Dee Gee Records was a

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 ...

record company and

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small and medium-sized enterprise, small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels ...

founded in Detroit, Michigan in 1951 by

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...

and Dave Usher.

History

''Billboard'' relates that Dee Gee opened for business on April 7, 1951. According to Gillespie, Dee Gee Records was the result of his desire to control his own recorded output. Dave Usher was a 21-year-old fan and friend of Gillespie. Dee Gee Records was based in Detroit where Usher lived, and its sessions were held there, in

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 in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. Initial response was encouraging, and within a short time Dee Gee began to record artists other than Gillespie. But over time Usher found it difficult to handle the financial matters of the company, and in 1953 Dee Gee closed, with Gillespie returning to established firms to make his recordings. In 1956 the label and its catalog were acquired by

Savoy Records Savoy Records is an American record company and label established by Herman Lubinsky in 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. Savoy specialized in jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. In September 2017, Savoy was acquired by Concord Bicycle Music. ...

, which has controlled it ever since. Despite Dee Gee's failure, Gillespie and Usher remained lifelong friends; after a break from music, Usher became a producer with

Argo Records Argo Records was a record label in Chicago that was established in 1955 in music, 1955 as a division of Chess Records. Originally the label was called Marterry, but bandleader Ralph Marterie objected, and within a couple of months the imprint w ...

and ultimately the head of Marine Pollution Control, which specializes in cleaning up major industrial oil spills.

Legacy

For Dee Gee, Dizzy Gillespie recorded the first commercially released versions of "Tin Tin Deo", "

Birks' Works ''Birks' Works'' is an album by trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie recorded in 1957 and released on the Verve label.

" and "The Champ". Among others who recorded for Dee Gee were the

Milt Jackson Milton Jackson (January 1, 1923 – October 9, 1999), nicknamed "Bags", was an American jazz vibraphonist. He is especially remembered for his cool swinging solos as a member of the Modern Jazz Quartet and his penchant for collaborating with ...

Quartet, a predecessor to the

Modern Jazz Quartet The Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ) was a jazz combo established in 1952 that played music influenced by classical music, classical, cool jazz, blues and bebop. The Quartet consisted of John Lewis (pianist), John Lewis (piano), Milt Jackson (vibraphon ...

, Jackie Wilson under the name "Sonny Wilson", drummers Shelly Manne and Kenny Clarke, jazz composer William Russo, jazz singer Annie Ross, and popular vocal group The Tattletales, featuring singer Jerri Adams. Among Gillespie's sidemen were

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the Jazz#Post-war jazz, history of jazz and 20th-century musi ...

, making some of his first recordings, and guitarist

Kenny Burrell Kenneth Earl Burrell (born July 31, 1931) is an American jazz guitarist known for his work on numerous top jazz labels: Prestige Records, Prestige, Blue Note, Verve Records, Verve, CTI Records, CTI, Muse Records, Muse, and Concord Records, Conco ...

, who recorded his first solo on "Birk's Works". For Savoy, the Dee Gee output provided selections by Gillespie that remained in their catalog for decades, including the albums ''The Champ'' and '' Dee Gee Days: The Savoy Sessions''. Gillespie expressed regret at losing control of Dee Gee; running his own label offered a freedom from commercial constraints to experiment with a populist form of

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 ...

, comedy, and elements of calypso, R&B, and other styles. In retrospect, Gillespie complained that some purists within bebop felt he had "sold out". Dizzy Gillespie's Dee Gee Records label is not to be confused with a 1960s Dee Gee Records (named after Doris Gilbert) based in Hollywood,G45central.com forum on Los Angeles Dee Gee
/ref> nor a 1980s Dee Gee Records based in Wooster, Ohio.

References

External links

* Dee Gee Records Discograph
Both Sides Now Publications: Dee Gee Records Discography
* Dizzy Gillespie Discograph
JazzDisco.org Dizzy Gillespie Discography
* Savoy Records Discograph

Dee Gee Records
on the Internet Archive'
Great 78 Project
{{Authority control American independent record labels Record labels established in 1951 Record labels disestablished in 1953 Defunct record labels of the United States Record labels based in Michigan American jazz record labels 1951 establishments in Michigan