Tommy Dorsey Orchestra keeps toes tapping

Concert review

Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Seattle Pops "Big Band at Benaroya Hall," last night, 8 p.m. tonight, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, $15-$52. (206-215-4747).

The swing revival has been a blast, but what pure pleasure, to hear an authentic, professional dance band from the swing era focus on music - instead of clothes, shtick and campy jump tunes.

The Tommy Dorsey Orchestra may not be building fires under dancers' feet anymore, but boy, these guys sure can play.

Though Dorsey died long ago, band leader and ex-Dorsey trombonist Buddy Morrow has been keeping these "Sentimental Gentlemen" on the road and on their toes for the past 22 years.

They did a swell job last night, the first of four nearly sold-out concerts at Benaroya Hall. And while the mostly senior crowd didn't clamor for an encore, no one seemed to be going home disappointed.

The show was a sampler of Dorsey morsels and non-Dorsey delectables. Starting off with a patch of sweet trombone on their theme, "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You," the band quickly strutted into the bouncy ballroom swing of "Opus One."

White-haired Morrow, 81, played trombone on several tunes, and conducted the band in minimal fashion, from the side. But his protege, Steve Duncan, sweetly carried the major trombone load. The only other original member of the band, trumpeter Flea Campbell, soloed with flash and sass on "Boy Meets Horn."

Another pleasant surprise was easy-going, extra-tall vocalist Walt Andrus, who sang a string of Dorsey's hits in a svelte, confident, swinging manner very much like the young Sinatra (who got his start with Dorsey). In the first set, Andrus took the audience on a tour of "Somebody Else," "I'll Never Smile Again," "A Foggy Day," "The Song Is You," "You'll Never Know" and "When Somebody Breaks Your Heart," belting out a big, Sinatra finish on the last - "Oh. . .yee - ah!"

The band broke down into a small group, a la Dorsey's old Clambake Seven, for a rousing "That's A Plenty" and raised the rafters on Tommy's "Boogie Woogie" (nice clarinets!) and Lionel Hampton's "Flyin' Home."

Morrow, slowed down by age but still sharp, closed the show with his 1952 hit, "Night Train," commenting wryly that the tune had put both his kids through college - "one of them on a 10-year course."

Great night.