan Quartet, call our Band Manager, John Abbott at (732) 606-7868 for more information, or click on the email link below for any inquiries.

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