name	Mark Farner
background	solo_singer
born	September 29, 1948Flint, Michigan, U.S.
instrument	Guitar, vocals, keyboards, Harmonica, Bass guitar
genre	Rock, hard rock, CCM
occupation	Musician, songwriter
years active	1965–present
label	CapitolMCAAtlanticWarnerLismark
associated acts	Grand Funk Railroad, Terry Knight and the Pack, N'rG, Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band
website	http://www.markfarner.com
notable instruments	}}

Mark Fredrick Farner (born September 29, 1948 in Flint, Michigan) is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lead guitarist for Grand Funk Railroad, and later as a Contemporary Christian Musician.

Early life and career

Farner began his career in music by playing in Terry Knight and The Pack (1965–1966), The Bossmen (1966), The Pack (aka The Fabulous Pack) (1967–1968), before forming Grand Funk Railroad with Don Brewer (drums) and Mel Schacher (bass guitar) in 1969. Craig Frost (keyboards) joined the band in 1973. Farner has Cherokee ancestry deriving from his maternal side.

With Grand Funk

Farner was the guitarist and lead singer for Grand Funk Railroad as well as the songwriter for most of their material. His best known composition is the 1970 epic "I'm Your Captain (Closer to Home)".

Grand Funk's "We're An American Band" reached No. 1 on the Hot 100 on Mark's 25th birthday on September 29, 1973.

Post-Grand Funk

After Grand Funk initially disbanded in 1976, Farner released his first self titled solo album in 1977, and his second, ''No Frills'', in 1978 (both Atlantic Records). In 1981, Farner and Don Brewer launched a new Grand Funk line-up and recorded two albums, ''Grand Funk Lives'' and ''What's Funk?''. Farner went solo again with 1988's ''Just Another Injustice'' on Frontline Records. His third Frontline release was 1991's ''Some Kind of Wonderful'', which featured a revamped version of the Grand Funk classic of the same name. Farner enjoyed success with the John Beland composition "Isn't it Amazing", which earned him a Dove Award nomination and reached #2 on the Contemporary Christian music charts.

In the 1990s, Farner formed Lismark Communications with former Freedom Reader editor Steve Lisuk. Soon after, Farner began reissuing his solo albums on his own record label, LisMark Records.

Farner toured with Ringo Starr's Allstars from 1994 to 1995, which also featured Randy Bachman, John Entwistle, Felix Cavaliere, Billy Preston, and Starr's son, Zak Starkey.

In the late 1990s, Farner reunited with Grand Funk, but left after three years to resume his solo career. He currently tours with his band, N′rG, which plays a mixture of Grand Funk songs and Farner's solo offerings.

Other interests

Farner was honored with the Lakota Sioux Elders Honor Mark in 1999. During the concert in Hankinson, North Dakota, a special presentation was held honoring Mark's Native ancestry and his contributions. Members of the Lakota Nation presented him with a hand-made ceremonial quilt. He has also been honored with the Cherokee Medal of Honor by the Cherokee Honor Society.

An authorized biography of Farner, entitled ''From Grand Funk to Grace'', was published in 2001.

Discography

''Mark Farner'', 1977

''Monumental Funk'', 1977 (with Don Brewer)

''No Frills'', 1978

''Just Another Injustice'', 1988

''Wake Up'', 1989

''Some Kind of Wonderful'', 1991

''Closer to Home'', 1992

''Heirlooms'', 2000

''Red White and Blue Forever'', 2002

''Live!! N'rG'', 2003

''For the People'', 2006

References

External links

Official Site

2008 Mark Farner Interview

Video Clips

Category:1948 births Category:Living people Category:American Christians Category:American people of Cherokee descent Category:American rock guitarists Category:American rock singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:Songwriters from Michigan Category:Musicians from Michigan Category:People from Flint, Michigan Category:Lead guitarists Category:Grand Funk Railroad members Category:American performers of Christian music

cs:Mark Farner de:Mark Farner it:Mark Farner pt:Mark Farner ru:Фарнер, Марк Фредрик uk:Марк Фарнер

Name	Joe Lynn Turner
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Joseph Arthur Mark Linquito
Alias	JLT
Born	August 02, 1951Hackensack, New Jersey, United States
Instrument	Vocals, guitar, accordion
Genre	Hard rock, pop rock, heavy metal
Occupation	Singer-songwriter, musician
Years active	1976–present
Label	Elektra, Frontiers
Associated acts	Fandango, Rainbow, Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force, Deep Purple, Mothers Army, Brazen Abbot, Hughes Turner Project, Sunstorm, The Jan Holberg Project
Website	Official website }}

Joe Lynn Turner (August 2, 1951), is an American rock singer, known for his works with Rainbow, Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force, Deep Purple. From the late 1990s, he continued to perform in a large number of solo albums and other studio projects. He played the accordion as a child, grew up with an appreciation for classic R&B; and became an accomplished guitarist in his early teens.

Career

Born Joseph Arthur Mark Linquito from Italian family, in high school, Joe formed Ezra, performing original material and cover songs by such artists as Jimi Hendrix, Free, Queen, and Deep Purple. In 1976, Turner enjoyed his first taste of national success with Fandango, a band described as an eclectic mix of R&B;, pop, country, jazz and melodic rock. He sang and played guitar on all of the band's four albums. Fandango toured with numerous artists including The Allman Brothers, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Beach Boys and Billy Joel.

After Fandango split, He received a phone call from guitarist Ritchie Blackmore. This resulted in an audition and Blackmore was so impressed that he immediately enlisted Joe in Rainbow. Rainbow, while popular in Europe and Japan, had not reached the same level of success in the US before Turner joined. With his contributions (largely considered more rock oriented), the group was catapulted to a new level of American success. Several tracks from albums with Turner reached the Top 20 on rock radio charts in the early- to mid-80's. "Stone Cold" became Rainbow's first Top 40 hit and the band's videos were played on heavy rotation on MTV. Turner recorded three studio albums with Rainbow: ''Difficult to Cure'', ''Straight Between the Eyes'', and ''Bent Out of Shape'', which featured the single "Street of Dreams". Rainbow disbanded in 1984, and Blackmore rejoined Deep Purple.

In 1985, after the break-up of Rainbow, Turner released a solo album, ''Rescue You'', produced by Roy Thomas Baker, known for his work with Queen and The Cars. He co-wrote most of the songs with keyboardist Al Greenwood (Foreigner). The first single, "Endlessly," received extensive airplay on radio and MTV. Tours with Night Ranger and Pat Benatar and an acting role in the movie ''Blue Deville'' followed.

In 1987 Turner also supplied backing vocals to the Michael Bolton album ''The Hunger''. He appeared on the tracks 'Hot Love' and 'Gina'.

In 1988, he joined Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force and recorded the greatly successful album ''Odyssey'' (1988). The brief tour that followed the release of the album included a concert in Leningrad which was recorded and then released as ''Trial by Fire'' (1989). In 1989 he left the band to join Deep Purple by replacing Ian Gillan, making him their fourth singer. Turner recorded just one album, ''Slaves & Masters'' (1990). The album's sound was different from the traditional Purple sound and core Purple fans were unhappy. The album peaked at #87 on the Billboard Charts, and a relatively successful tour followed in 1991. After the tour, the Turner-led Deep Purple began working on material for a second album. But pressure from management and some band members to bring back Gillan for a 25th anniversary tour resulted in Turner being fired.

