Blue Skies - Irving Berlin / Roger Holmes [ 2017 HCRP@Chrysalis ]

“Blue Skies”
Composer and Lyricist: Irving Berlin (1927)
Arranged by: Roger Holmes (1994)
Performed by the Columbia Big Band [now Patuxent Jazz Band (PJB)]
Director: Robert Miller
Columbia Bands, Inc.
Performed: June 27, 2017
The Chrysalis, Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods, Columbia, MD, USA
Concert Playlist: • CBB: June 27, 2017 - H...
The Big Band’s busy concert season marches on with this performance in late June. An unusual Tuesday evening performance, the band worked with Howard County Recreation & Parks to put on a concert as part of their Travelling Bands series. Using the Chrysalis as the venue for the program was a new and exciting adventure for HCP&R, as it was relatively newly built, and all parties involved enjoyed the chance to exercise Columbia’s newest venue and park!
Broadway is a cutthroat industry. The 1926 Rodgers and Hart musical “Betsy” barely had a chance to open before it closed after 39 performances. Miraculously, a late-addition number from the show took on a life of its own - Irving Berlin’s classic “Blue Skies”. The music was published independently from the show in 1927, and was quickly featured in one of the first “talkie” films, “The Jazz Singer” with Al Jolson. Over time performances by Benny Goodman, Bing Crosby, Count Basie, Willie Nelson, and Moon Mullican enshrined the tune in the canon of both Swing and Country.
Setlist:
Big Swing Face - Bill Potts (1967)
Shaker Song - Jay Beckenstein (1977) / Arr. by Paul Jennings
April In Paris - Vernon Duke (music) & E.Y. Harburg (lyrics) (1932) / Arr. by Jeff Hest (1999)
I’m In The Mood For Love - Jimmy McHugh & Dorothy Fields (1935) / Arr. by Dave Wolpe
Candy - Mack David, Joan Whitney, & Alex Kramer (1944 / 1977) / Arr. by Kris Berg (1997)
A Hefti Dose Of Basie - Patrick Williams (2014 / 2016)
Brass Machine - Mark Taylor (1985)
Route 66 - Bobby Troup (1946) / Arr. Bob Lowden (1983)
Misty - Erroll Garner (music) (1955) & Johnny Burke (lyrics) / Arr. Jerry Nowak (1986)
All Of Me - Seymour Simons & Gerald Marks (1931) / Arr. Lennie Niehaus (1984)
Country Road - James Taylor (1969) / Arr. by Kenny Wheeler (1971)
Harlem Nocturne - Earle Hagen (1940 / 1964)
Satin Doll - Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington (1953), & Johnny Mercer (lyrics) (1958) / Arr. by Sammy Nestico (1981)
I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter - Fred E. Ahlert (music) & Joe Young (lyrics) (1935) / Arr. Dave Wolpe (1989)
Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin’ All The Time) - Harold Arlen (music) & Ted Koehler (lyrics) (1933) / Arr. Jerry Nowak (1989)
Blue Skies - Irving Berlin (1927) / Arr. by Roger Holmes (1994)
Pennsylvania 6-5000 - Jerry Grey (1940) / Arr. by John Berry (2006)
Fireshaker - Maynard Ferguson & Chris Braymen (1983) / Arr. Bob Lowden (1985)
God Bless The USA - Lee Greenwood (1984) / Arr. by Jerry Nowak (1986)
The Columbia Big Band (CBB) [now Patuxent Jazz Band (PJB)] is an ensemble formed in October 2015. Our repertoire covers genres such as traditional Big Band, Bebop, Fusion, Swing and Latin, among others. We are members of the community who enjoy performing for all audiences. Though some members play and teach music professionally, the members are volunteers employed in a wide variety of professions who share a love of music. CBB is one of several bands within the Columbia Bands non-profit organization. The Columbia Big Band hopes to bring the enjoyment of big band music to a wide audience. We look forward to seeing you at our concerts!