Woody Herman et son orchestre : 1937-1938

This entry in the chronological rundown of Woody Herman recordings focuses on all of his 1937 and 1938 Decca recordings. The Band That Plays the Blues was still searching for a style that would click with a public hungry for all swing music, and the song selection is a combination of standards, blues, a couple of boogie-woogies, and a stray novelty or two like “Flat Foot Floogie.” It also features the oddball “Laughing Boy Blues” (his only hit in 1938) and “River Bed Blues,” the first recording by the small group within the band, the Woodchoppers. The best was still to come. – Cub Koda