Artist:Bunny Berigan
Song:I Can't Get Started
Album:The Pied Piper 1934-40
It's likely that if trumpeter Roland "Bunny" Berigan had lived, he could have been a success in the big band boom of the 40s. He did have success in the late 30s with hits like I Can't Get Started. He was born Nov. 2, 1908 in Hilbert, WI. Having learned the violin and trumpet, Berigan played in local bands as a teen. He joined Hal Kemp's band in 1929 and recorded and toured with them. Upon his return to the US, Berigan moved to New York to become a studio musician with CBS Radio. He was also in Paul Whiteman's band and then Abe Lyman's band. Berigan recorded with The Dorsey Brothers and most notably Benny Goodman. He was a featured soloist on some of Goodman's early hits. After returning to New York, Berigan was featured on some of Tommy Dorsey's hits. He started his own band in 1937 and recorded I Can't Get Started first for Vocalion and then for RCA Victor. It wasn't Berigan's biggest hit but it turned out to be his signature song. The song was written by Vernon Duke and Ira Gershwin for the film Ziegfeld Follies of 1936 and sung in the movie by Bob Hope and Eve Arden. The second version was a hit. It features Berigan's vocal and his trumpet. Today the song is a jazz standard. You can get the Victor recording on this comp. Though Berigan had some success, the stress caused him to drink heavily and sink into alcoholism. He declared bankruptcy in 1939. While Berigan formed a new band in 1940, his health continued to deteriorate until his death on June 2, 1942 at age 33. Here's a video for I Can't Get Started by Bunny Berigan.
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