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Doc Severinsen | |
|---|---|
 Severinsen in a 1974 publicity photo forThe Tonight Show | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Carl Hilding Severinsen (1927-07-07)July 7, 1927 (age 98) Arlington, Oregon, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz, swing, fusion, pop |
| Occupations | Musician, bandleader |
| Instrument | Trumpet |
| Years active | 1946–2022 |
| Labels | Command,RCA Victor, Amherst,Telarc |
| Formerly of | The NBC Orchestra |
| Website | www |
Carl Hilding "Doc"Severinsen (born July 7, 1927) is an American retired jazz trumpeter who led theNBC Orchestra onThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
Severinsen was born inArlington, Oregon, to Minnie Mae (1897–1998) and Carl Severinsen (1898–1972).[1] He was nicknamed Doc after his father, the only dentist in Arlington, who was born in Germany to a Danish father and a Swiss mother. Severinsen's father playedviolin and wanted him to play it as well, but Severinsen wanted to playtrombone.[2] Because his arms were not long enough for trombone,[3] and the small Arlington music store had none available, he settled for thecornet. A neighbor provided him with some lessons, while his father, tobacco in mouth, instructed him to spit out the notes like spitting tobacco. His mother threatened to spank him if he didn't practice.[4] Growing up, Severinsen idolized the trumpeter and band leaderHarry James.
Severinsen proved to have a knack for the instrument, and was in a high school band when he was seven. At 9, he won a state trumpet contest, at 12 he won theMusic Teachers National Association’s National Contest,[5] at 13, he joined a multi-state all-star band and, at 14, he auditioned forTommy Dorsey but was not hired. He started a quartet called the Blue Notes that performed at local dances.[4]
Before graduating from high school, he was hired to go on the road with theTed Fio Rito Orchestra.[4] After graduation, he went on tour withCharlie Barnet,Tommy Dorsey, andBenny Goodman.[2] He served in the Army during World War II.[3] Severinsen was a member ofSam Donahue's band between 1946 and 1951. In 1946, he played trumpet on radio stationKODL.[6]
In 1949, Severinsen landed a job as a studio musician forNBC, where he accompaniedSteve Allen,Eddie Fisher,Dinah Shore, andKate Smith, and was a member of the original band forTonight Starring Steve Allen, and was the soloist playing the closing theme. He left the show with Allen in 1957.[4] The leader ofThe Tonight Show Band,Skitch Henderson, asked him to return as first-chair trumpeter in 1962 for what had becomeThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and five years later, afterMilton Delugg, Severinsen was leading the band.[3]
Under Severinsen's direction, The Tonight Show Band, styled the NBC Orchestra, became perhaps the best knownbig band in America.[7] Severinsen became one of the most popular bandleaders, appearing almost every night on television. He led the band during commercials and while guests were introduced. He joked withJohnny Carson, the show's host, and developed an amusing habit of wearing gaudy clothing.[2]
The show introduced a comic "Stump the Band" segment in which audience members called out the titles of obscure songs to see if the band could play them. Severinsen often cried "key of E", his signal for the band to strike up a western theme, and then he would enthusiastically sing acountry music-flavored nonsense song.
Severinsen substituted forEd McMahon on occasions when Ed was absent as Carson's announcer and sidekick. He typically assumed this role when the show featured a guest host, which became increasingly frequent during the program's later years.Tommy Newsom was usually the band's substitute director when Severinsen was away from the show or filling in for McMahon. The sidekick role was omitted from the show when Leno guest hosted (it was discontinued altogether after Leno replaced Carson permanently). While Leno guest hosted for Carson, Severinsen typically introduced Leno and led the band while interacting with Leno in a similar manner to his interactions with Carson and McMahon.
Doc continued as bandleader until Carson's retirement in May 1992. Doc, along with Tommy Newsom and Ed Shaughnessy, appeared on the January 31, 2005 episode ofLate Show with David Letterman performing "Here's That Rainy Day" in honor of Johnny Carson, who died on January 23 of that same year. He appeared onJimmy Fallon'sTonight Show in February 2015 when the show traveled to Los Angeles for a week. He played for the evening withThe Roots. The appearance helped to promote his nationwide tour.
Through the 1970s to the 1990s Severinsen also made appearances onRowan & Martin's Laugh-In,Bonanza,The Bionic Woman,Cheers andThe Larry Sanders Show, among others.
