King Pleasure (born Clarence Beeks; March 24, 1922 – March 21, 1982) 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 ...

vocalist and an early master of

vocalese Vocalese is a style of jazz singing in which words are added to an instrumental soloist's improvisation. Definition Vocalese uses recognizable lyrics that are sung to pre-existing instrumental solos, as opposed to scat singing, which uses nonsen ...

, where a singer sings words to a well-known instrumental solo.

Biography

Born as Clarence Beeks in

Oakdale, Tennessee Oakdale is a town located along the Emory River in Morgan County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 203 at the 2020 census, a decrease from the 2010 census figure of 212. History Oakdale was originally known as "Honeycutt" after an ear ...

, United States, he moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in the mid-1940s working as a bartender and became a fan of

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 ...

music. King Pleasure first gained attention by singing the

Eddie Jefferson Eddie Jefferson (August 3, 1918 – May 9, 1979) was an American jazz vocalist and lyricist. He is credited as an innovator of vocalese, a musical style in which lyrics are set to an instrumental composition or solo. Jefferson himself claims t ...

vocalese classic "

Moody's Mood For Love "Moody's Mood for Love" is a 1952 song by Eddie Jefferson, whose melody is derived from an improvised solo by jazz saxophonist James Moody (saxophonist), James Moody (and a brief solo in the middle by pianist Thore Swanerud) on a 1949 recording ...

", based on a 1949 James Moody saxophone solo to "

I'm In The Mood For Love "I'm in the Mood for Love" is a popular music, popular song published in 1935 in music, 1935. The music was written by Jimmy McHugh, with the lyrics by Dorothy Fields. The song was introduced by Frances Langford in the movie ''Every Night at Eigh ...

". Pleasure's 1952 recording, his first after signing a contract with the

Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnet ...

label, is considered a jazz classic; the female vocalist featured is

Blossom Dearie Margrethe Blossom Dearie (April 28, 1924 – February 7, 2009) was an American jazz singer and pianist. She had a recognizably light and girlish voice. Profile at AllMusicDearie performed regular engagements in London and New York City over ...

. He and

Betty Carter Betty Carter (born Lillie Mae Jones; May 16, 1929 – September 26, 1998) was an American jazz singer known for her improvisational technique, scatting and other complex musical abilities that demonstrated her vocal talent and imaginative inter ...

also recorded a famous vocalese version of "Red Top", a jazz classic penned by Kansas Citian Ben Kynard and recorded by

Gene Ammons Eugene "Jug" Ammons (April 14, 1925 – August 6, 1974), also known as "The Boss", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. The son of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons, Gene Ammons is remembered for his accessible music, steeped in soul and ...

and others. Other notable recordings include a presciently elegiac version of "

Parker's Mood "Parker's Mood" is a piece of music originally performed by Charlie Parker as an improvised blues in 1948. Vocalese lyrics were later written and recorded by King Pleasure and Eddie Jefferson. Original recording Alto saxophonist Charlie Parker rec ...

", the year before

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

died in 1955, and Pleasure's take on Ammons's "Hittin' The Jug", retitled as "Swan Blues" in 1962. Pleasure has been cited as a significant influence by

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

, especially on his album ''

Astral Weeks ''Astral Weeks'' is the second studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It was recorded at Century Sound Studios in New York during September and October 1968, and released in November of the same year by Warner Bros. Rec ...

''.

Genya Ravan Genya Ravan, a.k.a. Goldie (born Genyusha Zelkovicz; April 19, 1940) is an American rock singer and music producer. She was lead singer of The Escorts, Goldie and the Gingerbreads, and Ten Wheel Drive. Life and career Childhood Ravan was bo ...

, drawing big inspiration for her singing from King Pleasure, recorded "

" with James Moody on her 1972 CBS album ''Genya Ravan''. Pleasure died on March 21, 1982, three days before his 60th birthday.

Discography

10" shellac (78rpm) and 7" vinyl (45rpm) releases

*1952: "Moody Mood For Love" // "Exclamation Blues" (Prestige 924) – Merrill Stepter (trumpet);

Lem Davis Lemuel A. Davis (22 June 1914 – 16 January 1970), was an American jazz alto saxophonist associated with swing music. Born in Tampa, Florida, United States, his career began in the 1940s with pianist Nat Jaffe. Davis played with the Coleman ...

(alto sax); Ray Abrams (tenor sax);

Cecil Payne Cecil Payne (December 14, 1922 – November 27, 2007) was an American jazz baritone saxophonist born in Brooklyn, New York. Payne also played the alto saxophone and flute. He played with other prominent jazz musicians, in particular Dizzy Gilles ...

