Harry Lookofsky (1 October 1913 – 8 June 1998) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

ist. He was also the father of keyboardist-songwriter Michael Brown, who most notably was a founding member of

The Left Banke The Left Banke was an American baroque pop band, formed in New York City in 1965. They are best remembered for their two U.S. hit singles, "Walk Away Renée" and "Pretty Ballerina". The band often used what the music press referred to as "baroqu ...

and Stories.

History

Harry Lookofsky was born in

Paducah, Kentucky Paducah ( ) is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of McCracken County, Kentucky. The largest city in the Jackson Purchase region, it is located at the confluence of the Tennessee and the Ohio rivers, halfway between St. Louis, Missour ...

in 1913 and studied classical

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

where he joined the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in the mid 1930s. An early admirer of

Joe Venuti Giuseppe "Joe" Venuti (September 16, 1903 – August 14, 1978) was an American jazz musician and pioneer jazz violinist. Considered the father of jazz violin, he pioneered the use of string instruments in jazz along with the guitarist Eddie La ...

, Lookofsky eventually became recognized as one of the earliest accomplished

bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrumen ...

jazz violinists. His technique became particularly recognized on his album ''Stringsville'' (1959, Atlantic). Lookofsky was one of many early jazz violinists who occasionally played

tenor violin A tenor violin (or tenor viola) is an instrument with a range between those of the cello and the viola. An earlier development of the evolution of the violin family of instruments, the instrument is not standard in the modern symphony orchestra. I ...

, an instrument he cited for its similar tonal qualities to the

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 th ...

. Another relatively unknown unique characteristic about Lookofsky's playing is that the bebop solos on ''Stringsville'' were completely written out and arranged as opposed to improvised as most jazz musicians do. An accomplished studio musician, Lookofsky also experimented heavily with

multitrack recording Multitrack recording (MTR), also known as multitracking or tracking, is a method of sound recording developed in 1955 that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources or of sound sources recorded at different times to create a ...

in order to produce a unique sound with several overlaid violin tracks meant to imitate the sound of a horn section in a

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

orchestra. Following his departure from St. Louis in 1938, Lookofsky joined the

NBC Symphony Orchestra The NBC Symphony Orchestra was a radio orchestra conceived by David Sarnoff, the president of the Radio Corporation of America, especially for the conductor Arturo Toscanini. The NBC Symphony performed weekly radio concert broadcasts with Tosca ...

under

Arturo Toscanini Arturo Toscanini (; ; March 25, 1867January 16, 1957) was an Italian conductor. He was one of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the late 19th and early 20th century, renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orch ...

for a time while continuing to play jazz on the side. He continued his career as a classical symphony violinist later as concertmaster at

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

following Toscanini's retirement in 1954. ''Stringsville'' was Lookofsky's one major feature release. Aside from his classical and studio recording work, he was more often a contributing artist and/or arranger on other's albums. Over the years, his many jazz collaborators included

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

Jaco Pastorius John Francis Anthony "Jaco" Pastorius III (; December 1, 1951 – September 21, 1987) was an American jazz bass guitar, bassist, composer and producer. He recorded albums as a solo artist and band leader and was a member of Weather Report from 1 ...

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "Jazz royalty, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine ...

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, pla ...

, and

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives fo ...

. Lookofsky co-produced the pop hit, "

Walk Away Renée "Walk Away Renée" is a song written by Michael Brown, Bob Calilli, and Tony Sansone for the band the Left Banke, released as a single in July 1966. Steve Martin Caro is featured on lead vocals. It spent 13 weeks on the US charts, with a top s ...

", by

, which was co-written by his son, Michael Brown, a founding member of the group. The arrangement was heavily influenced by classical music. Lookofsky also played strings on songs recorded by Stories, his son Michael's later band. Lookofsky’s archives are held at the American Roots Program at Berklee School of Music in Boston.

Selected discography

*''Stringsville'' (1958, Atlantic) *''Together!/Miracle in Strings'' (1994 reissue, Columbia). ''Together!'' is an album by

Herb Ellis Mitchell Herbert Ellis (August 4, 1921 – March 28, 2010), known professionally as Herb Ellis, was an American jazz guitarist. During the 1950s, he was in a trio with pianist Oscar Peterson. Biography Born in Farmersville, Texas, and raised ...

and

Stuff Smith Hezekiah Leroy Gordon Smith (August 14, 1909 – September 25, 1967), better known as Stuff Smith, was an American jazz violinist. He is well known for the song "If You're a Viper" (the original title was "You'se a Viper"). Smith was, alo ...

Selected albums appeared on

*''

The Ballad Artistry of Milt Jackson ''The Ballad Artistry of Milt Jackson'' is an album by vibraphonist Milt Jackson featuring performances recorded in 1959 and released on the Atlantic label.

'' (Atlantic, 1959) -

Milt Jackson Milton Jackson (January 1, 1923 – October 9, 1999), nicknamed "Bags", was an American jazz vibraphonist, usually thought of as a bebop player, although he performed in several jazz idioms. He is especially remembered for his cool swinging solo ...

