1945 – A YEAR TO REMEMBER
A friend asked me to write a short offering for him to present to a social group - my choice of subject. It was originally intended to be accompanied by recordings of the Woody Herman Orchestra playing "Laura", and the Harry James Orchestra playing "I'm Beginning to See the Light", both from 1944. I don't think it saw the light at the time, so here it is.
1945 saw the end of World War ll. It also saw the end of the Big Band Era.
By the mid-‘30s radio broadcasting was still quite new, but it had already comprehensively changed the world. Marconi’s invention - patented in 1896 - was initially seen as a substitute for the telegraph: a way to send messages without the wire. W-i-r-e-l-e-s-s. But other possibilities were soon recognised, and in a little over 20 years radio broadcasting had arrived. The first commercial broadcast occurred in Pittsburgh in 1920. The BBC broadcast from 1922, and the ABC in Australia from 1923.
Within a dozen years of the commencement of broadcasting there were hundreds of radio stations in the USA, and already the powerful broadcasting networks NBC and CBS. And running in parallel was the emergence of Swing. Swing was one phase in the evolution of jazz music; it appeared in the late ‘20s, and was dominant from 1935 through to 1945. It was dominant because of radio. And because of the Big Bands.
There were numerous Big Bands, with numerous combinations of instruments. And, while there was some improvisation, there was not nearly so much as in previous years, and in subsequent eras. The typical formula required each item to be scored in conformity with the bandleader’s distinctive “sound”. The Big Bands played in dance halls, and in concerts; and on radio and in the movies. Their reach was country-wide, aided significantly by the reach of the radio.
The War depleted the Bands; and, by War’s end, the changed scene meant that the Big Bands never recovered. Many players didn’t return from service, others simply never resumed their careers. Rationing of petrol and tyres severely limited touring, and many dance halls had closed anyway. Lead singers were able to pursue solo careers without the Big Band backing, and took hit parade spots away from the Bands.
The era of the crooners had begun.
The rock and roll era was not so far behind.
Gary Andrews