Turner has been working mainly on his prolific solo career since his departure from Deep Purple and has worked with the Finnish rock band Brazen Abbot by Bulgarian guitarist Nikolo Kotzev and with Glenn Hughes under the "Hughes Turner Project" name. Turner also participated in Nikolo Kotzev's rock opera Nikolo Kotzev's Nostradamus. He has also put out 3 albums under the band name Mother's Army featuring Jeff Watson, Bob Daisley and Carmine Appice. In 2005 Turner has performed on the Russian studio project Michael Men Project's album ''Made in Moscow'', along with his colleague Glenn Hughes. In 2006 he took on very successful studio project Sunstorm with bassist Dennis Ward of German rock band Pink Cream 69. Turner was a guest in the Voices of Classic Rock shows. Turner also appeared as a headliner with AC/DC frontman Brian Johnson on the Classic Rock Cares charity tour which was organized by long time friend Steve Luongo who was the drummer/producer of The John Entwistle Band.

In 2008 he has formed Over the Rainbow, a tribute band composed of former Rainbow musicians, Paul Morris-Keyboardist/94-97, and Ritchie Blackmore's son Jürgen R. Blackmore on guitar.

He is currently a member of the touring band "Big Noize" featuring alongside guitarist Carlos Cavazo, bassist Phil Soussan, and drummer Vinny Appice.

Turner recently joined Norwegian group "The Jan Holberg Project", will release their new album ''Sense of Time'' in 2011.

Discography

Solo

''Rescue You'' (1985)

''Nothing's Changed'' (1995)

''Under Cover'' (1997, cover album)

''Hurry Up And Wait'' (1998)

''Under Cover 2'' (1999, cover album)

''Waiting For A Girl Like You'' (1999, EP)

''Holy Man'' (2000)

''Challenge Them All'' (2001, EP)

''Slam'' (2001)

''JLT'' (2003)

''The Usual Suspects'' (2005)

''Second Hand Life'' (2007)

''Live in Germany'' (2008)

As member of bands and side projects

Fandango - ''Fandango'' (1977)

Fandango - ''Last Kiss'' (1978)

Fandango - ''One Night Stand'' (1979)

Fandango - ''Cadillac'' (1980)

Rainbow - "Difficult to Cure" (1981)

Yngwie J. Malmsteen's Rising Force - ''Odyssey'' (1988)

Yngwie Malmsteen - ''Trial by Fire'' (1989)

Yngwie Malmsteen - " Live In Leningrad " (1990)

Mothers Army - ''Mothers Army'' (1993)

Brazen Abbot - ''Eye of the Storm'' (1996)

Mothers Army - ''Planet Earth'' (1997)

Brazen Abbot - ''Bad Religion'' (1997)

Mothers Army - ''Fire on The Moon'' (1998)

Fandango - ''The Best of Fandango'' (1999, Japan only)

Hughes Turner Project - ''HTP'' (2002)

Hughes Turner Project - ''Live in Tokyo'' (2002)

Brazen Abbot - ''Guilty as Sin'' (2003)

Hughes Turner Project - ''HTP 2'' (2003)

Brazen Abbot - ''A Decade of Brazen Abbot'' (2004, live album)

Michael Men Project - ''Made in Moscow'' (2005, with Glenn Hughes)

Brazen Abbot - ''My Resurrection'' (2005)

Akira Kajiyama + Joe Lynn Turner - ''Fire Without Flame'' (2006)

Sunstorm - ''Sunstorm'' (2006)

''Cem Köksal featuring Joe Lynn Turner - Live!'' (2007, DVD, with Cem Köksal)

Brazen Abbot - Live At Berkrock (DVD) (2008)

Sunstorm - ''House of Dreams'' (2009)

The Jan Holberg Project - ''Sense of Time'' (2011)

Guest appearances

''The Heavenly Kid'' - Soundtrack (1985, "Heartless")

Don Johnson - ''Heartbeat'' (1986)

Michael Bolton - ''The Hunger'' (1987)

Cher - ''Cher'' (1987) - Backing vocals

John Waite - ''Rovers Return'' (1987) - Backing vocals

Lee Aaron - ''Lee Aaron'' (1987)

Jimmy Barnes - ''Freight Train Heart'' (1987, co-writer of "Walk On")

Bonfire - ''Fire Works'' (1987, co-writer of "Sweet Obsession")

TNT - ''Intuition'' (1988) - Backing vocals

Bonnie Tyler - ''Notes from America'' aka ''Hide Your Heart'' (1988)

Don Johnson - ''Let It Roll'' (1989)

Mick Jones - ''Mick Jones'' (1989)

Alexa - ''Alexa'' (1989)

Paul Carrack - ''Groove Approved'' (1989)

Billy Joel - ''Storm Front'' (1989) - Backing vocals

Slyce - ''Slyce'' (1990)

Riot - ''The Privilege of Power'' (1990)

Michael Bolton - ''Time, Love and Tenderness'' (1991)

Kathy Troccoli - ''Pure Attraction'' (1991)

Lita Ford - ''Dangerous Curves'' (1991, co-writer of "Little Too Early") - Backing vocals

Hellcats - ''Hellcats 2'' (1992)

TNT - ''Realized Fantasies'' (1992) - Backing vocals

Taylor Dayne - ''Soul Dancing'' (1993) - Backing vocals

Bloodline - ''Bloodline'' (1994)

''Blues Bureau International - Cream Of The Crop'' (1994)

''Deep Purple Tribute - Smoke On The Water'' (1994)

Nerds - ''Poultry In Motion'' (1995)

''Deep Purple Tribute - Black Night'' (1995)

Yngwie Malmsteen - ''Inspiration'' (1996, "Pictures of Home", "Demon's Eye")

Toshi Kankawa - ''Toshi Kankawa'' (1996)

Mojo Brothers - ''Mojo Brothers'' (1997)

''AC/DC Tribute - Thunderbolt'' (1997)

Vick LeCar - ''Never Stranded'' (1998)

Stuart Smith - ''Heaven & Earth'' (1998)

Niji Densetsu - ''Rainbow Tribute'' (1998)

''Randy Rhoads "Tribute"'' (1999)

Leslie West - ''As Phat as it Gets'' (1999)

''Fire Woman: A Tribute to The Cult'' (2000)

''Ozzy Tribute - Bat Head's Soup'' (2000)

''Tribute to Van Halen'' (2000)

Nikolo Kotzev - ''Nikolo Kotzev's Nostradamus'' (2001)

Voices for America - ''Special WTC EP'' (2001)

''Aerosmith Tribute - Let The Tribute Do The Talking'' (2001)

''Rock Ballads - WTC Benefit'' (2001)

''Queen Tribute - Stone Cold Crazy'' (2001)

Terry Brock - ''Freedom'' (2001)

Stuart Smith - " Heaven & Earth - 2 " (2001)

The Tour Bus Radio Show - ''The Road Trip'' (2002)

Mountain - ''Mystic Fire'' (2002)

''Mr. Big Tribute - Influences and Connections'' (2003)

Murray Weinstock - ''Tails of the City'' (2003)

''Metallic Attack - Metallica The Ultimate Tribute'' (2004)

Karl Cochran's Voodooland - ''Give Me Air'' (2004)

Eddie Ojeda - ''Axes 2 Axes'' (2005)

''Iron Maiden Tribute - Numbers from The Beast'' (2005)

Michael Schenker Group - ''Heavy Hitters'' (2005, "All Shook Up")

Blackmore's Night - ''The Village Lanterne'' (2006, bonus track version of "Street Of Dreams")

Joe Lynn Turner & New Japan Philarmonic - " A Tribut To Rainbow " (2006)

Vitalij Kuprij - ''Revenge'' (2006, "Follow Your Heart")

Icarus Witch - ''Songs for the Lost'' (2007)

Jimi Jamison - ''Crossroads Moment '' (2008)

