Playing professionally with the Boyd Senter Band while still at college Glenn was quite an experienced musician by the time he finished his education. He was immediately offered a job with the Ben Pollack Band which at the time included Benny Goodman who would go on to front his own famous band. Glenn continued working with various bands including the Dorsey Brothers and Ray Noble but his ambition was to have his own orchestra. It took some time but by 1937 the dream was a reality. The dream was short-lived; the first Glenn Miller Orchestra disbanded in 1938 for financial reasons.
As far as Glenn was concerned this was just a small stumbling block on his way to success, consequently by 1939 he started recruiting musicians for a new band. A small nucleus of the original group had remained together, Chummy MacGregor on piano, Hal McIntyre on alto sax and one or two others. Miller engaged some other less established players as well as the vocalist Ray Eberle. Although things went better this time around it took a loan from Tommy Dorsey to keep things going.
Glen Island Casino, was to be the setting for Glenn Miller’s first big success on May 17th 1939 the band played to a sell-out audience, from there they moved onto sell-out engagements in Baltimore and then on to New York where they performed at the famous Carnegie Hall. As well as concert work the band was also busy in the recording studio producing up to four records each week including the hits that went on to be synonymous with Glenn Miller “In The Mood” and “Moonlight Serenade”. Sadly for Miller most of the profits from these tunes went to the record company as he had a “flat fee” contract at the time. Always learning from his mistakes he made sure his next contract gave him a share of the sales.
Pearl Harbour brought the war to America with a bang, Miller was keen to play his part in the war effort and immediately recorded a number of patriotic songs including “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” and “Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree” but he wasn’t satisfied with this. Although at 38 he was officially too old he volunteered for service and while awaiting a reply he continued to perform, often at military camps. Some members of the band felt he was running things along military lines, perhaps this was a reflection of his strong desire to be in uniform.
In August of 1942 the Navy rejected his application. Once more the Miller determination came to the fore and he approached the army with his idea for a modern military band. The Army accepted his offer and by October he was a Captain in the American Army. Glenn Miller’s farewell concert at the end of September 1942 was highly emotional. Vocalist Marion Hutton broke down and left the stage in the middle of a song quickly followed by Glenn himself; many of the audience were also distressed.
Entertaining allied troops in Europe in December 1944 Miller was to fly from England to Paris It was a typical English winter day foggy, cold and damp the plane took of and was never seen again. The legend of Glenn Miller lives on in his recordings, the film depicting his life made in 1953 and the many bands that still play his music today.
| Title | Arranger/Composer |
| (Gotta Get Some) Shut-eye | Johnny Mercer, Walter Donaldson |
