THE COON - SANDERS NIGHTHAWKS

Although today largely forgotten, the Coon-Sanders Night-Hawks were one of the top big bands of the 1920s. Drummer Carleton Coon (born February 5, 1894, in Rochester, MN) and pianist/arranger Joe Sanders (born October 15, 1894, in Thayer, KS) met in December 1918 in a Kansas City music store. The two soon formed the Coon-Sanders Novelty Orchestra. They recorded four numbers in 1921, only one of which was released, and then more importantly, on December 5, 1922, they made their first radio broadcast. Soon they caught on big; the orchestra was renamed the Night-Hawks (since their show was on late, from midnight until 2 a.m.) and became very popular in the Midwest. the Coon-Sanders Night-Hawks recorded regularly from 1924 on, cutting around 75 selections during the next eight years; they relocated to Chicago later in 1924 and prospered on both road trips and the radio. Although none of the sidemen became read more...