Jerry Gray

Re-Stringing the Pearls

Jerry Gray wrote A String of Pearls for the Miller band in 1941, and in 1954 he re-visited and re-worked the concept into a new chart entitled 'Re-stringing the Pearls'. Rhythmically, it contains many references and echoes of the original, such as the feel of the opening sax soli, the subsequent modulation and solo breaks (though the Piano replaces the Alto solos), a Tenor solo backed by plunger-waving brass, the idea of a Trumpet solo backed by the Trombone section, a short Piano break and final shout chorus. The tonality of this new version moves away from the sweetness of the original and contains much more bite. There are no sax doubles.