Stan Keller

Stan Keller
Photo by James Johann Kriegsmann (1911-1994) New York
Background information
Birth name	Stanley Keller Grubb
Born	(1907-05-01)May 1, 1907 Reading, Pennsylvania
Died	August 7, 1990(1990-08-07) (aged 83) Arvada, Colorado
Genres	Jazz, Swing, Dixieland, Big band, Polkas
Occupation(s)	Bandleader Saxophonist Composer
Instruments	Woodwinds, Saxophone, Clarinet, Flute, Basoon, Oboe
Years active	1920s - mid 1960s
Associated acts	Stan Keller and His Orchestra

Stan Keller ( Stanley Keller Grubb, (1907–1990) was an American bandleader, composer, arranger, and woodwind player who led his own orchestra — Stan Keller and His Orchestra. Keller was a member of the original Pennsylvanians, the California Nighthawks, and orchestras led by Charlie Kerr, Charles Previn, Josef Pasternack, Earl Bernnett, Marshall Van Poole, Harry James, and Carmen Cavallaro. His fellow members in the Charles Kerr Orchestra included Tommy Dorsey, Eddie Lang and Joe Venuti. Keller was also a member of the Townsmen, a quartet (vibes, guitar, saxophone, bass) which played at the Warwick Hotel. Photos of the Townsmen were often featured on the covers of sheet music that the group performed.

Stan Keller and His Orchestra performed in the 1940s at New York venues that included an 11-month engagement the Stork Club (1944–45), the Waldorf, the Essex House, the Copacabana, and the Columbia Room at Hotel Astor. While performing at the Stork, Sherman Billingsley, the proprietor, often referred to Keller's group as the "Ork of Stork" ("ork" being colloquial for "orchestra"). Members of his orchestra included Liberace (piano), Bob Hames (guitar) and Carmen Cavallaro (piano). Sonny Werblin of MCA booked Stan Keller and His Orchestra at the Hotel Astor with five radio broadcasts a week, coast-to-coast, on the CBS network.