Freddy Martin
Frederic Alfred "Freddy" Martin (born December 9, 1906 in Cleveland , Ohio , † September 30, 1983 in Newport Beach , California ) was an American tenor saxophonist and band leader of the dance band era.
Martin grew up as an orphan and already led his own dance band in high school. He was also a representative for musical instruments and met Guy Lombardo while passing through Cleveland in the late 1920s. Lombardo heard his band and recommended them to others. The band broke up and he worked as a saxophonist in other bands for a while before he could found his own dance band again in 1931. He had his breakthrough in the mid-1930s during their time as a house band at the Bossert Hotel in Brooklyn and they got a recording deal with Brunswick Records . Not least because of his abilities as a tenor saxophonist, his band became one of the most successful dance bands in the USA for decades, even long after the big band era.
He had no ambitions in jazz , but was admired by many jazz musicians, such as Chu Berry and Johnny Hodges (who called him Mr. Silvertone ). With his tenor band Formation he acted as a model for many other dance bands and they used the slogan Music in the Martin Manner for their style . You were on many radio programs in the 1940s and 1950s, and Martin had his own TV show in 1951. In the 1940s they appeared in several Hollywood films such as The Mayor of 44th Street (1942), Seven Days' Leave (1942), Stage Door Canteen (1943) and Melody Time (1948). They released many records on RCA Victor . In the 1950s he was musical director for Elvis Presley's first appearance in Las Vegas . In 1969 they became a house band at the Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles . In the early 1970s he was engaged at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles and toured with the big band Cavalcade (including Margaret Whiting , Bob Crosby , Frankie Carle , Buddy Morrow , Art Mooney , George Shearing ). In 1977 he stepped in for the sick Guy Lombardo in the leadership of his band. Martin remained active as an orchestra conductor until the 1980s.
In his band, many were later successful musicians as band leaders, including Claude Thornhill , Barclay Allen , Jack Fina , Murray Arnold , Alvino Rey and Russ Morgan (as pianist and trombonist), the pianists Sid Appleman and Terry Shand, the saxophonist Elmer Feldkamp , singer Stuart Wade and violinist Eddie Stone. The band sang Merv Griffin in the 1950s and Helen Ward sang with her in the 1930s before joining Benny Goodman (otherwise he only took male singers). His band's theme song was later Tonight we love . It was based on the First Piano Concerto by Tchaikovsky and was his biggest hit (published 1941). He then adapted other classical music for his band.
The Latin American-inspired novelty song Pico and Sepulveda (recorded in 1947 as Felix Figueroa and his Orchestra ) by the band was presented in the cult music film Forbidden Zone (1980) by Richard Elfman and was often featured on the radio show by Dr. Denial .
Web links
- Biography at Solid
- Freddy Martin in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Martin, Freddy |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Martin, Frederic Alfred |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American tenor saxophonist and band leader of the dance band era |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 9, 1906 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Cleveland , Ohio |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 30, 1983 |
| Place of death | Newport Beach , California |