''We Wish You a Metal Xmas and a Headbanging New Year'' (2008, "Rockin' Around the Xmas Tree")

Howard Leese - ''Secret Weapon'' (2009, "Alive Again", "Hot To Cold")

''MelodicRock.com, Vol. 7 - Forces Of Dark & Light'' (2010, "This Is Who I Am" - premiere song)

Pushking - ''The World As We Love It'' (2011, "Kukarracha", "Head Shooter")

Robin Beck - ''The Great Escape'' (2011, "That All Depends")

Film & TV appearances

''Blue de Ville'' (1986, TV movie, playing Eric Fury)

''Deep Purple - Heavy Metal Pioneers'' (1991, interviewee)

''Canadian Ballet: Striptease Dancers of the North'' (1998, music supervisor)

''Rainbow - In Their Own Words'' (2006, interviewee)

''An Ox's Tale: The John Entwistle Story'' (2006, interviewee)

''Guitar Gods - Ritchie Blackmore'' (2008, interviewee)

''That Metal Show'' (2010, interviewee)

References

External links

Official Joe Lynn Turner website

Joe Lynn Turner interview at RockSomething

Category:1951 births Category:Living people Category:Rainbow members Category:Deep Purple members Category:American rock singers Category:American heavy metal singers Category:American male singers Category:People from Hackensack, New Jersey Category:American musicians of Italian descent

bg:Джо Лин Търнър cs:Joe Lynn Turner de:Joe Lynn Turner es:Joe Lynn Turner fa:جو لین ترنر fr:Joe Lynn Turner hr:Joe Lynn Turner it:Joe Lynn Turner ka:ჯო ლინ ტერნერი ja:ジョー・リン・ターナー no:Joe Lynn Turner pl:Joe Lynn Turner pt:Joe Lynn Turner ro:Joe Lynn Turner ru:Джо Линн Тёрнер fi:Joe Lynn Turner sv:Joe Lynn Turner tr:Joe Lynn Turner

name	Terry Knight
background	solo_singer
birth name	Richard Terrance Knapp
born	April 9, 1943 Lapeer, Michigan
died	November 1, 2004 (Age 61), Temple, Texas
genre	Rock, Pop
associated acts	Terry Knight and the Pack, Grand Funk Railroad, ? and the Mysterians
occupation	Singer, songwriter, Manager, Promoter, Radio Personality
years active	1963-1973
label	Capitol Records
website	}}

Terry Knight (April 9, 1943 - November 1, 2004), born Richard Terrance Knapp, was an American rock and roll music producer, promoter, singer, songwriter and radio personality, who enjoyed some success in radio, modest success as a singer, but phenomenal success as the original manager-producer for Grand Funk Railroad and the producer for Bloodrock.

Early career

Knight was born on April 9, 1943 in Lapeer, Michigan. Knight's career began as a Detroit DJ in 1963 when he replaced Dave Shafer as "Jack the Bellboy" on WJBK, coming to Detroit from Flint, Michigan's legendary Top 40 rocker WTAC. The following year, he moved across the river to CKLW in Windsor, Ontario. Arguably the first American DJ to air the Rolling Stones, he hosted a legendary late night show from high-powered CKLW, bringing the British Invasion to the Northern states. He was awarded the honorary title of "The Sixth Stone" for his early support of the Stones. By the end of 1964, however, Knight had left CKLW and the radio business, intending to pursue his own career in music.

Around 1965, Knight fashioned his own songwriting and performing career in Flint, Michigan, by becoming the front man for Terry Knight and the Pack. With this band, Knight recorded a handful of regional hits for local Lucky Eleven Records, part of the Cameo-Parkway Records group, including his self-penned generation gap anthem "A Change On The Way," as well as scoring two national hits, a tasteful cover of the Yardbirds' "(Mister, You're A) Better Man Than I" and his ultra-lounge reading of Ben E. King's "I (Who Have Nothing)" (which came close to making the national top 40, peaking at #46). The band also left behind two long-playing garage classics before breaking up in 1967. (Brownsville Station honored Knight and the Pack with a cover of the Knight-penned "Love, Love, Love, Love, Love" on their '73 album ''Yeah!'')

Producer and solo career

In 1967 Knight moved to New York, and attempted a solo career as a singer and staff producer with the Cameo-Parkway label, with limited success. He produced and wrote a handful of tracks by other artists, including garage band Question Mark & the Mysterians and the easy-listening International Pop Orchestra. He also scored music for the 20th Century Fox noir classic ''The Incident''. Knight traveled to London in 1968, hoping to become a recording artist and or producer for The Beatles' newly formed Apple Records. Knight met Paul McCartney and was present at Beatles recording sessions for the White Album including a session where Ringo Starr temporarily quit the group. Knight was surprised to find the group members arguing with each other. Knight soon left London after he was unable to negotiate a contract with acceptable terms.

"Saint Paul"

In early 1969 Knight secured a producer's contract with Capitol Records which also allowed him to release his own songs as a solo artist. He wrote and recorded a single, "Saint Paul" which contributed to the "Paul is dead" hoax that erupted later in the year. The cryptic lyrics of the song are generally thought to allude to Knight's failed relationship with McCartney and his apparent belief that The Beatles would soon break up. The lyrics do not refer to death but were interpreted by some fans as containing clues. The ending repeats the phrase "hey Paul" in an arrangement that sounds very similar to The Beatles' song ''Hey Jude''. There are also 2 different stereo mixes of the song in circulation. The longer 5 minute version also contains a high pitched voice singing lines from other Beatles songs, including, "Hello, Goodbye", "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and "She Loves You." Initial copies of the single listed Terry Knight's company, Storybook Music, as the publisher of "Saint Paul." After Capitol received a cease and desist letter from The Beatles' music publisher Maclen Music (the U.S. division of Northern Songs) the record was pulled from distribution.

A deal was apparently worked out between Knight and Maclen Music. About a month later in May 1969 "Saint Paul" was re-issued with a publishing credit by Maclen. The second pressing of the record also contains a note on the label which states that "Hey Jude" is used by permission. The shorter 4 minute mix of the song does not contain the additional sung Beatles song excerpts. The re-assignment of publishing rights made Knights' song the only non Lennon/McCartney tune owned by Maclen. "Saint Paul" reached the top 40 in a few cities in the upper Midwest region but failed to make the national Billboard Hot 100 chart. The fact that "Saint Paul" was published by Maclen was incorrectly seen by some Beatle fans as evidence of a conspiracy involving Knight and The Beatles and the "Paul is dead" rumors.

"Saint Paul" was later re-recorded in 1969 by New Zealand singer Shane in a sound-alike version and became one of the best-selling singles of the 1960s in his native country. In the early 1990s author Andru Reeve repeatedly tried to interview Knight while writing a book about the "Paul is dead" hoax. However Reeve was unable to get Knight to talk about the song.

Grand Funk Railroad

Still working as a producer with Capitol, Knight renewed his connection with two former Pack members, guitarist Mark Farner and drummer Don Brewer. Knight encouraged the two to add a new bass player and become a "power trio" along the lines of Cream. The group quickly added former Mysterians bassist Mel Schacher and changed their name to "Grand Funk Railroad." While becoming their manager-producer, Knight helped steer the trio to international fame, beginning with his getting them onto the bill---for free---at the 1969 Atlanta Pop Festival. This live performance convinced Capitol to sign the trio. For the next two years, Grand Funk Railroad became the most popular rock attraction in the United States despite mixed critical reviews that Knight cannily exploited as part of their appeal; he also discovered and produced the Fort Worth, Texas group Bloodrock, who hit the Top 40 in early 1971 with the unlikely death anthem "D.O.A. (Dead On Arrival)."

