''Cootie Williams and His Orchestra 1941–1944'' is a compilation album of recordings by

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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

trumpeter

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 ...

from 1941, 1942, and 1944 (no recordings were made in 1943 due to the

1942–44 musicians' strike Year 194 ( CXCIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Septimius and Septimius (or, less frequently, year 947 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 194 for thi ...

). It was released by

Classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

in 1995. The April 1, 1942, session includes the first recording of " Epistrophy" (titled "Fly Right" here), written by

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk ( October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the Jazz standard, standard jazz repertoire, includ ...

Kenny Clarke Kenneth Clarke Spearman (January 9, 1914January 26, 1985), known professionally as Kenny Clarke and 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 ...

, and Cootie Williams earlier the same year. The August 22, 1944, session includes the first recording of Monk's " 'Round Midnight". The January 4, 1944, session marks the recording debut of

Bud Powell Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was an American jazz pianist and composer. A pioneer in the development of bebop and its associated contributions to jazz theory,Grove Powell's application of complex phrasing to ...

, then aged 20. The January 6, 1944, session features two of

Pearl Bailey Pearl Mae Bailey (March 29, 1918 – August 17, 1990) was an American actress, singer, comedian and author. After appearing in vaudeville, she made her Broadway debut in '' St. Louis Woman'' in 1946. She received a Special Tony Award for the ti ...

's earliest recordings.

Track listing

''All songs were written by

, except where noted.'' # "West End Blues" (

King Oliver Joseph Nathan "King" Oliver (December 19, 1881 – April 10, 1938) was an American jazz cornet player and bandleader. He was particularly recognized for his playing style and his pioneering use of mutes in jazz. Also a notable composer, he wro ...

, Clarence Williams) – 3:08 # " Ain't Misbehavin'" (

Fats Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star ...

, Henry Brooks,

Andy Razaf Andy Razaf (born Andriamanantena Paul Razafinkarefo; December 16, 1895 – February 3, 1973) was the American lyricist of such well-known songs as " Ain't Misbehavin'" and " Honeysuckle Rose". He was also a composer, poet and vocalist. Biograph ...

) – 2:38 # "Blues in My Condition" – 2:52 # "G-Men" – 2:41 # "Sleepy Valley" (unknown) – 2:54 # "Marcheta" (

Victor Schertzinger Victor L. Schertzinger (April 8, 1888 – October 26, 1941) was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include ''Paramount on Parade'' (co-director, 1930 in film, 1930), ''Something to Sing About (1937 fi ...

) – 3:02 # "When My Baby Left Me" (

Eddie Vinson Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson (born Edward L. Vinson Jr.; December 18, 1917 – July 2, 1988) was an American jump blues, jazz, bebop and rhythm and blues, R&B alto saxophonist and blues shouter. He was nicknamed "Cleanhead" after an incident in wh ...

, Williams) – 2:38 # "Fly Right" (aka " Epistrophy") (

) – 2:30 # "You Talk a Little Trash" – 2:59 # "Floogie Boo" (Vinson, Williams) – 2:36 # "I Don't Know" (Vinson, Williams) – 3:14 # "Do Some War Work, Baby" (aka "Gotta Do Some War Work") – 3:06 # "My Old Flame" ( Arthur Johnston,

Sam Coslow Sam Coslow (December 27, 1902 – April 2, 1982) was an American songwriter, singer, film producer, publisher and market analyst. Coslow was born in New York City. He began writing songs as a teenager. He contributed songs to Broadway revues, ...

) – 3:16 # "

Sweet Lorraine "Sweet Lorraine" is a popular song with music by Cliff Burwell and words by Mitchell Parish that was published in 1928 and has become a jazz standard. It is written in F major and has an AABA structure. A version by Teddy Wilson charted in Octo ...

" (

Cliff Burwell Clifford R. Burwell (October 6, 1898 – October 10, 1976) was an American pianist and composer. He was born in New Haven, Connecticut on October 6, 1898. His most popular composition was "Sweet Lorraine," with lyrics by Mitchell Parish. He playe ...

Mitchell Parish Mitchell Parish (born Michael Hyman Pashelinsky; July 10, 1900 – March 31, 1993) was an American lyricist, notably as a writer of songs for stage and screen. Biography Parish was born to a Jewish family in Lithuania, Russian Empire in July 190 ...

