When will it stop?? First Bowie, then Prince, now Fountain! Truly been a rough year for music legends. Unfair, man.
Wait, why are you reading this with that look on your face? What do you mean you’ve never heard of Pete Fountain?!? He’s only one of the most legendary jazz clarinetists the genre has ever known. You didn’t get his “Best Of” CD for Christmas when you were a kid, like me?
He played on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson 56 times! Carson was on the air for 30 years, so that means Pete averaged almost two performances a year, which is pretty impressive. And I heard a story once that after he played a set, Carson asked him to keep playing and didn’t bring out any others guests because he loved it so much.
Anyways, this list is based on the previously mentioned Best Of Pete Fountain CD which I highly recommend listening to straight through. There is not a bad song, especially if you appreciate jazz. So in no particular order, here are 10 of my Favorite Pete Fountain recordings:
Indiana (Back Home Again In Indiana)
When The Saints Go Marching In
While We Danced At The Mardi Gras
Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?
You’re Nobody ‘Til Somebody Loves You
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