Robert Lrod Dorough (December 12, 1923 – April 23, 2018) was an American

bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early to mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo (usually exceeding 200 bpm), complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerou ...

and

cool jazz Cool jazz is a style of modern jazz music inspired by bebop and big band that arose in the United States after World War II. It is characterized by relaxed tempos and a lighter tone than that used in the fast and complex bebop style. Cool jazz of ...

vocalist, pianist, and composer. He became famous as the composer and performer of songs in the TV series ''

Schoolhouse Rock! ''Schoolhouse Rock!'' is an American interstitial programming series of animated musical educational short films (and later, music videos) which aired during the Saturday morning children's programming block on the U.S. television network AB ...

'', as well as for his work with

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

, Blossom Dearie, and others.

Early life

Robert Lrod Dorough was born in

Cherry Hill Cherry Hill often refers to: * Cherry Hill, New Jersey, a township in Camden County, New Jersey * Cherry Hill, Prince William County, Virginia, a census-designated place Cherry Hill may also refer to: Places Canada * Cherry Hill, Nova Scotia, a ...

Polk County, Arkansas Polk County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 19,221. The county seat is Mena, Arkansas, Mena. Polk County is Arkansas's 48th county, ...

and grew up in

Plainview, Texas Plainview is a city in and the county seat of Hale County, Texas, Hale County, Texas, United States. The population was 20,187 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Plainview began when Z. T. Maxwell and Edwin Lowden Lowe establ ...

. During World War II, he participated in Army bands as pianist, clarinetist, saxophonist, and arranger. After that, he attended

North Texas State University The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public university, public research university located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its main campus is in Denton, Texas, Denton, with a satellite campus in Frisco, Texas, Frisco. It serves as the ...

, where he studied composition and piano.

Career

From 1949 to 1952 Dorough was a graduate student at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and on the side played piano at local jazz clubs. He was hired for a tour by boxer

Sugar Ray Robinson Walker Smith Jr. (May 3, 1921 – April 12, 1989), better known as Sugar Ray Robinson, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1940 to 1965. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. He is often regarde ...

, who had interrupted his boxing career to pursue music. In Paris from 1954 to 1955 he worked as a musician and musical director, recording with jazz vocalist Blossom Dearie. When Dorough returned to the United States, he moved to

Los Angeles 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, ...

, where he performed in various clubs, including a job between sets by comedian

Lenny Bruce Leonard Alfred Schneider (October 13, 1925 – August 3, 1966), better known by his stage name Lenny Bruce, was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, and satirist. He was renowned for his open, free-wheeling, and critical style of come ...

. His first album, ''Devil May Care'', came out in 1956 and contained a version of Charlie Parker's " Yardbird Suite" with lyrics added by Dorough. Jazz trumpeter

liked the album, and in 1962 when

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

asked Davis to make a Christmas record, he sought out Dorough to provide lyrics and vocals. "Blue Xmas" appeared on the compilation album '' Jingle Bell Jazz''. During that session Dorough recorded another song for Davis, "Nothing Like You," which appeared a few years later at the end of the ''

Sorcerer Sorcerer may refer to: Magic * Sorcerer (supernatural), a practitioner of magic that derives from supernatural or occult sources * Sorcerer (fantasy), a fictional character who uses or practices magic that derives from supernatural or occult sou ...

'' album, making Dorough one of the few musicians with a vocal performance on a Miles Davis record. In 1969, Dorough participated as arranger, choir vocalist, and pianist for beat poet

Allen Ginsberg Irwin Allen Ginsberg (; June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he began friendships with Lucien Carr, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of th ...

's 1970 LP '' Songs of Innocence and Experience'', a musical adaptation of

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...

