The story behind Dean Hudson and His Orchestra is a bit of a weird one. The band was originally formed at the University of Florida in the mid 1930's and performed as the "Clubmen". The first leader of the band was a student named Eli Katz, who used the name Dean Hudson as an alias. When Katz graduated, another band leader needed to be chosen, but under the condition that the new leader would assume the "Dean Hudson" fictitious moniker.
1n 1936, the Clubmen chose Marion Brown to become the new "Dean Hudson" and the band recorded their first records as "Dean Hudson and the Florida Clubmen". Marion Brown, who played trumpet and was a decent singer, retained the alias "Dean Hudson" for the rest of his career.
Listen to: "Holly Hop" by Dean Hudson and His Orchestra
The Clubmen name was dropped after a couple years, and they continued as "Dean Hudson and His Orchestra." Though the band never became a huge name, they did attract a following. Dean Hudson and His Orchestra recorded and performed throughout the 1940's and into the 50's.
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