Herbie Fields

Herbie Fields ( born May 24, 1919 in Asbury Park or Elizabeth (New Jersey); † September 17, 1958 in Miami, Florida) was an American jazz saxophonist and clarinetist of the swing.

Fields attended from 1936 to 1938, the Juilliard School of Music in New York. After that, he was with Raymond Scott and Leonard Ware Trio, served from 1941 to 1943 as a soldier, by conducting an Army Band at Fort Dix. He then formed his own band in 1944 and played alto saxophone and clarinet with Lionel Hampton, the only white musician and successor of Earl Bostic. There he had with "Hey Bop a Rebop " a hit and won the 1945 New Star Award from Esquire Magazine for alto saxophone.

In 1946, he again had his own band until 1947, which started for RCA Victor. In the band played, among others Neal Hefti, Bernie Glow, Manny Albam, Al Klink, Marty Napoleon and Serge Chaloff. They first looked to the Hampton band, but played dance music with rhythm and blues strike, which they had moderate success. Fields converted the big band into a quintet and then in a septet, in the 1949/50, Frank Rosolino and Tiny Kahn played. Fields then moved to Miami, where he ran a restaurant. He made his last recordings in February 1958. In September of the same year he committed suicide with sleeping pills.