's poetry collection of the same name. From 1972 to 1996, and for direct-to-video releases in 2002 and 2009, Dorough wrote and directed episodes of ''

'', an educational animated series that appeared on TV. He got the job when advertiser David McCall asked him in 1969 to put the multiplication tables to music, with "Three Is a Magic Number" earning him the job as the series' musical director. Dorough wrote all the songs for ''Multiplication Rock'', the first of six eventual subject areas (the others being ''Grammar Rock'', ''America Rock'', ''Science Rock'', ''Money Rock'' and ''Earth Rock'', to which he also contributed songs and performances). With his friend Ben Tucker, Dorough wrote the song " Comin' Home Baby", which gave Mel Tormé a Top 40 hit and two

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

nominations. He was a partner for many years with Stuart Scharf, producing two albums for the folk-pop band

Spanky and Our Gang Spanky and Our Gang was an American 1960s sunshine pop band led by Spanky McFarlane, Elaine "Spanky" McFarlane. The band derives its name from Hal Roach's ''Our Gang'' comedies of the 1930s (known to modern audiences as ''The Little Rascals''), ...

and adding jazz arrangements to their sound. Spanky recorded Dorough's 1-3-5-8 (''Pedagogical Round'' #''2''), a clever round where the lyrics indicate the notes. Dorough was the vocalist for The 44th Street Portable Flower Factory, recording

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of popular music for Scholastic Records in the early 1970s. Dorough remained with the show from 1973 to 1985.

Later career

From 1985 to 1993 he toured Europe several times with the saxophone player Michael Hornstein, bassist Bill Takas and drummer Fred Braceful. At the age of 73, Dorough, whose previous albums had been released by smaller, more obscure labels, signed his first contract with a major record label,

Blue Note Records Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by History of the Jews in Germany, German-Jewish emigrants Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it deriv ...

. Dorough worked with

Nellie McKay Eleanora Marie McKay (born April 13, 1982) is an English–American singer and songwriter. She made her Broadway debut in ''The Threepenny Opera#United States 2, The Threepenny Opera'' (2006). Early life and education McKay was born in London ...

on her 2007 album '' Obligatory Villagers'' as well as her 2009 release '' Normal as Blueberry Pie – A Tribute to Doris Day''. He continued to do occasional work intended for children. He wrote an illustrated book of ''Blue Xmas'', published by Circumstantial Productions, and three songs to accompany Maureen Sullivan's books about Carlos the French bulldog: ''Ankle Soup'', ''Custard and Mustard'' and ''Christmas Feet''.

Death

Dorough died on April 23, 2018, at his home in Mount Bethel, Pennsylvania, at the age of 94.

Awards and honors

*In 1974, Dorough received a Grammy nomination for Best Recording for Children. *In 1998, Dorough was inducted into the Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame. *He received Artist of the Year at the 2002 Pennsylvania Governor's Awards for the Arts. *In December 2007, Dorough was honored by East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania with a Doctor of Fine Arts honorary degree. *In 2019, the ''Schoolhouse Rock!'' soundtrack was selected by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

for preservation in the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". *In 2019, he was recognized as a 2019 Jazz Master by the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

Discography

As leader

* ''Devil May Care'' (

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

, 1956) * ''Just About Everything'' (Focus, 1966) * ''I'll Never Fall in Love Again'' (Music Minus One, 1970) * ''A Taste of Honey'' (Music Minus One, 1972) * ''Multiplication Rock'' ( Capitol, 1973) * ''Watch What Happens!'' (Music Minus One, 1974) * ''Beginning to See the Light'' with Bill Takas (Laissez-Faire, 1976) * ''An Excursion Through "Oliver!"'' (Music Minus One, 1963) * ''Devil May Care'' ( 52e Rue Est, 1983) * ''Hoagy's Children'' with Dick Sudhalter, Barbara Lea (Audiophile, 1983) * ''Sing and Swing'' with Bill Takas (

Red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

, 1984) * ''Clankin' on Tin Pan Alley'' with Bill Takas (Bloomdido, 1986) * ''Skabadabba'' (

Pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...

