Blue Skies (Cassandra Wilson Album)
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Blue Skies (Cassandra Wilson Album)
''Blue Skies'' is the third studio album by American jazz singer Cassandra Wilson. It was released on the JMT label in 1988 and features Wilson performing ten jazz standards accompanied by Mulgrew Miller on piano, Terri Lyne Carrington on drums, and Lonnie Plaxico on bass. Background The album is named after the Irving Berlin's 1926 song and includes 10 renderings of famous jazz standards. Wilson explained: "I enjoy doing standards, and I did the album as a special project. However, that is not my direction in fact. I think it's important for us to develop new standards and to recreate the music of today inside of a new context. This is a different time and somebody's going to do that." Reception In a review for Allmusic, Thom Jurek gave the album three stars out of five and noted that it was evidence of Wilson's move away from the M-Base style of her previous albums. He said that the album was "Not a masterpiece, but a really compelling first experiment with the more intimat ...
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Cassandra Wilson
Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female Jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed with an unmistakable timbre and attack ho hasexpanded the playing field" by incorporating blues, country, and folk music into her work. She has won numerous awards, including two Grammys, and was named "America's Best Singer" by Time magazine in 2001. Early life and career Cassandra Wilson is the third and youngest child of Herman Fowlkes, Jr., a guitarist, bassist, and music teacher; and Mary McDaniel, an elementary school teacher who earned her PhD in education. Her ancestry includes Fon, Yoruba, Irish and Welsh. Between her mother's love for Motown and her father's dedication to jazz, Wilson's parents sparked her early interest in music. Leland, John. GOING HOME WITH: Cassandra Wilson; Jazz Diva Follows Sound of Her Roots'' ''The New ...
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The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide
''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1979 and its last in 2004. The guide can be seen at Rate Your Music, while a list of albums given a five star rating by the guide can be seen at Rocklist.net. First edition (1979) ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'' was the first edition of what would later become ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide''. It was edited by Dave Marsh (who wrote a large majority of the reviews) and John Swenson, and included contributions from 34 other music critics. It is divided into sections by musical genre and then lists artists alphabetically within their respective genres. Albums are also listed alphabetically by artist although some of the artists have their careers divided into chronological periods. Dave Marsh, in his Introduction, cites as precedents Leon ...
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Rodgers And Hart
Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership between composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and the lyricist Lorenz Hart (1895–1943). They worked together on 28 stage musicals and more than 500 songs from 1919 until Hart's death in 1943.Rodgers and Hart Biography
Guide to Musical Theatre, accessed April 5, 2009


History

Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart were introduced in 1919; Rodgers was still in high school while Hart had already graduated from . Their first collaboration together was at Columbia, and resulted in the 1920

