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Artist
Lester Lanin
12+ albums
twistbandleadersjazzswingrock-n-roll
about
Lester Lanin (b. Nathaniel Lester Lanin, August 26, 1907, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - d. Oct. 27, 2004, New York City) was an American jazz and pop music bandleader. Lanin's brothers, Sam and Howard, were also both bandleaders; they came from a family of ten (of which Lester was the youngest) born to a family of Russian - Jewish immigrants. He originally wanted to be an attorney but quit school to play music in his teens. Beginning in 1927, he led ensembles that were paid to play at the houses of wealthy socialites in Philadelphia and New York, continuing after the 1929 stock market crash. In 1930, Lanin was hired to play at a gala for Barbara Hutton, and the event garnered so much press in New York newspapers that it made Lanin a star as well as the young heiress. Lanin became a major star of the dance music world, and was hired worldwide to play for kings and queens, in addition to a recurring invitation to play at White House inaugural balls from the Eisenhower administration to the Carter administration. Famous for long, smooth medleys, Lanin's popularity increased upon the advent of the LP era. Starting with Epic Records in the middle of the 1950s, he recorded a string of albums for several labels, many of which hit the US Billboard 200. He continued performing well into the 1990s, and died at age 97 in 2004. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
top songs
1
Christmas Night in Harlem
1,4512Just In Time - Moderate Society
1,3513Just One Of Those Things - Society
1,2864The Hukilau Song - Hula
1,2515This Could Be The Start Of Something - Society
1,1336Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer
7657Fascination - Slow Waltz
7338I LEFT MY HEART IN SAN FRANCISCO - Slow Fox Trot
6069Desafinado-Bright Bossa Nova
57410Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
406
