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Benjamin Gordon Powell Jr. (March 1, 1930 – June 26, 2010) was an American
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
trombonist. He played both standard (tenor)
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 ...
and bass trombone.


Biography

Born Benjamin Gordon Powell Jr. in New Orleans, Louisiana, he first played professionally at the age of 14, and at 18 began playing with
Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and bandleader. He worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, an ...
. In 1951 he left Hampton's band and began playing with
Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...
, in whose orchestra he would remain until 1963. Powell takes the trombone solo in the bridge of Basie's 1955 recording of " April in Paris". After leaving Basie, he freelanced in New York City. From 1966 to 1970 he was a member of the
Thad Jones Thaddeus Joseph Jones (March 28, 1923 – August 20, 1986) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer and bandleader who has been called "one of the all-time greatest jazz trumpet soloists". Early life, family and education Thad Jones was born i ...
- Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, playing on Monday nights at the
Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jaz ...
. Among other engagements, he played in the house band of the '' Merv Griffin Show'', and when the show moved to
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, in 1970 Powell also relocated there. He did extensive work as a
session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...
, including with Abdullah Ibrahim, John Carter, and Randy Weston. Later in his career Powell worked as an educator, including as part of the Jazzmobile project. Having moved back to New York in the 1980s, he began teaching at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in 1994. He died in a
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
hospital at the age of 80, following back surgery.


Personal

Powell married Evelyn Jackson at St. Bernard Catholic Church in New York in 1958.


Discography


As leader

* ''Coast to Coast'' (
Trident A trident (), () is a three- pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and historically as a polearm. As compared to an ordinary spear, the three tines increase the chance that a fish will be struck and decrease the chance that a fish will b ...
, 1982) * ''The Gift of Love'' (Faith, 2003) * ''
Nextep ''Nextep'' is an album by trombonist Benny Powell. Featuring ten original compositions by Powell, his band members, and his ex-wife, it was recorded on February 9 and 10, 2007, at Alleycat Studio in South Orange, New Jersey, and was issued on CD ...
'' ( Origin, 2008)


