What if you could travel back in time and bring back to the present all the great bands of the swing era?
What if you could gather all those great bands of yesterday to perform their greatest hits for you live and in person, all together and on the same stage? The original and “authentic” sounds of the bands of Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Harry James and more?
It sounds like an impossible dream, but it isn’t. The great sound of the greatest bands of the swing era…”the Greatest Music of the Greatest Generation”… is alive and well, and can once more be heard in person, courtesy of the dedication and musical artistry of the Sentimental Journey Orchestra.
An authentic 19-piece big band…not a watered down ensemble playing stock arrangements…featuring full sections of trumpets, trombones, saxophones, rhythm and vocalists, under the direction of leader Ted Conerly, serves up a banquet of the Big Band’s Greatest Hits, as well as some of the best dance music from any era. Here’s a sample: •Glenn Miller: Moonlight Serenade, In the Mood, Pennsylvania 6-5000, Little Brown Jug, Adios, Chattanooga Choo Choo, Elmer’s Tune, Tuxedo Junction, Danny Boy and many more. To hear any more Glenn Miller music live, you’d have to book the original! •Benny Goodman: Sing, Sing, Sing, Let’s Dance, Stompin’ at the Savoy, And the Angels Sing, Jersey Bounce and more, including bonus selections from Benny’s trio and quartet! •Harry James: You Made Me Love You, Sleepy Lagoon, Cherry, He’s 1-A in the Army, It’s Been A Long, Long Time and more. You’ll think you’re listening to Harry live when you hear the SJO trumpet soloists recreate these great sweet and swing tunes. •Duke Ellington: Many of the Duke’s greatest compositions, including Mood Indigo, Don’t Get Around Much Any More, and Sophisticated Lady are in the SJO library, as well as swingers like Cotton Tail and Take the A Train. •Count Basie: Great Big Band swing like One O’clock Jump, Moten Swing and Jumpin’ at the Woodside, plus more contemporary Basie classics like All of Me, I Can’t Stop Lovin’ You, April in Paris, I Left My Heart in San Francisco and more. •Artie Shaw’s classic hit Begin the Beguine is expertly recreated by Phil Armstrong. •Phil Armstrong (“Louie’s little brother”) performs uncanny impressions of Louis Armstrong classics like What a Wonderful World, Mack the Knife, and more. •Music of both the famous Dorsey brothers is featured, including Tommy’s Sentimental Over You, Boogie Woogie, Yes Indeed! and others, and Jimmie’s Tangerine, Green Eyes and So Rare. •Our repertoire also features some of the best from Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, Les Brown, Russ Morgan, Ted Heath, Les Elgart, Henry Mancini and more. •Memorable hits of the best vocalists from the big band era are featured, such as Ella Fitzgerald’s swing classic A Tisket A Tasket, Lena Horne’s Stormy Weather, Judy Garland’s Over the Rainbow, Billie Holliday’s Them There Eyes, and Pattie Page’s Tennessee Waltz. You can also hear jump and jive classics like Louis Jordan’s Caldonia, and Cab Calloway’s Minnie the Moocher. For extra special occasions, you can arrange for appearances by our own editions of “Bing Crosby” AND “The Andrews Sisters”, performing hits like The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Don’t Fence Me In, Pistol Packin’ Mama, Swingin’ On A Star, White Christmas and more! •Dance to music that’s both sweet (Star Dust, Night and Day) and hot (Bugle Call Rag, Flyin’ Home), plus classic Latin American favorites from the Forties, and other big band novelties like Sy Zentner’s Up the Lazy River “Twist”, featuring the SJO trombone section.
The SJO performs great big band music from the 1930’s to today when the occasion warrants, or you can immerse yourself in a nostalgic evening of classic music from the Fabulous Forties that will transport you back in time to historic big band venues like Glen Island Casino, Meadowbrook, Café Rouge or the Coconut Grove. The SJO doesn’t just play great music. An SJO performance is an evening-long show that recreates the look, the sounds, and the mood of the romantic Big Band Era. The SJO will perform for you stylishly attired in either classic white dinner jacketed tuxedos, or wearing it’s most popular nostalgic look, WWII USAAF Uniforms, for that “Stage Door Canteen” look. The SJO even owns a set of band stands for those USO-type occasions that are exact replicas of those used by Glenn Miller’s famous US Army Air Force Band. With an authentic 48-star WWII-era flag as a backdrop, our trombone-playing leader’s original “pinks and greens” and rimless glasses complete the look. Now, where are those “Andrews Sisters”? Either way, you’ll be “In the Mood” for the Sentimental Journey Orchestra.