| (I've Got A Gal In) Kalamazoo | Mack Gordon, Harry Warren |
| (There'll Be Blue Birds Over) The White Cliffs Of Dover | Nat Burton, Walter Kent |
| (Why Couldn't It Last) Last Night | Austen Croom, Johnson, Nick Kenny, Charles Kenny |
| A Cabana In Havana | Tot Seymour, Mabel Wayne |
| A Handful Of Stars | Jack Lawrence, Ted Shapiro |
| A Little Old Church In England | Irving Berlin |
| A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening | |
| A Million Dreams Ago | Lew Quadling, Eddy Howard, Dick Jurgens |
| A Nightingale Sang In Berkley Square | Maschwitz, Sherwin |
| A Pink Cocktail For A Blue Lady | Herb Magidson, Ben Oakland |
| A Stone's Throw From Heaven | Bob Ray, Jay Burton, Irving Green |
| A String Of Pearls | Gray, Delange |
| Adios | Woods, Madriguera |
| AEF Station Break And Introduction | |
| Aint Cha Coming' Out? | Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby |
| Alice Blue Gown | Joseph McCarthy, Harry Tierney |
| All the Things You Are | |
| All’s Well Madamoiselle | |
| Along The Santa Fe Trail | Al Dubin, Edwina Coolidge, Will Grosz |
| Always In My Heart | Kim Gannon, Ernesto Lecuona |
| American Patrol | Gray, Meacham |
| An Angel In A Furnished Room | Ted Fiorito, Al Dublin |
| And The Angels Sing | Johhny Mercer, Ziggy Elman |
| Angel Child | George Price, Abner Silver, Benny Davis |
| Angels Of Mercy | Irving Berlin |
| Annie Laurie | |
| Anvil Chorus | |
| Anvil Chorus 2 | |
| Anvil Chorus Pt 1 | Verdi, Gray |
| Anvil Chorus Pt 2 | Verdi, Gray |
| April Played The Fiddle | Johnny Burke, James V Monaco |
| At Last | Gordon, Warren |
| At The President's Birthday Ball | Irving Berlin |
| Award Presention | |
| Baby Me | Archie Gottler, Harry Harris, Lou Handman |
| Baby Mine | Ned Washington, Frank Churchill |
| Back To Back | Irving Berlin |
| Basket Weaver Man | Walter Donaldson, Joe McCarthy |
| Be Happy | Henry Nemo, Louis Prima, Edgar Battle |
| Beat Me Daddy, Eight To The Bar | Don Raye, Hughie Prince, Elinor Sheehy |
| Beat Me, Daddy | Raye, Prince, Sheehy |
| Beautiful Ohio | Mary Earl, Ballard McDonald |
| Begin Beguine | |
| Below The Equator | Charlie Tobias, Cliff Friend |
| Bless You | Eddie Lane, Don Baker |
| Blue Evening | Gordon Jenkins, Joe Bishop |
| Blue Moonlight | Dana Suesse |
| Blue Orchids | Carmichael |
| Blue Rain | Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Mercer |
| Blueberry Hill | Al Lewis, Larry Stock, Vincent Rose |
| Bluebirds In The Moonlight | Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin |
| Blues In My Heart | |
| Boog It | Buck Ram, Jack Palmer, Cab Calloway |
| Boulder Buff | Novello |
| Bugal Call Rag | Meyers, Pettis, Schoebel |
| But It Didn't Mean A Thing | Mack David, Jerry Livington |
| By The Waters Of Minnetoka (Indian Love Song) Part 1 | J M Cavanass, Thurlow Lieurance |
| Can I Help It? | Jimmy Van Heusen, Eddie DeLange |
| Careless | Lew Quadling, Eddy Howard, Dick Jurgens |
| Caribbean Clipper | Gray, Gallop |
| Chapel In The Valley | Leon Rene, Johnny Lange, Lew Porter |
| Chattanooga Choo Choo | Gordon, Warren |
| Chip Off The Old Block | Al Young |
| Cinderella (Stay In My Arms) | Jimmy Kennedy, Michael Carr |
| Ciribiribin | Alberto Pestalozza |
| Closing - Moonlight Serenade Fades | |
| Closing Theme (Seven-o-Five) | |