As sideman

With Pepper Adams * '' Pepper Adams Plays the Compositions of Charlie Mingus'' (Workshop Jazz, 1964) With
Gene Ammons Eugene "Jug" Ammons (April 14, 1925 – August 6, 1974), also known as "The Boss", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. The son of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons, Gene Ammons is remembered for his accessible music, steeped in soul and R ...
* '' Free Again'' (
Prestige Prestige may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films *Prestige (film), ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnett: woman travels to French Indochina to meet up with husband *The Prestige (film), ''The Prestige'' (fi ...
, 1971) With
Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...
* '' The Count!'' (
Clef A clef (from French: 'key') is a musical symbol used to indicate which notes are represented by the lines and spaces on a musical staff. Placing a clef on a staff assigns a particular pitch to one of the five lines or four spaces, whic ...
, 1952 955 * '' Basie Jazz'' (Clef, 1952
954 Year 954 ( CMLIV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – A Hungarian army led by Bulcsú crosses the Rhine. He camps at Worms in the capital of his ally Conrad the Red, d ...
* '' Dance Session'' (Clef, 1953) * '' Dance Session Album #2'' (Clef, 1954) * '' Basie'' (Clef, 1954) * '' Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings'' (Clef, 1955) with Joe Williams * '' April in Paris'' ( Verve, 1956) * '' The Greatest!! Count Basie Plays, Joe Williams Sings Standards'' with Joe Williams * '' Metronome All-Stars 1956'' (Clef, 1956) with
Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April25, 1917June15, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter and composer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phra ...
and Joe Williams * ''
Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
'' (Verve, 1956 959 * '' Basie in London'' (Verve, 1956) * '' One O'Clock Jump'' (Verve, 1957) with Joe Williams and Ella Fitzgerald * '' Count Basie at Newport'' (Verve, 1957) * '' The Atomic Mr. Basie'' (
Roulette Roulette (named after the French language, French word meaning "little wheel") is a casino game which was likely developed from the Italy, Italian game Biribi. In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various grouping ...
, 1957) aka ''Basie'' and ''E=MC2'' * '' Basie Plays Hefti'' (Roulette, 1958) * '' Sing Along with Basie'' (Roulette, 1958) with Joe Williams and Lambert, Hendricks & Ross * '' Basie One More Time'' (Roulette, 1959) * '' Breakfast Dance and Barbecue'' (Roulette, 1959) * '' Everyday I Have the Blues'' (Roulette, 1959) - with Joe Williams * '' Dance Along with Basie'' (Roulette, 1959) * '' String Along with Basie'' (Roulette, 1960) * '' Not Now, I'll Tell You When'' (Roulette, 1960) * '' The Count Basie Story'' (Roulette, 1960) * '' Kansas City Suite'' (Roulette, 1960) * '' The Legend'' (Roulette, 1961) * '' Back with Basie'' (Roulette, 1962) * '' Basie in Sweden'' (Roulette, 1962) * '' On My Way & Shoutin' Again!'' (Verve, 1962) * '' This Time by Basie!'' (
Reprise In music, a reprise ( , ; from the verb 'to resume') is the repetition or reiteration of the opening material later in a composition as occurs in the recapitulation of sonata form, though—originally in the 18th century—was simply any re ...
, 1963) * '' More Hits of the 50's and 60's'' (Verve, 1963) With
Donald Byrd Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II (December 9, 1932 – February 4, 2013) was an American jazz and rhythm & blues trumpeter, composer and vocalist. A sideman for many other jazz musicians of his generation, Byrd was one of the few h ...
* ''
Jazz Lab ''Jazz Lab'' is an album by American jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd and saxophonist Gigi Gryce, released in 1957 by Columbia Records, Columbia.Columbia, 1957) with
Gigi Gryce Gigi Gryce (born George General Grice Jr.; November 28, 1925 – March 17, 1983), later in life changing his name to Basheer Qusim, was an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, clarinetist, composer, arranger, and educator. While his performing ...
With
Benny Carter Bennett Lester Carter (August 8, 1907 – July 12, 2003) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. With Johnny Hodges, he was a pioneer on the alto saxophone. From the beginning of his career ...
*'' Harlem Renaissance'' (MusicMasters, 1992) With John Carter * '' Castles of Ghana'' ( Gramavision, 1986) * ''Dance of the Love Ghosts'' (Gramavision, 1987) * ''Fields'' (Gramavision, 1988) * ''Shadows on a Wall'' ramavision, 1989) With Buck Clayton * ''How Hi the Fi">Buck_Clayton.html" ;"title="ramavision, 1989) With Buck Clayton">ramavision, 1989) With Buck Clayton * ''How Hi the Fi'' (Columbia, 1954) With Hank Crawford * ''Mr. Blues Plays Lady Soul'' (Atlantic Records, Atlantic, 1969) With Dameronia * ''Look Stop Listen'' (Uptown, 1983) * ''Live at the Theatre Boulogne-Billancourt Paris'' (Soul Note, 1989 994 With Frank Foster *'' No 'Count'' (Savoy, 1956) With Al Grey * '' The Last of the Big Plungers'' (
Argo In Greek mythology, the ''Argo'' ( ; ) was the ship of Jason and the Argonauts. The ship was built with divine aid, and some ancient sources describe her as the first ship to sail the seas. The ''Argo'' carried the Argonauts on their quest fo ...
, 1959) * '' The Thinking Man’s Trombone'' (Argo, 1960) With
Eddie Harris Eddie Harris (October 20, 1934 – November 5, 1996) was an American jazz musician, best known for playing tenor saxophone and for introducing the electrically amplified saxophone. He was also fluent on the electric piano and organ. His best-k ...
* ''
Silver Cycles ''Silver Cycles'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist Eddie Harris recorded in 1968 and released on the Atlantic Records, Atlantic label.
'' (Atlantic, 1968) * '' How Can You Live Like That?'' (Atlantic, 1976) With
Jimmy Heath James Edward Heath (October 25, 1926 – January 19, 2020), nicknamed Little Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band leader. He was the brother of bassist Percy Heath and drummer Albert Heath. Biography Heath w ...
* '' New Picture'' (
Landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern-day use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures ...
, 1985) * '' Little Man Big Band'' (Verve, 1992) With
Johnny Hodges Johnny Hodges (July 25, 1907 – May 11, 1970) was an American alto saxophone, alto saxophonist, best known for solo work with Duke Ellington's big band. He played lead alto in the saxophone section for many years. Hodges was also featured on sop ...
* '' Triple Play'' (
RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...
, 1967) With J. J. Johnson * '' The Total J.J. Johnson'' (RCA Victor, 1967) With
Clifford Jordan Clifford Laconia Jordan (September 2, 1931 – March 27, 1993) was an American jazz tenor saxophone player and composer. Originally from Chicago, Jordan later moved to New York City, where he recorded extensively in addition to touring across ...
* '' Play What You Feel'' ( Mapleshade, 1990 997 With Bobby Bland and
B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...
* '' Bobby Bland and B. B. King Together Again...Live'' ( MCA, 1976) with
Melba Liston Melba Doretta Liston (January 13, 1926 – April 23, 1999) was an American jazz trombonist, arranger, and composer. Other than those playing in all-female bands, she was the first woman trombonist to play in big bands during the 1940s and 1960s, ...
* '' Melba Liston and Her 'Bones'' (MetroJazz, 1958) With
Herbie Mann Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz Flute, flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet ...
* '' Glory of Love'' ( CTI, 1967) With Les McCann * '' Comment'' (Atlantic, 1970) With David Newman * '' Bigger & Better'' (Atlantic, 1968) * '' The Many Facets of David Newman'' (Atlantic, 1969) *'' Cityscape'' (HighNote, 2006) With Joe Newman * '' The Count's Men'' (Jazztone, 1955) * '' Salute to Satch'' (RCA Victor, 1956) With Chico O'Farrill * '' Nine Flags'' ( Impulse!, 1966) With Moacir Santos * '' Saudade'' ( Blue Note, 1974) With
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 duri ...
* '' North, South, East....Wess'' (Savoy 1956) With Randy Weston * '' Spirits of Our Ancestors'' (recorded 1991) * '' Volcano Blues'' (recorded 1993) * ''Saga'' (recorded 1995) * '' Khepera'' (recorded 1998) * ''Spirit! The Power of Music'' (recorded 1999) * ''Live in St. Lucia'' (recorded 2002) With
Gerald Wilson Gerald Stanley Wilson (September 4, 1918 – September 8, 2014) was an American jazz trumpeter, big band bandleader, composer, arranger, and educator. Born in Mississippi, he was based in Los Angeles from the early 1940s. He arranged music for D ...
* '' New York, New Sound'' ( Mack Avenue, 2003) * '' In My Time'' (Mack Avenue, 2005)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Benny 1930 births 2010 deaths American jazz trombonists American male trombonists Jazz musicians from New Orleans American male jazz musicians Dameronia members The Capp-Pierce Juggernaut members Statesmen of Jazz members