Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
– May 8, 1983 in Los Angeles, CA) 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 m ...
trumpeter and occasional multi instrumentalist.
Growing up in Worcester, Culley played regularly at the AME Zion Church, in the Commerce High School band, and occasionally with Mamie Moffitt and Her Five Jazz Hounds. He also played in Boots Ward's Nite Hawks, and in working groups with his brother Ray, a drummer and singer. His older sister is actress, Zara Cully, best known for her role as Olivia 'Mother Jefferson' Jefferson on the CBS sitcom The Jeffersons.
In 1931, he moved to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
, where he found early work playing with Horace Henderson and Cab Calloway. He then spent 11 years in the employ of
Noble Sissle
Noble Lee Sissle (July 10, 1889 – December 17, 1975) was an American jazz composer, lyricist, bandleader, singer, and playwright, best known for the Broadway musical ''Shuffle Along'' (1921), and its hit song "I'm Just Wild About Harry".
Ea ...
, recording with him extensively. Following this, he played French horn with
Harry James and His Orchestra
Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983) was an American musician who is best known as a trumpet-playing band leader who led a big band from 1939 to 1946. He broke up his band for a short period in 1947 but shortly after he reorganized ...
on a 1942 recording, then tenor saxophone on a 1943-1951
Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the 1950s songs". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performe ...
recording, Lionel Hampton (1944–49) and then worked again briefly with Sissle before playing in the
Count Basie Orchestra
The Count Basie Orchestra is a 16 to 18 piece big band, one of the most prominent jazz performing groups of the swing era, founded by Count Basie in 1935 and recording regularly from 1936. Despite a brief disbandment at the beginning of the 195 ...
from 1951 to 1959. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he doubled on trombone with a Billy Eckstine recording.
After working with Basie, Culley retired from music and pursued a career in
insurance
Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...
.
Discography
With
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 ...
*''
The Count!
''The Count!'' is an album by pianist/bandleader Count Basie recorded in 1952 and released on the Clef label in 1955.955
Year 955 ( CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I ("the Great") defeats the Hungarians (also ...
*''
Basie Jazz
''Basie Jazz'' is an album by pianist/bandleader Count Basie recorded in 1952 and released on the Clef label in 1954.954
Year 954 ( CMLIV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* Spring – A Hungarian army led by Bulcsú crosses the Rhine. He camps at Worms in th ...
*''
Dance Session
''Dance Session'' is an album by pianist/bandleader Count Basie recorded in 1953 and became Basie's first 12-inch LP when it was originally released on the Clef label.
Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings
''Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings'' is an album by pianist/bandleader Count Basie and vocalist Joe Williams recorded in 1955 and originally released on the Clef label.Joe Williams
*'' April in Paris'' (Verve, 1956)
*''
The Greatest!! Count Basie Plays, Joe Williams Sings Standards
''The Greatest!! Count Basie Plays, Joe Williams Sings Standards'' is an album by vocalist Joe Williams and pianist/bandleader Count Basie and His Orchestra recorded in 1956 and released on the Verve label.Metronome All-Stars 1956
''Metronome All-Stars 1956'' was the final album by the Metronome All-Stars, a loose amalgamation of musicians representing winners of ''Metronome'' magazine's annual poll. This 1956 release contains four tracks documenting the first collaborati ...
'' (Clef, 1956) with
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...
959
Year 959 ( CMLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* April - May – The Byzantines refuse to pay the yearly tribute. A Hungari ...
*''
Basie in London
''Basie in London'' is a 1956 live album by Count Basie and his orchestra, recorded (despite the inaccurate album title) in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Track listing
# "Jumpin' at the Woodside" (Count Basie, Jon Hendricks) – 3:38
# "Shiny Stockin ...
'' (Verve, 1956)
*''
One O'Clock Jump
"One O'Clock Jump" is a jazz standard, a 12-bar blues instrumental, written by Count Basie in 1937.
Background
The melody derived from band members' riffs—Basie rarely wrote down musical ideas, so Eddie Durham and Buster Smith helped him cry ...
'' (Verve, 1957) with Joe Williams and Ella Fitzgerald
*''
Count Basie at Newport
''Count Basie at Newport'' is a live album by jazz musician Count Basie and his orchestra. It was originally issued as Verve MGV 8243 and included only the tracks 1-7 and 13. Tracks 9-12 originally included in ''Count Basie & Joe Williams/Dizzy G ...
Lambert, Hendricks & Ross
Lambert, Hendricks & Ross were an American vocalese trio formed by jazz vocalists Dave Lambert, Jon Hendricks and Annie Ross. From 1962 to 1964, Ross was replaced by vocalist Yolande Bavan.
History
The group formed in 1957 and recorded their f ...
Everyday I Have the Blues
"Every Day I Have the Blues" is a blues song that has been performed in a variety of styles. An early version of the song is attributed to Pinetop Sparks and his brother Milton. It was first performed in the taverns of St. Louis by the Spark ...
'' (Roulette, 1959) with Joe Williams
*''
The Count Basie Story
''Count Basie Story'' is a double album by pianist, composer and bandleader Count Basie featuring tracks originally performed by his orchestra in the 1930s and 1940s rerecorded in 1960 as a celebration of its 25th anniversary
and first released on ...