(baritone sax);

Teacho Wiltshire George "Teacho" Wiltshire (born Audrick Gladstone Wiltshire; September 20, 1909 – September 29, 1968) was a Barbadian-born American R&B pianist, bandleader, arranger, A&R man, and songwriter, who had success in the 1950s and 1960s with mu ...

(piano);

Leonard Gaskin Leonard Gaskin (August 25, 1920 – January 24, 2009) was an American jazz bassist born in New York City. Gaskin played on the early bebop scene at Minton's and Monroe's in New York in the early 1940s. In 1944 he took over Oscar Pettiford's ...

(bass); Teddy Lee (drums); King Pleasure (vocals);

(vocals) – NYC, February 19 *1952: "Red Top" // "Jumpin' With Symphony Sid" (Prestige 821) – Ed Lewis (trumpet); Charlie Ferguson (tenor sax); Ed Swanston (piano);

Peck Morrison John A. "Peck" Morrison (September 11, 1919 – February 25, 1988) was an American jazz bassist. Morrison was classically trained, and was competent on trumpet and percussion in addition to bass. He played in military bands in Italy during World ...

(bass);

Herbie Lovelle Herbie Lovelle (1 June 1924 - April 8, 2009) was an American drummer, who played jazz, R&B, rock, and folk. He was also a studio musician and an actor. Lovelle's uncle was the drummer Arthur Herbert. Lovelle began his career with the trumpeter ...

(drums); King Pleasure (vocals);

(vocals) – NYC, December 12 *1953:
Sometimes I'm Happy
//
This Is Always
(Prestige 860) –

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...

(piano);

Percy Heath Percy Heath (April 30, 1923 – April 28, 2005) was an American jazz bassist, brother of saxophonist Jimmy Heath and drummer Albert Heath, with whom he formed the Heath Brothers in 1975. Heath played with the Modern Jazz Quartet throughout ...

(bass);

Kenny Clarke Kenneth Clarke Spearman (January 9, 1914January 26, 1985), nicknamed Klook, was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. A major innovator of the bebop style of drumming, he pioneered the use of the ride cymbal to keep time rather than the hi-ha ...

(drums); King Pleasure (vocals); Dave Lambert Singers (vocal trio) – NYC, September 29 *1953: "Parker's Mood" // "What Can I Say Dear (After I Say I'm Sorry)" (Prestige 880) – John Lewis (piano); Percy Heath (bass); Kenny Clarke (drums); King Pleasure (vocals) – NYC, December 24 *1954: "I'm Gone" // "You're Crying" (Prestige 908) –

J.J. Johnson J.J. Johnson (January 22, 1924 – February 4, 2001), born James Louis Johnson and also known as Jay Jay Johnson, was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger. Johnson was one of the earliest trombonists to embrace bebop. Biography ...

Kai Winding Kai Chresten Winding ( ; May 18, 1922 – May 6, 1983) was a Danish-born American trombonist and jazz composer. He is known for his collaborations with fellow trombonist J. J. Johnson. His version of "More", the theme from the movie ''Mondo Ca ...

(trombone);

Lucky Thompson Eli "Lucky" Thompson (June 16, 1924 – July 30, 2005) was an American jazz tenor and soprano saxophonist whose playing combined elements of swing music, swing and bebop. Although John Coltrane usually receives the most credit for bringing th ...

(tenor sax);

Danny Bank Daniel Bernard Bank (July 17, 1922 – June 5, 2010) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and flautist. He is credited on some releases as Danny Banks. He was born on July 17, 1922. Early in his career Bank played with Charlie Barnet ...

(baritone sax); Jimmy Jones (piano);

Paul Chambers Paul Laurence Dunbar Chambers Jr. (April 22, 1935 – January 4, 1969) was an American jazz double bassist. A fixture of rhythm sections during the 1950s and 1960s, he has become one of the most widely-known jazz bassists of the hard bop era. ...

(bass); Joe Harris (drums); King Pleasure (vocals);

Jon Hendricks John Carl Hendricks (September 16, 1921 – November 22, 2017), known professionally as Jon Hendricks, was an American jazz lyricist and singer. He is one of the originators of vocalese, which adds lyrics to existing instrumental songs and rep ...

, The Three Riffs (chorus);

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 ...

(arranger, director) – Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ, December 7 *1954: "Don't Get Scared" // "Funk Junction" (Prestige 913) – J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding (trombone); Lucky Thompson (tenor sax); Danny Bank (baritone sax); Jimmy Jones (piano); Paul Chambers (bass); Joe Harris (drums); King Pleasure (vocals); Jon Hendricks, Eddie Jefferson, The Three Riffs (chorus); Quincy Jones (arranger, director) – Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ, December 7 *1955: "Diaper Pin" // "Evening Blues" (Jubilee 5226) – (unknown personnel) *1956: "D.B. Blues" // "Blues I Like To Hear" (Aladdin 3343) – (unknown personnel) *1956: "At Your Beck And Call" // "I'm In The Mood For Love" (Aladdin 3352) – (unknown personnel) *1958: "Red Top" // "Don't Get Scared" (Prestige 45-124) — reissues of Prestige 821A and 913A. *1960: "Jumpin' With Symphony Sid" // "Parker's Mood" (Prestige 45-182) — reissues of Prestige 821B and 880A. *1960: "Golden Days" // "All Of Me" (HiFi Jazz 5004; from ''Golden Days'' album) *1962: "Mean To Me" // "This Is Always" (United Artists 527; from ''Mr. Jazz'' album) *1963: "Don't Get Scared" // "I'm In The Mood For Love" (United Artists 636; from ''Mr. Jazz'' album) *1968: "I'm In The Mood For Love" // "Red Top" (Prestige 45-744) — reissues of Prestige 924A and 821A. *1972: "That Old Black Magic" // "I'm In The Mood For Love" (United Artists 50940; from ''Moody's Mood For Love'' album)

7" EP

*1957: ''King Pleasure Sings'',

#PREP-1338, (four tracks recorded 1952-53 include the singles: Prestige 821A&B, 860A&B).

10" LP

*1955: ''King Pleasure Sings'', Prestige #LP-208, (eight tracks recorded 1952-54 include the singles: Prestige 821A&B, 860A&B, 880A&B, 908A, and 913A).

12" LPs

*1957: ''King Pleasure Sings/Annie Ross Sings'', Prestige #PRLP-7128 — reissue: 1986,

Original Jazz Classics Original Jazz Classics (or OJC) is a record label that founded in 1983 as an imprint of Fantasy Records. Under this name original editions of jazz LPs have been reissued on CD and LP, and formerly on cassette as well. The recordings in the seri ...

#OJC-217 (with four Annie Ross tracks added; these are from ''Annie Ross Sings'', Prestige #PREP-1301). NOTE: the CD reissue has all twelve King Pleasure recordings plus the four Annie Ross tracks. *1960: ''Golden Days'', HiFi Jazz #J-425 — reissue: 1991, Original Jazz Classics #OJC-1772) – King Pleasure (vocals);

Matthew Gee Matthew Gee (November 25, 1925 in Houston, Texas – July 18, 1979 in New York City) was an American bebop trombonist and part-time actor. Gee played trumpet and baritone as a child, and took up the trombone at age 11. After studying at Alabama S ...

(trombone);

Teddy Edwards Theodore Marcus Edwards (April 26, 1924 – April 20, 2003) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Biography Edwards was born in Jackson, Mississippi, United States. He learned to play at a very early age, first on alto saxophone and then ...

Harold Land Harold de Vance Land (December 18, 1928 – July 27, 2001) was an American hard bop and post-bop tenor saxophonist. Land developed his hard bop playing with the Max Roach/ Clifford Brown band into a personal, modern style, often rivalling Cliffor ...

(tenor sax);

Gerald Wiggins Gerald Foster Wiggins (May 12, 1922 – July 13, 2008) was an American jazz pianist and organist. Early life Wiggins was born in New York City on May 12, 1922.Vacher, Pete"Wiggins, Gerry" ''The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz'' (2nd edition). G ...

(piano); Wilfred Middlebrooks (bass);

Earl Palmer Earl Cyril Palmer (October 25, 1924 – September 19, 2008) was an American drummer. Considered one of the inventors of rock and roll, he is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Palmer was one of the most prolific studio musicians of al ...

(drums). *1962: ''Mr. Jazz'',

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...

#UAJ-14012/UAS-15012; 1968, Solid State #SS-18021 – (unknown personnel). *1968: ''Original Moody's Mood'', Prestige #PR-7586. (this is a collection/compilation with all twelve recordings made for the Prestige label). *1972: ''The Source'', Prestige #PR-24017. (2-LP set/reissue of ''Golden Days'' and ''Original Moody's Mood'' albums). *1972: ''Moody's Mood For Love'', United Artists #UAS-5634; — CD reissue: 1992,

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical co ...

#84463. (reissue of ''Mr. Jazz'' album). NOTE: the CD also includes the two Jubilee and the four Aladdin tracks, plus three previously unreleased recordings as a bonus.

References

External links

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

br>Image of Van Morrison holding a King Pleasure album
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pleasure, King 1922 births 1982 deaths Singers from Tennessee Vocalese singers American jazz singers Singers from New York City People from Morgan County, Tennessee Prestige Records artists Bebop singers Scat singers 20th-century American singers Jazz musicians from Tennessee Jazz musicians from New York (state) 20th-century American male singers American male jazz musicians