|
Gravy Train (Lou Donaldson Album)
''Gravy Train'' is an album by jazz saxophonist Lou Donaldson recorded for the Blue Note label in 1961 and performed by Donaldson with pianist Herman Foster, bassist Ben Tucker, drummer Dave Bailey and percussionist Alec Dorsey. Reception The album was awarded 3½ stars in an Allmusic review by Steve Huey who states "''Gravy Train'' is a fine, if not quite exceptional record from Lou Donaldson's initial soul-jazz phase of the early '60s... Donaldson's playing is pleasant, and the rest of the supporting group maintains a steady groove throughout".Huey, S. Allmusic Reviewaccessed December 8, 2009. Track listing All compositions by Lou Donaldson except where noted # "Gravy Train" - 8:14 # " South of the Border" ( Carr, Kennedy) - 5:31 # "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" (Burke, Van Heusen) - 4:59 # "Avalon" ( DeSylva, Jolson, Rose) - 4:15 # "Candy" (Mack David, Kramer, Whitney) - 9:18 # "Twist Time" - 6:47 # "Glory of Love" ( Billy Hill) - 4:04 Bonus tracks on CD: #"Gravy Train" l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lou Donaldson
Lou Donaldson (born November 1, 1926) is an American retired jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop era, heavily influenced by Charlie Parker. Life and career Donaldson was born in Badin, North Carolina, United States. He attended North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro in the early 1940s. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was trained at the Great Lakes bases in Chicago where he was introduced to bop music in the lively club scene. At the war's conclusion, he returned to Greensboro, where he worked club dates with the Rhythm Vets, a combo composed of A and T students who had served in the U.S. Navy. The band recorded the soundtrack to a musical comedy featurette, ''Pitch a Boogie Woogie'', in Greenville, North Carolina, in the summer of 1947. The movie had a limited run at black audie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jimmy Kennedy
James Kennedy (20 July 1902 – 6 April 1984) was a Northern Irish songwriter. He was predominantly a lyricist, putting words to existing music such as "Teddy Bears' Picnic" and "My Prayer" or co-writing with composers like Michael Carr, Wilhelm Grosz and Nat Simon. In a career spanning more than fifty years, he wrote some 2000 songs, of which over 200 became worldwide hits and about 50 are popular music classics. Early life Kennedy was born in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. His father, Joseph Hamilton Kennedy, was a policeman in the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC). While growing up in the village of Coagh, Kennedy wrote several songs and poems. He was inspired by local surroundings—the view of the Ballinderry River, the local Springhill House and the plentiful chestnut trees on his family's property, as evidenced in his poem ''Chestnut Trees''. Kennedy later moved to Portstewart, a seaside resort in County Londonderry. Kennedy graduated from Trinity College, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alto Saxophone
The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor but larger than the B soprano. It is the most common saxophone and is used in popular music, concert bands, chamber music, solo repertoire, military bands, marching bands, pep bands, and jazz (such as big bands, jazz combos, swing music). The alto saxophone had a prominent role in the development of jazz. Influential jazz musicians who made significant contributions include Don Redman, Jimmy Dorsey, Johnny Hodges, Benny Carter, Charlie Parker, Sonny Stitt, Lee Konitz, Jackie McLean, Phil Woods, Art Pepper, Paul Desmond, and Cannonball Adderley. Although the role of the alto saxophone in classical music has been limited, influential performers include Marcel Mule, Sigurd Raschèr, Jean-Marie Londeix, Eugene Rousseau, and Frederick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billy Hill (songwriter)
Billy Hill (July 14, 1899 – December 24, 1940) was an American songwriter, violinist, and pianist who found fame writing Western songs such as "They Cut Down the Old Pine Tree", "The Last Round-Up", "Wagon Wheels", and " Empty Saddles". Hill's most popular song was " The Glory of Love", recorded by Benny Goodman in 1936, and subsequently by Peggy Lee, Otis Redding, Paul McCartney, and others. Early years William Joseph Hill was born on July 14, 1899 in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. He studied the violin at the New England Conservatory of Music under Karl Muck, and played with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Hill left home at the age of seventeen and headed west, where he worked as a cowboy in Montana, and as a surveyor and prospector in Death Valley, California. He returned to music and played violin and piano in dance halls until forming his own jazz band in Salt Lake City, Utah. Songwriting career In 1930, Hill moved to New York City seeking suc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joan Whitney Kramer
Joan Whitney Kramer (June 26, 1914 – July 12, 1990) was an American singer and songwriter. Early years Kramer was born Zoe Parenteau in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her early music training came while singing in the choir in her church. She attended Finch College in New York City. Career In 1934, while playing a showgirl in '' The Great Waltz'' on Broadway, she took the stage name Joan Whitney. She studied voice under Alex Kramer, who later collaborated with her on a number of songs including "Candy", Ain't Nobody Here but Us Chickens, and "Far Away Places". Kramer and Whitney married and had a son, Doren, while living in Forest Hills, New York. Death Whitney died on July 12, 1990, in Westport, Connecticut, aged 76, from Alzheimer's disease. Songs written with Alex Kramer *" Ain't Nobody Here but Us Chickens" (1946) *"Behave Yourself" * "Comme Ci Comme Ca" -English lyrics by- Joan Whitney and Alex Kramer -music by- Bruno Coquatrix (1949) *"Deep as the River" (recorded by H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alex Kramer (songwriter)