, 1987) * ''Songs of Love'' (Orange Blue, 1988) * ''This Is a Recording of Pop Art Songs'' (Laissez-Faire, 1991) * ''Right On My Way Home'' (Blue Note, 1997) * '' Too Much Coffee Man'' (Blue Note, 2000) * '' Who's On First?'' with Dave Frishberg (Blue Note, 2000) * ''To Communicate'' (Vivid Sound, 2004) * ''Sunday at Iridium'' (Arbors, 2004) * ''Complete Recordings'' with Sam Most (Lone Hill, 2004) * ''Small Day Tomorrow'' (Candid, 2006) * ''The Devils Best Tunes: The Beatnik Scat of Bob Dorough'' (Fingertips, 2011) * ''Duets'' (COTAjazz, 2012) * ''Eulalia'' (Merry Lane, 2014) * ''But for Now'' (Enja, 2015) * ''Live at the Deer Head Inn'' (Deer Head, 2016)

Singles

* "Ankle Soup" (2011) * "Christmas Feet" (2011) * "Custard and Mustard" (2011) * "'P' is for the People" (2011) * "Blue Xmas (To Whom It May Concern)" Columbia Records/Blue Vinyl/Record Store Day 2014

As sideman or guest

* Sam Most: ''Bebop Revisited, Vol. 3'' ( Xanadu, 1953) * Buddy Banks Quartet: ''Jazz in Paris – Buddy Banks/Bobby Jaspar – Jazz de Chambre'' ( EmArcy, 1956) * Sam Most: ''Sam Most Plays Bird, Bud, Monk and Miles'' (Bethlehem, 1957) *

: ''Facets'' ( Columbia,1967) * Miles Davis: ''

'' (Columbia, 1967) *

: '' Songs of Innocence and Experience'' (MGM, 1970) * Various: ''That's The Way I Feel Now: A Tribute to Thelonious Monk'' ( A&M, 1984) * Harold Danko: ''Alone But Not Forgotten'' ( Sunnyside, 1985/86) * Naked City: ''

Grand Guignol The Théâtre du Grand-Guignol () was a theater in the Pigalle district of Paris (7, cité Chaptal). From its opening in 1897 until its closing in 1962, it specialized in horror shows. Its name is often used as a general term for graphic, amor ...

'' (

Avant Avant can refer to: People * Avant, part of music production team Bloodshy & Avant * Avant (singer), Myron Avant, an American singer * Clarence Avant, a music executive * Jason Avant, is a US American football player Places * Avant, Oklahoma, ...

, 1992) * The Jazz Passengers: '' Jazz Passengers in Love'' ( Windham Hill JAzz, 1994) * Michael Hornstein: ''Innocent Gem'' (Enja, 1995) * ''Hoagy's Children, Vol. 1'' (

Audiophile An audiophile (from + ) is a person who is enthusiastic about high-fidelity sound reproduction. The audiophile seeks to achieve high sound quality in the audio reproduction of recorded music, typically in a quiet listening space in a room with ...

, 1994) * ''Hoagy's Children, Vol. 2'' (Audiophile, 1994) * Various: ''Jazzmass'' (COTA, 1995) * Blossom Dearie: ''I'm Hip'' (Columbia, 1998) * Various: ''The Reasons for Christmas Project'' (PATH, 2003) *

: ''Obligatory Villagers'' (

Vanguard The vanguard (sometimes abbreviated to van and also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. ...

, 2007) * Nellie McKay: ''Normal as Blueberry Pie: A Tribute to Doris Day'' (Verve Records, 2009) * Various Artists: ''Jazz Canto Vol. 1 (an anthology of poetry and jazz)'' (Righteous, 2009)

References

External links

* * * * Albin, Scott
Essential Bob Dorough Recordings
at Jazz.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Dorough, Bob 1923 births 2018 deaths 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American jazz composers 21st-century American pianists 21st-century American jazz composers American male jazz composers American jazz pianists American male jazz pianists American male singers American male songwriters American music arrangers Record producers from Arkansas American rock songwriters Bebop pianists Blue Note Records artists Cool jazz pianists Jazz arrangers Military personnel from Arkansas People from Polk County, Arkansas Red Records artists Singers from Arkansas Songwriters from Arkansas University of North Texas College of Music alumni Vocalese singers Animation composers Jazz musicians from Arkansas 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians Arbors Records artists Candid Records artists Enja Records artists NEA Jazz Masters