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Lerner And Loewe
Lerner and Loewe refers to the partnership between lyricist and librettist Alan Jay Lerner and composer Frederick Loewe.Kenny, Ellen, and James M. Salem. “A Guide to Critical Reviews, Part II: The Musical from Rodgers-and-Hart to Lerner-and-Loewe.” ''Notes'', vol. 25, no. 2, 1968, p. 245., doi:10.2307/894002. Spanning three decades and nine musicals from 1942 to 1960 and again from 1970 to 1972, the pair are known for being behind the creation of critical on stage successes such as ''My Fair Lady'', ''Brigadoon'', and ''Camelot'' along with the musical film '' Gigi''. Background and previous work Growing up in Austria, Frederick or "Fritz" Loewe was a child prodigy concert pianist and son to a Viennese Operetta star, Edmond Loewe. After moving to New York City, he worked as a pianist in German clubs and was accompanist for silent films but never had a partnership before working with Lerner.Lees, Gene. ''Inventing Champagne: the Worlds of Lerner and Loewe.'' St. Martin's Press ...
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Jimmy Van Heusen
James Van Heusen (born Edward Chester Babcock; January 26, 1913 – February 6, 1990) was an American composer. He wrote songs for films, television and theater, and won an Emmy and four Academy Awards for Best Original Song. Life and career Born in Syracuse, New York, Van Heusen began writing music while at high school. He renamed himself at age 16, after the shirt makers Phillips-Van Heusen, to use as his on-air name during local shows. His close friends called him "Chet".Coppula, C. (2014). ''Jimmy Van Heusen: Swinging on a Star''. Nashville: Twin Creek Books. Jimmy was raised Methodist. Studying at Cazenovia Seminary and Syracuse University, he became friends with Jerry Arlen, the younger brother of Harold Arlen. With the elder Arlen's help, Van Heusen wrote songs for the Cotton Club revue, including "Harlem Hospitality". He then became a staff pianist for some of the Tin Pan Alley publishers, and wrote "It's the Dreamer in Me" (1938) with lyrics by Jimmy Dorsey. Colla ...
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Johnny Burke (lyricist)
John Francis Burke (October 3, 1908 – February 25, 1964) was an American lyricist, successful and prolific between the 1920s and 1950s. His work is considered part of the Great American Songbook. His song "Swinging on a Star", from the Bing Crosby film ''Going My Way'', won an Academy Award for Best Song in 1944. Early life Burke was born in Antioch, California, United States, the son of Mary Agnes (Mungovan), a schoolteacher, and William Earl Burke, a structural engineer. When he was still young, his family moved to Chicago, Illinois, where Burke's father founded a construction business. As a youth, Burke studied piano and drama. He attended Crane College and then the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he played piano in the orchestra. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1927, Burke joined the Chicago office of the Irving Berlin Publishing Company in 1926 as a pianist and song salesman. He also played piano in dance bands and vaudeville. Car ...
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Polka Dots And Moonbeams
"Polka Dots and Moonbeams" is a popular song with music by Jimmy Van Heusen and lyrics by Johnny Burke, published in 1940. It was Frank Sinatra's first hit recorded with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. The song is one of the top 100 most-frequently recorded jazz standards with arrangements by Gil Evans and others and notable recordings by Bill Evans, Chet Baker, Blue Mitchell,Dave Gregg. "Off the record" (music review column), ''Joplin Globe'' (Joplin, MO), May 21, 1967, ''Showtime'' magazine section, page 9: ''"... Blue can play with tenderness without slopping over into mawkish sentimentality. Just listen to his treatment of the gorgeous ballad, 'Polka Dots and Moonbeams.' " ''. Wes Montgomery, Sarah Vaughan (for the 1957 album '' Swingin' Easy''), Bud Powell, Lester Young, Gerry Mulligan, Lou Donaldson, Dexter Gordon and many others
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Rodgers And Hammerstein
Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popular Broadway productions in the 1940s and 1950s initiated what is considered the "golden age" of musical theater. Gordon, John Steele''Oklahoma'!'. Retrieved June 13, 2010 Five of their Broadway shows, ''Oklahoma!'', '' Carousel'', '' South Pacific'', ''The King and I'' and ''The Sound of Music'', were outstanding successes, as was the television broadcast of ''Cinderella'' (1957). Of the other four shows that the team produced on Broadway during their lifetimes, ''Flower Drum Song'' was well-received, and none was an outright flop. Most of their shows have received frequent revivals around the world, both professional and amateur. Among the many accolades their shows (and film versions) garnered were thirty-four Tony Awards, fifteen Academ ...
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Shall We Dance? (1951 Song)
"Shall We Dance?" is a show tune from the 1951 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, ''The King and I''. It is sung by the characters of Anna Leonowens and the King of Siam, originated on Broadway by Gertrude Lawrence and Yul Brynner respectively. Valerie Hobson played Anna in the original London West End production, and Marni Nixon (who sang the songs while Deborah Kerr lip-synced) in the 1956 film of ''The King and I''. The song comes about after Anna and the King disagree about love's meaning; the King believes that love is a "silly complication of a pleasant simplicity" and a "fairy tale" while Anna believes that love is real and natural. They sing "The Song of the King" first. Anna then tries to explain the idea of romance in a simple way to the King, and becomes caught up in her own experience of love at first sight at an English dance. Her reminiscences become the introductory verse of "Shall We Dance?". The song is most famous for a sequence charged with romantic tension in ...
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Sweet Lorraine (1928 Song)
"Sweet Lorraine" is a popular song with music by Cliff Burwell and words by Mitchell Parish that was published in 1928 and has become a jazz standard. It is written in F major and has an AABA structure. A version by Teddy Wilson charted in October 1935, peaking at #17. Frank Sinatra recorded the song on December 17, 1946. His version was released as a single on Columbia Records (#37293) but did not chart. The Nat "King" Cole Trio recorded the song in 1956 and released it on the Capitol album ''After Midnight.'' See also *List of 1920s jazz standards Jazz standards are musical compositions that are widely known, performed and recorded by jazz artists as part of the genre's musical repertoire. This list includes compositions written in the 1920s that are considered standards by at least one m ... * Maureen Stapleton#Filmography (film ''Sweet Lorraine'') References 1928 songs 1920s jazz standards Songs with lyrics by Mitchell Parish Nat King Cole songs Jazz composition ...
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I Didn't Know What Time It Was
"I Didn't Know What Time It Was" is a popular song composed by Richard Rodgers with lyrics by Lorenz Hart for the 1939 musical '' Too Many Girls''. Introduced by Richard Kollmar and Marcy Westcott in the stage musical, early hit versions were recorded by Benny Goodman (vocal by Louise Tobin) and by Jimmy Dorsey (vocal by Bob Eberly). It was then performed by Trudy Erwin (dubbing for Lucille Ball) and Richard Carlson in the 1940 film adaptation produced by RKO. The song was later interpolated into the score of the 1957 film '' Pal Joey,'' sung by Frank Sinatra. Recordings * Artie Shaw - Shadows / I Didn't Know What Time It Was (1939) * Charlie Parker – ''Charlie Parker with Strings'' (1949) * Peggy Lee – '' Black Coffee'' (1953) * Louis Jordan (1954) * Ella Fitzgerald - ''Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers and Hart Songbook'' (1956) * Stan Getz and Gerry Mulligan – ''Gerry Mulligan Meets Stan Getz'' (1957) * Billie Holiday – ''Songs for Distingué Lovers'' (1957) * Benny G ...
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