By the tail end of the 1940s, Johnny Mandel had dropped the trumpet and was playing trombone for leading big bands. He also was writing arrangements that had the energy of swing but the attitude of bop. As his reputation grew, so did the demand for his pen. After working in Alvino Rey's band, Johnny began devoting more time to arranging, which took some…
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to JazzWax to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.