Wingy Manone (13 February 1900 – 9 July 1982) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, singer, and bandleader. His major recordings included "Tar Paper Stomp", "Nickel in the Slot", "Downright Disgusted Blues", "There'll Come a Time (Wait and See)", and "Tailgate Ramble".
Biography
Manone (pronounced "ma-KNOWN") was born Joseph Matthews Mannone in New Orleans, Louisiana. He lost an arm in a streetcar accident, which resulted in his nickname of "Wingy". He used a prosthesis, handling it so naturally and unnoticeably that his disability was not apparent to the public.
After playing trumpet and cornet professionally with various bands in his home town, he began to travel across America in the 1920s, working in Chicago, New York City, Texas, Mobile, Alabama, California, St. Louis, Missouri and other locations; he continued to travel widely throughout the United States and Canada for decades.
Manone was an esteemed musician who was frequently recruited for recording sessions. He plays on some early Benny Goodman records, for example, and fronted various pickup groups under pseudonyms like "The Cellar Boys." His style was similar to that of fellow New Orleans trumpeter Louis Prima: hot jazz with trumpet leads, punctuated by good-natured spoken patter in a pleasantly gravelly voice.
His hit records included "Tar Paper Stomp" (an original riff composition of 1929 that was later used as the basis for Glenn Miller's "In the Mood"), and a hot 1934 version of a sweet ballad of the time "The Isle of Capri", which was said to have annoyed the songwriters despite the royalties revenue it earned them.
Manone's group, like other bands, often recorded alternate versions of songs during the same sessions; Manone's vocals would be used for the American, Canadian, and British releases, and strictly instrumental versions would be intended for the international, non-English-speaking markets. Thus there is more than one version of many Wingy Manone hits. Among his better records are "San Antonio Stomp" (1934), "Send Me" (1936), and the novelty hit "The Broken Record" (1936). He and his band did regular recording and radio work through the 1930s, and appeared with Bing Crosby in the movie Rhythm on the River in 1940.
In 1943 he recorded several tunes as "Wingy Manone and His Cats"; that same year he performed in Soundies movie musicals. One of his Soundies reprised his recent hit "Rhythm on the River."
Wingy Manone's autobiography, Trumpet on the Wing, was published in 1948.
From the 1950s he was based mostly in California and Las Vegas, Nevada, although he also toured through the United States, Canada, and parts of Europe to appear at jazz festivals.
Wingy Manone's compositions include "Tar Paper Stomp" (1930), "There'll Come a Time (Wait and See)" with Miff Mole, "Tailgate Ramble" with Johnny Mercer, "Stop the War (The Cats are Killin' Themselves)" (1941) on Bluebird, "Trying to Stop My Crying", "Downright Disgusted Blues" with Bud Freeman, "Swing Out" with Ben Pollack, "Send Me", "Nickel in the Slot" with Irving Mills, "Jumpy Nerves", "Mannone Blues", "Easy Like", "Strange Blues", "Swingin' at the Hickory House", "No Calling Card", "Where's the Waiter", "Walkin' the Streets (Till My Baby Comes Home)", and "Fare Thee Well".
He is survived by his son, Joseph Matthew Manone II and his three grandsons; Jimmy Manone who are both musicians, as well as Joseph Matthew Manone III and Jon Scott (Manone) Harris.
In 2008, his composition "There'll Come a Time (Wait and See)" with Miff Mole was used in the soundtrack to the Academy Award-nominated movie The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, based on the short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald from Tales of the Jazz Age. The movie was nominated for thirteen Oscars in 2009.
Style
Wingy Manone played a hot jazz lead horn, and was a master of humorous use of slang and jive talk.
Trivia
For many years, good friend Joe Venuti (the brilliant jazz violist and notorious practical joker) sent his friend Wingy a single cuff link each year on his birthday!
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