Les Elgart

Genres:	Big Band & Swing
Decades Active:	1950s, 1960s, 1990s
Search for Artist on:	OLDIES.com, Wikipedia, Flikr (photos), YouTube (videos)
Get Email Alerts for new products by Les Elgart

Biography

3 August 1918, New Haven, Connecticut, USA, d. 29 July 1995, Dallas, Texas, USA. Elgart was lead trumpeter in bands headed by Bunny Berigan, Hal McIntyre, Charlie Spivak and Harry James. His brother, Larry Elgart, played lead alto saxophone with the Charlie Spivak band at the age of 17, later moving on to work with Woody Herman, Red Norvo and Freddie Slack. In 1945 the brothers formed their own band, which recorded and toured under Les' name, and used arrangements by musicians such as Nelson Riddle and Bill Finegan. Their partnership was short-lived, and they split to form their own units, without much success. They reunited in 1953, launching a "new sound" featuring the arrangements of Charles Albertine with the emphasis on ensemble playing, no piano, and hardly any solos. Jazz fans were unimpressed, but the modern, melodic approach caught the general public's imagination and the band became prolific album sellers. Larry resumed the leadership when Les moved to...

Read the Full Biography of Les Elgart

Clearance Products:

Band With The Sound / Designs For Dancing (Audio CD)	Bandstand Boogie (Audio CD)	Great Sound of Les Elgart / It's Delovely (Audio CD)
Les & Larry Elgart / Les Elgart On Tour (Audio CD)	Sophisticated Swing (Audio CD)	Sophisticated Swing / Just One More Dance (Audio CD)
Sound Ideas / Half Satin & Half Latin (Audio CD)

Featured Products:

Elgart Touch / For Dancers Also (Audio CD)

At The Hollywood Palladium (Audio CD)

Les Elgart Products: