Philip L. Bodner (June 13, 1917 – February 24, 2008) was an American jazz clarinetist and studio musician who also played flute, oboe, saxophone, and English horn.
Career
A native of
Waterbury, Connecticut
Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 20 ...
, Bodner worked as a studio musician in the 1940s and 1950s in New York City. He recorded with
Benny Goodman
Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing".
From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...
in 1958 and with
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...
and
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 ...
in 1958. In the 1960s he played with
Oliver Nelson
Oliver Edward Nelson (June 4, 1932 – October 28, 1975) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, composer, and bandleader. His 1961 Impulse! album '' The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' (1961) is regarded as one of the most signifi ...
and
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 ...
, and organized
The Brass Ring
The Brass Ring was a group of American studio musicians led by saxophonist and arranger Phil Bodner. The band was based in New York City and was stylistically similar to The Tijuana Brass, The Brass Buttons, the Baja Marimba Band, and other "Now ...
, a group modeled after
Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass
Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter who led the band Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in the 1960s. During the same decade, he co-founded A&M Records with Jerry Moss. Alpert has recorded 28 albums that have landed on the ...
. The Brass Ring released nine albums between 1966 and 1972. Associations in the 1970s included
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, ...
,
Yusef Lateef
Yusef Abdul Lateef (born William Emanuel Huddleston; October 9, 1920 – December 23, 2013) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and prominent figure among the Ahmadiyya Community in America.
Although Lateef's main instruments ...
,
Peanuts Hucko
Michael Andrew "Peanuts" Hucko (April 7, 1918 – June 19, 2003) was an American big band musician. His primary instrument was the clarinet, but he sometimes played saxophone.
Early life and education
He was born in Syracuse, New York, United St ...
,
Wild Bill Davison
William Edward Davison (January 5, 1906 – November 14, 1989), nicknamed "Wild Bill", was an American jazz cornetist. He emerged in the 1920s through his work playing alongside Muggsy Spanier and Frank Teschemacher in a cover band where they ...
, and Ralph Sutton.
Bodner played the signature piccolo part on the disco hit " The Hustle" by
Van McCoy
Van Allen Clinton McCoy (January 6, 1940 – July 6, 1979) was an American musician, record producer, arranger, songwriter, singer and orchestra conductor. He is known for his 1975 internationally successful song " The Hustle". He has approximat ...
. Other work in the 1970s included playing with Ralph Sutton and
Johnny Varro
Johnny Varro (born 1930) is a pianist with roots in the swing style of jazz. He is also a leader and arranger.
Commodore Music Shop
Varro was born in Brooklyn, New York. He began studying piano at the age of ten. During his teenage years, he wa ...
, working with
Mingus Epitaph
''Epitaph'' is a composition by jazz musician Charles Mingus. It is 4,235 measures long, takes more than two hours to perform, and was only completely discovered during the cataloguing process after his death. With the help of a grant from the Fo ...
, and arranging
Louie Bellson
Louie Bellson (born Luigi Paulino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni, July 6, 1924 – February 14, 2009), often seen in sources as Louis Bellson, although he himself preferred the spelling Louie, was an American jazz drummer. He was a composer, ...
's tribute to
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 based ...
's ''
Black, Brown and Beige
''Black, Brown and Beige'' is an extended jazz work written by Duke Ellington for his first concert at Carnegie Hall, on January 23, 1943. It tells the history of African Americans and was the composer's daring attempt to transform attitudes abo ...
''. He worked in a swing style with
Marty Napoleon
Marty Napoleon (June 2, 1921 – April 27, 2015) was an American jazz pianist. He replaced Earl Hines in Louis Armstrong's All Stars band in 1952. In 1946 he worked with Gene Krupa and went on to work with his uncle Phil Napoleon, a trumpeter, in ...
,
Mel Lewis
Melvin Sokoloff (May 10, 1929 – February 2, 1990), known professionally as Mel Lewis, was an American jazz drummer, session musician, professor, and author. He received fourteen Grammy Award nominations.
Biography
Early years
Lewis was ...
, and
George Duvivier
George Duvivier (August 17, 1920 – July 11, 1985) was an American jazz double-bassist.
Biography
Duvivier was born in New York City, the son of Leon V. Duvivier and Ismay Blakely Duvivier. He attended the Conservatory of Music and Art, where ...
in the 1980s and played with
Maxine Sullivan
Maxine Sullivan (May 13, 1911 – April 7, 1987), born Marietta Williams in Homestead, Pennsylvania, United States, was an American jazz vocalist and performer.
As a vocalist, Sullivan was active for half a century, from the mid-1930s to just be ...
and
Barbara Carroll
Barbara Carroll (born Barbara Carole Coppersmith; January 25, 1925 – February 12, 2017) was an American jazz pianist and vocalist.
Early life and career
Carroll was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. She began her classical training in piano at ...
. Jazzmania released his album ''Jammin' at Phil's Place'' in 1990 .Bodner died on February 24, 2008 at age 90.Philip Bodner Obituary Legacy.com. accessdate July 15, 2018
Discography
As leader
* ''The Greatest Sax in the World'' (Billed as Mr. Phil B for contractual concerns) (
Kapp Records
Kapp Records was an independent record label started in 1954 by David Kapp, brother of Jack Kapp (who set up American Decca Records in 1934). David Kapp founded his own label after stints with Decca and RCA Victor. Kapp licensed its records to L ...
, 1966)
* ''Fine and Dandy'' ( Stash, 1981)
* ''Jammin' at Phil's Place'' (Jazzmania, 1994)
* ''The Genius of Phil Bodner'' (Alanna, 2003)
* ''Clarinet Virtuosity: Once More with Feeling!'' ( Arbors, 2006)
With Brass Ring
* ''Love Theme from the Flight of the Phoenix'' ( Dunhill, 1966)
* ''Lara's Theme'' (Dunhill, 1966)
* ''Sunday Night at the Movies'' (Dunhill, 1967)
* ''The Disadvantages of You'' (Dunhill, 1967)
* ''The Now Sound of the Brass Ring'' (Dunhill, 1967)
* ''Gazpacho'' (Dunhill, 1968)
* ''Only Love'' (Dunhill, 1968)
* ''The Evolution of the Brass Ring'' (Itco, 1969)
* ''The Brass Ring Featuring Phil Bodner'' (Project 3, 1972)
As sideman
*
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 ...
, ''
White Rabbit
The White Rabbit is a fictional and anthropomorphic character in Lewis Carroll's 1865 book ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''. He appears at the very beginning of the book, in chapter one, wearing a waistcoat, and muttering "Oh dear! Oh dear! ...
Mel Davis
Melvyn Jerome Davis (born November 9, 1950) is an American former professional basketball player.
A 6'6" power forward from St. John's University, Davis played four seasons (1973–1977) in the National Basketball Association as a member of the ...
,
Dick Hyman
Richard Hyman (born March 8, 1927) is an American jazz pianist and composer. Over a 70-year career, he has worked as a pianist, organist, arranger, music director, electronic musician, and composer. He was named a National Endowment for the Art ...
,
Bobby Rosengarden
Robert Marshall Rosengarden (April 23, 1924 – February 27, 2007) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. A native of Elgin, Illinois, United States, he played on many recordings and in television orchestras and talk show bands.
Rosenga ...
, ''Living Jazz: Dear Heart and Other Favorites'' (
RCA Camden
The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
, 1965)
*
Joey DeFrancesco
Joey DeFrancesco (April 10, 1971August 25, 2022) was an American jazz organist, trumpeter, saxophonist, and occasional singer. He released more than 30 albums under his own name, and recorded extensively as a sideman with such leading jazz perfo ...
, ''
Where Were You?
''Where Were You?'' is the second album led by jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco which was released on the Columbia label in 1990.Columbia, 1990)
*
Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Randolph Hawkins (November 21, 1904 – May 19, 1969), nicknamed "Hawk" and sometimes "Bean", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.Yanow, Scot"Coleman Hawkins: Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved December 27, 2013. One of the first p ...
, ''
The Hawk in Hi Fi
''The Hawk in Hi Fi'' is an album by saxophonist Coleman Hawkins with an orchestra arranged and conducted by Billy Byers. It was recorded in early 1956 and released on the RCA Victor label.
Reception
Scott Yanow of AllMusic states: "Hawkins is t ...
'' (
RCA Victor
RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...
, 1956)
*
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for an unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a dist ...
, ''
Fusion! Wes Montgomery with Strings
''Fusion!: Wes Montgomery with Strings'' is an album by the American jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, released in 1963.
History
''Fusion'' was the first album Montgomery recorded with a string section. This would become more commonplace on his late ...
'' (
Riverside
Riverside may refer to:
Places Australia
* Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania
Canada
* Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon
* Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta
* Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...
, 1963)
*
Cal Tjader
Callen Radcliffe Tjader Jr. ( ; July 16, 1925 – May 5, 1982) was an American Latin Jazz musician, known as the most successful non-Latino Latin musician. He explored other jazz idioms, even as he continued to perform music of Afro-Jazz, ...
, ''
Several Shades of Jade
''Several Shades of Jade'' is a 1963 album by Cal Tjader arranged by Lalo Schifrin.
It peaked at 79 on the Billboard 200.
Reception
Stewart Mason reviewed the album for Allmusic and wrote that of Tjader and Schifrin's collaboration that it was " ...
'' (
Verve
Verve may refer to:
Music
* The Verve, an English rock band
* ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve
* ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album)
* Verve Records, an American jazz record label
Businesses
* Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...
, 1963)
*
Joe Wilder
Joseph Benjamin Wilder (February 22, 1922 – May 9, 2014) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer.
Wilder was awarded the Temple University Jazz Master's Hall of Fame Award in 2006. The National Endowment for the Arts honored h ...
, ''
The Pretty Sound
''The Pretty Sound'' is an album led by jazz trumpeter Joe Wilder recorded in 1959 and first released on the Columbia Records, Columbia label.
'' (Columbia, 1959)
*
Cootie Williams
Charles Melvin "Cootie" Williams (July 10, 1911 – September 15, 1985) was an American jazz, jump blues, and rhythm and blues trumpeter.
Biography
Born in Mobile, Alabama, Williams began his professional career at the age of 14 with the Yo ...
, ''
Cootie Williams in Hi-Fi
''Cootie Williams in Hi-Fi'' is an album by trumpeter Cootie Williams, recorded in 1958 and released on the RCA Victor label.
Barry Kernfeld
Barry Dean Kernfeld (born August 11, 1950) is an American musicologist and jazz saxophonist who has researched and published extensively about the history of jazz and the biographies of its musicians.
Education
In 1968, Kernfeld enrolled at U ...