With the arrival of virtuoso trombonists Jack Teagarden and Tommy Dorsey, Miller focused more on developing his arrangement skills.

Writing for contemporaries and future stars such as Artie Shaw, and Benny Goodman, Miller gained prowess as an arranger by working in a variety of settings.

With this group, Miller used an arrangement he wrote for British bandleader Ray Noble's American band in an attempt to form a clarinet-reed sound.

Frustrated with his agency over playing inconsistent bookings and lacking broad radio exposure, Miller gave the band notice in December 1937.

[1] Miller began a partnership with Eli Oberstein, which led directly to a contract with Victor subsidiary Bluebird Records.

Gaining notoriety at such engagements as the Paradise Restaurant and Frank Dailey–owned Meadowbrook and their corresponding nationwide broadcasts, Miller struck enormous popularity playing the Glen Island Casino in the summer of 1939.

[1] The AFM strike prevented Miller from making any new recordings in the last two months of his band's existence, and they formally disbanded at the end of September 1942.

From his first orchestra, Miller invited back Hal McIntyre, and hired Paul Tanner, Wilbur Schwartz, Ray Eberle (who was the younger brother of Jimmy Dorsey's vocalist Bob Eberly), and his old friend Chummy MacGregor.

Miller's perseverance, business expertise, combined with a penchant for showmanship and musical taste, provided the faith for financiers Mike Nidorf and Cy Shribman.

Frank Dailey, manager of The Meadowbrook Ballroom in Cedar Grove, New Jersey, immediately booked the band for a four-week stay in March and April, before Glen Island.

During this time, Bluebird recording dates became more common, and Glenn added drummer Maurice Purtill and trumpeter Dale "Mickey" McMickle to stabilize personnel.

Opening at Glen Island on May 17, 1939, the casino's radio broadcast antenna ensured the Miller band was heard around the country.

[6]Capitalizing on newfound popularity, Miller decided to add a trombone and a trumpet, giving the band a fuller sound.

Famous for its opening and bass riffs as well as its "dueling" saxophone solos between Tex Beneke and Al Klink, the song hit number one on the Billboard charts, staying for a total of 30 weeks.

Elements of "In the Mood" can be found in earlier jazz recordings, such as Jimmy O'Bryant's "Clarinet Getaway", Wingy Manone's "Tar Paper Stomp", and Fletcher Henderson's "Hot and Anxious.

Miller had to work to reform his radio programs for BMI published tunes, temporarily switching his theme to "Slumber Song".

In the meantime, Miller needed an additional female vocalist, and he offered Dorothy Claire, then with Bobby Byrne's band, twice her salary.

Still in need of a female vocalist, the wife of Modernaire Hal Dickinson, Paula Kelly, who had sung previously with Al Donahue, stepped up to fill in the role.

The previous year, both had composed "At Last" but couldn't place it into Sun Valley Serenade vocally, although it appears in the film in three different instrumental versions.

Akin to "Chattanooga", "(I've Got a Gal In) Kalamazoo" was filmed as a song and dance number featuring the Nicholas Brothers and also sold a million pressings, with Billboard ranking it among the most popular records of the year.

The strike prevented Miller from making additional records in his career, although Victor slowly released the last set of tracks, with "That Old Black Magic" hitting number one in May 1943, over eight months after his the orchestra disbanded.

Miller began incorporating more patriotic themes into his radio shows and recordings after the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

Featured heavily on the format during their existence, many of their earlier programs from such venues as the Paradise Restaurant, Glen Island and the Meadowbrook Ballroom used remote connections to the National Broadcasting Company, on both NBC–Red and NBC–Blue.

[18] The makers of Chesterfield Cigarettes hosted a half-hour radio show on CBS that featured King of Jazz Paul Whiteman.

By then, the Miller band had several NBC sustaining broadcasts in addition to three CBS programs, reaching American homes 6–7 days a week.

"[19] According to Paul Albone, of the 121 singles by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra that made the charts, 69 were Top Ten hits, and 16 reached number-one.

[20][21] In just a 4-year career, Miller and His Orchestra's songs spent a cumulative total of 664 weeks, nearly thirteen years, on the charts, 79 of which were at the number-one position.