''April in Paris'' is an

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

by pianist/bandleader

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

and His Orchestra, his first released on the Verve label, recorded in 1955 and 1956.Big Band Paradise
accessed November 20, 2015 The title track was included in the soundtrack of the 2008 video game release

Grand Theft Auto IV ''Grand Theft Auto IV'' is a 2008 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2004's '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'', and the e ...

on the fictitious in-game jazz music radio station "JNR 108.5 (Jazz Nation Radio)".

Reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

awarded the album 5 stars calling it "one of those rare albums that makes its mark as an almost instant classic in the jazz pantheon" and noting "''April in Paris'' proved Count Basie's ability to grow through modern jazz changes while keeping the traditional jazz orchestra vital and alive".

The Rolling Stone Jazz Record 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 1 ...

said it was "a commercial high point for this outfit". The

Penguin Guide to Jazz ''The Penguin Guide to Jazz'' is a reference work containing an encyclopedic directory of jazz recordings on CD which were (at the time of publication) currently available in Europe or the United States. The first nine editions were compiled b ...

awarded the album 3 stars stating "''April in Paris'' is typical Basie fare of the period: bustling charts, leathery solos and pinpoint timing".

Track listing

Original 1957 release

# " April in Paris" (

Vernon Duke Vernon Duke ( 16 January 1969) was a Russian-born American composer/songwriter who also wrote under his birth name, Vladimir Dukelsky. He is best known for " Taking a Chance on Love," with lyrics by Ted Fetter and John Latouche (1940), "I Can' ...

, E.Y. "Yip" Harburg) – 3:47 # " Corner Pocket" (

Freddie Green Frederick William Green (March 31, 1911 – March 1, 1987) was an American swing jazz guitarist who played rhythm guitar with the Count Basie Orchestra for almost fifty years. Early life and education Green was born in Charleston, South Car ...

) – 5:15 # "Didn't You?" ( Frank Foster) – 4:43 # "Sweetie Cakes" ( Ernest Brooks "Ernie" Wilkins) – 3:58 # "Magic" (

Frank Wess Frank Wellington Wess (January 4, 1922 – October 30, 2013) was an American jazz saxophonist and flutist. In addition to his extensive solo work, Wess is remembered for his time in Count Basie's band from the early 1950s into the 1960s. Critic ...

) – 3:06 # "Shiny Stockings" (Frank Foster) – 5:14 # "What Am I Here For" (

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was bas ...

Frankie Laine Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final ...

) – 3:19 # "Midgets" ( Joe Newman) – 3:13 # "Mambo Inn" (Mario Bauzá, Edgar Melvin Sampson, Bobby Woodlen) – 3:23 # "Dinner with Friends" (

Neal Hefti Neal Paul Hefti (October 29, 1922 – October 11, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and arranger. He wrote music for '' The Odd Couple'' movie and TV series and for the ''Batman'' TV series. He began arranging professionally in his ...

) – 3:05

Bonus tracks on 1997 CD reissue

"April In Paris" nd Take(Duke, Harburg) - 3:45

# "Corner Pocket" nd Take(Green) - 4:59 # "Didn't You?" rd Take(Foster) - 4:50 # "Magic" st Take(Wess) - 3:42 # "Magic" nd Take(Wess) - 3:50 # "What Am I Here For?" st Take(Ellington) - 4:06 # "Midgets" th Take(Newman) - 3:11 *Recorded at Fine Sound in New York City on July 26, 1955 (tracks 1-4 and 11–13), January 4, 1956 (track 5-8 and 14–17) and January 5, 1956 (tracks 9 and 10)

Personnel

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 keyboa ...

Wendell Culley Wendell Philips Culley (January 8, 1906 in Worcester, Massachusetts – May 8, 1983 in Los Angeles, CA) was an American jazz trumpeter and occasional multi instrumentalist. Growing up in Worcester, Culley played regularly at the AME Zion Chu ...

(tracks 1-7 & 9–16),

Reunald Jones Reunald Jones Sr. (December 22, 1910 – February 26, 1989), was an American jazz trumpeter, who worked in big bands and as a studio musician. He played lead trumpet with the Count Basie Orchestra (1952–57). Career A native of Indianapolis, Ind ...

(tracks 1-7 & 9–16),

Thad Jones Thaddeus Joseph Jones (March 28, 1923 – August 20, 1986) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader who has been called "one of the all-time greatest jazz trumpet soloists". Biography Thad Jones was born in Pontiac, Michigan, U ...

(tracks 1-7 & 9–16), Joe Newman -

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 ...

Henry Coker Henry Coker (December 24, 1919 – November 23, 1979) was an American jazz trombonist. Biography Coker was born in Dallas, Texas, United States. He made his professional debut with John White in 1935. From 1937 to 1939 he played with Nat Towles' ...

, Bill Hughes,

Benny Powell Benny Powell (March 1, 1930 – June 26, 2010) was an American jazz trombonist. He played both standard (tenor) trombone and bass trombone. Biography Born Benjamin Gordon Powell Jr in New Orleans, Louisiana, he first played professionally ...

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

(tracks 1-7 & 9–16) *

Marshall Royal Marshal Walton Royal Jr. (December 5, 1912 – May 8, 1995) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and clarinetist best known for his work with Count Basie, with whose band he played for nearly twenty years. Early life and education Marshal Royal ...

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 t ...

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitch ...

(tracks 1-7 & 9–16) * Bill Graham - alto saxophone (tracks 1-7 & 9–16) *

- alto saxophone,

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedles ...

, clarinet *Frank Foster - tenor saxophone, clarinet (tracks 1-7 & 9–16) *

Charlie Fowlkes Charles Baker Fowlkes (February 16, 1916 – February 9, 1980) was an American baritone saxophonist who was a member of the Count Basie Orchestra for over twenty-five years. Early life Fowlkes was born in New York City on February 16, 1916. He stu ...

baritone saxophone The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contrab ...

bass clarinet The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays notes an octave ...

(tracks 1-7 & 9–16) *

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

* Eddie Jones - bass * Sonny Payne - drums * José Mangual, Sr., Ubaldo Nieto -

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

(track 9) * William "Wild Bill" Davis (tracks 1 & 11),

(track 10), Frank Foster (tracks 3, 6, 7, 9, 13 & 16), Joe Newman (tracks 8 & 17),

Ernie Wilkins Ernest Brooks Wilkins Jr. (July 20, 1922 – June 5, 1999) was an American jazz saxophonist, conductor and arranger who spent several years with Count Basie. He also wrote for Tommy Dorsey, Harry James, and Dizzy Gillespie. He was musical direc ...

(track 2, 4, 12) - arranger

References

{{Authority control 1956 albums Count Basie Orchestra albums Verve Records albums Albums arranged by Ernie Wilkins Albums arranged by Frank Foster (musician) Albums arranged by Neal Hefti Albums produced by Norman Granz