George T. Simon, acclaimed writer of the swing era, died at age 88.
In 1937, while working for Metronome magazine, Simon sat in on drums for the fledgling Glenn Miller Band when the band recorded its first tracks. He preferred writing, and became was Metronome‘s editor in chief from 1939 to 1955. He also wrote for the New York Post and the now-defunct New York Herald-Tribune. Simon wrote several books on the swing era and won a Grammy Award for best album liner notes – his contribution to the collection “Bing Crosby: A Legendary Performer.”
Simon’s late brother Richard was the co-founder of the publishing house Simon & Schuster, and one of his nieces is singer-songwriter Carly Simon.
Simon died February 13th at New York University Medical Center. The cause of death was pneumonia following a battle with Parkinson’s disease, according to the Associated Press.
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