Between Grand Funk and Bloodrock, Knight racked up an unprecedented eight gold albums while simultaneously waging a war of words with ''Rolling Stone'' over the magazine's frequent pannings of the two acts. But by early 1972, both Grand Funk and Bloodrock had severed their professional relations with Knight. In Grand Funk's case, it involved court actions that kept the band tied up for almost two full years; they'd demanded full royalty accounting and accused Knight of double-dipping as manager-producer while the trio hadn't been getting all the monies they'd earned. For his part, Knight would claim the band had had only three months left on their contract with him when they first took him to court and could have been free with half the legal aggravation; the trio ultimately won their separation from Knight but at heavy cost, before adding keyboard player Craig Frost and continuing a successful recording and touring career through 1976.

Life After Grand Funk

Knight was also dropped from Capitol soon after the Grand Funk court actions were resolved and began his own label, Brown Bag Records, releasing albums and singles by Mom's Apple Pie, John Hambrick, Wild Cherry and Faith. None of them found commercial success and, in late 1973, Knight retired permanently from show business. He associated with super model Twiggy and raced cars with film star Paul Newman in the mid-70s before becoming addicted to cocaine, which consumed him. By the 1980s' he had straightened himself out, settling in Yuma AZ with his wife and daughter Danielle. He melded into the community working in advertising sales for a weekly newspaper.

Death

On November 1, 2004 Terry Knight was murdered at the age of 61. Knight was stabbed multiple times in a fight with his daughter's boyfriend — against whom Knight was trying to protect her — in their shared apartment in Temple, Texas. On November 26, 2005, his killer, Donald A. Fair, was sentenced to life in prison. Knight was cremated and buried in a family plot in Lapeer, Michigan. He is survived by his daughter Danielle.

References

External links

Terry Knight - R.I.P. by David K. Tedds for ''Creem Online''.

Terry Knight's Killer Convicted.

Category:American DJs Category:American murder victims Category:American record producers Category:Songwriters from Michigan Category:People murdered in Texas Category:Murdered entertainers Category:Musicians from Michigan Category:Radio personalities from Detroit, Michigan Category:1943 births Category:2004 deaths

name	Pat Travers
background	solo_singer
birth name	Patrick Henry Travers
born	April 12, 1954
origin	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
instrument	Guitar, keyboards, vocals
genre	Hard rock, blues rock, heavy metal
occupation	Singer-songwriter, musician
years active	1976–present
label	Polydor Records
notable instruments	1956 Gibson Les Paul Jr. Double Cutaway }}

Patrick Henry "Pat" Travers (born April 12, 1954) is a Canadian rock guitarist, keyboardist and singer who began his recording career with Polydor Records in the mid-1970s. Pat Thrall, Nicko McBrain, Mick Dyche, Tommy Aldridge, Peter "Mars" Cowling, Jerry Riggs, and Carmine Appice are some of the noted musicians who have been members of the Pat Travers Band through the years. Kirk Hammett of Metallica has cited him as one of his favorite guitar players.

Early years

Pat Travers was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario. Soon after picking up the guitar at age 12, he saw Jimi Hendrix perform in Ottawa. Inspired by Hendrix, as well as other artists including Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page, Travers began playing in bands early in his teens; his first bands were The Music Machine, Red Hot, and Merge, which played in Quebec-area clubs.

While performing with Merge, he was noticed by rock artist Ronnie Hawkins, who invited Travers to perform with him. Next, the young guitarist moved to London and landed a deal with the Polydor label in his early 20's. His self-titled debut album was released in 1976, and featured bassist Peter "Mars" Cowling, who would become a mainstay in Travers' band for several years. An appearance on the German TV show ''Rockpalast'' in November 1976 was later released on DVD under the title ''Hooked On Music''. This performance showcases an early version of Travers' band featuring Cowling and drummer Nicko McBrain.

Rise to popularity

During 1977 Travers added a second guitarist to his band, changed drummers twice including using Clive Edwards, and by the time ''Heat In The Street'' was released in 1978 had put together the Pat Travers Band. This grouping featured Travers on vocals and guitar, Pat Thrall on guitar, Cowling on bass, and Tommy Aldridge on drums and percussion. The band toured heavily, also supporting Rush on their ''Drive til You Die'' tour in support of ''A Farewell to Kings''. The band's next release was a live album entitled ''Live! Go for What You Know'', which charted in the Top 40 in the United States and included "Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights)". This was followed by the 1980 release ''Crash and Burn'', which climbed even higher on the charts, entering the Top 20. ''Snortin' Whiskey'' was a major American radio hit from this album and Pat Travers began the 1980s as a hot item in the hard rock music scene.

Things began to slide downward for Travers in August 1980. After an appearance before 35,000 people at the Reading Music Festival in England, both Thrall and Aldridge announced they were leaving the band to pursue other projects. Travers and Cowling forged on with drummer Sandy Gennaro and released ''Radio Active'' in 1981. A co-headlining tour with Rainbow followed, and the two bands performed in major arenas across North America. Although the tour was Travers' most successful road outing, the ''Radio Active'' album barely made it into the Top 40. It was much different than Travers' previous work, with more emphasis on keyboards than heavy guitars. Disappointed with the lack of sales, Polydor dropped Travers from their roster, and he in turn sued the record company on grounds that he was under contract with them to record more material. He won the lawsuit, and was able to release ''Black Pearl'' in 1982. This release also featured more mainstream music rather than the hard-driving rock Travers had recorded earlier, and included the hit single "I La La La Love You", featured prominently on mainstream Top 40 and album oriented rock stations. ''Hot Shot'' was Travers' last major label release of original music, and was a return to a harder-edge style of rock than his previous two albums had been. One of Travers' best-recorded projects, it went basically unnoticed and is best remembered for the single "Killer". It was during this time that Travers also released ''Just Another Killer Day'', a 30-minute home video featuring music from ''Hot Shot'' that was a sci-fi type short story about sexy alien women searching for information on music here on earth. In 1984, Travers was again supporting Rush--Alex Lifeson is one of Travers' many admirers, and Neil Peart got along well with Tommy Aldridge.

Before the release of ''Hot Shot'', longtime bassist Cowling left the band, and Travers would work with several different bassists until Cowling's return in 1989. Also at this time Jerry Riggs joined the Pat Travers Band, and he and Travers created a guitar team that fans considered difficult to rival. After ''Hot Shot'''s release in 1984, Polydor made plans to issue a greatest hits package, and then ended their relationship with Travers.

The latter half of the 1980s were quite grueling for Travers. Having entered the decade at the top of the music game, he found himself in 1986 without a record contract and being forced to earn a living once again playing nightclubs and touring constantly. By 1990, he had gained a deal with a small European label and released ''School Of Hard Knocks''. Totally ignored by radio, the project was solid and contained some of Travers' best material. A full-length concert video ''Boom Boom – Live At The Diamond Club 1990'' was shot in Toronto to be released in audio version as CD ''Boom Boom'' next year, but Travers was still not able to return to the success he had ten years earlier.

1990s, return to form

Shortly after, Travers signed a deal with American-based Blues Bureau International Records, a company formed by noted producer Mike Varney. Travers' first recording for the label was ''Blues Tracks'' released in 1992. It earned positive reviews from critics. Several more releases on the BBI label followed during the 1990s. In 1993, Travers parted company with both Jerry Riggs and Peter "Mars" Cowling, and Riggs was briefly replaced by former Foghat guitarist Erik Cartwright. The relationship was very brief, and Travers has worked with a variety of musicians since that time.

