Don Redman
The quiet architect of big band jazz, whose ingenious arrangements taught large ensembles how to swing with the soul of a small combo.
1900–1964 (age 64)·American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer·Birthday: July 29·The Lost Generation
Biography
Before Don Redman, a jazz orchestra was often a clunky affair. As the chief arranger for Fletcher Henderson's pioneering orchestra in the 1920s, Redman, a precocious multi-instrumentalist, rewrote the rules. He broke the band into distinct sections—saxophones, brass, rhythm—and designed call-and-response dialogues between them, creating a textured, swinging conversation that was both complex and irresistibly danceable. This 'formula' became the DNA of the big band sound. He later led McKinney's Cotton Pickers and his own orchestra, proving his concepts could fuel success beyond Henderson. While not a flashy star performer, his pen was his instrument, and his charts provided the blueprint for the Swing Era, directly influencing the rise of Benny Goodman, Count Basie, and Duke Ellington's own orchestral innovations. He was the essential thinker who made large-format jazz coherent, sophisticated, and hot.
The Lost Generation
1883–1900
Came of age during World War I. Disillusioned by the carnage, they rejected the certainties of the Victorian era and built modernism from the wreckage — in art, literature, and politics.
Don was born in 1900, placing them squarely in The Lost Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Don Was Born
The biggest hits of 1900
Don's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1900Born
Boxer Rebellion in China
President: William McKinley
1905Started school
Einstein publishes the theory of special relativity
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1913Became a teenager
The Federal Reserve is established
President: Woodrow Wilson
1916Could drive
The Battle of the Somme claims over a million casualties
President: Woodrow Wilson
1918Could vote
World War I ends; Spanish flu pandemic kills millions
President: Woodrow Wilson
1921Turned 21
First commercial radio broadcasts
President: Warren G. Harding"My Man" — Fanny Brice
1930Turned 30
Pluto discovered
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $3,510President: Herbert Hoover"Body and Soul" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: All Quiet on the Western Front
1940Turned 40
The Blitz: Germany bombs London
Gas: $0.18/galHome: $2,938Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I'll Never Smile Again" — Tommy DorseyBest Picture: Rebecca
1950Turned 50
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1960Turned 60
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1964Died at 64
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
Key Achievements
- As Fletcher Henderson's arranger in the 1920s, he virtually invented the orchestral language of big band jazz.
- Introduced the now-standard technique of dividing a big band into reed and brass sections and writing call-and-response patterns between them.
- His arrangements for McKinney's Cotton Pickers, like 'Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good to You,' became models of big band elegance and swing.
- Was one of the first significant jazz arrangers to also be a skilled multi-instrumentalist, playing saxophone, clarinet, and trumpet.
Did You Know?
He was a child prodigy, playing trumpet at age three and performing professionally on multiple instruments by his teens.
He wrote the hit song 'Cherry' for his band, which later became a jazz standard.
He worked as an arranger for Pearl Bailey and later had a career in radio and television advertising in the 1950s.
“You've got to let the brass shout and the reeds answer.”