| Conchita, Marquita, Lolita, Pepita, Rosita, Juanita Lopez | Herb Magidson, Jule Styne |
| Crosstown | James Cavanaugh, John Redmond, Nat Simon |
| Cuckoo In The Clock | Johnny Mercer, Walter Donaldson |
| Danny Boy | |
| Danny Boy (Londonderry Air) | Miller, Mcgregor (Trad) |
| Day Dreaming | Gus Kahn, Jerome Kern |
| Dear Arabella | Joseloff, Lippman |
| Dear Mom | Maury Coleman Harris |
| Dearly Beloved | Johnny Mercer, Jerome Kern |
| Delilah | Jimmy Shirl, Henry Manners |
| Devil May Care | Johhn Burke, Harry Warren |
| Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead | Harold Arlen, E Y Harburg |
| Dipper Mouth Blues | Oliver |
| Do You Know Why | Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| Don't Cry Cherie | Lew Brown, Ray Henderson |
| Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree (With Anyone But Me) | Lew Brown, Charlie Tobias, Sam Stept |
| Don't Wake Up My Heart | |
| Dreamsville, Ohio | Craig Lee, Al Rinker, Judy Freeland |
| Elmer's Tune | Albrecht, Gallop, Jurgens |
| Enlisted Mens Mess | |
| Every Day's A Holiday | |
| Everybody Loves My Baby | |
| Ev'rything I Love | Cole Porter |
| Faithful Forever | Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin |
| Faithful To You | Mickey Stoner, Harold Green, Martin Block |
| Falling Leaves | David, Carle |
| Farewell Blues | Schoebel, Mares, Ropollo |
| Fifth Avenue | Mack Gordon, Harry Warren |
| Five O'clock Whistle | Kim Gannon, Joe Myrow, Gene Irwin |
| Fooled | Bob Russell, Ross Metzger, Frank LaVere |
| Fools Rush In | Mercer, Bloom |
| Frenesi | Ray Charles, S K Russell, Albert Dominguez |
| Fresh As A Daisy | Cole Porter |
| From One Love To Another | Danza Lucumi, Albert Gamse, Ernesto Lecuonda |
| Give Me A Little Whistle | Leigh Harline, Ned Washington |
| Glen Island Special | Durham |
| Glenn Miller Interviews Ray Eberle | |
| Glenn Miller Interviews Tex Beneke | |
| Goodbye, Little Darlin' | Johnny Marvin, Gene Autry |
| Guess I'll Go Back Home (This Summer) | Willard Robison, Ray Mayer |
| Happy In Love | Jack Yellen, Sam E Fain |
| Hear My Song, Violetta | Kase, Lukesch, Buddy Bernier, Bob Emmerich |
| Helpless | Jack Lathrop |
| Here We Go Again | Gray |
| How I'd Like To Be With You In Bermuda | Bickley Reichner, Clay Boland |
| Humpty Dumpty Heart | Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| I Beg Your Pardon | J Fred Coots, Mack Gordon |
| I Do, Do You? (Do You Believe In Love) | Lew Quadling |
| I Dreamt I Dwelt In Harlem | Wright, Smith, Ware, Gray |
| I Guess I'll Have To Dream The Rest | Mickey Stoner, Martin Block, Harold Green |
| I Haven't Time To Be A Millionaire | Johnny Burke, James V Monaco |
| I Just Got A Letter | Dave Franklin |
| I Know Why | Gordon, Warren |
| I Left My Heart At The Stage Door Canteen | Berlin |
| I Want To Be Happy | Caesar, Youmans |
| I Wouldn’t Take A Million | Mack Gordon, Harry Warren |
| I'd Know You Anywhere | Mercer, Mchugh |
| Ida! Sweet As Apple Cider | Eddy Leonardi |
| I'll Never Smile Again | Ruth Lowe |
| I'm Old Fashioned | Johnny Mercer, Jerome Kern |
| I'm Sorry For Myself | Irving Berlin |
| I'm Stepping Out With A Memory Tonight | Allie Wrubel, Herb Magidson |
| I'm Thrilled | Sylvia Dee, Sydney Lippman |
| Imagination | Bourke, Van Heusen |
| In A Little Spanish Town | Lewis, Young, Wayne |