Travers has not been able to regain the level of commercial success he once had, but he does have a very large and loyal fan base who call themselves "Hammer Heads". He tours regularly in the U.S. and has made several trips to Europe in the last decade as well. In 2001 he was part of the "Voices of Classic Rock" tour, and had a minor hit with Leslie West from the band Mountain called "Rock Forever". In 2004 he started a project with the drums veteran Carmine Appice and started touring the U.S.A.; as of now there are 3 albums released. Travers was still rocking in 2006 with the Power Trio playing cover tunes from bands such as Led Zeppelin, Montrose, Queen, Trapeze under the album name ''P.T. Power Trio 2'', and they toured Europe in November 2006. Travers has lived in central Florida for several years, and is now married with two children. Travers is also a Black Belt in the style of Isshin Ryu Karate, and currently trains with 10 time World Champion, sensei Mike Reeves in Apopka, FL

The Pat Travers Band currently consists of Pat Travers (guitars, vocals, keyboards), Kirk McKim (guitars, vocals), Sean Shannon (drums), and Rodney O'Quinn (bass).

Pat also sang on Get the Funk out with Extreme. You can hear him on the chorus.

Discography

1976 ''Pat Travers''

1977 ''Makin' Magic''

1977 ''Putting It Straight''

1978 ''Heat In The Street''

1978 ''The Pat Travers You Missed Mini-Album'' (EP)

1979 ''Live! Go for What You Know'' (live 1978)

1980 ''Crash and Burn''

1981 ''Radio Active''

1982 ''Black Pearl''

1984 ''Hot Shot''

1990 ''School Of Hard Knocks''

1991 ''Boom Boom'' (live 1990)

1992 ''BBC Radio 1 Live In Concert'' (live 1977 & 1980) (rereleased in 2000)

1992 ''Blues Tracks''

1993 ''Just A Touch''

1994 ''Blues Magnet''

1995 ''Halfway To Somewhere''

1996 ''Lookin' Up''

1997 ''King Biscuit Flower Hour'' (live 1984)

1998 ''Blues Tracks 2''

2000 ''Don't Feed The Alligators''

2000 ''Boom Boom – Live At The Diamond Club 1990'' (CD & DVD)

2003 ''Etched In Stone'' (2-CD live 2002)

2003 ''P.T. Power Trio'' (also called ''Power Trio'')

2003 ''From The Front...Live!'' (DVD-Audio live 1984)

2005 ''PT=MC2''

2006 ''P.T. Power Trio 2''

2007 ''Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights)'' (live)

2008 ''Stick With What You Know – Live In Europe'' (live 2007)

2009 ''Travelin' Blues''

2010 ''Fidelis''

Singles released during major label career

1976 "Makes No Difference" (promo single to debut album)

1976 "Stop And Smile"

1977 "Stevie"

1977 "Rock & Roll Susie"

1977 "Gettin' Betta"

1977 "Life In London"

1978 "Heat In The Street"

1978 "Go All Night"

1979 "Boom, Boom (Out Go The Lights) – Live!" (UK single)

1980 "Is This Love" (US single)

1980 "Snortin' Whiskey" (US single)

1980 "Evie" (Holland only single)

1980 "Crash And Burn"

1980 "(Your Love) Can't Be Right"

1981 "My Life Is On The Line"

1981 "New Age Music"

1982 "I La La La Love You"

1982 "Rockin'"

1982 "I'd Rather See You Dead"

1984 "Women On The Edge Of Love"

1984 "Killer"

Compilation albums

1985 ''Boom Boom: The Best Of Pat Travers''

1990 ''An Anthology Vol.1''

1990 ''An Anthology Vol.2''

1991 ''The Best Of Pat Travers''

1997 ''Best Of Blues + Live!'' (studio & 1997 live recordings)

2003 ''20th Century Masters: The Best Of Pat Travers''

2004 ''Rock Solid: The Essential Collection'' (Germany)

2008 ''8+8: The Best Of '70–'80'' (live recordings) (Germany)

Travers & Appice albums

2004 ''It Takes A Lot Of Balls''

2005 ''Live At The House Of Blues''

2005 ''Bazooka''

Pat Travers is credited on the following CDs

1977 Glenn Hughes ''Play Me Out''

1983 ''Valley Girl (Soundtrack)''

1993 ''L.A. Blues Authority, Vol.III: Hats Off To Stevie Ray'' (Various artists)

1993 ''L.A. Blues Authority, Vol.IV: Fit For A. King'' (Various artists)

1993 ''Songs From The Better Blues Bureau'' (Various artists)

1993 ''Masters Of Metal – Live The 70's Ten Hits'' (Various artists)

1994 ''L.A. Blues Authority, Vol.V: Cream Of The Crop'' (Various artists)

1995 ''Animal Magnetism'' (Various artists)

1997 ''Summerhaze'' (John Kay & Steppenwolf, Blue Oyster Cult, Foghat, Pat Travers) (live)

2001 ''Voices Of Classic Rock: Voices For America'' (Various artists)

2001 Glenn Hughes ''Building The Machine''

2004 ''Sideways (Soundtrack)''

2010 The Circus Bar (Brian Howe)

References

External links

Pat Travers Official Web Site

Bio at CanadianBands.com

Pat Travers: Groove and Tone – GuitarInternational.com Interview

Category:1954 births Category:Living people Category:Canadian rock singers Category:Canadian heavy metal singers Category:Canadian rock guitarists Category:Canadian male singers Category:Musicians from Toronto Category:Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States

de:Pat Travers es:Pat Travers fr:Pat Travers it:Pat Travers

name	Count Basie
background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
birth name	William James Basie
born	August 21, 1904Red Bank, New Jersey, U.S.
died	April 26, 1984Hollywood, Florida, U.S.
instrument	Piano, organ
genre	Swing, big band, piano blues
occupation	Musician, bandleader, composer
years active	1924–1984
notable instruments	}}

William "Count" Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years. Many notable musicians came to prominence under his direction, including tenor saxophonists Lester Young and Herschel Evans, trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry "Sweets" Edison and singers Jimmy Rushing and Joe Williams. Basie's theme songs were "One O'Clock Jump" and "April In Paris".

Biography

Early life

William James Basie was born to Harvey Lee Basie, and Lilly Ann Childs, who lived on Mechanic Street in Red Bank, New Jersey. His father worked as a coachman and caretaker for a wealthy judge. After automobiles replaced horses, his father became a groundskeeper and handyman for several families in the area. His mother, a piano player who gave Basie his first piano lessons, took in laundry and baked cakes for sale and paid 25 cents a lesson for piano instruction for him.

Basie was not much of a scholar and instead dreamed of a traveling life, inspired by the carnivals which came to town. He only got as far as junior high school. He would hang out at the Palace Theater in Red Bank and did occasional chores for the management, which got him free admission to the shows. He also learned to operate the spotlights for the vaudeville shows. One day, when the pianist failed to arrive by show time, Basie took his place. Playing by ear, he quickly learned to improvise music appropriate to silent movies.

Though a natural at the piano, Basie preferred drums. However, the obvious talents of another young Red Bank area drummer, Sonny Greer (who was Duke Ellington's drummer from 1919 to 1951), discouraged Basie and he switched to piano exclusively by age 15. When not playing a gig, he hung out at the local pool hall with other musicians where he picked up on upcoming play dates and gossip. He got some jobs in Asbury Park, New Jersey, playing at the Hong Kong Inn, until a better player took his place.

Early career

Around 1924, he went to Harlem, a hotbed of jazz, living down the block from the Alhambra Theater. Early after his arrival, he bumped into Sonny Greer, who was by then the drummer for the Washingtonians, Duke Ellington's early band. Soon, Basie met many of the Harlem musicians who were making the scene, including Willie "the Lion" Smith and James P. Johnson.

