The Grammy-winning country artist joins the iconic orchestra for an album set for a May 17 vinyl release.
Don’t it make your ears feel good? Award-winning country music artist and Grand Ole Opry member Crystal Gayle has joined forces with the Glenn Miller Orchestra for a new rendition of the classic “Sentimental Journey,” the first single from the new album on Hindsight Records, The Glenn Miller Orchestra: 80th Anniversary Of The Army Air Force Band. The LP, featuring 15 big band era hits newly recorded with strings, is currently available in digital and CD formats, and will be released on vinyl this Friday, May 17.
“I am honored and excited to be invited to sing “Sentimental Journey” with The Glenn Miller Orchestra,” says Gayle. “I am a longtime fan of Glenn Miller and the big band era.”
Charles De Stefano, CEO of Glenn Miller Productions, Inc. returns the compliment: “We are excited and pleased to present alongside Hindsight Records our new recording celebrating the 80th Anniversary of Glenn Miller’s Army Air Force Band. “We are equally thrilled to have the wonderful Crystal Gayle join the Glenn Miller Orchestra on our recording of the great classic ‘Sentimental Journey.’ We hope Glenn Miller Orchestra fans and Crystal’s fans around the world enjoy this new dynamic recording.”
During a recent interview with C&I, Gayle told us: “Oh, I love big band music. I grew up singing so many different styles, because I was born in Kentucky. But when I was about four, we moved to Wabash, Indiana. And that’s where I grew up. So when I went to school, I was in the swing groups, the choirs, you name it. We’d sing everything. And then I’d definitely sing country music with my brother’s bands, and then he had friends that had rock bands. And I just loved singing, so I’d try anything.
“But big band music is just — I mean, it’s just so special. There’s just something about that sound of music. And to me, it’s also American. I feel proud of America when I think of that music. These days now, we need more of that music.”
“I mean, good music, by good songwriters — it’s timeless. I mean, those songs stay around for a long time.”
For the benefit of those who tuned in late: Between 1939 and 1942, Glenn Miller led The Glenn Miller Orchestra, which became one of the most recognized names globally during the “Swing” era. With an unmatched series of chart-topping records, The Glenn Miller Orchestra surpassed the sales of Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Jimmie Lunceford, Tommy Dorsey, and Harry James combined. Throughout three and a half years, Miller produced 16 chart-toppers and 72 top-ten hits, including a remarkable 31 in 1940 alone — and earning the first-ever gold record for “Chattanooga Choo Choo.”
Miller’s music not only defined the era of World War II, but has endured as a timeless soundtrack, with bands carrying his legacy performing to enthusiastic crowds over the 80 years since his death in a wartime plane crash over the English Channel. Today, under the direction of Erik Stabnau, the current Glenn Miller Orchestra maintains a rigorous schedule, standing as one of the few full-time big bands still thriving in the contemporary music scene.