| In An Old Dutch Garden (By An Old Dutch Mill) | Mack Gordon, Will Grosz |
| In The Mood | Garland, Razaf |
| Indian Summer | Victor Herbert, Al Dubin |
| Interview | |
| Intro Moonlight Serenade Opening Theme. | |
| Introduction (I Sustain The Wings) | |
| Introduction To A Waltz | Miller,Gray |
| Intro-Here We Go Again | Gray |
| Isn’t That Just Like Love | Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| It Happened In Hawaii | Al Dubin, Mabel Wayne |
| It Happened In Sun Valley | Gordon, Warren |
| It Must Be Jelly ('Cause Jam Don't Shake Like That) | Williams, Macgregor |
| It Was Written In The Stars | Cole Porter |
| It's A Blue World | Chet Forrest, Bob Wright |
| It's Always You | Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| I've Got A Gal In Kalamazoo | Gordon, Warren |
| Jeep Jockey Jump | |
| Jersey Bounce | Plater, Bradshaw |
| Jingle Bells | Pierpoint |
| Johnson Rag | Kleinkauf, Hall, Lawrence |
| Juke Box Saturday Night | Macgrane, Stillamn |
| Kalamazoo | Gordon, Warren |
| Keep 'Em Flying | Gray |
| King Porter Stomp | Jelly Roll Morton |
| Knit One, Purl Two | Flossy Frills, Ben Lorre |
| Let's All Sing Together | Bill Keesman, Nick DiRocca, Joe Audino |
| Let's Have Another Cup O' Coffee | Irving Berlin |
| Little Brown Jug | Finnegan |
| Londonderry Air | |
| Long Tall Mama | May |
| Long Time No See, Baby | Jack Lathrop |
| Love With A Capitol "You" | Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin |
| Lullaby Of The Rain | Barbs Furman, Lou Ricca |
| Make Believe Ballroom Time | Martin Block, Harold Green, Mickey Stoner |
| Ma-Ma-Maria (Fee-dle, Ee-dle-lee, Fee-dle Ee-dle-la) | Al Lewis, Larry Storch, Vincent Rose |
| Medley: Jim Jam Jump/F.D.R. Jones/Hold Tight | |
| Melancholy Lullaby | Benny Carter, Edward Heyman |
| Missouri Waltz | James Royce Shannon, Frederic Knight Logan |
| Mister Meadowlark | Walter Donaldson, Johnny Mercer |
| Moments In The Moonlight | Richard Himber, Irving Gordon, Al Kaufman |
| Moon Love | Mack David, Mack Davis, André Kostelantz |
| Moonlight Bay | Madden, Wenrich |
| Moonlight Becomes You | Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| Moonlight Cocktail | Gannon, Roberts |
| Moonlight Mood | Harold Adamson, Peter DeRose |
| Moonlight Serenade | Miller |
| Moonlight Sonata | Ludwig Van Beethoven |
| My Blue Heaven | Whiting, Donaldson |
| My Fine Feathered Friend | |
| My Island Of Golden Dreams | Kahn, Blaufuss |
| My Last Goodbye | Eddy Howard |
| My Melancoly Baby | George A Norton, Ernie Burnett |
| My Prayer | Jimmy Kennedy, Georges Boulanger |
| My Reverie | Larry Clinton |
| My! My! | Jimmy McHugh, Frank Loesser |
| Newscast | |
| Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh | Abe Olman, Ed Rose |
| Oh! Lady Be Good | |
| Oh! So Good | Gray |
| Oh! You Crazy Moon | Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| Old Black Joe | Stephen Foster |
| On A Little Street In Singapore | Peter DeRose, Billy Hill |
| On The Old Assembly Line | Bud Green, Ray Henderson |
| One Dozen Roses | Lewis, Washburn, Jurgens, Dovovan |
| One O’ Clock Jump | |
| Ooh! What You Said | Hoagy Carmichael, Johnny Mercer |
| Orange Blossom Lane | Mitchel Parish, Nick Kenny, Peter De Rose |
| Our Love Affair | Arthur Freed, Roger Edens |
