Versatile musician, singer, writer, arranger, cartoonist and humorist Red Ingle performed with Ted Weems' orchestra from 1931 until the band went on 'hiatus' after the outbreak of WWII.
Born in Toledo, Ohio, Ingle (1906 - 1965) had begun performing professionally by age 15. By his late teens he was playing saxophone with the Jean Goldkette Orchestra, in the band along with Bix Beiderbecke and Frankie Trumbauer.
During his stint with Ted Weems, in addition to his instrumental duties he was the band's comedian, featured in many of their 'novelty' numbers.
A young Perry Como joined the Weems band as a boy vocalist in 1936. He later would recall Red Ingle as one of the most talented men he'd ever met.
After the Weems orchestra disbanded, Ingle sought war work, but was eventually discharged from military service after failing an Air Force eye exam.
In 1943 he joined Spike Jones and his City Slickers, which is perhaps the career credit for which Ingle is best remembered. His musical versatility, comic timing and creative spark served him well there, along with his aptitude for funny voices and sound effects.
Red Ingle left Spike's employ in November of 1946, following a salary dispute. (Not an uncommon departure for various City Slickers). By the Spring of 1947 Ingle had formed his new band, soon to be performing as 'The Natural Seven' and recording almost exclusively for then-fledgling record label Capitol Records.
Those Capitol recordings from '47 - '51 are brilliant. Stunning musicianship paired with wry cornball humor. You can find them all on a perfect and HIGHLY recommended Red Ingle CD released on the Bear Family label.
Ingle's performances here on these few earlier, well-loved old Ted Weems 78s don't match the manic inventiveness on display during his solo years or his recordings with Spike Jones - - or at least the intensity is only turned up to about a '6', instead of the amped-out '11' he'd reach in later years.
Having fallen in love with the man's skills from his heyday, I can't fault him for those years he was still figuratively 'on the leash'.
(8.22.08) It was recently brought to my attention that two previously posted Red Ingle video clips were no longer functional.
A fresh gander at YouTube reveals that several different Ingle clips have been added in their place. Here's hoping they stick around a while!
The first clip (below) ⬇ features Red and his band from around 1948, performing 'Cigareets and Whusky and Wild, Wild Women'
- Another, ⬇ from 1949, it's '(I Love You For) Seventy Mental Reasons', featuring vocalist Karen Tedder.
- Finally, ⬇ jumping ahead to 1960, Red fiddles with guest vocalist Jo 'Cinderella G. Stump' Stafford on 'Tim-Tay'Shun', reprising their hit recording from '47.
The videos above are available at YouTube via the good graces of Pappy Stuckey. He's rebuilt a whole channel there of fine material for seriously enjoyable viewing.
You can see more - - including more Red Ingle - - by checking out his treasures at: pappyredux
- See also: Good news! One of twindowlicker's recent Choosday Choons posts features a MASSIVE trove of archived Red Ingle 78s, including lots of the Capitol sides, the early Ted Weems stuff, some of the Spike Jones tracks and more!
Versatile musician, singer, writer, arranger, cartoonist and humorist Red Ingle performed with 
See also: Red Ingle bio page at AllMusic (click for link)
