Quote:
Originally Posted by jingram058
But I guess his meteoric rise in value is similar to Lawrence Welk in the big bands. Out of Glenn Miller (who unfortunately disappeared over the English Channel), Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Artie Shaw, who would believe that Lawrence Welk would wind up so insanely popular when all the others faded away?
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I don't think any big band aficionado would compare Lawrence Welk to any of the greats on your list. That would be insulting to the other artists. (And you're obviously saying pretty much the same thing!) Welk was more like Guy Lombardo; extremely popular, but not influential in any sort of progressive sense. All the others you mentioned made huge contributions to music, while Welk and Lombardo were just pablum that some people could dance to. You could say that Welk was to big bands what Pat Boone was to rock & roll, except it dragged on for decades thanks to television.