Bunny Briggs with Charlie Barnet

Bunny Briggs (1922-2017) had a remarkably long career as a dancer, lasting from childhood to his later years. He often appeared with big bands, notably Duke Ellington's, but also quite a few others.

Briggs sang as well as danced - we have already heard from him with Neal Hefti on my other blog. Today we find him with Charlie Barnet - two songs from 1947 on  the Apollo label and one from 1949 on Capitol.

On all these, Briggs intones a hybrid of scat singing and bop lingo - interesting to me because I never considered the Barnet band to be a bop outfit. On "East Side, West Side," Briggs is afflicted with a vocal backing by the band, while the instrumental arrangement is big-band R&B with Ellington and Kenton touches.

Bunny Briggs

Briggs and Barnet appear in a Snader telescription from about this time performing the same song. In it, Briggs plays a Western Union messenger who delivers a telegram to the bandleader and ends up dancing and singing. You can sort-of see this in an execrable YouTube print. (Is there any other kind?) I believe I discerned Doc Severinsen taking a trumpet solo amidst the murk.

Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" is similar to the "East Side, West Side" single, but without the band vocal and featuring the screeching high-register trumpet playing that was then in vogue, here possibly by Severinsen. The arranger was Billy May.

The final side is "O'Henry," an original by its arranger, Gil Fuller. This one does have some section writing that is strongly bop influenced.

In 1950, Briggs appeared in the Universal short below with Benny Carter's band. It's a good example of his remarkable dancing skills.