One of the great things about living in LA is the opportunty to hear a lot of incredible big bands on a pretty regular basis. Gordon Goodwin, Bob Florence, Frank Capp Juggernaut, Bill Berry, Tom Kubis, Matt Catingub... the list goes on and on. Some of these bands are basically rehearsal bands and a lot of the players play in more than one band, if not many of the bands. LA bands of this caliber usually have A list studio musicians playing.
There are some seriously talented trumpet players that play in these bands. If you ever get a chance to hear Wayne Bergeron play lead for any band do not under any circumstances let the opportunity pass you by. This guy is a MONSTER! I've seen him live many times around town and even had the chance to chat briefly with him and let me tell you, he is as personable as he is talented and he may be the top player in LA right now. As is typical of a local big band gig the guys usually head straight to the bar during the break and I have yet to meet one of them that didn't want to chat about the band, the music biz, etc.
Back to the topic at hand, any of the bands I mentioned above would be worthwhile to check out. Most of them have cds available. My favorite is Bob Florence, closely followed by all the rest. I picked up Wayne Bergeron's cd from his website recently. This is some kick-ass contemporary big band jazz! Highly recommended.
MJ