THE GENTLEMEN OF NOTE

Burke Garrett and the 99ers was an outstanding big band, made up primarily of high school and college musicians, that was quite popular in the greater Puget Sound area during the 1950s. While each musician only made about $15/gig, that added up quickly, and even in those days a band of 12 to 20 musicians became cost-prohibitive for many events…especially those at schools and colleges.

In the late 1950s, it became evident that smaller combos were going to become the wave of the future. While rock and roll was just getting started and was primarily found at informal dances, formal dances such as proms and wedding receptions still preferred a more traditional sound. Big bands or less-expensive jazz combos were the favored music for those dress-up events.

Never one to miss an opportunity to make music (and money), Burke decided to get the best of both worlds. Whenever possible, he would book the full band on gigs. However, for the empty weekend dates, he split the band into two groups: The George Haviland Septet (led by Burke) and the Burke Garrett Quartet (led by Bruce Caldwell).

Burke tried to use as many of the guys (all male in those days) from the big band as he could. Bruce Caldwell played trombone in the big band, but he played both piano and trombone in the Burke Garrett Quartet. Larry McGowan, lead trumpet in the big band, played trumpet and vibes in the quartet. Dennis Shinn on bass and Duncan Branom on drums both had been in the big band at times. This was the original group comprising the quartet. The George Haviland Septet, written up on another page of this website, utilized other current and former big-band members for its personnel. Between the two combos, most of the big-band members were able to participate.

The Burke Garrett Quartet quickly developed a sound that appealed to dancers. With the vibes, the smooth sound of George Shearing was unique in the Northwest and became quite popular. There was flexibility, with Larry’s warm sound on trumpet and occasional trombone solos or brass duets giving dancers a variety of sounds available.

The biggest problems the quartet faced were two-fold: (1) Burke Garrett was well-known throughout the area, and clientele were often puzzled why he was not playing in his own band at the dances. (2) Between union regulations on the minimum number of musicians in some halls and the desires of some employers for a larger combo, the quartet often expanded to five or more musicians by adding saxophone, vocal, guitar or some other augmentation combinations. Most people know what a quartet is and have the ability to count, so there were some PR problems with The Burke Garrett Quartet.

After the first year, the group hounded Burke enough that everyone agreed to rename the group The Gentlemen of Note. The name fit the smooth sounds of the group, and the confusion of no Burke and varying numbers of musicians became moot. Burke remained the booking agent for the band, and Bruce coordinated the hiring and payroll, managed rehearsals and led the group on jobs.

By 1960, Ron Simon was playing bass and Jon Keliehor was the drummer. This combination remained stable through 1963, and all four were members of the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair Band, a 40-piece marching and concert band that performed throughout the fairgrounds during the six-month exhibition.

Over the years, many Seattle-area professional musicians were members of, subs in or augmenting players for the Gentlemen of Note. A partial list of those musicians includes the following: (Woodwinds) Jock Budelman, Ed Collver, Corky Corcoran, Mike Durkee; (Trumpet) Bill Cole, Jim Freng, Steve Moen, Sarge West; (Trombone) Randy Dary, Dick Roblee; (Piano) Bob Evans, George Pasco; (Guitar) Bob Batchelder; (Bass) Doug DeMeerleer, Steve Newman, Stef Sanvik; (Drums) Howie Gilbert, Roy Kennelly, Bill Kotick, Joe Larson, Garry Nakayama, Ken Noreen, Art Pease; (Vocal) Jeri Budelman, Thea Scott.

The band developed a good reputation in the area, particularly at high school and fraternity dances. They were booked an average of five or six weekend nights each month, including occasional big-band gigs where the two combos would be back together. Gradually the personnel changed as members moved away or moved on, but The Gentlemen of Note was an active combo from the late 50s through the late 60s when rock and roll took hold (and the Gentlemen became more immersed in their “real jobs”). By then, dances at schools and universities were becoming less formal, turning to DJs and current pop music for their events. The time for The Gentlemen of Note gently came to an end.

By Bruce Caldwell 7/1/20. "

LETTER FROM LARRY MCGOWAN:

'Burke,  I played lead trumpet in your big band from the fall of 1956 until I moved to California in June, 1964.  In 1956 I drove my car and Bruce Caldwell, Sarge West and others rode with me - they were all too young to drive! I graduated from Puyallup High School in 1958, Bruce in 1959, and Sarge and Doug in 1960.

Bruce and I also led the Gentlemen of Note Quartet where I played trumpet and vibraphone.  The quartet started a few years later - Bruce had to teach me how to do jazz solos.  The quartet had various drummers and bass players over the years including Doug DeMeerler, Jon Keliehor, Dennis Shinn, and others.'

Here are some random memories I have of those years.

Rehearsing for hours and weeks at Bruce’s house, working on the songs for the quartet.  Bruce’s mother, Grace, made us sandwiches.  I recall her homemade jam.

Playing the vibes through a summer in our garage in Puyallup trying to learn a lot of songs.

Stopping the car and running around it to stay awake after late dance jobs.

Remembering quartet gigs:  Playing with Corky Corcoran on tenor was always interesting. One time we had an accordion player replacing Bruce on piano. Mike Durkee joined us on flute a few times. Various other saxophone players also played too.

Quartet jobs at the top of the Smith Tower in Seattle. At the time it was the tallest building West of the Rockies and had a fabulous view of the Seattle area.

Sometimes we traveled a long way for a dance job. Once we took a ferry going west out of Seattle for a job but missed the ferry coming back.  We had to drive a long way south down to the Tacoma Narrows Bridge so we could then drive back up to Seattle.

My wife, Leanna, has her dance cards from high school and college (doesn’t everyone?) and the G of N were often the dance band.  Leanna and I  didn’t know each other then.

We had various singers augment the quartet from time to time.  Thea Scott was a regular.  We had a girl trio once. A young Puyallup girl, Judy Holtz, sang with us several times. I remember sitting with her listening to My Funny Valentine over and over to get the lyrics written down.  One line is “Is your figure less than Greek” but we heard “Is your figure less than Green” and it was sung that way many times!

Larry, alias “Frog Lips” McGowan.

No music survived from this band.