) – 3:06 # "

Echoes of Harlem "Echoes of Harlem", also known as "Cootie's Concerto", is a 1936 composition by Duke Ellington. A piece with a jazz blues sound in F minor with an ostinato piano pattern, it has been cited as one of Ellington's "mood" pieces. It opens with trumpet, ...

" (

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...

) – 3:05 # " Honeysuckle Rose" (Waller, Razaf) – 3:06 # "Now I Know" (

Harold Arlen Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck; February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American composer of popular music, who composed over 500 songs, a number of which have become known worldwide. In addition to composing the songs for the 1939 film ' ...

Ted Koehler Ted L. Koehler (July 14, 1894 – January 17, 1973) was an American lyricist. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1972. Life and career Koehler was born in 1894 in Washington, D.C. He started out as a photo-engraver, but ...

) – 3:02 # "Tess's Torch Song" (aka "I Had a Man") (Arlen, Koehler) – 2:33 # "Cherry Red Blues" (

Bob Haggart Robert Sherwood Haggart (March 13, 1914 – December 2, 1998) was an American dixieland jazz double bass player, composer, and arranger. Although he is associated with dixieland, he was one of the finest rhythm bassists of the Swing Era. Music ...

) – 3:08 # "

Things Ain't What They Used to Be "Things Ain't What They Used to Be" is a 1942 jazz standard with music by Mercer Ellington and lyrics by Ted Persons. Background In 1941 there was a strike against the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, of which Duke Ellingt ...

" (

Mercer Ellington Mercer Kennedy Ellington (March 11, 1919 – February 8, 1996) was an American musician, composer, and arranger. His father was Duke Ellington, whose band Mercer led for 20 years after his father's death. Biography Early life and education Elli ...

Ted Persons Ted may refer to: Names A shortened form of the following: * Edmund * Edward * Thaddeus * Theodore (given name) Art, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Ted, a character in the post-apocalyptic short story ''I Have No Mouth, a ...

) – 3:16 # "

Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" is a song written by Louis Jordan and Billy Austin. The song's first recording, by Jordan, was made on October 4, 1943. It was released as the B-side of a single with " G.I. Jive" with the title "Is You Is or I ...

?" (

Louis Jordan Louis Thomas Jordan (July 8, 1908 – February 4, 1975) was an American saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and bandleader who was popular from the late 1930s to the early 1950s. Known as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the King ...

, Billy Austin) – 2:46 # "Somebody's Gotta Go" (Haggart) – 3:19 # " 'Round Midnight" (Monk) – 3:18 # "Blue Garden Blues" (aka "

Royal Garden Blues "Royal Garden Blues" is a blues song composed by Clarence Williams and Spencer Williams in 1919. Popularized in jazz by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band,

") (

Spencer Williams Spencer Williams (October 14, 1889 – July 14, 1965) was an American jazz and popular music composer, pianist, and singer. He is best known for his hit songs " Basin Street Blues", " I Ain't Got Nobody", " Royal Garden Blues", " I've Found a N ...

, Clarence Williams) – 3:13

Personnel

Performance

''May 7, 1941, New York. Tracks 1-4.'' *

–

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

Lou McGarity Robert Louis McGarity (July 22, 1917 – August 28, 1971) was an American jazz trombonist who was a member of the Benny Goodman big band during the late 1930s and early 1940s. After serving in the military, he was a studio musician in New York Cit ...

–

trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the Standing wave, air c ...

Les Robinson Les Robinson (born September 23, 1942) is an American former college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the Uni ...

–

alto sax The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in the key of E, smaller th ...

* Skippy Martin –

baritone sax The baritone saxophone (sometimes abbreviated to "bari sax") is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxop ...

* John Guarnieri –

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

Artie Bernstein Arthur Bernstein (February 4, 1909 – January 4, 1964) was an American jazz double bassist. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he started his musical career playing cello on board cruise ships to South America, and also studied law at New York Univers ...

–

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

Jo Jones Jonathan David Samuel Jones (October 7, 1911 – September 3, 1985) was an American jazz drummer. A band leader and pioneer in jazz percussion, Jones anchored the Count Basie Orchestra rhythm section from 1934 to 1948. He was sometimes k ...