| Out Of Space | |
| Over The Rainbow | Harold Arlen, E Y Harburg |
| Over There | |
| Pagan Love Song | Freed, Brown |
| Papa Niccolini | Edwards, Warren |
| Pavanne | Morton Gold |
| Peekaboo To You | Johnny Mercer, Carl Sigman, Joseph Meyer |
| Peg O' My Heart | Bryant, Fisher |
| Pennsylvania 6-5000 | Gray, Sigman |
| Perfidia | Leeds, Dominhuez |
| Pin Ball Paul | |
| Polka Dots And Moonbeams | Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| Prairieland Lullabye | Frank Loesser, Victor Young |
| Radio Phono Giveaway | |
| Rainbow Rhapsody | Benny Carter |
| Rendezvours Time In Paree | Al Dublin, Jimmy McHugh |
| Rhapsody In Blue | George Gershwin |
| Ring Telephone Ring | Buck Ram, Peter Tinturin |
| Romance Runs In The Family | Al Hoffman, Al Goodheart, Manny Kurtz |
| Rug Cutter's Swing | Henderson |
| Runnin' Wild | Harrington-Gibbs, Gray |
| Russian Patrol | |
| Salute To The Camps | |
| Say "Si Si" | Stillman, Luban, Lecuona |
| Say It | Jimmy McHugh, Frank Loesser |
| Says Who? Says You, Says I! | Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen |
| Serenade In Blue | Gordon, May, Warren |
| Shadows On The Sand | Stanley Adams, Will Grosz |
| Shake Down The Stars | Eddie De Lange, Jimmy Van Heusen |
| She Shall Have Music | |
| She'll Always Remember | Eddie Pola, Johnny Marks |
| Shhh, It's A Military Secret | Alan Courtney, Earl Allvine, Walter Bishop |
| Sierra Sue | Joseph B Carey |
| Silhouetted In The Moonlight | |
| Skylark | Johnny Mercer, Hoagy Carmichael |
| Sleep Song | Henry Tobias, Don Reid |
| Sleepy Lagoon | Lawerence, Coates |
| Sleepy Town Train | Allan Roberts, Bill Fontaine |
| Slip Horn Jive | Durham |
| Slow Freight | Mills, Fein, Ram |
| Slumber Song | Saul Tepper, John Chalmers MacGregor |
| So Many Times | Jimmy Dorset, Don DeVito |
| Sold American | Glenn Miller, Chummy MacGregor |
| Soldier Let Me Read Your Letter | Pvt. Pat Fallon, Pvt. Tim Pasma, Sidney Lippman, Billy May |
| Solo Hop | Miller |
| Something To Remember You By | Dietz, Schwartz |
| Somewhere | John LaTouche, Peter DeRose |
| Song Of The Volga Boatmen | Finegan (Trad) |
| Speak Low | |
| Speaking Of Heaven | Jimmy Van Heusen, Mack Gordon |
| Spring Will Be So Said (When She Comes This Year) | Margret Bonds, Harold Dickinson |
| St. Louis Blues March | Habdy |
| Stairway To The Stars | Malneck, Parish, Signorelli |
| Stardust | Parish, Carmichael |
| Starlight And Music | Al Hoffman, Walter Kent, Maurice Hart |
| Starlit Hour | Matty Malneck, Mitchell Parish |
| String Of Pearls | |
| Sun Valley Jump | Gray |
| Sunrise Serenade | Carle, Lawrence |
| Sweet Eloise | David Morgan |
| Sweet Potato Piper | Johnny Burke, James V Monaco |
| Sweeter Than the Sweetest | |
| Take The "A" Train | Billy Strayhorn |
| That Old Black Magic | Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen |
| That's Sabotage | Mack Gordon, Harry Warren |
| The Airminded Executive | Johnny Mercer, Bernie Hanighen |
| The Angels Came Thru | Al Dubin, Ernesto Lecuona |
| The Booglie Wooglie Piggy | Roy Jacobs |
| The Call Of The Canyon | Billy Hill |
| The Chestnut Tree ('Neath The Spreading Chestnut Tree) | Jimmy Kennedy, Hamilton Kenedy, Tommie Connor |
| The Cowboy Serenade (While I'm Rollin' My Last Cigarette) | Rich Hall |
| The Cradle Song | Johannes Brahms |
