Biography
Benjamin Moten, 13 November 1894, Kansas City, Missouri, USA, d. 2 April 1935, Kansas City, Missouri, USA. In his youth, Moten gained a substantial reputation in and around his home town as a pianist; by 1920 he had become an established and respected band leader. His unit, originally a small outfit, gradually expanded until it was a big band ready to take advantage of the upsurge in interest in this kind of ensemble. As a pianist and an accomplished arranger, Moten deftly blended New Orleans concepts into the freewheeling style popular in the Midwest. Beginning its recording career in 1923, the band built a reputation far afield, and residencies in New York followed. Moten attracted many excellent musicians until his was the outstanding band of the region. Some of the best men were poached from Walter Page’s Blue Devils, among them Bill (not yet Count) Basie, Oran ‘Hot Lips’ Page, Eddie Durham and Jimmy Rushing. Eventually,...
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