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The Cosmic Scene
''The Cosmic Scene'' is a 1958 album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington. Featuring a nonet rather than his usual big band, the album was credited as "Duke Ellington's Spacemen" and was recorded and released on the Columbia label.A Duke Ellington Panorama accessed May 17, 2010 It was reissued by in 2007. Reception The reviewer Michael G. Nastos stated:Perhaps in many ways a neglected recording in the vast annals of Ellingtonia, fans will certainly welcome this long out of print re-addition to the master's CD disco ... |
Album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual Phonograph record#78 rpm disc developments, 78 rpm records collected in a bound book resembling a photograph album; this format evolved after 1948 into single vinyl LP record, long-playing (LP) records played at revolutions per minute, rpm. The album was the dominant form of recorded music expression and consumption from the mid-1960s to the early 21st century, a period known as the album era. Vinyl LPs are still issued, though album sales in the 21st-century have mostly focused on CD and MP3 formats. The 8-track tape was the first tape format widely used alongside vinyl from 1965 until being phased out by 1983 and was gradually supplanted by the cassette tape during the 1970s and early 1980s; the populari ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Early Autumn (song)
"Early Autumn" (1949) is a song composed by Ralph Burns and Woody Herman with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The song grew out of the fourth segment of Burns' “Summer Sequence” concert piece and was originally recorded by the Herman band on December 27, 1947 with an outstanding eight-bar solo by saxophonist Stan Getz. Herman asked Johnny Mercer to write lyrics in 1952 and he re-recorded the song taking the vocal duties himself. Charted versions were by Woody Herman and by Jo Stafford, both in 1952. Notable recordings *Woody Herman - an instrumental version (1949). *Woody Herman - a single release in 1952 for the Mars label (catalog No. 300). *Ted Heath and His Music, vocal by Lita Roza (1952). *Jo Stafford - a single release in 1952. *Ella Fitzgerald – a single release for Decca Records (catalog No. 29810) in 1956 (recorded in 1952) *Ella Fitzgerald – new version for her album ''Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer Songbook'' (1964) *Johnny Mathis – '' Wonderful, Wonderfu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard B or C trumpet. Trumpet-like instruments have historically been used as signaling devices in battle or hunting, with examples dating back to at least 1500 BC. They began to be used as musical instruments only in the late 14th or early 15th century. Trumpets are used in art music styles, for instance in orchestras, concert bands, and jazz ensembles, as well as in popular music. They are played by blowing air through nearly-closed lips (called the player's embouchure), producing a "buzzing" sound that starts a standing wave vibration in the air column inside the instrument. Since the late 15th century, trumpets have primarily been constructed of brass tubing, usually bent twice into a rounded rectangular shape. There are many distinc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboard, which is a row of keys (small levers) that the performer presses down or strikes with the fingers and thumbs of both hands to cause the hammers to strike the strings. It was invented in Italy by Bartolomeo Cristofori around the year 1700. Description The word "piano" is a shortened form of ''pianoforte'', the Italian term for the early 1700s versions of the instrument, which in turn derives from ''clavicembalo col piano e forte'' (key cimbalom with quiet and loud)Pollens (1995, 238) and ''fortepiano''. The Italian musical terms ''piano'' and ''forte'' indicate "soft" and "loud" respectively, in this context referring to the variations in volume (i.e., loudness) produced in response to a pianist's touch or pressure on the keys: the grea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billy Strayhorn
William Thomas Strayhorn (November 29, 1915 – May 31, 1967) was an American jazz composer, pianist, lyricist, and arranger, who collaborated with bandleader and composer Duke Ellington for nearly three decades. His compositions include "Take the 'A' Train", "Chelsea Bridge", "A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing", and " Lush Life". Early life Strayhorn was born in Dayton, Ohio, United States. His family soon moved to the Homewood section of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. However, his mother's family came from Hillsborough, North Carolina, and she sent him there to protect him from his father's drunken sprees. Strayhorn spent many months of his childhood at his grandparents' house in Hillsborough. In an interview, Strayhorn said that his grandmother was his primary influence during the first ten years of his life. He became interested in music while living with her, playing hymns on her piano, and playing records on her Victrola record player. Return to Pittsburgh and meeting Ellington S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Take The "A" Train
"Take the 'A' Train" is a jazz standard by Billy Strayhorn that was the signature tune of the Duke Ellington orchestra. History The use of the Strayhorn composition as the signature tune was made necessary by a ruling in 1940 by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). When ASCAP raised its licensing fees for broadcast use, many ASCAP members, including Ellington, could no longer play their compositions over radio, as most music was played live on radio at the time. Ellington turned to Billy Strayhorn and son Mercer Ellington, who were registered with ASCAP's competitor BMI, to "write a whole new book for the band," Mercer recalled. "'A' Train" was one of many tunes written by Strayhorn, and was picked to replace "Sepia Panorama" as the band's signature song. Mercer recalled that he found the composition in a trash can after Strayhorn discarded a draft of it because it sounded too much like a Fletcher Henderson arrangement. The song was first recorded ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johnny Mercer