Basie toured in several acts between 1925 and 1927, including ''Katie Krippen and Her Kiddies'' as part of the ''Hippity Hop'' show; on the Keith, the Columbia Burlesque, and the Theater Owners Bookers Association (T.O.B.A.) vaudeville circuits; and as a soloist and accompanist to blues singers Katie Krippen and Gonzelle White. His touring took him to Kansas City, St. Louis, New Orleans, and Chicago. Throughout his tours, Basie met many great jazz musicians, including Louis Armstrong.

Back in Harlem in 1925, Basie got his first steady job at Leroy's, a place known for its piano players and its "cutting contests." The place catered to "uptown celebrities," and typically the band winged every number without sheet music (using "head" arrangements). He met Fats Waller, who was playing organ at the Lincoln Theater accompanying silent movies, and Waller taught him how to play that instrument (Basie later played organ at the Eblon Theater in Kansas City). As he did with Duke Ellington, Willie "the Lion" Smith helped Basie out during the lean times arranging gigs at house-rent parties, introducing him to other top musicians, and teaching him some piano technique.

In 1928 Basie was in Tulsa and heard Walter Page and his Famous Blue Devils, one of the first big bands, which featured Jimmy Rushing on vocals. A few months later, he was invited to join the band, which played mostly in Texas and Oklahoma. It was at this time that he began to be known as "Count" Basie (see Jazz royalty).

Kansas City years

The following year, Basie became the pianist with the Bennie Moten band based in Kansas City, inspired by Moten's ambition to raise his band to the level of Duke Ellington's or Fletcher Henderson's. Where the Blue Devils were "snappier" and more "bluesy," the Moten band was classier and more respected, and played in the "Kansas City stomp" style. In addition to playing piano, Basie was co-arranger with Eddie Durham, who actually did the notating. During a stay in Chicago, Basie recorded with the band. He occasionally played four-hand piano and dual pianos with Moten, who also conducted. The band improved with several personnel changes, including the addition of tenor saxophonist Ben Webster.

When the band voted Moten out, Basie took over for several months as Count Basie and his Cherry Blossoms until the band folded, when he returned to Moten's newly re-organized band. When Moten died in 1935 after a surgical procedure, the band unsuccessfully attempted to stay together. Then Basie formed a new band, which included many Moten alumni, with the important addition of tenor player Lester Young. They played at the Reno Club and sometimes were broadcast on local radio. Late one night with time to fill, the band started improvising. Basie liked the results and named the piece "One O'Clock Jump." According to Basie, "we hit it with the rhythm section and went into the riffs, and the riffs just stuck. We set the thing up front in D-flat, and then we just went on playing in F." It became his signature tune.

Hammond and first recordings

At the end of 1936, Basie and his band, now billed as Count Basie and His Barons of Rhythm, moved from Kansas City and honed their repertoire at a long engagement at the Grand Terrace Ballroom in Chicago. Right from the start, Basie's band was noted for its rhythm section. Another Basie innovation was the use of two tenor saxophone players; at the time, most bands had just one. When Lester Young complained of Herschel Evans' vibrato, the two were split apart and placed one on each side of the alto players, and soon Basie had the tenor players engaged in "duels". Many other bands later adapted the split tenor arrangement.

In that city in October 1936, members of the band participated in a recording session which producer John Hammond later described as "the only perfect, completely perfect recording session I've ever had anything to do with". Hammond, according to Basie, had heard Basie's band over short-wave radio, then he went to Kansas City to check them out. The results were Lester Young's earliest recordings. Those four sides were released under the name Jones-Smith Incorporated, because Basie had already signed with Decca Records but had not started recording for them (his first Decca session was January 1937). The sides were "Shoe Shine Boy", "Evening", "Boogie Woogie", and "Oh, Lady Be Good".

By now, Basie's sound was characterized by a "jumping" beat and the contrapuntal accents of his own piano. His personnel around 1937 included: Lester Young and Herschel Evans (tenor sax), Freddie Green (guitar), Jo Jones (drums), Walter Page (bass), Earle Warren (alto sax), Buck Clayton and Harry Edison (trumpet), Benny Morton and Dickie Wells (trombone). Lester Young, known as "Prez" by the band, came up with nicknames for all the other band members. Basie became known as "Holy Man", "Holy Main", and just plain "Holy".

Basie favored blues, and he showcased some of the most notable blues singers of the era: Billie Holiday, Jimmy Rushing, Big Joe Turner, Helen Humes, and Joe Williams. He also hired arrangers who knew how to maximize the band's abilities, such as Eddie Durham and Jimmy Mundy.

New York City and the Swing years

When they arrived in New York, they made the Woodside Hotel their base (where they often rehearsed in the basement). Soon, they were booked at the Roseland Ballroom for the Christmas show. Basie recalled a review, which in his words was something like, "We caught the great Count Basie band which is supposed to be so hot he was going to come in here and set the Roseland on fire. Well, the Roseland is still standing". Compared to the reigning band of Fletcher Henderson, Basie's band lacked polish and presentation. Hammond advised and encouraged them, and they soon came up with some adjustments, including softer playing, more solos, more standards, and saving their hottest numbers for later in the show to give the audience a chance to warm up. His first official recordings for Decca followed, under contract to agent MCA, including "Pennies from Heaven" and "Honeysuckle Rose".

Hammond introduced Basie to Billie Holiday who was soon singing with the band. (Holiday didn't record with Basie, however, as she had her own record contract and preferred working with small combos). The band's first appearance at the Apollo Theater followed, with vocalists Holiday and Rushing getting the most attention. Eddie Durham came back to help with arranging and composing, but for the most part their numbers were worked out in rehearsal, with Basie, guiding the proceedings, and the results written out little if at all. Once they found what they liked, they usually were able to repeat it using their collective memory.

Next, Basie played at the Savoy, which was noted more for jitterbugging, while the Roseland was more of a place for fox-trots and congas. In early 1938, the Savoy was the meeting ground for a "battle of the bands" with Chick Webb's group. Basie had Holiday and Webb countered with Ella Fitzgerald. As ''Metronome'' magazine proclaimed, "Basie's Brilliant Band Conquers Chick's", then it went on in detail, : "Throughout the fight, which never let down in its intensity during the whole fray, Chick took the aggressive, with the Count playing along easily and, on the whole, more musically scientifically. Undismayed by Chick's forceful drum beating, which sent the audience into shouts of encouragement and appreciation and casual beads of perspiration to drop from Chick's brow onto the brass cymbals, the Count maintained an attitude of poise and self-assurance. He constantly parried Chick's thundering haymakers with tantalizing runs and arpeggios which teased more and more force from his adversary". The publicity over the battle, before and after, gave the Basie band a big boost and they gained wider recognition, as evidenced by Benny Goodman's recording of ''One O'Clock Jump'' shortly thereafter.

A few months later, Holiday left for Artie Shaw's band, and was replaced by Helen Humes; she was also ushered in by John Hammond, and stayed with Basie for four years. Co-arranger and trombone player Eddie Durham left for Glenn Miller's orchestra and was replaced by Dicky Wells. Basie's 14-man band began playing at the Famous Door, a mid-town nightspot, with a CBS network feed and air conditioning. Their fame took a huge leap. Adding to their play book, Basie received arrangements from Jimmy Mundy (who had also worked with Benny Goodman and Earl Hines) particularly for "Cherokee", "Easy Does It", and "Super Chief". In 1939, Basie and his band made a major cross-country tour, including their first West Coast dates. A few months later, Basie quit MCA and signed with the William Morris Agency, who got them better fees.