| The Day We Meet Again | Jimmy Campbell, Hunter, Will Grosz |
| The Gaucho Serenade | Nat Simon, John Redmond, James Cavanaugh |
| The Humming-Bird | Harold Adamson, E DiLazzaro |
| The Kiss Polka | Mack Gordon, Harry Warren |
| The Lady's In Love WithYou | Frank Loesser, Burton Lane |
| The Lamp Is Low | Mitchell Parish, Peter DeRose, Bery Shefter |
| The Lamplighters Serenade | Webster, Carmichael |
| The Little Man Who Wasn't There | Bernie Hanighen, Harold Adamson |
| The Man In The Moon | Jerry Lawrence, Jerry Gray, John Benson Brooks |
| The Man With The Mandolin | James Cavanaugh, John Redmond, Frank Weldon |
| The Mem'ry Of A Rose | Jimmy Kennedy, Richard Young |
| The Nearness Of You | Hoagy Carmichael, Ned Washington |
| The One I Love (Belongs To Somebody Else) | Gus Kahn, Isham Jones |
| The Rhumba Jumps | Hoagy Carmichael, Johnny Mercer |
| The Sky Fell Down | Louis Alter, Edward Heyman |
| The Slumber Song | Tepper, Macgregor |
| The Spirit Is Willing | Gray |
| The Story Of A Starry Night | Hoffman, Curtis, Livingstone |
| The White Cliffs Of Dover | Buron, Kent |
| The Woodpecker Song | Eldo di Lazzaro, Harold Adamson |
| Theme (I Sustain The Wings) | |
| Theme (Moonlight Serenade) | |
| There’ll Be A Hot Time In The Town Of Berlin | |
| This Changing World | Dana Suesse, Harold Adamson |
| This Is No Laughing Matter | Loman, Block, Frisch |
| This Kiss Polka | |
| This Time The Dreams On Me | Mercer, Arien |
| Three Little Fishes (Itty Bitty Poo) | Saxie Dowell |
| Time Alone Will Tell. | |
| To You | Tommy Dorsey, Ted Shapiro, Benny Davis |
| Too Romantic | Johnny Burke, James V Monaco |
| Tuxedo Junction | Dash, Feyne, Hawkins, Johnson |
| Twilight Interlude | Al Jacobs, Peter Tinturin |
| Under Blue Canadian Skies | Al Lewis, Larry Stock, Vincent Rose |
| Vagabond Dreams | Hoagy Carmichael, Jack Lawrence |
| Wanna Hat With Cherries | Larry Clinton, Joe Carringer, Betty Lynn |
| We Can Live On Love (We Havn't Got A Pot To Cook In) | Dubin, Mchugh |
| We're The Couple In The Castle | Frank Loesser, Hoagy Carmichael |
| Wham (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam) | Eddie Durham, Taps Miller |
| What's The Matter With Me | Terry Shand, Sam M Lewis |
| Whats You're Story Morning Glory | Mary Lou Williams, Jack Lawrence, Paul Webster |
| When Johnny Comes Marching Home | Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore |
| When That Man Is Dead And Gone | Irving Berlin |
| When The Roses Bloom Again | Nat Burton, Walter Kent |
| When The Swallows Come Back To Capistrano | Leon René |
| When You Wish Upon A Star | Leigh Harline, Ned Washington |
| Who's Sorry Now | Bert Kalmar, Paul Mares, Leon Roppollo |
| Wishing (Will Make It So) | Buddy DeSylva |
| With My Head In The Clouds | |
| Wonderful One | Ferde Grofé, Paul Whiteman, Dorothy Terris |
| Yes, My Darling Daughter | Jack Lawrence |
| Yesterday's Gardenias | Dick Robertson, Nelson Cogane, Sammy Mysels |
| Yesterthoughts | Stanley Adams, Victor Herbert |
| You and I | Meredith Wilson |
| You Are The One | Carroll Carroll, John Scott Trotter |
| You Stepped Out Of A Dream | Gus Kahn, Nacio Herb Brown |
| Yours Is My Heart Alone | Ludwig Herzer, Fritz Lohner, Franz Lehár, Harry Bache Smith |
| You've Got Me This Way | Johnny Mercer, Jimmy McHugh |
| Back |