This morning I was looking for something specific on YouTube, but like so often happens on that site, I got distracted by all the possible videos that are somewhat related to the subject matter that I’m searching for. This morning’s unexpected find was very interesting, because it introduced me to a tenor saxophone player who I had never heard of before.
Tex Beneke played tenor sax for Glenn Miller for 4 years before the band leader joined the Air Force. During that time Beneke’s saxophone sound and vocals became a staple in the Glenn Miller Orchestra, and were featured prominently in hits such as In The Mood, String Of Pearls, Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree (With Anyone Else But Me), and Chattanooga Choo Choo.
Two years after Miller’s death in 1944, Beneke was approached by Miller’s widow to lead a posthumous version of the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Although he left the band in 1950 over artistic differences with the estate—he wanted to bring some of his own ideas in, and no longer wanted to perform the music exactly the way Glenn Miller did—Beneke is credited with being one of the major architects of the Miller sound. ¹
Beneke was born in 1914, and started playing soprano sax at the age of 9. He switched to alto, and finally moved on to tenor, which he then stayed on throughout his long career. He continued fronting bands into the 1990s, which always were a variation on the Miller sound.
In the mid 90s Tex Beneke suffered a stroke and had to give up playing sax, but continued singing and conducting his bands. He continued touring until the late 90s, and passed away in 2000, after a 60+ year career.
This video is from 1946, shortly after Beneke took over the “ghost version” of the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Note the use of the 3 tenors. In Miller’s version of In The Mood, there were only 2.
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