Benny Goodman Biography

Benny Goodman biography

Quick Facts

NAME: Benny Goodman
OCCUPATION: Songwriter
BIRTH DATE: May 30, 1909
DEATH DATE: June 13, 1986
PLACE OF BIRTH: Chicago, Illinois
PLACE OF DEATH: New York, New York
Full Name: Benjamin David Goodman

Best Known For

Benny Goodman, "The King of Swing", was the clarinetist composer responsible for multiple hit singles as a band leader before World War II.

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Benny Goodman

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Benny Goodman. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 06:51, Jun 18, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/benny-goodman-9315335.

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Benny Goodman. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/benny-goodman-9315335 [Accessed 18 Jun 2013].

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"Benny Goodman," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/benny-goodman-9315335 (accessed Jun 18, 2013).

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Benny Goodman [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 Jun 18] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/benny-goodman-9315335.

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Benny Goodman, http://www.biography.com/people/benny-goodman-9315335 (last visited Jun 18, 2013).

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Benny Goodman. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/benny-goodman-9315335. Accessed Jun 18, 2013.

Reuniting with Gene Krupa, Teddy Wilson, and Lionel Hampton, Goodman returned to the charts with Together Again! (1964). His next major album was the 1971 concert album Benny Goodman Today, which culled from a live performance in Stockholm.

Legacy

Despite his failing health, Goodman continued to perform during the 1980s. He died of heart failure on June 13, 1986, in New York City—just days after his final performance. Before not long before his death, he had received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award as well as honorary degrees from Brandeis University and Bard College.

Still remembered as one of jazz's greatest artists, Goodman was featured on a postage stamp in 1996 as part of the Legends of American Music series.