Blue Barron (November 19, 1913 – July 16, 2005), born Harry Freidman, was an American orchestra leader in the 1940s and early 1950s during the

Big Band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

era. His band's more subdued tone was referred to as "Sweet" music to distinguish it from the " Swing" bands of the era. Barron's orchestra began in the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

area but later toured the U.S. and performed at popular venues in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

where they also appeared in several

motion pictures A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

and recorded a number of LPs.

Early years

Born in

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, United States, Freidman studied at

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

before going into show business. He adopted the

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Blue Barron and by 1940 had created his own orchestra.

Career

His first group played on the Floating Palace showboat at

Troy, New York Troy is a city in and the county seat of Rensselaer County, New York, United States. It is located on the western edge of the county, on the eastern bank of the Hudson River just northeast of the capital city of Albany, New York, Albany. At the ...

, in October 1936. A newspaper report said the group "made an over night hit at the Floating Palace and remained there for 22 weeks."

National Service and honors

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Barron served with the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

and at war's end resumed his musical career. He was able to work in the industry for another ten years until the Big Band era gave way to new musical forms. For his contribution to the recording industry, he has a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

at 1724 Vine Street. Barron hit number 1 for two weeks in 1949 with "Cruising Down The River". The record sold over one million copies, gaining

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

status.

Death

Blue Barron died in 2005, at the age of 91, in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, and is interred in Baltimore.

References

External links

Christopher Popa on Blue Barron (February 2005)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barron, Blue 1913 births 2005 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II American bandleaders American big band bandleaders Jewish American musicians Musicians from Cleveland Ohio State University alumni 20th-century American musicians United States Army soldiers 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews Bluebird Records artists MGM Records artists