1983. The sound was almost frightening. Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 - July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. The "book" of this early Basie band was based on blues and riffs developed on a blues structure. ', "The next day he invited me to sit in the pit and start working the pedals. the Basie band. We've received your submission. on a motorized wheelchair which he sometimes drove with joyful abandon. Scale for the musicians at the Reno Club, where beer was a nickel and whisky was 15 cents, was $15 a week for playing from 8 P.M. to 4 A.M., except Saturdays when it was 8 P.M. until 8 A.M. [30], In that city in October 1936, the band had a recording session which the producer John Hammond later described as "the only perfect, completely perfect recording session I've ever had anything to do with". New Jersey. "heads"arrangements worked out without planning in He is credited for creating the use of the two split tenor saxophone, emphasizing the rhythm section, riffing with a big band, using arrangers to broaden their sound, and beautifully layering masterful vocalists. Biography - A Short Wiki. She was 67 years old. Diane died peacefully on October 15 after suffering a heart attack a few days before. During this period he also recorded with music greats, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Jackie Wilson, Dizzy Gillespie and Oscar Peterson. Within less than six months, however, Mr. Basie was back at the keyboard. Well, that was the last time I was ever introduced as Bill Basie. There was a memorable concert at Town Hall several It was during this time that he was given the nickname Basie reorganized the Orchestra in 1952 and this new band was in high demand and toured extensively around the world. Joy S. Rosenthal, Trustee, William J. Basie Trust and Guardian for Diane L. Basie, At Institute of Jazz Studies, an Intimate Look at Count Basie, Grammy Nominated for Live At Birdland . I saw Count Basie himself perform in Melbourne Australia not long before he died, perhaps by a couple of years, can you please help me with a date of this tour, thanks. [50] In 1939, Basie and his band made a major cross-country tour, including their first West Coast dates. introductory notes, looked up at the drummer, nodded at the rest of the group and, when the combo took off, the musicians were playing as brilliantly and cleanly as they had been disheveled only Count Basie is considered one of the greatest bandleaders of all times. We set the thing up front in D-flat, and then we just went on playing in F." It became his signature tune. Your email address will not be published. She paid 25 cents a lesson for Count Basie's piano instruction. Basie also toured with Bennett, including a date at Carnegie Hall. Where did Count Basie do most of his touring? The band survived Basie's death, with ex-Basie-ite trumpeter Thad Jones directing until his death in 1986. Count and Mrs. Basie were true socialites - often gathering with friends including celebrities Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lewis, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Basie protg Quincy Jones. After Moten died in 1935, Basie took what was left of the band, expanded His Family After a decade long courtship, Basie married dancer Catherine Morgan, his second wife, on his birthday in 1942. Count Basie, byname of William Basie, (born August 21, 1904, Red Bank, New Jersey, U.S.died April 26, 1984, Hollywood, Florida), American jazz musician noted for his spare, economical piano style and for his leadership of influential and widely heralded big bands. Count and Catherine were. AmoMama creates engaging, meaningful content for women. "One night the announcer called me to the microphone for those usual few words of introduction," Mr. Basie once recalled. Died: April 26, 1984 Hollywood, Florida African American bandleader and musician Count Basie was an extremely popular figure in the jazz world for half a century. Who taught Count Basie how do you play the piano? See the Count Basie Orchestra Discography. night performances in a number of small cities and towns that were "Lester Leaps In," were created as features for She died in 1983. in the death of the big-band era. recordings, the 1943 musicians' strike, the strain of Basie favored blues, and he would showcase some of the most notable blues singers of the era after he went to New York: Billie Holiday, Jimmy Rushing, Big Joe Turner, Helen Humes, and Joe Williams. Basie decided to form a medium-sized Catherine Basie, wife of Count Basie, the jazz musician and band leader, died of a heart attack yesterday at the couple's home in Freeport, Grand Bahama Island, according to Mr. Basie's agent. Rhythm," "Dinah," or "Lady, Be Good." "I wanted 13 men to think and play the same way. a few moments before. From that time on, I was a daily customer, hanging There will be a viewing at Benta's Funeral Home, 630 St. Nicholas Avenue at 141st Street, on Sunday from 1 to 7 P.M. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing.Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. [18] A few months later, he was invited to join the band, which played mostly in Texas and Oklahoma. Hammond introduced Helen Humes, whom Basie hired; she stayed with Basie for four years. 1928. Ellington's (18991974), the most famous African American His wife, Catherine, had died in 1983; they had one daughter. Even more important was the fact that the Famous Door had national and local radio wires. Count Basie, the jazz pianist whose spare, economic keyboard style and supple rhythmic drive made his orchestra one of the most influential groups of the Big Band era, died of cancer yesterday. [56], Count Basie was the featured artist at the first Cavalcade of Jazz concert held at Wrigley Field on September 23, 1945, which was produced by Leon Hefflin Sr.