Joey DeFrancesco
Joey DeFrancesco (April 10, 1971August 25, 2022) was an American jazz organist, trumpeter, saxophonist, and occasional singer. He released more than 30 albums under his own name, and recorded extensively as a sideman with such leading jazz performers as trumpeter Miles Davis, saxophonist Houston Person, and guitarist John McLaughlin. DeFrancesco signed his first record deal at the age of 16 and over the years recorded and toured internationally with David Sanborn, Arturo Sandoval, Larry Coryell, Frank Wess, Benny Golson, James Moody, Steve Gadd, Danny Gatton, Elvin Jones, Jimmy Cobb, George Benson, Pat Martino, Tony Monaco, John Scofield, Lee Ritenour, Joe Lovano, and had prominent session work with a variety of musicians, including Ray Charles, Bette Midler, Janis Siegel, Diana Krall, Jimmy Smith, and Van Morrison. Early life and education DeFrancesco was born in Springfield, Pennsylvania, on April 10, 1971. He was born into a musical family that included three gene ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Springfield Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Springfield Township, or simply Springfield, is a township (Pennsylvania), township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Delaware County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The population was 25,070 at the 2020 census. Springfield is a suburb of Philadelphia, located about west of the city. History First settled by Quakers who arrived in Pennsylvania with William Penn, Springfield was first recognized as a governmental entity in 1686. Many of the streets in Springfield are named after former prominent citizens, including Kennerly, Lownes, Levis, Maris, Thomas, Beatty, Lewis, Foulke, Evans, Powell, Pancoast, Worrell, and Edge. Originally, Springfield was primarily a farming town. On December 9, 1687, the settlers began laying the road to Amosland as it was then called. This road is now known as Springfield Road. In 1701 construction began on the Baltimore Pike; the road was formed of sturdy oak planks, some of which still exist under the current Baltimore Pike. 1701 also marked the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Houston Person
Houston Person (born November 10, 1934) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing music, swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. He received the "Eubie Blake Jazz Award" in 1982. Biography Person grew up in Florence, South Carolina, and first played piano, before switching to tenor saxophone. He studied at South Carolina State College, where he was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 1999. In the United States Air Force, he joined a service band stationed in West Germany, and played with Don Ellis, Eddie Harris, Cedar Walton, and Leo Wright. Person later continued his studies at Hartt College of Music in Hartford, Connecticut. He first became known for a series of albums for Prestige Records, Prestige in the 1960s. Contrary to popular belief, he was never married to the vocalist Etta Jones, but did spend many years as her musical partner, recording, performing ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Pat Martino
Pat Martino (born Patrick Carmen Azzara; August 25, 1944 – November 1, 2021) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. He has been cited as one of the greatest guitarists in jazz. Early life Martino was born Patrick Carmen Azzara in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, to father Carmen "Mickey" Azzara (d. 1990) and mother Jean (née Orlando, d. 1989). He was first exposed to jazz by his father, who sang in local clubs and briefly studied guitar. Career Martino studied with renowned jazz teacher Dennis Sandole, and in his studio met some of Sandole's other students; among them, John Coltrane, James Moody (saxophonist), James Moody, McCoy Tyner and others. Martino began playing professionally at the age of 15 after moving to New York City. He lived for a period with Les Paul and began playing at jazz clubs such as Smalls Paradise. He later moved into a suite in the President Hotel on 48th Street (Manhattan), 48th Street. He played at Smalls for six months of the yea ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
George Benson
George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American jazz fusion guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, playing soul jazz with Jack McDuff and others. He then launched a successful solo career, alternating between jazz, pop, rhythm and blues, R&B singing, and scat singing. His album ''Breezin''' was certified triple-music recording sales certification, platinum, hitting No. 1 on the Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' album chart in 1976. His concerts were well attended through the 1980s, and he still has a large following. Benson has won ten Grammy Awards and has been honored with a List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame#B, star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Biography Early career Benson was born and raised in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the age of seven, he first played the ukulele in a corner drug s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Jimmy Cobb
Wilbur James "Jimmy" Cobb (January 20, 1929May 24, 2020) was an American jazz drummer. He was part of Miles Davis's First Great Sextet. He was awarded an NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship in 2009. Early life Cobb was born in Washington, D.C., on January 20, 1929. Before he began his music career, he listened to jazz albums and stayed awake into the late hours of the night to listen to Symphony Sid broadcasting from New York City. Raised Catholic, he was also exposed to Church music. Cobb started his touring career in 1950 with the saxophonist Earl Bostic. He subsequently performed with vocalist Dinah Washington, pianist Wynton Kelly, saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, bassist Keter Betts, Frank Wess, Leo Parker, and Charlie Rouse. His website also recounts his gigs with Billie Holiday, Pearl Bailey, and Dizzy Gillespie that took place before 1957. Career Cobb joined Miles Davis in 1958 as part of the latter's First Great Sextet, after Adderley recommended him to Davis. Cobb' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Elvin Jones
Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such albums as ''My Favorite Things (John Coltrane album), My Favorite Things'', ''A Love Supreme'', ''Ascension (John Coltrane album), Ascension'' and ''Live at Birdland (John Coltrane album), Live at Birdland''. After 1966, Jones led his own trio, and later larger groups under the name ''The Elvin Jones Jazz Machine''. His brothers Hank Jones, Hank and Thad Jones, Thad were also celebrated jazz musicians with whom he occasionally recorded. Elvin was inducted into the ''Modern Drummer'' Hall of Fame in 1995. In his ''The History of Jazz'', jazz historian and critic Ted Gioia calls Jones "one of the most influential drummers in the history of jazz". He was also ranked at Number 23 on ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's "100 Greatest Drummers of All Time". Early life a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Danny Gatton
Daniel Wood Gatton Jr. (September 4, 1945 – October 4, 1994) was an American virtuoso guitarist who combined blues, rockabilly, jazz, and country to create a musical style he called "redneck jazz". Career Daniel Wood Gatton Jr. was born in Washington, D.C., in 1945. The son of a rhythm guitarist, Gatton started playing at the age of nine. From 1960–1964 he played jazz guitar with the Offbeats, then worked as a session musician in Nashville. When he returned to Washington, he drew attention in the 1970s as a member of Liz Meyer & Friends and other local bands. He recorded his debut album, ''American Music'' (1975), followed by ''Redneck Jazz'' (1978) with pedal steel guitarist Buddy Emmons appearing as a guest. He founded the band the Redneck Jazz Explosion. Although Gatton could play most genres of music, including jazz, blues, bluegrass, and rock, he was known as a country and rockabilly guitarist. He toured with singers Roger Miller and Robert Gordon. He was sometimes ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Steve Gadd
Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American jazz fusion drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and most highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction into the '' Modern Drummer'' Hall of Fame in 1984. Gadd's performances on Paul Simon's " 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover"(1976) and " Late in the Evening"(1980), Herbie Mann's "Hi-jack"(1975) and Steely Dan's " Aja"(1977) are examples of his style. He has worked with other popular musicians from many genres including Van McCoy, Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor, Chick Corea, Chuck Mangione, Randy Crawford, Eric Clapton, Michel Petrucciani, and David Gilmour. Early life Gadd grew up in Irondequoit, New York. He started playing the drums at a very early age. At age 11, he entered the Mickey Mouse National Talent Round Up contest and was one of the winners; he won a trip to California, where he met Walt Disney and appeared on '' The Mickey Mouse ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
James Moody (saxophonist)
James Moody (March 26, 1925 – December 9, 2010) was an American jazz saxophone and flute player and very occasional vocalist, playing predominantly in the bebop and hard bop styles. The annual James Moody Jazz Festival is held in Newark, New Jersey. Moody had an unexpected hit with " Moody's Mood for Love", a 1952 song written by Eddie Jefferson, which used as its melody an improvised solo that Moody had played on a 1949 recording of " I'm in the Mood for Love". Moody adopted the song as his own, recording it with Jefferson on his 1956 album '' Moody's Mood for Love'' and performing the song regularly in concert, often singing the vocals himself. Early life James Moody was born in Savannah, Georgia, United States, and was raised by his single mother, Ruby Hann Moody Watters. According to one reference, his absent father was a trumpeter in Tiny Bradshaw`s group. He had a brother, Louis Edward Watters. Growing up in Newark, New Jersey, he was attracted to the saxophone af ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Benny Golson
Benny Golson (January 25, 1929 – September 21, 2024) was an American bebop and hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He came to prominence with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie, more as a writer than a performer, before launching his solo career. Golson was known for co-founding and co-leading The Jazztet with trumpeter Art Farmer in 1959. From the late 1960s through the 1970s Golson was in demand as an arranger for film and television and thus was less active as a performer, but he and Farmer re-formed the Jazztet in 1982. Many of Golson's compositions have become jazz standards, including " I Remember Clifford", " Blues March", " Stablemates", " Whisper Not", "Along Came Betty", and "Killer Joe". He is regarded as "one of the most significant contributors" to the development of hard bop jazz, and was a recipient of a Grammy Trustees Award in 2021. Early life and education He was born Benny Golson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Ja ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Frank Wess
Frank Wellington Wess (January 4, 1922 – October 30, 2013) was an American jazz saxophonist and flutist. He was renowned for his extensive solo work; however, he was also remembered for his time playing with Count Basie, Count Basie's band during the early 1950s into the early 1960s. Critic Scott Yanow described him as one of the premier proteges of Lester Young, and a leading jazz flutist of his era—using the latter instrument to bring new colors to Basie's music. Early life Wess was born in Kansas City, Missouri. Since he was young, Wess grew up listening to music. His mother was one of his major influences as she would take him to watch performers like Roland Hayes and Ida Cox. While speaking to his father, who was a school principal in Oklahoma, on a separate occasion, he discovered that his mother had wanted him to become a musician for a long time. Up until that pivotal moment, Wess had viewed his interactions with his mother as bonding where she emphasized the importa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Larry Coryell
Larry Coryell (born Lorenz Albert Van DeLinder III; April 2, 1943 – February 19, 2017) was an American jazz guitarist, widely considered the "godfather of fusion". Alongside Gábor Szabó, he was a pioneer in melding jazz, country and rock music. Coryell was also a music teacher and a writer, penning a monthly column for ''Guitar Player'' magazine from 1977 to 1989. He collaborated with a number of other high-profile musicians, including John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, Miroslav Vitouš, Billy Cobham, Lenny White, Emily Remler, Al Di Meola, Paco de Lucía, Steve Morse and others. Early life Larry Coryell was born in Galveston, Texas, United States. He never knew his biological father, a musician. He was raised by his stepfather Gene, a chemical engineer, and his mother Cora, who encouraged him to learn piano when he was four years old. In Coryell's teens, he switched to guitar. After his family moved to Richland, Washington, he took lessons from a teacher who lent h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |