Methodology

Research into the soundtracks to which Ferguson contributed begins with Ed Harkins’s 1976 Maynard Ferguson: A Discography, which lists forty-seven film titles reportedly involving Ferguson. [2] Upon review, four of these titles were duplicates, reducing the actual number of unique films to forty-three.

I contacted Harkins to inquire about the origins of this list and the resources he used to compile the information. His wife, Bonnie, kindly relayed my questions to Ed and typed the following response:

Ed started the list of MF soundtracks long ago by scouring auction lists that would come in the mail. He was probably able to learn about some of them from the liner notes of various recordings, though he doesn’t remember much about it specifically. He thinks he might have learned some info through personal communications with other Maynard fans. [3]

The next step in this project involved reaching out to the American Federation of Musicians Local 47 for assisstance with archival research. The goal was to locate the AFM contracts to determine exactly to which films Ferguson contributed and to compile a chronological record of recording session dates. Eventually I connected with Rose Doylemason, whose invaluable assistance was instrumental in bringing this project to fruition.

Ms. Doylemason supplied a spreadsheet listing each film along with the corresponding session dates. [4] The trumpet section personnel for each date were also noted. This spreadsheet forms the core of the data presented in this article. The information will be presented both by film and in a chronological sequence of dates in order to provide a clear sense of his day-to-day activities.

In the end, contracts were located for forty-one of the forty-three films listed in the Harkins discography. Some of these contracts conclusively showed that Ferguson was not involved with those films. Additionally, contracts were found for films not included in Harkins’s list, definitively confirming Ferguson’s involvement on those films. This article aims to provide the most comprehensive and accurate information regarding Ferguson’s soundtrack era.

1953 Film Soundtrack Sessions

After leaving the Stan Kenton Orchestra in February 1953, Ferguson spent the remainder of the year as a freelance musician. He worked on a variety of projects, including studio recording dates and live performances, primarily in the Los Angeles area. His formal transition to a full-time position with the Paramount Studio Orchestra did not take place until January 1954. However, as a contract musician, Ferguson contributed to five films across sixteen sessions in 1953:

Two additional films listed as from 1953 in the Harkins discography did not actually feature Maynard Ferguson on their official soundtracks:

• Road to Bali is listed by Harkins as a 1955 film featuring Maynard Ferguson. [6] However, the film was released in 1952 and does not include Ferguson in the orchestra. In a rare practice for that time, the 1948 Stan Kenton studio recording of “Artistry in Percussion” was used in the film, with the original band members being paid union scale for the reuse of the recording. The session to dub the platter into the film occurred in October 1952. While Ferguson was a member of the Kenton Orchestra at the time of that dubbing session, he did not perform on the 1948 recording and was not compensated as part of that contract.
• The soundtrack of the film The Wild One does not feature Maynard Ferguson. However, Ferguson does appear on related albums by Shorty Rogers and Leith Stevens, both of which re-recorded the musical themes from the film. [7]

1954 Film Soundtrack Sessions

Throughout 1953 the Paramount Studio Orchestra’s trumpet section consisted of Frank Zinzer, Thomas Jones, and Phil Candreva. Records from the sessions for the film About Mrs. Leslie show that this trumpet section was used on Friday, January 15, 1954. However, on Saturday, January 16, Phil Candreva was no longer listed, and Maynard Ferguson was added. This marked Ferguson’s first day as a regular member of the Paramount Studio Orchestra, a position he would hold into 1956.

After starting this assignment, he worked on nineteen film soundtracks in 1954, including two films for which he had begun the recording process as a contracted musician in 1953. A total of sixty-eight sessions are listed for 1954, though some of these sessions contributed music to multiple films. Additionally, there is one more film, Hell’s Island (also known as Love Is A Weapon), believed to have Ferguson involved in the soundtrack. However, no contracts for this film could be found in the AFM archives.

1955 Film Soundtrack Sessions

1955 was another busy year for Ferguson’s membership in the Paramount Studio Orchestra. A total of twenty-one films had recording sessions that year, with five of them having started recording in 1954 and continuing into 1955. In total, ninety-four sessions are documented, although, as with previous years, some of these were overlapping sessions in which multiple film scores were recorded during a single session.

Ferguson also appears on screen in The Proud And Profane, at about 1:07:30, playing trumpet in a dance sequence.

1956 Film Soundtrack Sessions

Ferguson resigned from the Paramount Studio Orchestra in February of 1956. In his final time as a member, he recorded for four films which had already begun production in 1955 and also contributed to recordings for two new films.

On Friday, February 17, 1956, Ferguson recorded for the Paramount Studio Orchestra for the final time, concluding a stint of two years and one month. Just a few days later, beginning on Monday, February 20, Don Fagerquist was listed in the trumpet section. During this time, Ferguson was transitioning toward forming his own band again, marking the beginning of the Birdland Dream Band era. [12]

After his departure from the Paramount Studio Orchestra, Ferguson performed as a contract player on four more soundtracks (spanning five sessions) before relocating to New York to start the next phase of his career.

