Glenn Miller At War & Music for Memorial Day

[ghost of miles]

This week's Night Lights and Afterglow shows both pay tribute to Memorial Day in one way or another. On Afterglow it's I Sustain the Wings: Major Glenn Miller Goes to War With the Army Air Force Band:

It was one of the greatest jazz orchestras ever assembled, led by a popular bandleader who took it overseas to raise the morale of the Allied soldiers fighting World War II in Europe—and who then vanished at the height of his popularity.

Glenn Miller Goes to War With the Army Air Force Band features interviews with AAF band member Nat Peck (who signed on with Miller’s military ensemble in 1943 at the age of 19), historian Michael McGerr, and the music of the AAF in all of its configurations—ballads with singer Johnny Desmond, uptempo swing numbers featuring the big band, easy-listening with-strings recordings, a modern-jazz small group side with pianist Mel Powell (taking on "A Night in Tunisia" before either Dizzy Gillespie or Charlie Parker had recorded it), and a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with Bing Crosby in England in August 1944. Much of this music was heard only on the radio during the war and is far less familiar than that of Miller’s pre-war civilian big band.

We’ll also hear some historic broadcasts—Miller signing off on his last Chesterfield show before joining the military, the last stateside program by the AAF before leaving for Europe, and a moving Christmas Day 1944 broadcast from Paris, just hours after Miller had been reported missing.

There is also a longer, 94-minute version of the program linked to at the bottom of the program post.

On Night Lights it's Reminisicing in Tempo: Remembrance in Jazz and Popular Song, featuring music from Lou Rawls, Nina Simone, Anita O'Day, Ben Webster and more, with Duke Ellington's 1935 recording of "Reminiscing in Tempo," written in memory of his mother, serving as the highlight of the program.

A safe and happy Memorial Day weekend to all.

[ghost of miles]

Up for the holiday.