Julian Clifton "Matty" Matlock (April 27, 1907 – June 14, 1978) was an American

Dixieland jazz Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ( ...

clarinettist This article lists notable musicians who have played the clarinet. Classical clarinetists * Laver Bariu * Ernest Ačkun * Luís Afonso * Cristiano Alves * Michel Arrignon * Dimitri Ashkenazy * Kinan Azmeh * Alexander Bader * Carl Baer ...

saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

and arranger.

Early years

Matlock was born in

Paducah, Kentucky Paducah ( ) is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in the Upland South, and the county seat of McCracken County, Kentucky, United States. The most populous city in the Jackson Purchase region, it is located in the Southeastern Unit ...

, April 27, 1907, and raised in Nashville beginning in 1917. He began playing clarinet when he was 12.

Career

From 1929 to 1934, Matlock replaced

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader, known as the "King of Swing". His orchestra did well commercially. From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing bi ...

in the

Ben Pollack Benjamin "Ben" Pollack (June 22, 1903 – June 7, 1971) was an American drummer and bandleader from the mid-1920s through the swing music, swing era. His eye for talent led him to employ musicians such as Benny Goodman, Jack Teagarden, Glenn Mil ...

band doing arrangements and performing on clarinet. Matlock was one of the main arrangers for Bob Crosby's band. He had joined Crosby's group in 1935 as clarinettist, playing with both the main Crosby band and the smaller Bobcats group, but "he was often seconded to write full-time for the orchestra and the Bobcats." He stayed with Crosby until the band broke up in 1942. Matlock's entry in ''The Rough Guide to Jazz'' says of him (in part): "Matty Matlock was, with Irving Fazola, the most inspired and spontaneous clarinettist in the Dixieland style, and as a truly original arranger he perfected the sound of 'arranged white Dixieland' as we know it today." After the dissolution of Crosby's group, Matlock worked in Los Angeles, playing for recordings made by a variety of Dixieland groups. In 1955, he appeared in the film '' Pete Kelly's Blues'', playing clarinet for a band that is seen in a scene in a Kansas City speakeasy in 1927.

Death

Matlock died June 14, 1978, in Los Angeles, California.

Select discography

;As

bandleader A bandleader is the leader of a music group such as a dance band, rock or pop band or jazz quartet. The term is most commonly used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhyth ...

*''Dixieland'' (Douglass Phonodisc) *''Four-Button Dixie'' (Douglass Phonodisc, 1959) redited as Matty Matlock and the Paducah Patrol*''They Made It Twice As Nice As Paradise And They Called It Dixieland'' (Douglass Phonodisc) ;With

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, comedian, entertainer and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwi ...

*'' Play a Simple Melody / Sam's Song'' (also with Gary Crosby) (

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

) *'' Moonlight Bay'' (also with Gary Crosby) (Decca Records) *''

In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" is a traditional popular music, popular song with music by Hoagy Carmichael, and lyrics by Johnny Mercer. It was originally planned to feature it in a Paramount Pictures film written for Betty Hutton, tha ...

'' (also with

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007). was an American actress. A star of both movies and television, she received an Academy Award for Best Actress, four Golden Globe Awards and nominations for two Pr ...

) (Decca Records) *'' Bing with a Beat'' (

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...

) ;With

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April25, 1917June15, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter and composer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phra ...

*'' Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Irving Berlin Song Book'' (

Verve Records Verve Records is an active American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Ca ...

) ;With Ray Heindorf *''Pete Kelly's Blues'' (

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

) ;With

*''Ben Pollack's Pick-A-Rib Boys: Dixieland'' (

Savoy Records Savoy Records is an American record company and label established by Herman Lubinsky in 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. Savoy specialized in jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. In September 2017, Savoy was acquired by Concord Bicycle Music. ...

) *''Dixieland Vols. 1, 2 & 3'' (

) ;With Beverly Jenkins *'' Gordon Jenkins Presents My Wife The Blues Singer'' ( Impulse!)

References

External links

Matty Matlock recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Matlock, Matty 1907 births 1978 deaths 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century clarinetists American jazz clarinetists Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) Dixieland bandleaders Dixieland clarinetists Jazz musicians from Kentucky Musicians from Paducah, Kentucky Swing clarinetists