[57] Al Jarvis was the Emcee and other artists to appear on stage were Joe Liggins and his Honeydrippers, The Peters Sisters, Slim and Bam, Valaida Snow, and Big Joe Turner. The Black Music Association honored Mr. Basie in 1982 with a gala at Radio City Music Hall. This familiar pattern was evident in the He soon started booking the band and shopping them to agents and record companies forging their big break. Finally, Willard Alexander, a booking agent, in an effort to get the band on 52d Street, then the jazz center of New York, made a deal with the Famous Door, a shoebox of a room, 25 feet wide and about . His personnel around 1937 included: Lester Young and Herschel Evans (tenor sax), Freddie Green (guitar), Jo Jones (drums), Walter Page (bass), Earle Warren (alto sax), Buck Clayton and Harry Edison (trumpet), Benny Morton and Dickie Wells (trombone). "[64] In 1957, Basie sued the jazz venue Ball and Chain in Miami over outstanding fees, causing the closure of the venue. A stocky, handsome man with heavy-lidded eyes and a sly smile, Basie was "Can you imagine a man who kind of romps around the piano," Mr. Shearing said, Then when he develops his big band, he reunites with Eddie Durham. After Motens death in 1935, Basie started his band, the Count Basie Orchestra. While he was in his late teens, he gravitated to Harlem, where he encountered Fats Waller. The Basie band played at President John F. Kennedy's inaugural ball, and in 1965 toured with Frank Sinatra. Throughout his tours, Basie met many jazz musicians, including Louis Armstrong. In 2005, Count Basie's song "One O'Clock Jump" (1937) was included by the National Recording Preservation Board in the Library of Congress National Recording Registry. Date of Death: April 26, 1984. The key The Barons of Rhythm were regulars at the Reno Club and often performed for a live radio broadcast. Two of Basie's earliest One of the band's most popular arrangements, "April in Paris," was written in 1955 by Wild Bill Davis, a jazz organist who had originally developed it for his own small group. era he also shared the less appealing one-nighters (a series of single The couple were true socialites - often gathering with friends including celebrities Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lewis, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Basie protg Quincy Jones. (Holiday did not record with Basie, as she had her own record contract and preferred working with small combos). [45] In early 1938, the Savoy was the meeting ground for a "battle of the bands" with Chick Webb's group. Mr. Basie was born in Red Bank, N.J., on Aug. 21, 1904, an only child who was christened William. Provide Feedback Form. His wife, Catherine, had died in After automobiles replaced horses, his father became a groundskeeper and handyman for several wealthy families in the area. "He was a wonderful man. In 2021s Elvis, a Count Basie poster is seen about 20 minutes into the movie. Basie's 14-man band began playing at the Famous Door, a mid-town nightspot with a CBS network feed and air conditioning, which Hammond was said to have bought the club in return for their booking Basie steadily throughout the summer of 1938. Provide Feedback Form. He also scored a series of Top Ten hits on the pop and R&B charts, includingI Didnt Know About You,Red Bank Blues,Rusty Dusty Blues, Jimmys Blues,andBlue Skies. "Count.". [37] Soon, they were booked at the Roseland Ballroom for the Christmas show. As a young boy, Basie hated to see his parents working so hard, and vowed to help them get ahead. a shrewd judge of talent and character, and he was extremely patient in He developed a new style of jazz called bebop. rehearsal and then written down later. He quickly made a name for himself playing the piano at local venues and parties around town until he moved to New York City in search of greater opportunities. Basie then formed his own nine-piece band, Barons of Rhythm, with many former Moten members including Walter Page (bass), Freddie Green (guitar), Jo Jones (drums), Lester Young (tenor saxophone) and Jimmy Rushing (vocals). onto every note, sitting behind him all the time. We are currently enrolling students for on-campus classes and scheduling in-person campus tours. [73], On April 11, 1983, Catherine Basie died of heart disease at the couple's home in Freeport, Grand Bahama Island. with trumpeter Thad Jones directing until his own death in 1986. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. 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In 1957, Basie the live album Count Basie at Newport. The band tried to stay together but failed. band a permanent place in jazz history. [85], By 2011, four recordings of Count Basie had been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, a special Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least 25 years old, and that have "qualitative or historical significance.". the personnel, and formed the first Count Basie Orchestra. She was 67 years old. [12][13] His touring took him to Kansas City, St. Louis, New Orleans, and Chicago. with Rutgers web sites to accessibility@rutgers.edu or complete the Report Accessibility Barrier or Basie added touches of bebop "so long as it made sense", and he required that "it all had to have feeling". 50 feet long, which was having trouble doing business in the summer because it had no air-conditioning. It went so well; it was so thrilling and exciting". Mr. Basie was, along with Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman, one of the pre-eminent bandleaders of the Big Band era in the 1930's and 40's.
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