AFM contracts establish that Ferguson did not participate in three soundtracks listed by Harkins. [13]

• Blackboard Jungle: Ferguson did not record for the soundtrack, although a Stan Kenton recording that he appears on (“Invention for Guitar and Trumpet”) is played on a jukebox during a scene.
• Funny Face: The trumpet section includes Frank Zinzer, Sidney Lazar, Don Fagerquist, and Conte Condoli.
• Beau James: The trumpet section includes Frank Zinzer and Don Fagerquist.

There are also two soundtracks listed by Harkins for which AFM found no records and could neither confirm nor deny Ferguson’s involvement. Session dates are unknown. These are Hell’s Island (Love Is A Weapon), released in 1954, and Hot Rod Rumble, released in 1957. The latter film does name Ferguson in on-screen credits. [14]

Ferguson has been credited on additional films from this period as well. David Meeker’s Jazz on Film lists the following, which appear to be erroneous: [15]

• When Worlds Collide: The trumpet section includes Frank Zinzer, Philip Candreva, and Thomas Jones.
• The War of the Worlds: The trumpet section includes Frank Zinzer, Philip Candreva, and Thomas Jones.
• Crime in the Streets: The trumpet section includes Ray Linn, Robert DiVall, Robert Fleming, and Conte Candoli.
• The Naked Jungle: The trumpet section includes Frank Zinzer, Philip Candreva, and Thomas Jones.
• Adventures of *: Possibly confused due to CD reissue which combines this soundtrack with that of Urbanissimo, which does include Ferguson (recorded 1966).
• Harlem Wednesday: Same as above.
• Step Down to Terror (aka The Silent Stranger): Appears to have been confused with The Wild Party.

1953

1954

1955

1956–1957

Bibliography

• Harkins, Edwin. Maynard Ferguson: A Discography. [s.l.]: Edwin Harkins, 1976.
• Jungheim, Ralph. Maynard! Marina del Rey, CA: Buster Ann Music, 2009.
• Lee, William F. MF Horn: Maynard Ferguson’s Life in Music. Ojai, CA: M.F. Music U.S.A., 1997.
• Lord, Tom. The Jazz Discography Online. Chilliwack, BC: Lord Music Reference, Inc., 2020.
• Meeker, David. Jazz on the Screen Filmography. Library of Congress https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/public/music/musihas-200028017/musihas-200028017.0001.pdf

References

[1] Lee, William F., MF Horn: Maynard Ferguson’s Life in Music, (Ojai, CA: M.F. Music U.S.A., 1997), 45.

[2] Edwin Harkins, Maynard Ferguson: A Discography, ([s.l.: Edwin Harkins, 1976), 67.

[3] Email correspondence from Bonnie Harkins, April 20, 2023.

[4] American Federation of Musicians recording session contract data for Maynard Ferguson supplied to the author in spreadsheet form by Rose Doylemason of AFM Local 47.

[5] This film not included in the Harkins discography.

[6] Harkins, 67.

[7] Much confusion exists about recordings related to this film. Shorty Rogers and Leith Stevens both led sessions to record separate albums of musical themes from the movie score (and both have been issued under Rogers’s name). While Ferguson appears on both of these albums, neither is the true score as heard on the soundtrack of the film.

[8] Harkins (p. 67) also lists a separate film “Oreste Short.” This likely refers to Bing Presents Oreste, a ten-minute Paramount promotional film publicizing Oreste Kirkop in advance of the release of The Vagabond King. This short consists of Oreste singing three selections (none of which comes from The Vagabond King) and introductions to each selection by Bing Crosby. While it is possible that the filmed sideline orchestra may have included Ferguson, as he was on staff at Paramount, and that this short employed music pre-recorded at sessions other than those for the feature film, AFM research did not locate a separate contract.

[9] This film not included in the Harkins discography.

[10] This film not included in the Harkins discography.

[11] This film not included in the Harkins discography.

[12] Details of this period, including a full chronology, previously published as “Maynard Ferguson’s Birdland Dream Band: A Performance Chronology of the Years 1956–1959,” Current Research in Jazz 12 (2020) https://www.crj-online.org/v12/CRJ-FergusonChronology.php

[13] Harkins, 67.

[14] An article concerning the latter film is being published simultaneously. See Thomas Herb, “Hot Rod Girl vs. Hot Rod Rumble,” Current Research in Jazz 16 (2024) https://www.crj-online.org/v16/CRJ-HotRodFilms.php

[15] David Meeker, Jazz on the Screen Filmography, Library of Congress https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/public/music/musihas-200028017/musihas-200028017.0001.pdf

[16] For this and the session of the following day, it is assumed that the unusual situation of a musician already under contract to Paramount as an orchestra member having a separate contract is related to the musical selection “Blow, Gabriel, Blow,” in which Ferguson performs as a featured soloist with the Les Brown Orchestra.