In 1942, Basie moved to Queens with Catherine Morgan, after being married to her for a few years. On the West Coast, the band did a spot in ''Reveille With Beverly'', a musical starring Ann Miller, and also a "Command Performance" for Armed Forces Radio with Hollywood stars Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Carmen Miranda, Jerry Colonna, and singer Dinah Shore. Other minor movie spots followed including ''Choo Choo Swing'', ''Crazy House'', ''Top Man'', and ''Hit Parade of 1943''. They also started to record with RCA. The war years caused a lot of member turn over, and the band worked many play dates with lower pay. Dance hall bookings were down sharply as swing began to fade, the effects of the musicians' strikes of 1942-44 and 1948 began to be felt and the public's growing taste for singers.

Post-war and later years

The big band era appeared to have ended after the war, and Basie disbanded the group. For a while, he performed in combos, sometimes stretched to an orchestra. In 1950, he headlined the Universal-International short film ''"Sugar Chile" Robinson, Billie Holiday, Count Basie and His Sextet.'' He reformed his group as a 16-piece orchestra in 1952. Basie credits Billy Eckstine, a top male vocalist of the time, for prompting his return to Big Band and Norman Granz for getting him into the Birdland club and promoting the new band through recordings on the Mercury, Clef, and Verve labels. The jukebox era had begun, and Basie shared the exposure along with early rock'n'roll and rhythm and blues artists. Basie's new band was more of an ensemble group, with fewer solo turns, and relying less on "head" and more on written arrangements.

Basie added touches of bebop "so long as it made sense", and he required that "it all had to have feeling". Basie's band was sharing Birdland with bebop greats Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Miles Davis. Behind the occasional bebop solos, though, he always kept his strict rhythmic pulse, "so it doesn't matter what they do up front; the audience gets the beat". Basie also added flute to some numbers, a novelty at the time that became widely copied. Soon, they were touring and recording again. The new band included: Paul Campbell, Tommy Turrentine, Johnny Letman, and Idrees Sulieman, Joe Newman (trumpet); Jimmy Wilkins, Benny Powell, Matthew Gee (trombone); Paul Quinichette and Floyd Johnson (tenor sax); Marshall Royal and Ernie Wilkins (alto sax); and Charlie Fowlkes (baritone sax). ''Down Beat'' said "(Basie) has managed to assemble an ensemble that can thrill both the listener who remembers 1938 and the youngster who has never before heard a big band like this".

In 1954, the band made its first European tour. Jazz was especially strong in France, The Netherlands, and Germany in the 1950s; These countries were the stomping grounds for many expatriate jazz stars who were either resurrecting their careers or sitting out the years of racial divide in the United States. Neal Hefti began to provide arrangements, notably "Lil Darlin'". By the mid-1950s, Basie's band had become one of the preeminent backing big bands for some of the most prominent jazz vocalists of the time. They also toured with the "Birdland Stars of 1955", whose lineup included Sarah Vaughan, Erroll Garner, Lester Young, George Shearing, and Stan Getz.

In 1957, Basie released the live album ''Count Basie at Newport''. "April in Paris" (arrangement by Wild Bill Davis) was a best-selling instrumental and the title song for the hit album. The Basie band made two tours in the British Isles and on the second, they put on a command performance for Queen Elizabeth II, along with Judy Garland, Vera Lynn, and Mario Lanza. He was a guest on ABC's ''The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom,'' a venue also opened to several other black entertainers. In 1959, Basie's band recorded a "greatest hits" double album ''The Count Basie Story'' (Frank Foster, arranger) and "Basie and Eckstine, Inc.": album featuring Billy Eckstine, Quincy Jones (as arranger) and the Count Basie Orchestra. It was released by Roulette Records, then later reissued by Capital Records.

Later that year, Basie appeared on a television special with Fred Astaire, featuring a dance solo to "Sweet Georgia Brown", followed in January 1960 by Basie performing at one of the five John F. Kennedy Inaugural Balls. That summer, Basie and Duke Ellington combined forces for the recording ''First Time! The Count Meets the Duke'', each providing four numbers from their play books.

During the balance of the 1960s, the band kept busy with tours, recordings, television appearances, festivals, Las Vegas shows, and travel abroad, including cruises. Some time around 1964, Basie adopted his trademark yachting cap.

Through steady changes in personnel, Basie led the band into the 1970s. Basie made a few more movie appearances, such as the Jerry Lewis film ''Cinderfella'' (1960) and the Mel Brooks movie ''Blazing Saddles'' (1974), playing his arrangement of "April in Paris".

Basie died of pancreatic cancer in Hollywood, Florida on April 26, 1984 at the age of 79.

Count Basie and His Orchestra

The musicians associated with Count Basie over the years included the following:

c.1937: Joe Keyes, Buck Clayton, Carl Smith, George Hunt, Dan Minor, Caughey Roberts, Herschel Evans, Lester Young, Jack Washington, Claude Williams, Walter Page, Jo Jones.

c.1939: Ed Lewis, Buck Clayton, Shad Collins, Harry Edison, Earle Warren, Buddy Tate, Benny Morton, Dicky Wells, Freddie Green.

1940: Al Killian, Vic Dickenson.

1943: Joe Newman, Snooky Young, Eli Robinson, Robert Scott, Louis Taylor, Jimmy Powell, Rudy Rutherford, Rodney Richardson.

The Singers

Basie hitched his star to some of the most famous vocalists of the 1950s and 1960s, which helped keep the Big Band sound alive and added greatly to his recording catalog. Jimmy Rushing sang with Basie in the late 1930s. Joe Williams toured with the band and was featured on the 1957 album ''One O'Clock Jump'', and 1956's ''Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings'', with "Every Day (I Have the Blues)" becoming a huge hit. With Billy Eckstine on the album Basie-Eckstine Inc., in 1959. Ella Fitzgerald made some memorable recordings with Basie, including the 1963 album ''Ella and Basie!''. With the 'New Testament' Basie band in full swing, and arrangements written by a youthful Quincy Jones, this album proved a swinging respite from her ''Songbook'' recordings and constant touring she did during this period. She even toured with the Basie Orchestra in the mid-1970s, and Fitzgerald and Basie also met on the 1979 albums ''A Classy Pair'', ''Digital III at Montreux'', and ''A Perfect Match'', the last two also recorded live at Montreux. In addition to Quincy Jones, Basie was using arrangers such as Benny Carter ''(Kansas City Suite)'', Neal Hefti ''(The Atomic Mr Basie)'', and Sammy Nestico ''(Basie-Straight Ahead)''.

Frank Sinatra recorded for the first time with Basie on 1962's ''Sinatra-Basie'' and for a second studio album on 1964's ''It Might as Well Be Swing'', which was arranged by Quincy Jones. Jones also arranged and conducted 1966's live ''Sinatra at the Sands''. In May 1970, Sinatra performed in London's Royal Festival Hall with the Basie orchestra, in a charity benefit for the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Sinatra later said of this concert "I have a funny feeling that those two nights could have been my finest hour, really. It went so well; it was so thrilling and exciting".

Basie also recorded with Tony Bennett in the early 1960s — their albums together included the live recording at Las Vegas and ''Strike Up the Band'', a studio album. Basie also toured with Bennett, including a date at Carnegie Hall. Other notable recordings were with Sammy Davis, Jr., Bing Crosby, and Sarah Vaughan. One of Basie's biggest regrets was never recording with Louis Armstrong, though they shared the same bill several times.

Legacy

Count Basie introduced several generations of listeners to the Big Band sound and left an influential catalog. Basie is remembered by many who worked for him as being considerate of musicians and their opinions, modest, relaxed, fun-loving, dryly witty, and always enthusiastic about his music. As he summed up the key to his understated style, in his autobiography, "I think the band can really ''swing'' when it swings ''easy'', when it can just play along like you are cutting butter".

