Jack Sperling

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Jack Sperling

Jack Sperling (August 171922 - February 262004) was an American Big Band

Big band

A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with playing jazz music and which became popular during the swing from the early 1930s until the late 1940s....
, television and studio drummer

Drummer

A drummer is a musician who plays a drum or drums, particularly a drum kit , marching percussion or hand drums. The term percussionist applies to a musician performing on any percussion instrument, but usually refers to one who plays Classical music or Latin percussion....
. He was a recording artist, versatile jazz combo and dynamic Dixieland

Dixieland

Dixieland music or sometimes referred to as Hot jazz or New Orleans jazz is a style of jazz which developed in New Orleans, Louisiana at the start of the 20th century, and was spread to Chicago and New York City by New Orleans bands in the 1910s....
musician.

Career
In 1941 he played with trumpeter Bunny Berigan

Bunny Berigan

Rowland Bernard "Bunny" Berigan was an United States jazz trumpeter who rose to fame during the Swing Era, but whose virtuosity and influence were shortened by a losing battle with alcoholism that ended in his early death at age 33....
. After the end of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
Jack, along with a young pianist Henry Mancini

Henry Mancini

Henry Mancini was an Academy Award winning American composer, Conducting and arranger. He is remembered particularly for being a composer of film and television scores....
, joined Tex Beneke

Tex Beneke

Tex Beneke was an American saxophonist, singer, and bandleader, who is probably remembered best for his association -- and best-selling hit records -- with Glenn Miller's popular big band from 1938 to 1942....
when he took the popular Glenn Miller

Glenn Miller

Alton Glenn Miller , was an United States jazz musician, arranger, composer, and band leader in the Swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1942, leading one of the best known "Big band"....
big band on the road (1946-1949), following Miller's death. Sperling first gained distinction with the Beneke recording of St.

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Encyclopedia

Jack Sperling (August 171922 - February 262004) was an American Big Band
Big band

A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with playing jazz music and which became popular during the swing from the early 1930s until the late 1940s....
, television and studio drummer
Drummer

A drummer is a musician who plays a drum or drums, particularly a drum kit , marching percussion or hand drums. The term percussionist applies to a musician performing on any percussion instrument, but usually refers to one who plays Classical music or Latin percussion....
. He was a recording artist, versatile jazz combo and dynamic Dixieland
Dixieland

Dixieland music or sometimes referred to as Hot jazz or New Orleans jazz is a style of jazz which developed in New Orleans, Louisiana at the start of the 20th century, and was spread to Chicago and New York City by New Orleans bands in the 1910s....
musician.

Career

In 1941 he played with trumpeter Bunny Berigan
Bunny Berigan

Rowland Bernard "Bunny" Berigan was an United States jazz trumpeter who rose to fame during the Swing Era, but whose virtuosity and influence were shortened by a losing battle with alcoholism that ended in his early death at age 33....
. After the end of World War II
World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
Jack, along with a young pianist Henry Mancini
Henry Mancini

Henry Mancini was an Academy Award winning American composer, Conducting and arranger. He is remembered particularly for being a composer of film and television scores....
, joined Tex Beneke
Tex Beneke

Tex Beneke was an American saxophonist, singer, and bandleader, who is probably remembered best for his association -- and best-selling hit records -- with Glenn Miller's popular big band from 1938 to 1942....
when he took the popular Glenn Miller
Glenn Miller

Alton Glenn Miller , was an United States jazz musician, arranger, composer, and band leader in the Swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1942, leading one of the best known "Big band"....
big band on the road (1946-1949), following Miller's death. Sperling first gained distinction with the Beneke recording of St. Louis Blues (1948), becoming know for his pioneering, propelling double bass drum solos, his trademark throughout his career. When he played a solo, the melody line remained part of his drum work. His styling, understated and restrained with tight snare drum rolls and tasty ride cymbals behind the big band sounds, set Sperling apart.

