The U.S. Army Blues Little Big Band Performs a Victory in Europe Day Concert

The U.S. Army Blues Little Big Band performs a concert in celebration of Victory in Europe Day.

Featured musicians:
Staff Sgt. Joshua Kauffman, trumpet
Sgt. Major Kenneth McGee, trumpet
Staff Sgt. Aaron Eckert, trombone
Master Sgt. Antonio Orta, soprano/alto saxophones, clarinet
Sgt. First Class Xavier Perez, tenor saxophone and clarinet
Staff Sgt. Dustin Mollick, baritone saxophone
Sgt. First Class Regan Brough, bass
Staff Sgt. James Collins, piano
Staff Sgt. Eric Pers, drums

Program:
0:05 "Opus One"
by Sy Oliver

Opus One, composed by Sy Oliver in 1943, has become a standard in the swing and big band repertoire. During the height of WWII, Opus One was a huge hit for the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra 1944.

3:43 "Bugle Call Rag"
by Jack Pettis, Bill Meyers, and Elmer Schoebel

Composed by Jack Pettis, Bill Meyers, and Elmer Schoebel, Bugle Call rag was first recorded by the New Orleans Rhythm Kings in 1922. Swing era renditions by the Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller orchestras brought this song to popularity during WWII.

Did you know bugle calls are musical signals that announce scheduled and certain non-scheduled events on an Army installation? These include calls to wake up, eat, and even lights out.

7:01 "Moonlight Serenade"
by Glenn Miller

Moonlight Serenade, composed by Glenn Miller, is known as the anthem of the Greatest Generation, heard all along the radio waves of the 1940's. The U.S. War Department released this song on an Army V-Disc in 1943 to be distributed to troops, then later released as both a Navy and Marine V-Disc. In 1944, Major Glenn Miller broadcast to Germany on the radio program "The Wehrmacht Hour" as goodwill messages to German populations.

Flashback to Twilight Tattoo 2019! Have you attended Twilight Tattoo? Let us know! More info at: https://twilight.mdw.army.mil/

11:28 "Tail-End Charlie and In the Mood"
by Glenn Miller

Did you know “tail end charlie” is slang for the last aircraft in a formation?

14:37 "Stardust"
by Hoagy Carmichael

Hoagy Carmichael came up with the melody for Stardust while walking on the campus of his alma mater, Indiana University, in 1927. In 1941, Artie Shaw’s rendition became a top 10 Billboard hit. World War II gave the song a different context than its original meaning; love and loss became the theme of popular music and Stardust’s lyrics talk about just that: “Love is now the stardust of yesterday.”

18:32 "Take the A Train"
by Billy Strayhorn

Another Top 10 Billboard Hit of 1941, this work by Billy Strayhorn became the theme song of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. The song was written when Ellington offered Strayhorn a job in his organization and gave him money to travel from Pittsburgh to New York City. Ellington wrote directions for Strayhorn to get to his house by subway, directions that began, "Take the A Train."

If your daily commute inspired a song, what would it be?

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