Other cultural connections include Jerry Lewis using "Blues in Hoss' Flat" from Basie's ''Chairman of the Board'' album, as the basis for his own "Chairman of the Board" routine in the movie ''The Errand Boy'', in which Lewis pantomimed the movements of a corporate executive holding a board meeting. (In the early 1980s, Lewis revived the routine during the live broadcast of one of his Muscular Dystrophy Association telethons). ''Blues in Hoss' Flat'', composed by Basie band member Frank Foster, was also the longtime theme song of San Francisco and New York radio DJ Al "Jazzbeaux" Collins. In addition, Basie is one of the producers of the "world's greatest music" that Brenda Fricker's "Pigeon Lady" character claims to have heard in Carnegie Hall in 1992's ''Home Alone 2: Lost in New York''. Drummer Neil Peart of the Canadian rock band Rush recorded a version of "One O'Clock Jump" with the Buddy Rich Big Band, and has used it at the end of his drum solos on the 2002 Vapor Trails Tour and Rush's 30th Anniversary Tour.

The Count Basie Theatre and Count Basie Field in his hometown of Red Bank, New Jersey were named in his honor. The street on which he lived, Mechanic Street has the honorary title of Count Basie Way.

On September 26, 2009, Edgecombe Avenue and 160th Street in Washington Heights, Manhattan, were renamed as Paul Robeson Boulevard and Count Basie Place. The corner is the location of 555 Edgecombe Avenue, also known as the Paul Robeson Home, a National Historic Landmark building where Count Basie and Paul Robeson lived.

Discography

The majority of Basie's recordings were made with his big band, see Count Basie Orchestra Discography.

Basie also made several small group recordings without his band:

''Count Basie Sextet'' (1954, Clef)

''Count Basie and the Kansas City 7'' (1962, Impulse!)

''Basie Swingin' Voices Singin''' (1966, EMI)

''Loose Walk'' (with Roy Eldridge) (1972, Pablo)

''Basie Jam'' (1973, Pablo)

''The Bosses'' (with Big Joe Turner) (1973)

''For the First Time'' (1974, Pablo)

''Satch and Josh'' (with Oscar Peterson)

''Basie & Zoot'' (with Zoot Sims) (1975, Pablo)

''For the Second Time'' (1975, Pablo)

''Basie Jam 2'' (1976, Pablo)

''Basie Jam 3'' (1976, Pablo)

''Kansas City 5'' (1977, Pablo)

''The Gifted Ones'' (with Dizzy Gillespie) (1977, Pablo)

''Basie Jam: Montreux '77'' (live) (1977, Pablo)

''Satch and Josh...Again'' (with Oscar Peterson) (1977, Pablo)

''Night Rider'' (with Oscar Peterson) (1978, Pablo)

''Count Basie Meets Oscar Peterson – The Timekeepers'' (with Oscar Peterson) (1978, Pablo)

''Yessir, That's My Baby'' (with Oscar Peterson) (1978, Pablo)

''Kansas City 8: Get Together'' (1979, Pablo)

''Kansas City 7'' (1980, Pablo)

''Kansas City 6'' (1981, Pablo)

''Mostly Blues...and Some Others'' (1983, Pablo)

Filmography

''Sugar Chile Robinson, Billie Holiday, Count Basie and His Sextet'' (1950) – as himself

''Cinderfella'' (1960) – as himself

''Blazing Saddles'' (1974) – as himself with his orchestra

Awards

Grammy Awards

{| class=wikitable |- | colspan=5 align=center | Count Basie Grammy Award History |- |- ! Year ! Category ! Title ! Genre ! Results |- align=center | 1982 | Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band | ''Warm Breeze'' | Jazz | Winner |- align=center | 1984 | Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band | ''88 Basie Street'' | Jazz | Winner |- align=center | 1980 | Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band | ''On The Road'' | Jazz | Winner |- align=center | 1977 | Best Jazz Performance By A Big Band | ''Prime Time'' | Jazz | Winner |- align=center | 1976 | Best Jazz Performance By A Soloist (Instrumental) | ''Basie And Zoot'' | Jazz | Winner |- align=center | 1963 | Best Performance By An Orchestra – For Dancing | ''This Time By Basie! Hits Of The 50's And 60's'' | Pop | Winner |- align=center | 1960 | Best Performance By A Band For Dancing | ''Dance With Basie'' | Pop | Winner |- align=center | 1958 | Best Performance By A Dance Band | ''Basie'' | Pop | Winner |- align=center | 1958 | Best Jazz Performance, Group | ''Basie'' | Jazz | Winner |- align=center |}

Grammy Hall of Fame

By 2011, four recordings of Count Basie had been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, a special Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least 25 years old, and that have "qualitative or historical significance."

{| class=wikitable |- | colspan=5 align=center | Count Basie Grammy Hall of Fame Awards |- ! Year Recorded ! Title ! genre ! Label ! Year Inducted |- align=center | 1939 | Lester Leaps In | Jazz (Single) | Vocalion | 2005 |- align=center | 1955 | Everyday (I Have the Blues) | Jazz (Single) | Clef | 1992 |- align=center | 1955 | April in Paris | Jazz (Single) | Clef | 1985 |- align=center | 1937 | One O'Clock Jump | Jazz (Single) | Decca | 1979 |- align=center |}

Honors and Inductions

On May 23, 1985, William "Count" Basie was presented, posthumously, with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Ronald Reagan. The award was received by his son, Aaron Woodward.

On September 11, 1996 the U.S. Post Office issued a Count Basie 32 cents postage stamp. Basie is a part of the Big Band Leaders issue, which, is in turn, part of the Legends of American Music series.

{| class=wikitable |- | colspan=5 align=center | Count Basie Award History |- ! Year ! Category ! Result ! Notes |- align=center | 2007 | Long Island Music Hall of Fame | Inducted | |- align=center | 2005 | Nesuhi Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame | Inducted | |- align=center | 2002 | Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award | Winner | |- align=center | 1983 | NEA Jazz Masters | Winner | |- align=center | 1981 | Grammy Trustees Award | Winner | |- align=center | 1981 | Kennedy Center Honors | Honoree | |- align=center | late 1970s | Hollywood Walk of Fame | Honoree | at 6508 Hollywood Blvd. |- align=center | 1970 | Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia | Initiated | Mu Nu Chapter |- align=center | 1958 | Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame | Inducted | |- align=center |}

National Recording Registry

In 2005, Count Basie's song "One O'Clock Jump" (1937) was included by the National Recording Preservation Board in the Library of Congress National Recording Registry. The board selects songs in an annual basis that are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

References

External links

International Jose Guillermo Carrillo Foundation

Basie biography at swingmusic.net

BBC Profile of Count Basie

Downbeat Magazine

U.S. Postal Service Biography

''Remarks at the Presentation Ceremony for the Presidential Medal of Freedom – May 23, 1985''

Basie biography and album list

Category:1904 births Category:1984 deaths Category:People from Red Bank, New Jersey Category:Swing pianists Category:Swing bandleaders Category:African American actors Category:African American musicians Category:African American pianists Category:American bandleaders Category:American jazz bandleaders Category:American jazz pianists Category:American jazz organists Category:Apex Records artists Category:Big band bandleaders Category:Cancer deaths in Florida Category:Deaths from pancreatic cancer Category:Decca Records artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Mercury Records artists Category:Musicians from New Jersey Category:Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Category:RCA Victor artists Category:Vocalion Records artists Category:Vaudeville performers Category:Reprise Records artists

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