Will Bradley

Will Bradley was a soft-spoken trombonist who got famous for a few years by teaming up with Ray McKinley and forming a big band that spearheaded the boogie-woogie craze of the late '30s and early '40s. McKinley was more suited to the boogie than Bradley, who preferred sweet ballads and easygoing swing. Nevertheless, he soon found himself closely associated with song titles like "Beat Me, Daddy, Eight to the Bar," "Scrub Me, Mama, with a Boogie Beat," "Bounce Me, Brother, with a Solid Four," and "Fry Me, Cookie, with a Can of Lard." For Bradley, a man with classical and 20th ce...