Benny Meroff Benny Meroff Benny Meroff (1899-1973) was an American dance bandleader active in the swing jazz era. He also played violin, clarinet, and saxophone. Meroff started his career in vaudeville, and put together his own ensemble in the middle of the 1920s. His sidemen included Wild Bill Davison, Al King, Vernon Brown, Frank Teschemacher, and Santo Pecora. He was principally active in Chicago in the late 1920s and early 1930s, and also played in New York into the 1940s. Meroff was noted for his showmanship as a bandleader; big band historian Leo Walker described Meroff as "a capable emcee, equally at
Monty Budwig Budwig played with pianist Vince Guaraldi in the 1960s, including on the album "Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus". Budwig was part of Benny Goodman's band for performances in New York, and a tour of Japan in 1964. He also began his career as a studio musician in the 1960s, which encompassed film and television shows, with Steve Allen, Johnny Carson, and Judy Garland. Budwig toured Australia with Goodman in 1973. He made another international tour in 1974, this time to South America with Carmen McRae. His one recording as a leader was "Dig", for Concord Records. He died at home