Page "Swing music" Paragraph 15

Swing music began to decline in popularity during World War II because of several factors.

Most importantly it became difficult to staff a " big band " because many musicians were overseas fighting in the war.

Also, the cost of touring with a large ensemble became cumbersome because of wartime economics.

These two factors made smaller three-to five-piece combos more profitable and manageable.

A third reason is the recording bans of 1942 and 1948 because of musicians ' union strikes.

In 1948, there were no records legally made at all, although independent labels continued to bootleg records in small numbers.

When the ban was over in January 1949, swing had evolved into new styles such as jump blues and bebop.