Opus One

 Midway through his seven-year stint with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, the brilliant arranger/composer Sy Oliver wrote this tune which became a huge World War II-era hit for the band. The song — which Sy called simply “Opus One” — went on to be radio hits for many others, from Gene Krupa and Harry James to the Mills Brothers. Meanwhile, here’s a cool aside about the composer. Sy Oliver grew in Battle Creek, Michigan, in a very musical family. His mother taught piano, and his dad …. Well, his father was a multi-instrumentalist who made a name for himself in the early part of the century by demonstrating the versatility of saxophones at a time when the instrument was little used outside of marching bands. Well, we think the elder Oliver would be very pleased at how well our Veezy Coffman has learned that lesson. Listen as Veezy takes his son Sy’s tune and turns it every which way but loose! Here, a highlight from last night’s rehearsal, is Veezy Coffman wailing on “Opus One.”