The Benson Orchestra of Chicago

Storing the Benson Orchestra’s complete recorded output would demand construction of an additional wing on any residence. The ensemble advanced the careers of numerous jazz figures, showcasing lyrical melodic work from saxophonist Frankie Trumbauer and forward momentum from the rising drummer Gene Krupa. Its chronicle features an extended residency at Marigold Gardens, the Chicago nightclub with documented organized-crime ties. The group took its name from manager Edgar A. Benson, a cellist of limited skill, yet no person sharing that surname ever held musical direction.

Pianist Roy Bargy exercised initial authority. Under his leadership the ensemble entered the New Jersey Camden studio in autumn 1920 to begin recording. The 1921 date that produced “Na Jo,” also issued as “No Ja,” has been credited with the first use of “stop time” phrasing, its title alone halting proofreaders regardless of vowel sequence. Commercial results, however, were substantial: the orchestra’s treatment of “Wabash Cannonball” sold 750,000 copies in 1921.

Further forward-looking traits appeared in the harmonic dialogue linking soloists to sectional writing. Such sophistication may have strained relations with straw boss Benson; a dispute with Bargy caused the pianist to leave and to take several leading players along. Don Bestor stepped in as replacement, a capable pianist and conductor who brought Trumbauer aboard by 1924. The next year meaty trumpeter Fred Hamm assumed leadership, whereupon Bestor launched his own band. From that juncture the enterprise resembled a fading franchise, successive directors attaching their own names while appending the credit “A Benson Orchestra.”