*''

Blues Shout ''Blues Shout'' is an album by saxophonist Leo Wright featuring performances recorded in 1960 for the Atlantic label.Leo Wright Leo Wright (December 14, 1933 in Wichita Falls, Texas – January 4, 1991 in Vienna) was an American jazz musician who played alto saxophone, flute and clarinet. He played with Charles Mingus, Booker Ervin, John Hardee, Kenny Burrell, Johnny Co ...

) *''

The Song Is Paris ''The Song Is Paris'' is an album by American jazz vocalist and guitarist Jackie Paris recorded in 1962 for the Impulse! label.

'' (1962, Impulse! -

Jackie Paris 'Carlo Jackie Paris (September 20, 1924 – June 17, 2004) was an American jazz singer and guitarist. He is best known for his recordings of "Skylark" and " 'Round Midnight" from the late 1940s to the early 1950s. Music career Early years Paris ...

) *''

The Body & the Soul ''The Body & the Soul'' is an album by trumpeter Freddie Hubbard recorded in 1963 as his second and last release on the Impulse! label. It features performances by Hubbard with an orchestra and string section, and with a septet featuring Cur ...

'' (1963, Impulse! -

) *''

The Individualism of Gil Evans ''The Individualism of Gil Evans'' is an album by pianist, conductor, arranger and composer Gil Evans originally released on the Verve label in 1964. It features Evans' big band arrangements of five original compositions (two cowritten with Miles ...

'' (1964, Verve -

Gil Evans Ian Ernest Gilmore Evans (né Green; May 13, 1912 – March 20, 1988) was a Canadian–American jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest orchestrators in jazz, playing an important role ...

) *''Who Can I Turn To'' (1964, Sony Music -

Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (born August 3, 1926), known professionally as Tony Bennett, is an American retired singer of traditional pop standards, big band, show tunes, and jazz. Bennett is also a painter, having created works under his birth ...

) *''Sarah Vaughn Sings the Mancini Songbook'' (1965, Verve -

) *''

Child Is Father to the Man ''Child Is Father to the Man'' is the debut album by Blood, Sweat & Tears, released in February 1968. It reached number 47 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart in the United States. History As a teenager, Al Kooper went to a concert for jazz trumpe ...

'' (1968, Columbia -

Blood, Sweat & Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is a jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. In addition to original music, the group has performed popular songs by Laura Ny ...

) *'' Stone Flower'' (1970, CTI -

Antônio Carlos Jobim Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim (25 January 1927 – 8 December 1994), also known as Tom Jobim (), was a Brazilian composer, pianist, guitarist, songwriter, arranger, and singer. Considered one of the great exponents of Brazilian mu ...

) *''

Smackwater Jack ''Smackwater Jack'' is a 1971 studio album by Quincy Jones. Tracks include the theme music to '' Ironside'' and ''The Bill Cosby Show''. Track listing # " Smackwater Jack" (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) – 3:31 # "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" (Vin ...

'' (1971, A&M Records -

) *'' Marlena'' (1972, Blue Note -

Marlena Shaw Marlena Shaw (born Marlina Burgess, September 22, 1942) is an American jazz, blues and soul music, soul singer. Shaw began her singing career in the 1960s and is still singing today. Her music has often been sampled in Hip hop music, hip hop mus ...

) *''

Sophisticated Lou ''Sophisticated Lou'' is an album by jazz saxophonist Lou Donaldson recorded for the Blue Note label featuring Donaldson with Joe Farrell, Paul Winter, Joe Venuto, Derek Smith, Jay Berliner, Richard Davis, Ron Carter, Grady Tate, and Omar C ...

'' (1973, Blue Note -

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 ...

) *''

Polar AC ''Polar AC'' is a compilation album by jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard. It was his final album released on Creed Taylor's CTI label and features performances by Hubbard, Hubert Laws, George Benson, Junior Cook, and Ron Carter. It was put toget ...

'' (1974, CTI -

) *'' Night Lights (Elliott Murphy album)'' (1975, RCA -

Elliott Murphy Elliott James Murphy (born March 16, 1949) is an American rock singer-songwriter, novelist, record producer and journalist living in Paris. Biography Elliott Murphy was born in Rockville Centre, New York, grew up in Garden City, Long Island a ...

) *''

Windjammer A windjammer is a commercial sailing ship with multiple masts that may be square rigged, or fore-and-aft rigged, or a combination of the two. The informal term "windjammer" arose during the transition from the Age of Sail to the Age of Steam ...

'' (1977, Columbia -

) *'' Sounds...and Stuff Like That!!'' (1978, A&M Records -

) *''In Your Eyes'' (1978, Collectables -

) *"Collaboration" (1988 EmArcy,

Helen Merrill Helen Merrill (born Jelena Ana Milcetic; July 21, 1930) is an American jazz vocalist. Her first album, the eponymous 1954 recording '' Helen Merrill'' (with Clifford Brown), was an immediate success and associated her with the first generation ...

) *''Standards'' (1998, Rhino -

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

)

Sources

References

External links

Harry Lookofsky discography on CD Universe
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lookofsky, Harry 1913 births 1998 deaths American jazz violinists American male violinists Record producers from Kentucky Musicians from Paducah, Kentucky 20th-century American violinists 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American male musicians Jazz musicians from Kentucky American male jazz musicians American people of Russian-Jewish descent