Alex J. Kramer (May 30, 1903 – February 10, 1998) was a Canadian songwriter. He was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. His parents were Adolph and Freda Kramer. At age 17 he was hired as a pianist in a silent movie theater in Montreal. He traveled first to Palm Beach, Florida, joining the Meyer Davis orchestra, and then to Paris and Cannes, before returning to New York City, where he became a radio bandleader. He also worked as an accompanist in nightclubs and in vaudeville. One of his other musical activities was coaching vocalists in singing techniques, and one of his students was Joan Whitney, who eventually became both his wife and his songwriting partner. Their first hit as a songwriting team was " High on a Windy Hill," which became a No. 1 hit in 1941 for the Jimmy Dorsey orchestra. In 1948, he and his wife started a song publishing firm. However, soon followed the end of the big band era, leading to the collapse of their publishing business. He eventually became ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mack David
Mack David (July 5, 1912 – December 30, 1993) was an American lyricist and songwriter, best known for his work in film and television, with a career spanning the period between the early 1940s and the early 1970s. David was credited with writing lyrics or music or both for over one thousand songs. , ''The New York Times'', Saturday, January 1, 1994. He was particularly well known for his work on the films '''' and '' |
Candy (1944 Song)
"Candy" is a popular song. The music was written by Alex Kramer, the lyrics by Mack David and Joan Whitney. It was published in 1944. First recordings A recording by Johnny Mercer and the Pied Pipers, with Jo Stafford, was released by Capitol Records as catalog number 183. It first reached the Billboard magazine Best Seller chart on February 22, 1945, and lasted 15 weeks on the chart, peaking at #2. Mercer recalled that the song was ideal for his limited range for ballad singing. Another recording by Dinah Shore was released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-1632. It reached the Billboard magazine Best Seller chart on April 5, 1945, at No. 10, its only week on the chart. Radio Popular songs, like "Candy", would also be performed in different novelty arrangements live on the radio by the studio orchestras of the time, particularly on network radio shows such as Fibber McGee and Molly's Billy Mills orchestra as heard here:Candy performed LIVE on NBC RADIO April 10, 194 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vincent Rose
Vincent Rose ''(né'' Vincenzo Cacioppo; 13 June 1880 Palermo, Italy – 20 May 1944 Rockville Centre, New York) was an Italian-born American violinist, pianist, composer, and bandleader. Career Rose holds one of the longest histories as a band leader. He achieved much popularity with his Montmartre Orchestra in the 1920s, and recorded with the group for RCA. The same personnel later recorded for the Columbia label as the Hollywood Orchestra. After leaving California, he settled in New York, but continued to record as "Vincent Rose and His Orchestra" for various labels throughout the 1930s. Rose was a prolific songwriter, having published well over 200 songs. His hits included: :* 1920 "Whispering" :* 1921 "Avalon", with lyrics by Al Jolson and B.G. DeSylva, a big hit for Jolson. :* 1923 "Linger Awhile" :* 1940 "Blueberry Hill" In 1921, the estate of Giovanni Ricordi and the music publishing firm he founded, Casa Ricordi — the publisher of Puccini's operas — sued ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al Jolson
Al Jolson (born Eizer Yoelson; June 9, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American Jews, Jewish singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-billed as "The World's Greatest Entertainer." Jolson was known for his "shamelessly sentimental, melodramatic approach" towards performing, as well as for popularizing many of the songs he sang. Jolson has been referred to by modern critics as "the king of blackface performers." Although best remembered today as the star of the first talking picture, ''The Jazz Singer'' (1927), he starred in a series of successful musical films during the 1930s. After the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, he was the first star to entertain troops overseas during World War II. After a period of inactivity, his stardom returned with ''The Jolson Story'' (1946), in which Larry Parks played Jolson, with the singer dubbing for Parks. The formula was repeat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddy DeSylva
George Gard "Buddy" DeSylva (January 27, 1895 – July 11, 1950) was an American songwriter, film producer and record executive. He wrote or co-wrote many popular songs and, along with Johnny Mercer and Glenn Wallichs, he co-founded Capitol Records. Biography DeSylva was born in New York City, but grew up in California, and attended the University of Southern California, where he joined the Theta Xi Fraternity. His Portuguese-born father, Aloysius J. De Sylva, was better known to American audiences as actor Hal De Forrest. His father was also a lawyer as well as an actor. His mother, Georgetta Miles Gard, was the daughter of Los Angeles police chief George E. Gard. DeSylva's first successful songs were those used by Al Jolson on Broadway in the 1918 production of ''Sinbad'', which included "I'll Say She Does". Soon thereafter, he met Jolson and in 1918 the pair went to New York and DeSylva began working as a songwriter in Tin Pan Alley. In the early 1920s, DeSylva frequent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avalon (Al Jolson Song)
"Avalon" is a 1920 popular song written by Al Jolson, Buddy DeSylva and Vincent Rose referencing Avalon, California. It was introduced by Jolson and interpolated in the musicals '' Sinbad'' and ''Bombo.'' Jolson's recording rose to number two on the charts in 1921. The song was possibly written by Rose, but Jolson's popularity as a performer allowed him to claim composer co-credit. Originally, only Rose and Jolson were credited, and DeSylva's name was added later. A popular jazz standard, the song has been recorded by many artists, including Cab Calloway (1934), Coleman Hawkins (1935) and Eddie Durham (1936). The Benny Goodman Quartet played the song in their famous 1938 Carnegie Hall concert. The tune remains popular in the gypsy jazz repertoire, having been performed by Wawau Adler and others. The tune's opening melody resembles a part of Giacomo Puccini's aria ''E lucevan le stelle'', from the opera ''Tosca'', but in the major key. Puccini's publishers sued the song's co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
