| "Tuxedo Junction" | |
|---|---|
 1940 sheet music cover for the Glenn Miller recording, Lewis Music, New York | |
| Song by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra | |
| Released | 1939 |
| Label | RCA Bluebird |
| Composer(s) | Erskine Hawkins,Bill Johnson,Julian Dash |
| Lyricist(s) | Buddy Feyne (vocal version) |
"Tuxedo Junction" is a popularbig band song recorded byGlenn Miller and His Orchestra, becoming a No. 1 hit in 1940. The music was written byErskine Hawkins,Bill Johnson, andJulian Dash and the lyrics byBuddy Feyne.[1] The song was introduced by Erskine Hawkins and His Orchestra, a college dance band previously known as theBama State Collegians.[2] RCA released it in 1939 and it climbed to #7 on the American pop charts.[3]
In the late 1930s Hawkins and his Orchestra were one of the house bands at theSavoy Ballroom. They alternated with theChick Webb band and often used "Tuxedo Junction" as their sign-off song before the next band would take the stage so that the dancing would continue uninterrupted.[4]
A live6+1⁄2-minute version of the song by the Hawkins Orchestra exists, with extended solos from Hawkins on the trumpet,Paul Bascomb andJulian Dash on tenor saxophones, andHaywood Henry on the clarinet. It was recorded as an aircheck in the summer of 1942 at the Blue Room club in New York City.[5]
The song was written as an instrumental. When it was given to Lewis Music Publishing, they sent it to several prospective lyricists to see who could write the best words for the song.Buddy Feyne askedErskine Hawkins why he titled it "Tuxedo Junction." Erskine explained that the Junction was a whistle stop on the "Chitlin' Circuit". That information inspired Feyne's lyrics, which Hawkins preferred to the other submissions. Once the song had been published, American bands added it to their playlists.[6]
The song is about ajazz andblues club in the Birmingham, Alabama suburb ofEnsley. The area is referred to as "Tuxedo Junction", though the building is called the "Nixon Building" (built in 1922). This is due to the location of astreetcar crossing at Tuxedo Park, hence "Tuxedo Junction".[7] A punk rock venue bearing the same name operated near there briefly in the mid-1980s.[8]
Glenn Miller and His Orchestra had the most successful recording of the song (Billboard No. 1). Miller's arrangement slowed down the tempo and added trumpet fanfares.[9] The trumpet lick in the original recording was played by band memberJohnny Best. The main soloists on that recording were Best andBobby Hackett. The Glenn Miller recording sold 115,000 copies in the first week.[10] It was featured in the 1953 Glenn Miller biopicThe Glenn Miller Story starringJames Stewart andHarry Morgan.
The Glenn Miller Orchestra recorded the song on February 5, 1940, in New York. The musicians on the Glenn Miller recording were: Saxes:Hal McIntyre,Tex Beneke,Wilbur Schwartz, Jimmy Abato,Al Klink; Trumpets: Clyde Hurley,Johnny Best, R. D. McMickle, Legh Knowles; Trombones: Glenn Miller, Tommy Mack, Paul Tanner, Frank D'Annolfo; Piano:Chummy MacGregor; String Bass: Rowland Bundock; Guitar: Richard Fisher; Drums:Moe Purtill.[11] The B side of the RCA Bluebird 78 single was "Danny Boy (Londonderry Air)".
"Tuxedo Junction" was covered by numerous bands and swing orchestras and solo artists, includingThe Andrews Sisters,Ella Fitzgerald,Duke Ellington,Harry James,Frankie Avalon andJoe Jackson.Stan Kenton included it on his 1961Mellophonium Magic album. It became the theme song forThe Manhattan Transfer, first recorded on their albumThe Manhattan Transfer in 1975.[12]Bob Marley used this song as an inspiration for his hit "Kaya". It was also the inspiration for an all-girl disco group, entitled "Tuxedo Junction".[13]
The song was used in the moviesThe Glenn Miller Story,The Gene Krupa Story, and theWoody Allen filmThe Curse of the Jade Scorpion.[14]