John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallichs. He is best known as a Tin Pan Alley lyricist, but he also composed music, and was a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as songs written by others from the mid-1930s through the mid-1950s. Mercer's songs were among the most successful hits of the time, including " Moon River", " Days of Wine and Roses", " Autumn Leaves", and "Hooray for Hollywood". He wrote the lyrics to more than 1,500 songs, including compositions for movies and Broadway shows. He received nineteen Oscar nominations, and won four Best Original Song Oscars. Early life Mercer was born in Savannah, Georgia, where one of his first jobs, aged 10, was sweeping floors at the original 1919 location of Leopold's Ice Cream. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, and Quincy Jones. In 1992, he was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, and he was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1996. Biography Early life Lionel Hampton was born in 1908 in Louisville, Kentucky, and was raised by his mother. Shortly after he was born, he and his mother moved to her hometown of Birmingham, Alabama. He spent his early childhood in Kenosha, Wisconsin, before he and his family moved to Chicago, Illinois, in 1916. As a youth, Hampton was a member of the Bud Billiken Club, an alternative to the Boy Scouts of America, which was off-limits because of racial segregation. During the 1920s, while still a teenager, Hampton took xylophone lessons from Jimmy Bertrand and began to play drums. Hampton was raised ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sonny Burke
Joseph Francis "Sonny" Burke (March 22, 1914 – May 31, 1980) was an American musical arranger, composer, Big Band leader and producer. In 1937, he graduated from Duke University, where he had formed and led the jazz big band known as the Duke Ambassadors. Background During the 1930s and 1940s, Burke was a big band arranger in New York City, worked with Sam Donahue's band, and during the 1940s and 1950s worked as an arranger for the Charlie Spivak and Jimmy Dorsey bands, among others. In 1955, he wrote, along with Peggy Lee, the songs to Disney's ''Lady and the Tramp''. He also wrote songs with John Elliot for Disney's ''Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom'', which won the 1953 Oscar for Best Short Subject (Cartoons).Cotter, Bill, ''The Wonderful World of Disney Television: A Complete History'', p. 549, Hyperion, 1997. He wrote the music for number of popular songs, including " Black Coffee" and "Midnight Sun", co-written with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton. The song's lyrics ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Midnight Sun (Lionel Hampton And Sonny Burke Song)
"Midnight Sun" was originally an instrumental composed by Lionel Hampton and Sonny Burke in 1947 and is now considered a jazz standard. Subsequently, Johnny Mercer wrote the words to the song. First recording "Midnight Sun" was first recorded by Lionel Hampton himself and his orchestra in a Los Angeles studio on November 10, 1947, with solos by Hampton and trumpeter Wendell Culley (Decca Matrix L 4546).Cf. entry of "Midnight Sun" in the [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Juan Tizol
Juan Tizol Martínez (22 January 1900 – 23 April 1984) was a Puerto Rican jazz trombonist and composer. He is best known as a member of Duke Ellington's big band, and as the writer of the jazz standards " Caravan", "Pyramid", and " Perdido". Biography Tizol was born in Vega Baja, Puerto Rico. Music was a large part of his life from an early age. His first instrument was the violin, but he soon switched to valve trombone, the instrument he played throughout his career. His musical training came mostly from his uncle Manuel Tizol, who was the director of the municipal band and the symphony in San Juan. Throughout his youth, Tizol played in his uncle's band and also gained experience by playing in local operas, ballets and dance bands. In 1920, Tizol joined a band that was traveling to the United States to work in Washington, D.C. The group eventually made it to Washington (traveling as stowaways) and established residence at the Howard Theater, where they played for tour ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Perdido (song)
"Perdido" is a jazz standard composed by Juan Tizol that was recorded on December 3, 1941 by Duke Ellington. However, it is the January 21, 1942, recording of the song on the Victor label by the Ellington orchestra, of which Tizol was a member, that is regarded as the original recording. In 1944, Ervin Drake and Hans Lengsfelder were hired to write lyrics for the song. Background "Perdido" is Spanish and means ''lost'', but also sloppy or indecent. The song refers to Perdido Street in New Orleans. Ella Fitzgerald recording "Perdido" was not usually sung with the Ellington band, the exception being Ella Fitzgerald on her 1957 album ''Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook''. Other recordings Many others recorded the song, including: *Sarah Vaughan *Dinah Washington *Art Tatum *Quincy Jones *The Charlie Parker Quintet *Dave Brubeck *Charles Mingus *Randy Weston *Erroll Garner *Bill Doggett *Harry James Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983) was an Ame ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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