Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987), better known as W… Read Full Bio ↴Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987), better known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and Big band leader. During his lifetime, he led some of the most exciting big bands of the twentieth century. His bands changed styles and approaches to jazz but still managed to keep their musical integrity.

Herman was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As a child he worked as a singer in vaudeville, then became a professional saxophone player at age 15. When Isham Jones's band, of which Herman had been a member, broke up in 1936, he formed his own band, the Woody Herman Orchestra, with some of his band mates. This band became known for its orchestrations of the blues and was sometimes billed as "The Band That Plays The Blues".

On April 12, 1939 Woody Herman recorded his greatest commercial and mega popular hit record "Woodchoppers' Ball", featuring Woody on clarinet, Neal Ried on trombone, Saxie Mansfield on Sax, Steady Nelson on trumpet and Hy White on guitar. Other big early hits were "Blue Flame," "Dupree Blues", "Blues Upstairs and Downstairs" and "Blues in the Night" with Joe Bishop on flugelhorn, Tommy Linehans on piano, Cappy Lewis on trumpet, and the strong rhythm team of Walt Yoder and Frankie Carlson.

This popular swing band took off and was listed number three in the country in a popularity poll by Down Beat Magazine in 1940. This band recorded for the Decca label. The band was first pinned "Herman's Herd" in a Martin band instrument advertisement in the same magazine on April 1, 1941.

This band's music was heavily influenced by Duke Ellington and Count Basie. Its lively, swinging arrangements, combining bop themes with swing rhythm parts, were greatly admired; Igor Stravinsky wrote "Ebony Concerto" for this band. Other pieces for which the band was known include "Caldonia" and "Northwest Passage." During this time, Woody Herman recorded for the Columbia label. Featured musicians were trumpeter Sonny Berman,trumpeter/arranger Neil Hefti, trumpeter/vocalist Steady Nelson, tenor saxist Flip Phillips, trombonist Bill Harris, vibraphonist Red Norvo, pianist/arranger Ralph Burns, drummers Davey Tough and Don Lamond and bassist Chubby Jackson, who was the driving force/talent scout behind the bands progressive development.

Herman was forced to disband the orchestra in 1946 at the height of its success, his only financially successful band, to spend more time with his wife and family. During this time, he and his family had just moved into the former Hollywood home of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. Another reason Herman may have disbanded was his wife Charlotte's growing problems with alcoholism and pill addiction. In 1947 Herman organized the Second Herd and in 1948 moved to the Capitol label. This band featured a cooler sound, provided by such musicians as Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Serge Chaloff, Al Cohn, Gene Ammons, Lou Levy, Oscar Pettiford, Terry Gibbs, Shelly Manne, and Herbie Steward. Among this band's hits were "Early Autumn," "The Goof and I," and "Four Brothers". This band was also known as the Four Brothers band.

Herman's many later bands included the Third Herd and the New Thundering Herd. He was known for hiring the best young musicians and using their arrangements. His band's book consequently came to be heavily influenced by rock and roll.

By the 1970s, Herman had returned to straight forward jazz, dropping some of the newer, even rock-oriented approaches. A highlight of the nineteen seventies was the appearance of the Woody Herman orchestra with Frank Sinatra at Madison Square Garden for his "Main Event" television special and "Main Event" recording for Reprise records.

He continued to perform into the 1980s, chiefly to pay back taxes caused by an incompetent manager in the 1960s. When his health began to fail, he delegated most of his duties to leader of the reed section, Frank Tiberi, before his death in 1987. Tiberi leads the band in performances to this day.

After the death of Herman, Charles Mingus, and other jazz greats, ASCAP created a retirement fund in 1991 to which artists were given the opportunity to fund their latter years when they no longer were recording artists.

Sabre Dance
Woody Herman Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

My heart begins to tingle when the bells begin to jingle
Zig-idee, zing, zing, zing, zig-I-dee zing zing
Zig-I-dee zing zing, zig-I-dee zing zing,
Ev'ry time they play the sabre dance,
My heart beats try to capture all the rhythm and the rapture;
Zig-idee, zing, zing, zing, zig-I-dee zing zing
Zig-I-dee zing zing, zig-I-dee zing zing,
Ev'ry time they play the sabre dance.

Zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom
I love the spell I'm under when the drums begin to thunder,
Boom-I-dee boom boom, boom-I-dee boom boom,
Boom-I-dee boom boom, boom-I-dee boom boom,
Like the tempo of a tropic rain,
When I hear trumpets blaring I can feel adventure flaring;
Ra-ta-ta tat tat, ra-ta-ta tat tat
Ra-ta-ta tat tat, ra-ta-ta tat tat
I am in a mood I can't explain,
I drift to an isle of perfume where summer roses eternally bloom,
There is a golden gleam waits my one wonderful dream;
Soon in a garden for two,
Lips cling to mine in the shadowy blue;
Arms filled with sweet delight hold me tight all through the night.
Music take me don't forsake me,
Let me be a ship lost at sea that the winds rock and roll;
Whirling, swirling, twirling, out of control,
That music drives me crazy,
Ev'rything becomes so hazy;
Drums are booming, cellos zooming,
Cymbals crashing, sabres flashing in a willy nilly sort of way,
I seem to hear it night and day;
Blending in romantic fashion, melody, moonlight and passion,
Riding high on heaven's highway,
Purple stars are guiding my way;
I am like a comet whizzing by,
Just when I get the feeling that the universe
Is reeling, suddenly the song is ending;
And I find that I'm descending like a star
That's falling from the sky,
Toppling! Twisting! Tumbling!
And down and down and down and down and
Roun' and roun' and roun' and roun' and
Down and down and down and down,

And I begin to spin into a trance
Ev'ry time they play that sabre dance

Overall Meaning

In Woody Herman's song "Sabre Dance," the singer describes how they feel every time they hear the tune. The first verse sets the scene with a description of how their heart begins to tingle and beat with the rhythm when the bells start to jingle. Their excitement is evident when they say that they can't help but capture the rhythm and rapture of the music. The second verse is even more intense, with imagery evocative of a rainforest or tropical island. The drums thunder, and the trumpets blare, and the singer feels adventure flaring up within them. They're in a mood they can't explain, drifting through a garden filled with summer roses, entangled with a lover. The music surrounds them, and they're lost in its spell, whirling, swirling, and twirling out of control.

Line by Line Meaning

My heart begins to tingle when the bells begin to jingle
I feel a rush of excitement when I hear the jingling bells

Zig-idee, zing, zing, zing, zig-I-dee zing zing Zig-I-dee zing zing, zig-I-dee zing zing, Ev'ry time they play the sabre dance,
The lively rhythm of the sabre dance makes me feel energized and exhilarated

My heart beats try to capture all the rhythm and the rapture;
I try to keep up with the fast-paced beat and capture the feeling of pure enjoyment

Zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom
I am transported into a new world of music and excitement

I love the spell I'm under when the drums begin to thunder, Boom-I-dee boom boom, boom-I-dee boom boom, Boom-I-dee boom boom, boom-I-dee boom boom,
The loud drumming fills me with a spellbinding sense of adventure and intrigue

When I hear trumpets blaring I can feel adventure flaring; Ra-ta-ta tat tat, ra-ta-ta tat tat Ra-ta-ta tat tat, ra-ta-ta tat tat I am in a mood I can't explain,
The exciting sound of the trumpets brings a sense of adventure and exploration that cannot be put into words

I drift to an isle of perfume where summer roses eternally bloom, There is a golden gleam waits my one wonderful dream; Soon in a garden for two,
The music carries me away to a dreamy island paradise where I am filled with hope and longing

Lips cling to mine in the shadowy blue; Arms filled with sweet delight hold me tight all through the night.
I am lost in a romantic and passionate embrace under the blue moonlit sky

Music take me don't forsake me, Let me be a ship lost at sea that the winds rock and roll; Whirling, swirling, twirling, out of control,
The music takes over me completely and I am swept away in its powerful current

That music drives me crazy, Ev'rything becomes so hazy; Drums are booming, cellos zooming, Cymbals crashing, sabres flashing in a willy nilly sort of way, I seem to hear it night and day;
The music is overwhelming, with every instrument playing together in a chaotic dance that I can't seem to get out of my head

Blending in romantic fashion, melody, moonlight and passion, Riding high on heaven's highway, Purple stars are guiding my way;
The music creates a romantic and otherworldly atmosphere, with the pink and purple stars guiding me towards a new adventure

I am like a comet whizzing by, Just when I get the feeling that the universe Is reeling, suddenly the song is ending;
I feel like a shooting star zooming through the universe, but the sudden ending of the song brings me back to reality

And I find that I'm descending like a star That's falling from the sky, Toppling! Twisting! Tumbling! And down and down and down and down and Roun' and roun' and roun' and roun' and Down and down and down and down,
As the music fades away, I feel myself falling back down to earth and slowly losing the intoxicating feeling of being lost in the music

And I begin to spin into a trance Ev'ry time they play that sabre dance
The captivating and addictive rhythm of the sabre dance puts me into a trance every time I hear it

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ARAM ILJITSCH KHACHATURIAN, WALTER WILLIAM SHILLITTO

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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