Jack soon became a mainstay with Les Brown
Les Brown (bandleader)

Les Brown, Sr. and the Band of Renown are a big band that began in the big band era of the late 1930s and now performs under the direction of his son Les Brown, Jr....
and His Band of Renown, then regulars on the Bob Hope
Bob Hope

Bob Hope, Order of the British Empire, Order of St. Gregory the Great , was an British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway theatre, and in radio, television and movies....
NBC radio program in 1949, which they followed with the recording "Over the Rainbow" (1951). Dave Pell
Dave Pell

Dave Pell is an American jazz saxophonist and bandleader born in New York City.Pell first played in his teens with the big bands of Tony Pastor, Bob Astor, and Bobby Sherwood, and then moved to California in the middle of the 1940s....
, the tenor sax soloist with Brown's band formed his own octet in 1953 with musicians from Brown's big band and the combo was often featured during Les Brown concerts before it broke away on its own in 1955. The Dave Pell Octet in its prime included Sperling on drums, whose day gig then was playing with Bob Crosby
Bob Crosby

Bob Crosby was an United States dixieland bandleader and vocalist, best known for his group Crosby and the Bob-Cats.He was the youngest of seven children: five boys, Larry Crosby , Everett , Ted , Bing Crosby and Bob; and two girls, Catherine and Mary Rose ....
's Bobcats (1954-57) appearing on his regular television series. The "Bobcats" at that time consisted of Ray Sherman
Ray Sherman

Ray Sherman is the Wide Receivers coach for the Dallas Cowboys.Ray Sherman begins his 35th year in coaching, his 21st as an NFL assistant and his second with the Dallas Cowboys....
, Eddie Miller, Jack Sperling, Morty Corb
Morty Corb

Mortimer G. "Morty" Corb was an American jazz double-bassist.Corb had a long career as a jazz musician, playing with Gus Bivona, Pete Fountain, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, Pearl Bailey, Louis Armstrong, Claude Thornhill, Jess Stacy, Kid Ory, Jack Teagarden, and Benny Goodman, as well as performing for four years on Bob Crosby's televis...
, Charlie Teagarden
Charlie Teagarden

Charlie Teagarden was an American jazz trumpeter. He was the younger brother of Jack Teagarden.Charlie worked locally in Oklahoma before he and Jack joined Ben Pollack's Orchestra in 1929....
, Elmer Schneider and Al Hendrickson. Jack would go on to perform with Benny Goodman
Benny Goodman

Benjamin David Goodman, was an United States jazz musician, clarinetist and bandleader, known as "King of Swing ", "Patriarch of the Clarinet", "The Professor", and "Swing's Senior Statesman"....
, Charlie Barnet
Charlie Barnet

Charles Daly Barnet was an United States jazz saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. His major recordings were "Skyliner", "Cherokee", "The Wrong Idea", "Scotch and Soda", and "Southland Shuffle"....
, the Page Cavanaugh Septet and perhaps becoming most known to a new generation of jazz fans for his styling rhythms behind clarinetist Pete Fountain
Pete Fountain

Pierre Dewey LaFontaine, Jr. , is a New Orleans clarinetist. According to a Belgium radio program , his name was originally Pierre de la Fontaine....
's Quartet. He recorded with the Dave Pell Octet on Plays Irving Berlin (1953), and on The Original Reunion of the Glenn Miller Orchestra
Glenn Miller Orchestra

The Glenn Miller Orchestra was originally formed in 1937 by Glenn Miller. It was arranged around a clarinet and tenor saxophone playing melody, while three other saxophones played the harmony....
(1954).

In 1958, Mancini became friends with producer Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards

Blake Edwards is an Academy Award-winning United States film director, screenwriter, and film producer.Born William Blake Crump in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Edwards was the son of a stage director....
, who had an idea for a television show that eventually became the Peter Gunn
Peter Gunn

Peter Gunn is an United States detective fiction television programme which aired on the National Broadcasting Company and later American Broadcasting Company television networks from 1958 to 1961....
series. Mancini wrote all the music for the show which became an immediate hit. The session musicians were John Williams
John Williams

John Towner Williams is an United States composer, conducting and pianist. In a career that spans six decades, Williams has composed many of the most famous film scores in Hollywood history, including Star Wars music, Superman music, Born on the Fourth of July , Harry Potter music and all but two of Steven Spielberg's feature fil...
on piano, Rolly Bundock on bass, Sperling on drums, and Bob Bain on guitar. The same lineup was featured on the "Mr. Lucky" TV series. Sperling recorded with Henry Mancini on the film soundtracks Peter Gunn (1959), Charade (1963) and Days of Wine and Roses
Days of Wine and Roses (film)

Days of Wine and Roses is a drama film directed by Blake Edwards with a screenplay by JP Miller adapted from his own critically acclaimed 1958 in television teleplay for Playhouse 90 of the same name ....
(1962). He was featured along with other seven percussionists, including Shelly Manne
Shelly Manne

Shelly Manne , born Sheldon Manne in New York City, was an American Jazz drumming. Most frequently associated with West coast jazz, he was known for his versatility and also played in a number of other styles, including Dixieland, Swing music, bebop, avant-garde jazz and Jazz fusion, as well as contributing to the musical background of...
, Milt Holland
Milt Holland

