If asked to come up with a frequently heard jazz horn player named Art, logical choices might be Art Farmer, Art Pepper or Artie Shaw. A case could be made that Art Drelinger rivals all three, size of his discography foremost, yet the concept of the public hearing him might have to be understood as on a subliminal level. Drelinger's career included involvement in both jazz and studio bands right from the get-go and as he evolved he stood more and more in the glow of the little red recording light. He appears on records with the likes of Louis Armstrong and Billie Holiday as well as backing Doris Day and many other pop artists from the '50s and '60s. He was not, however, a frequently utilized soloist and could often be found filling in the bottom of the musical form with a few well placed bass saxophone dots.

He played in local bands around New England before arriving in New York City in the mid '30s. He gainied access to the world of bandleader Adrian Rollini, which included gigs at the bandleader's own club and back to back studio sessions, often involving several pseudonyms for the same group of musicians.

Through the '30s Drelinger played with hardcore traditional jazzmen such as the one-armed trumpeter Wingy Manone and the popular Bunny Berigan. Bandleader Jack Jenney put Drelinger into a studio band in late '30s and the reedman also began working with Paul Whiteman in 1938. Whiteman's Swing Wing was the last major performing ensemble for Drelington, who in the early '40s began more than 25 years of work for CBS, playing on all manner of radio and television productions. ~ Eugene Chadbourne, Rovi