Carl Hilding “Doc” Severinsen (born July 7, 1927) is an American pop and jazz trumpeter. He is best known for leading the NBC Orchestra on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Severinsen was born in Arlington, Oregon. He was nicknamed “Little Doc” after his father, and had originally wanted to play the trombone. But the senior Severinsen, a gifted amateur violinist, urged him to study the violin. The younger Severinsen insisted on the trombone, but had to settle for the only horn available in Arlington’s small music store — a trumpet. A week later, with the help of his father and a manual of instructions, the seven-year-old was so good that he was invited to join the high school band.
At the age of twelve, Little Doc won the Music Educator’s National Contest and, while still in high school, was hired to go on the road with the Ted Fio Rito Orchestra. However, his stay with the group was cut short by the draft. He served in the Army during World War II. He made his broadcasting debut playing live popular music on radio station KODL in The Dalles, Oregon.
Starting in 1952, during Steve Allen‘s tenure as host of NBC-TV’s Tonight, Doc Severinsen played first trumpet in the band, which was directed by Skitch Henderson. Severinsen took over as bandleader in 1967 and soon became noted for his flashy fashions. Under the direction of Severinsen, the Tonight Show’s NBC Orchestra was the most visible big band in America. Severinsen took the opportunity to update many well known swing and jazz standards for the show’s audiences, often introducing new listeners to classics by Cole Porter, Dizzy Gillespie, and others.
Severinsen campaigned for the band to get featured slots during the show, but for the most part the band was seen on camera during the frequent “Stump the Band” segments: audience members would challenge the band with obscure song titles and Severinsen and his crew would attempt to play something appropriate to the titles. Severinsen continued as bandleader until Carson’s retirement in 1992. During the 1950s and 1960s, Severinsen put out a number of albums of jazz standards, over which he performed very melodic solos. Severinsen certainly had a well-developed high-note range with an incredible amount of control and melodic sense. In the 1960s, Severinsen also recorded with the Clarke/Boland Big Band and the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis band. Severinsen was also the second trumpeter whose recording of the fanfare “Abblasen,” composed by Gottfried Reiche, has been used as the theme for the CBS News program Sunday Morning.
During the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s, Severinsen released several albums under the band name The Tonight Show Band with Doc Severinsen, and later receiving first billing, Doc Severinsen & The Tonight Show Band.
Severinsen also released albums that have a pop rock basis, some of which include electronic instrumentation components, such as Brass Roots, Good Medicine and Facets. These albums received varying degrees of success by the public. He recorded two albums of standards with Henry Mancini and his orchestra in the 1970s, Brass On Ivory and Brass, Ivory And Strings.Although Doc Severinsen can be considered one of the most prolific musicians in America, none of his singles where he plays the trumpet has ever appeared in Billboard’s Hot 100.