Bob Sanders: Some choices are too tough to make

Speaking of big bands, if you absolutely had to make a choice between all of the recordings of Tommy Dorsey or all of the recordings of Jimmy Dorsey, which would you choose?

That’s a choice I hope I never have to make. Let’s examine the assets of each. First, remember that the Dorsey Brothers Band broke up in the mid-’30s over a disagreement about tempos, probably something that had been building for a while. Tommy was leading. Jimmy said, “Don’t you think you got the tempo a little fast, Mac?” whereupon Tommy took his trombone and walked off the bandstand, leaving Jimmy with the orchestra.

But Tommy soon formed one of his own, so for about two decades, they were non-speaking rivals. Tommy got some great musicians for his band — Ziggy Elman and Bunny Berigan from Benny Goodman, Buddy Rich from Artie Shaw, etc., and soon had one of the best and most popular bands in the country.

Jimmy was not just sitting around and whittling. He had one of the greatest big band boy singers in Bob Eberly and the winsome Helen O’Connell as his girl singer. One day at a recording session, some bright person said, Hey, why don’t we let Bob Sing the first chorus, very tenderly and romantically, and then, after a solo by Jimmy, let Helen sing second chorus in a more spritely, swinging manner. And they did, and out came “Green Eyes,” which was a huge hit. So they made a bunch of others in that mode: “Brazil, “Amapola,” “Tangerine,” and more; And, of course, there were solo recordings by the singing starts. And when O’Connell Left, Jimmy brought in Kitty KIallen, with not a bit of fall-off in quality.

In 1940, Tommy got a skinny young singer out of Harry James’ Band. His name was Frank Sinatra, and for the next two years, together, they turned out hit after hit. The arrangements were mostly by Axel Stordahl — “Say It,” “Tell Me at Midnight,” “The Beginning of the End,” “The Lamplighter’s Serenade,” and on and on

Jimmy was always puzzled because his instrumental records didn’t sell like Tommy’s. I am too. Tommy had things like “TD’s Boogie” and “Hawaiian War Chant” and “Opus One.” But Jimmy’s instrumentals like “JD’s Boogie” and “Lover” and “Contrasts” and “Tropical Magic” were just as good. Truly a puzzlement.

Eberly was an early idol of Sinatra’s. Later, when they were rivals, so to speak, Frank became anxious to get out of the band and go out on his own ... before Eberly did. Eberly Stayed on with Jimmy for a while.

He waited too long. He would never make it big as a single. Later, after a long illness, he died, broke. Sinatra paid his hospital bills.

Who would you pick? Jimmy, with those fabulous singers and, especially, those Latin-flavored records: Or Tommy, with Sinatra/Stordahl, plus Sy Oliver’s contributions?

Whatcha gonna do? I boycott this election. I refuse to vote.

Bob Sanders is a longtime radio personality with WAUD in Auburn and writes a weekly column for the Opelika-Auburn News.