Bernie Cummins
Encyclopedia
Bernie Cummins was an American
jazz drummer
and bandleader
.
Bernie Cummins was born in Akron, Ohio
as Bernard Joseph Cummins. Cummins was in his youth a boxer, besides playing drums in local bands in Ohio. In 1919 he created a small ensemble of his own, which debuted in Indiana and which grew gradually into a larger dance band. Singers in the band included Dorothy Crane, Bernie's brother Walter Cummins and Scottee Marsh, which sang later with Tommy Dorsey
. Charlie Callas
and Randy Brooks
also played with the band, as did Tommy Dorsey for a time. The orchestra's theme song was "Dark Eyes
". Besides his activities as bandleader, Cummins was briefly also the manager of The Wolverines
.
The Bernie Cummins Orchestra recorded frequently for such labels as Brunswick
, Columbia
, Victor
, Decca
, Gennett, Vocalion and Bluebird
. The band had many appearances in the Mid-West and was well known for its live performances; its smooth style was much loved in larger hotels and ballrooms. They played many times at the Biltmore Hotel
and the Hotel New Yorker in New York City
, the Trianon
, Aragon, Blackstone
and the Edgewater Beach Hotel
in Chicago
, as well as further appearances in Dallas, Kansas City
, New Orleans, Denver, San Francisco and Saint Paul
. Cummins' band also played on radio shows including the Spotlight Dance Program sponsored by Coca Cola, and the Fitch Bandwagon.
In the late 1950s it became increasingly difficult for the band to find gigs, but the band continued to play clubs in Las Vegas
, playing at such places as The Flamingo, El Rancho
and Last Frontier
, before it dissolved it 1959. Cummins retired to Boca Raton, Florida.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
jazz drummer
Jazz drumming
Jazz drumming is the art of playing percussion in jazz styles ranging from 1910s-style Dixieland jazz to 1970s-era jazz-rock fusion and 1980s-era latin jazz...
and bandleader
Bandleader
A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
.
Bernie Cummins was born in Akron, Ohio
Akron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
as Bernard Joseph Cummins. Cummins was in his youth a boxer, besides playing drums in local bands in Ohio. In 1919 he created a small ensemble of his own, which debuted in Indiana and which grew gradually into a larger dance band. Singers in the band included Dorothy Crane, Bernie's brother Walter Cummins and Scottee Marsh, which sang later with Tommy Dorsey
Tommy Dorsey
Thomas Francis "Tommy" Dorsey, Jr. was an American jazz trombonist, trumpeter, composer, and bandleader of the Big Band era. He was known as "The Sentimental Gentleman of Swing", due to his smooth-toned trombone playing. He was the younger brother of bandleader Jimmy Dorsey...
. Charlie Callas
Charlie Callas
Charlie Callas was an American comedian and actor most commonly known for his work with Mel Brooks, Jerry Lewis, and Dean Martin and his many stand-up appearances on television talk shows in the 1970s...
and Randy Brooks
Randy Brooks (musician)
Randy Brooks was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader.Brooks began on trumpet at age six, and by eleven was touring with Rudy Vallee. He then worked with Claude Thornhill, Bob Allen, Bernie Cummins, Art Jarrett, and Les Brown before founding his own band in 1944...
also played with the band, as did Tommy Dorsey for a time. The orchestra's theme song was "Dark Eyes
Dark Eyes (song)
Dark Eyes is a Russian song.The lyrics of the song were written by a Ukrainian poet and writer Yevhen Hrebinka. The first publication of the poem was in Literaturnaya gazeta on 17 January 1843....
". Besides his activities as bandleader, Cummins was briefly also the manager of The Wolverines
The Wolverines
The Wolverines were an American jazz band. They were one of the most successful territory bands of the American Midwest in the 1920s.-History:...
.
The Bernie Cummins Orchestra recorded frequently for such labels as Brunswick
Brunswick Records
Brunswick Records is a United States based record label. The label is currently distributed by E1 Entertainment.-From 1916:Records under the "Brunswick" label were first produced by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company...
, Columbia
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
, Victor
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
, Decca
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
, Gennett, Vocalion and Bluebird
Bluebird Records
Bluebird Records is a sub-label of RCA Victor Records originally created in 1932 to counter the American Record Company in the "3 records for a dollar" market. Along with ARC's Perfect Records, Melotone Records and Romeo Records, and the independent US Decca label, Bluebird became one of the best...
. The band had many appearances in the Mid-West and was well known for its live performances; its smooth style was much loved in larger hotels and ballrooms. They played many times at the Biltmore Hotel
Biltmore Hotel
Bowman-Biltmore Hotels was a chain created by hotel magnate John McEntee Bowman.The name evokes the Vanderbilt family's Biltmore Estate, whose buildings and gardens within are privately owned historical landmarks and tourist attractions in Asheville, North Carolina, United States. The name has...
and the Hotel New Yorker in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, the Trianon
Trianon Ballrooms
The Trianon Ballrooms were located in a number of cities during America's bigband era. The most prominent Trianon was in Chicago, Illinois, but there were others as well, located in places such as Cleveland, Philadelphia, Seattle, Toledo, and the Los Angeles suburb of South Gate...
, Aragon, Blackstone
Blackstone Hotel
The Renaissance Blackstone Hotel is located on the corner of Michigan Avenue and Balbo Street in the Michigan Boulevard Historic District in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. This 21-story hotel was built from 1908 to 1910 and designed by Marshall and Fox. On May 29, 1998, the...
and the Edgewater Beach Hotel
Edgewater Beach Hotel
The Edgewater Beach Hotel was a hotel in the far-north neighborhood community of Edgewater in Chicago, Illinois. Built in 1916 and owned by John Tobin Connery and James Patrick Connery, it was located between Sheridan Road and Lake Michigan at Berwyn Avenue. The complex had a private beach and...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, as well as further appearances in Dallas, Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, New Orleans, Denver, San Francisco and Saint Paul
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
. Cummins' band also played on radio shows including the Spotlight Dance Program sponsored by Coca Cola, and the Fitch Bandwagon.
In the late 1950s it became increasingly difficult for the band to find gigs, but the band continued to play clubs in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
, playing at such places as The Flamingo, El Rancho
El Rancho Vegas
El Rancho Vegas was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip . It was located at 2500 Las Vegas Boulevard, at the southwest corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Sahara, and opened on April 3, 1941. Up until 1942, it was the largest hotel in Las Vegas with 110 rooms. The hotel was destroyed by fire in...
and Last Frontier
New Frontier Hotel and Casino
The New Frontier was a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip that had operated continuously since October 30, 1942. Actually located within the unincorporated suburb of Paradise, Nevada, USA, it was the second resort that opened on the Las Vegas Strip. The Frontier closed its doors for...
, before it dissolved it 1959. Cummins retired to Boca Raton, Florida.