Johnny Richards (born Juan Manuel Cascales, November 2, 1911 – October 7, 1968) 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 ...

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

and composer. He was a pivotal arranger for some of the more adventurous performances by

Stan Kenton Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though K ...

's big band in the 1950s and early 1960, such as '' Cuban Fire!'' and ''

Kenton's West Side Story ''Kenton's West Side Story'' is an album by the Stan Kenton Orchestra recorded in 1961 and released by Capitol Records. It won the Grammy Award in 1962 for Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album, Best Jazz Performance – Large Group (Ins ...

''.

Biography

Richards was born in

Toluca Toluca , officially Toluca de Lerdo , is the States of Mexico, state capital of the State of Mexico as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. With a population of 910,608 as of the 2020 census, Toluca is the fifth most populous city in M ...

, Mexico, to a Spanish father (Juan Cascales y Valero) and a Mexican mother (Maria Celia Arrue aka Marie Cascales), whose parents were Spanish immigrants to Mexico. He entered the United States on August 4, 1919 at Laredo, Texas, along with his mother, three brothers (also professional musicians) and sister: Siblings: * Jose Luis Cascales (Joe) * Carlos Guillermo Cascales (known in the music world as

Chuck Cabot Chuck Cabot ''(né'' Carlos Guillermo Cascales; 16 May 1915 Querétaro, Mexico – 27 December 2007) was an American saxophonist and big band leader. The Chuck Cabot Orchestra launched in 1937 while Cabot (Cascales) was a student at the University ...

) * Maria de los Angeles Cascales (Angeles/Anne Beaufait) * Juan Adolfo Cascales (Jack; 1918–1975), played

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

Richards' father, Juan Cascales y Valero, immigrated earlier, crossing the border at Laredo, Texas, on June 4, 1919. The family lived first in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California and later in

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

, California, where Joe, Johnny, and Chuck attended and graduated from San Fernando High School. In 1930, Richards was living in Fullerton, California, and attending

Fullerton College Fullerton College (FC) is a Public college, public community college in Fullerton, California. The college is part of the California Community Colleges System and the North Orange County Community College District. Established in 1913, it is the ...

. Richards worked in

, California, from the late 1930s to 1952. In 1952, he moved to New York City. He had been arranging for

since 1950 and continued to do so through the mid-1960s. He also led his own bands throughout his career. In addition, he wrote the music for the popular song "Young at Heart" (1953), made famous by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

and others. Richards died October 7, 1968, in New York City, of a brain tumor.Feather, Leonard. "Johnny Richards, Noted Composer, Dies in N.Y." Los Angeles Times. October 10, 1968. PART II, pp. 8
/ref> Reviewers have deemed his style as being influenced by

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 ...

and

Pete Rugolo Pietro "Pete" Rugolo (December 25, 1915 – October 16, 2011) was an American jazz composer, arranger and record producer. Life and career Rugolo was born in San Piero Patti, Sicily. His family emigrated to the United States in 1920 and settle ...

Discography

As leader

* ''Annotations of the Muses'' (Légende, 1955) * ''Something Else by Johnny Richards'' (

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...

, 1956) * ''Wide Range'' (

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

, 1957) * ''Experiments in Sound'' (Capitol, 1958) * ''The Rites of Diablo'' (

Roulette Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning ''little wheel'' which was likely developed from the Italian game Biribi''.'' In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various groupings of numbers, the ...

, 1958) * ''Walk Softly/Run Wild!'' (

Coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

, 1959) * ''My Fair Lady – My Way'' (Roulette, 1964) * ''Aqui Se Habla Español'' (Roulette, 1967) * ''Mosaic Select 17'' (

Mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

, 2005)

As sideman/arranger

With

Charlie Barnet Charles Daly Barnet (October 26, 1913 – September 4, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. His major recordings were "Skyliner", "Cherokee", "The Wrong Idea", "Scotch and Soda", "In a Mizz", and "Southland Shuffle ...

*''The Capitol Big Band Sessions'' (

, 1948–1950) With

Harry James 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 ...

*''

Harry James and His Orchestra 1948–49 ''Harry James and His Orchestra 1948–49'' is a double album by American trumpeter Harry James with The Harry James Orchestra. The album consists of live radio transcripts recorded during 1948 and 1949 and was released in 1969 by Big Band Landmar ...

'' (Big Band Landmarks – Vol. X & XI, 1969) With

*'' Cuban Fire!'' (Capitol, 1956) *''

Back to Balboa ''Back to Balboa'' is an album by bandleader and pianist Stan Kenton featuring performances recorded at the Rendezvous Ballroom in 1958 and released on the Capitol label.Vosbein, PStan Kenton Discographyaccessed April 16, 2016 The liner notes f ...

'' (Capitol, 1958) *'' Two Much!'' (Capitol, 1960) with

Ann Richards Dorothy Ann Richards (née Willis; September 1, 1933 – September 13, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995. A Democrat, she first came to national attention as the Texas State Treasurer, ...

*''

'' (Capitol, 1961) *''

Adventures in Time ''Adventures in Time'' (subtitle ''A Concerto for Orchestra arranged by Johnny Richards'') is an album by the Stan Kenton Orchestra featuring compositions by Johnny Richards recorded in 1962 and released by Capitol Records.Vosbein, PStan Kenton Di ...

'' (Capitol, 1962) as composer arranger and conductor With Hugo Loewenstern *''Who Said Good Music Is Dead?'' (Jazz Art Spectacular LP 1103, 1965)

References

External links

AllMusic biography of Richards 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 ...