–

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

''April 1, 1942, Chicago. Tracks 5-8.'' * Cootie Williams – trumpet * Milton Fraser – trumpet * Joe Guy – trumpet *

Louis Bacon Louis Moore Bacon (born July 25, 1956) is an American investor, hedge fund manager, and philanthropist. He is the founder and chief executive of Moore Capital Management. As of February 2024, ''Forbes'' estimated his net worth at US$1.5 bil ...

– trumpet,

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

(track 6) * Jonas Walker – trombone * Robert Horton – trombone * Sandy Williams – trombone *

Charlie Holmes Charlie Holmes (January 27, 1910 near Boston, Massachusetts – September 19, 1985 in Stoughton, Massachusetts) was an American alto jazz saxophonist of the swing era. He also played clarinet and oboe for the Boston Civic Symphony Orchestra in ...

– alto sax *

Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson (born Edward L. Vinson Jr.; December 18, 1917 – July 2, 1988) was an American jump blues, jazz, bebop and R&B alto saxophonist and blues shouter. He was nicknamed "Cleanhead" after an incident in which his hair was ...

– alto sax, vocals (track 7) * Bob Dorsey –

tenor sax 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 ...

* Greely Walton – tenor sax *

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...

– baritone sax * Kenny Kersey – piano * Norman Keenan – bass * George "Butch" Ballard – drums ''January 4, 1944, New York. Tracks 9-12. January 6, 1944, New York. Tracks 13-16.'' * Cootie Williams – trumpet, vocals (track 12) * Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson – alto sax * Eddie "Jockjaw" Davis – tenor sax *

– piano * Norman Keenan – bass * Sylvester "Vess" Payne – drums ''January 6, 1944, New York. Tracks 17-20.'' *

– vocals (tracks 17-18) * Cootie Williams – trumpet * Ermit V. Perry – trumpet *

George Treadwell George McKinley Treadwell (December 21, 1918 in New Rochelle, New York – May 14, 1967 in New York City) was an American jazz musician and later the manager of the Drifters. Treadwell, an African-American, managed national recording artist ...

– trumpet * Harold "Money" Johnson – trumpet * Ed Burke – trombone * George Stevenson – trombone * Robert Horton – trombone * Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson – alto sax, vocals (tracks 19-20) * Charlie Holmes – alto sax * Eddie "Jockjaw" Davis – tenor sax * Lee Pope – tenor sax * Eddie de Verteuil – baritone sax * Bud Powell – piano * Norman Keenan – bass * Sylvester "Vess" Payne – drums ''August 22, 1944, New York. Tracks 21-24.'' * Cootie Williams – trumpet * Ermit V. Perry – trumpet * George Treadwell – trumpet * Lammar Wright – trumpet * Tommy Stevenson – trumpet * Ed Burke – trombone * Ed Glover – trombone * Robert Horton – trombone * Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson – alto sax, vocals (tracks 21-22) *

Frank Powell Francis William Powell (May 8, 1877 – ?) was a Canadian-born American stage and silent film actor, director, Film producer, producer, and screenwriter who worked predominantly in the United States."Ontario Births, 1869-1912", digital copy of ...

– alto sax *

Sam "The Man" Taylor Samuel Leroy Taylor, Jr. (July 12, 1916 – October 5, 1990), Sam Taylor Biography ''AllMusic'' known as Sam "The Man" Taylor, was an American jazz, rhythm and blues, and blues tenor saxophonist. Taylor was born in Lexington, Tennessee, United ...

– tenor sax * Lee Pope – tenor sax * Eddie de Verteuil – baritone sax * Bud Powell – piano *

Leroy Kirkland Leroy Edward Kirkland (February 10, 1904 or 1906 – April 6, 1988) was an American arranger, bandleader, guitarist and songwriter whose career spanned the eras of big band jazz, R&B, rock and roll and soul. Life and career Born in Columbia, Sout ...

– guitar * Carl Pruitt – bass * Sylvester "Vess" Payne – drums

Production

* Anatol Schenker –

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or cassette j-cards. Origin Liner notes are descended from the prog ...

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cootie Williams and His Orchestra 1941-1944 Cootie Williams albums 1995 compilation albums