Thank you for posting this video. I first saw it at Johnny Coles' apartment in Philly in 1995. He was my music teacher and friend. I spent the last two years of his life with him almost everyday. I was there when he died and attended the funeral. I cooked his food when he was sick and waited on him when all his great friends came to see him for the very last time. I saw Frank West, Jimmy Heath, James Moody and several others. Johnny had a collection of music and videos that were absolutely amazing. He told me the story of how his Mother brought his first trumpet in 1937 and how long she worked to save the money. When he received the trumpet, he put it down and went to play with his friends. This happen three times until his Mother called him in and beat his ass for not being serious. He hold me from that day on, he played his trumpet every single day of his entire life and slept with it. May God bless one of the greatest jazz musicians that ever lived and may he rest in peace - forever.
Very few bands playing this piece can really pull it off, but this band sure did. You have to be really tight to give the desired effect. There several amateur bands with recordings of this tune on here and they don't sound good due to lack of individual proficiency and sectional precision.
I got to play this song in college with Dennis Mackrel in my big band. The man is a *phenomenal* drummer, and made our band sound 50x larger than it usually did. Such a beautiful piece.
I had the honour and pleasure to see Johnny Coles in Sydney, c. 1985, in an international UNO orchestra, with great support from such as Gene Harris, Ray Brown, Herb Ellis, so many other fine players, and our local rising star James Morrison (and I played some dates with him when he was young) in a wonderful concert. Over a huge time frame, the Basie band never failed to succeed, at a high level of enjoyment, musicianship, talented class. People talk of the obvious qualities, in trumpets, reeds, so good, but the trombone section always seemed to have friendly, excellent, artistic, quality. It remains, today, a lesson, kept running by the amazing Thad Jones here in 1985, after the sad passing of the big core, Bill, the BASIE.
The modern big band era ....late '40's to the late '70s....the principle artists....DIZZY, STAN. KENTON, MAYNARD 50'S AND 60'S, DUKE ELLINGTON, COUNT BASIE NEIL HEFTI AMD SAMMIE NESTICO, THAD JONES AND MEL LEWIS, and TOSHIKO TABACKIN....the great big band artists.
Miss my dear old friend Johnny Cole's a great teacher and a great friend also gave me the opportunity too work with the Basie Band under the leadership of Thad Jones want a honor
Bel composition et arrangement du jeune batteur et Thad Jones dirige comme il faut ce beau Big Band avec une belle brochette de musiciens et d'anciens de Count Basie dont l'inimitable guitariste Freddy Green ! Good job comme on dit là bas, merci à tous !
No one is a bigger Jazz fan than me, but there is one thing that bugs me about some of the cats that play it. Listen to the tempo and feel of this piece, then listen to the flugelhorn solo. Man, RELAX. Sounds like he's playing "BeBop" with Diz rather than a cool relaxed swinger with Basie. I just don't dig that stuff. Just my opinion after listening to and playing Jazz for over 50 years now, not here to start an argument. Cool, daddy o.
Your ear is keen and right where it should be, however, the music is legitimized by what is referred to in music as counterpoint...as in the use of or juxtaposing of one more melodies simultaneously. Keep in mind that the " head arrangement " days of the 30's are long gone, never to return...you have a great ear.
jazz, or music for that matter is not linear. it's about personality, which is complex. "keeping true to the language" is something an old Johnny Coles isn't gonna give a single fuck about. I know what you're hearing but you're focusing on the mundane. Take Thad Jones solo on Shiny Stockings, a swing classic. Totally in the pocket and swinging but also infused with plenty of bebop. True to the language? That's something modern swing musicians do to keep a gig.
I love watching Thad swinging to this tune. He has been one of my favorites for many years. Check out his "Potpourri" album. Whenever I hear this I remember that American's great musical heritage owes a lot to Black and Jewish composers and musicians. The list of greats is too long to enumerate here but I guarantee: there are many. I know that Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Johnny Mandel, Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini would agree.
Noe Berengena Very true. I just don’t know how those who are “ethnic supremacists” can avoid that wonderful heritage which will live on and on enriching our lives and those who encounter it. Sinatra and others were truly non racists and promoted ethnic minorities at a time of deep set social prejudice and divisions when you could be ostracised and cast out for such views. The black American musical heritage is unique as are the works of Elmer Bernstein et al. Cheers
@@sdhastings I just re-read your comment in August 2019 and was struck by your words: "People don't care about race anymore!" Wow, I wish that was true. But sadly, the big bad truth is that there are many, many people in the US who (whether they admit it or not) think some people are beneath them. Very few people live in integrated neighborhoods. Very few people have people of every color over to their houses for social gatherings. What universe do you live in? I am sure you are open-minded. Most of us jazz lovers are. But do you really believe what you wrote?
OH IS THIS HEAVEN... Mad Thad leading the crew... If anyone's interested, take a look at these incredible teen Japanese kickin' it! WOOHOO! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-e3XuJAv5Uck.html