During the early 1960s, Severinsen began recording big band albums, then moved toward instrumental pop music by the end of the decade. In the 1970s he recorded jazz funk, then disco, finding hits with "Night Journey" and "I Wanna Be With You". He released an album with the jazz fusion group Xebron in 1985. During the next year, he recordedThe Tonight Show Band with Doc Severinsen which won theGrammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Performance. After Carson retired in 1992, he toured with some of the band's members, includingConte Candoli,Snooky Young,Bill Perkins,Ernie Watts,Ross Tompkins, andEd Shaughnessy.[2]
Severinsen performed with high school bands, in particular in the 1970s withDon Caneva'sJohn Hersey High School Bands, which recorded four albums.[8][9][10]
He performed the "Star-Spangled Banner" on at least three nationally telecast occasions; however, the first two renditions were marred by problems. When he accompanied actorPat O'Brien, as O'Brien recited the National Anthem atSuper Bowl IV, the public address system atTulane Stadium went dead for a minute, although viewers were unaware of it. Fifteen years later, when he performed the anthem again prior to theMarvin Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns fight, a giant US flag on the side of the Fantasy Tower atCaesars Palace overlooking the outdoor ring was not unfurled properly due to problems with the roping. He performed the anthem again, as well as "O Canada", at the1989 Major League Baseball All-Star Game inAnaheim, California. With the game being played in the Los Angeles television and radio market, he was accompanied by theTonight Show band. As of 2020, Severinsen and the NBC Orchestra's performance remains the most recent non-vocal rendition of the national anthem at the Midsummer Classic.
Severinsen is credited for co-writing the hit song "Stop and Smell the Roses" withMac Davis, although both parties agree that Severinsen only came up with the title.[11]
Severinsen was the principal pops conductor for several American orchestras during and after his time onThe Tonight Show. His first position was with thePhoenix Symphony in 1983.[12] He then held similar positions with theBuffalo Philharmonic Orchestra,Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, andMinnesota Orchestra.[2]
He retired from conducting in 2007 and was named Pops Conductor Emeritus in Milwaukee[13] and Pops Conductor Laureate in Minnesota.[14] Severinsen was also named distinguished visiting professor of music and Katherine K. Herberger Heritage Chair for Visiting Artists at Arizona State University School of Music in 2001 and 2002.[15]
In 2014, he was inducted into theScandinavian-American Hall of Fame.[16]
Severinsen performed his final concert, accompanied by his San Miguel 5 group, on September 1, 2022, inSaratoga Springs, New York.[17]
On June 23, 1949, Severinsen married Jane Simpson Frazer. They had four children before divorcing.
On August 7, 1964, Severinsen married Evonne Nyman. They had one child and were divorced in 1976.
In 1980, he married Emily Marshall, who was a television writer and producer and is an on-camera subject in a 2020 PBS documentary produced byAmerican Masters titledNever Too Late: The Doc Severinsen Story that premiered April 2, 2021.[18][19] They met when she was working as a secretary forThe Tonight Show producerFred de Cordova.[20] In 1992, afterThe Tonight Show, Severinsen moved to Mexico with his wife, and formed a new band, The San Miguel Five. They divorced in 2006. Marshall died in 2023.
By 2013, Severinsen had been living in Tennessee for a few years, moving there to be closer to Cathy Leach, principal trumpeter with theKnoxville Symphony Orchestra and professor of trumpet at theUniversity of Tennessee.[21] As of 2021[update] Leach was Severinsen's "companion."[18][22] In 2022, Leach was cited as his wife.[23] Severinsen and Leach perform together.[24]
Severinsen has been quoted as saying that he has been married four times.[25]
Severinsen's children are Nancy, Cindy, Allen, Robin, and Judy. He has eight grandchildren, including Blaire and Gray Reinhard, who write and perform roots rock music together in various incarnations as Curtis & Reinhard and theBlaire Reinhard Band.[26]
WithChris Connor
WithUrbie Green
WithSkitch Henderson and "The Tonight Show" Orchestra
WithGerry Mulligan
WithTito Puente
With others
Doc Severinsen joins Gil Gutiérrez and the San Miguel Five in Grass Valley, CA, as part of the Music in the Mountains Festival.
℗ 2014 Gil Gutierrez & Doc Severinsen
| Media offices | ||
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| Preceded by | The Tonight Show bandleader 1967–1992 | Succeeded by |
