He was one of the first bandleaders to integrate his band; the year is variously given as 1935 or 1937. He was an outspoken admirer of Count Basie and Duke Ellington; Ellington once lent Barnet his charts after Barnet's had been destroyed in a fire. Throughout his career he was an opponent of syrupy arrangements.
In 1949 he retired, apparently because he had lost interest in music; he was able to retire so young because he had been born wealthy. He occasionally returned from retirement for brief tours but never returned to music full time.
Charles Daly Barnet (October 26, 1913 – September 4, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist and bandleader.
He was an outspoken admirer of Count Basie and Duke Ellington; Ellington once lent Barnet his charts after Barnet's had been destroyed in a fire.
Barnet was at the height of his popularity between 1939 and 1941, a period that began with his hit "Cherokee." In 1944 he had another big hit with "Skyliner".
Barnet first became well known in jazz circles as a leader of a band that played the Paramount Hotel in NYC in 1932.
Charlie was mainly a tenor player, forming his style out of the Coleman Hawkins school, but also played alto and soprano sax, his style on the former influenced by Ellingtons alto man Johnny Hodges.
CharlieBarnets life reflected the color and looseness of his recordings and bands.
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