Stealin’ Apples – 1961
Benny Goodman
A hotter than usual version of the Fats Waller tune
Other than a brief and half-hearted flirtation with bebop in the late 1940s, Benny Goodman saw no reason to alter or change his style after the late 1930s, sticking to the swing music that he loved.
This version of Fats Waller’s “Stealin’ Apples,” filmed at Disneyland in May or June 1961, has Goodman leading a big band.
Pianist Ray Sherman solos as does a trumpeter (probably Manny Klein).
As if not to be overshadowed by the trumpet soloist, Goodman puts a lot of intensity into his solo as the big band romps through a faster than usual rendition of what used to be called a “killer diller.”
-Scott Yanow
Ella Fitzgerald