"Jingle Bells" - Part 5 - In the Miller Mood!

We enter the 1940s with another version of "Jingle Bells" that I think merits a more in depth look...

Glenn Miller and his Orchestra cut this in 1941:

That's good, vintage Glenn Miller!

Paula Kelly surrounded by Modernaires Bill Conway, Hal Dickinson (Paula's future husband), Chuck Goldstein and Ralph Brewster in 1941.

Going by the label, it would appear that Harold Dickinson and Bill Conway of the Modernaires vocal group wrote the special lyrics and Glenn Miller worked with  ace arranger Bill Finegan on the musical arrangement.

Billy May plays his trumpet while Glenn Miller plays with his trombone.

The muted trumpet solo is by Billy May, also a great arranger who got a chance to show off his trumpet skills with the Miller band before his arranging/conducting career took off.

I think the record's a lot of fun, but I think it works best in context, as in part of the whole Glenn Miller fabric.

It seems to me that if modern audiences know Glenn Miller at all, they might know "In the Mood" maybe "Moonlight Serenade" and probably nothing else.

So, I think when "'Jingle Bells' by Glenn Miller" appears on a "Christmas Swing" or whatever anthology, they don't know what to make of it. Specifically, I think the vocal chorus by Ernie Caceres throws them off.

In fact, I've come across the song multiple times in edited form, removing that part. It goes at least as far back as the early 1980s. I'm not sure if it was a political correctness thing or not and I'm also not sure if subsequent reissues always intend to use the edited track or if the compilers just pick the wrong thing!

Ernie Caceres (left) on baritone sax and Tex Beneke on tenor in "Sun Valley Serendae" (1941)

Whatever the case, Ernie Caceres was a very talented musician who enjoyed a lengthy stay with the Glenn Miller band, anchoring the sax section with his baritone sax and also playing alto sax and the occasional jazz clarinet solo.

Glenn Miller liked to present a complete entertainment package with his band, so he had Ernie sing on a few numbers for the sake of variety. Such vocals would invariably reference his Mexican heritage (although he was actually born in Texas) as part of the Good Neighbor Policy toward Latin countries of the time.

Here's another example on the studio recording of a song from the 1941 movie "Sun Valley Serenade":

Ernie's vocal on "The Kiss Polka" from earlier in 1941 is very similar to his vocal on "Jingle Bells."

On this old Irving Berlin tune (a depression era number from 1932 dusted off as a WWII morale booster 10 years later) Ernie sings a chorus in Spanish:

You may have caught that Marion Hutton and the Modernaires refer to him as a "Good Will Ambassador," tying into the whole Good Neighbor Policy. It's actually an attempt at celebrating diversity!

Context is everything!

The main vocal star of "Jingle Bells" is another native Texan (obviously!): Tex Beneke. Tex was a mainstay of the Miller band and provided lots of tenor sax solos along with lots of folksy vocals.

He sang on a number of Miller hit records, none bigger than this number which was also from "Sun Valley Serenade":

"Chattanooga Choo Choo" was a million-seller back when records just did not sell in the millions and the feat was celebrated with the then-novelty of RCA presenting Glenn with a gold record!

Glenn Miller was extremely popular and not the least part of his popularity was due to his radio broadcasts, the most famous being those sponsored by Chesterfield cigarettes.

Luckily for posterity's sake, Glenn had many broadcasts recorded so he could study the band's performance, always looking for ways to present the best product to his public.

As a result, we have the good fortune to be able to listen to a live version of "Jingle Bells" from the Chesterfield broadcast of December 24, 1941:

I really like this version. It seems like the band and singers are having a blast. I also always enjoy hearing future movie star Paul Douglas as announcer.

I'm actually more familiar with this live version, having played it on an LP many times back in the day before acquiring the studio version on another LP. It still throws me that Tex sings the "I've got my horn to keep me warm" line differently!

OK, so what was on the flipside of Glenn Miller's 78 of "Jingle Bells" anyway?

Well, following the pattern from the Benny Goodman/Tommy Dorsey holiday release of a few years earlier, RCA paired Glenn's "Jingle Bells" with a version of "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" by another artist, this time pioneering electric guitarist Alvino Rey and his Orchestra:

I think that is so much fun and it sounds exactly how "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" by Alvino Rey should sound, with his electrified steel guitar licks and the Four King Sisters singing hep lyrics!

I remember seeing the King Sisters and their extended brood as the King Family on TV when I was a kid and Alvino Rey, who was married to Luise King was always around with his guitar!

What a treat this record must have been for 1941 record buyers as the U.S. entered WWII!