By age 11, he played accompaniment in silent movie theaters (called
nickelodeons). He co-wrote a hit song, "Boo-Hoo-Hoo", in 1921. In 1933, Irving Aaronson and his Commanders recorded for the
Vocalion Records label. In 1934 and 1935, they recorded for the
Columbia Records label. These records as have never been reissued, but some of them have been uploaded onto the Internet, including the song "Let's Be Thankful". In 1935, Aaronson headlined the
Irving Aaronson Orchestra radio program on
NBC. The band toured movie theatres and ballrooms across America. Aaronson's band included at various times such musicians as
Phil Saxe, Joe Gillespie, and others who would become bandleaders themselves:
Artie Shaw,
Gene Krupa, and
Tony Pastor.
Western movie actor
Fuzzy Knight was a drummer with Aaronson's band in the late 1920s. In 1939 Billy Mann, a successful investor who had been a founding member of the
Yacht Club Boys musical quartet, bought the Irving Aaronson band outright. Aaronson remained as the pianist, but only briefly; in 1940, he joined the
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio as a musical director. He remained in that capacity and served as assistant to producer
Joe Pasternak until his death from a heart attack in 1963. Some sources suggest his retirement at age 65, others have him active until his death. ==Death==