Milt Holland was a drummer, percussionist, ethnic musicologist, and writer in the Los Angeles music scene who pioneered the use of African, South American, and Indian percussion styles in jazz, pop and film music, traveling extensively on those continents to collect instruments and to learn the musical styles of playing them....
, Larry Bunker
Larry Bunker

Lawrence Benjamin "Larry" Bunker was an United States Jazz drumming, Vibraphone, and percussionist. He also played timpani with the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra....
, playing African instruments on John Wayne
John Wayne

John Wayne was an Academy Award- and Golden Globe Award-winning United States film actor. He epitomized rugged masculinity and has become an enduring American icon....
's Hatari!
Hatari!

Hatari! is a 1962 United States film directed by Howard Hawks and starring John Wayne. The title means "danger" in Swahili, which was mentioned in the film as well....
(1962). Sperling can be heard on the pilot title tracks of the television series "Bewitched
Bewitched

Bewitched is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on American Broadcasting Company from 1964 in television to 1972 in television....
", and on "Hogan's Heroes
Hogan's Heroes

Hogan's Heroes is an American television situation comedy that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to July 4, 1971, on the CBS network....
" Jack was the featured solo percussionist.

In 1962 Sperling left the Peter Gunn series and joined the Tonight Show Band
Tonight Show Band

The Tonight Show Band is the band which plays on the United States television variety show, the Tonight Show. From 1962 to the 1990s, during the years the show was known as The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, it was an important outlet for jazz on American television....
and was under contract from 1959-1972 with the NBC Orchestra playing variety shows as "Bob Hope", "Dean Martin
Dean Martin

Dean Martin was an United States singer, film actor and comedian of Italians descent. He was one of the best known musical artists of the 1950s and 1960s....
", "Andy Williams
Andy Williams

Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams is a legendary American pop singer. Andy Williams has recorded 18 gold and three platinum certified albums. When Ronald Reagan was president, he declared Andy's voice to be "a national treasure"....
" as well as "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In". He also recorded with Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as "Jazz royalty" and the "First Lady of Song", is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century....
on Get Happy! (1957), Lena Horne
Lena Horne

Lena Mary Calhoun Horne is an American singer and actress. She has recorded and performed extensively, independently and with other jazz notables, including Artie Shaw, Teddy Wilson, Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington, Charlie Barnet, Benny Carter, and Billy Eckstine....
, Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee

Peggy Lee was an United States jazz and traditional pop singer and songwriter and Academy Award-nominated actress. She was born Norma Deloris Egstrom in Jamestown, North Dakota....
, Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin

Bobby Darin was one of the most popular American big band performers and rock and roll teen idols of the late 1950s and early 1960s.Darin performed widely in a range of music genres, including pop, jazz, folk and country....
, The Four Freshmen, Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra

Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an United States singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became a solo artist with great success in the early to mid-1940s, being the idol of the "bobby soxers"....
, Sammy Davis Jr., Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney

Rosemary Clooney was an United States singer and actor. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the novelty hit "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers "Botch-a-Me " , "Mambo Italiano ", and "This Ole House", songs which tended to obscure her talents as a jazz vocalist....
, Doris Day
Doris Day

Doris Mary Anne von Kappelhoff is a German-American singer, actress, and animal welfare advocate known as Doris Day. Able to sing, dance, and play comedy and dramatic roles, she became one of the biggest box-office stars....
and Mel Torme
Mel Tormé

Melvin Howard Torm? , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known as one of the great jazz singers. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books....
.

Discography

Soundtracks

Bewitched (1964)
1964 in television

The year 1964 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1964.For the United States TV schedule, see: 1964-65 American network television schedule....
Screen Gems (Pilot Title Track)
Hogan's Heroes (1965) Paramount (Soloist Pilot Title Track)

Early musical short films

Les Brown (1948) (10 min) dir: Jack Scholl
Les Brown and His Band of Renown (1949) (15 min) dir: Will Cowan
Art Lund-Tex Beneke-Les Brown (1948) (10 min) dir: Jack Scholl
Connee Boswell and Les Brown's Orchestra (1950) (15 min) dir: Will Cowan
Crazy Frolic (1953) (19 min) dir: Will Cowan
Dance Demons (1957) (14 min) dir: Will Cowan
Rockabilly Baby (1957) (81 min) dir: William F.Claxton
Snarder Telescriptions: The Big Bands Vol.2 (1958) (47 min)
(Les Brown's Band featured on 4 dance band numbers, filmed 1951)

Television

External links