Dudley Brooks (December 22, 1913 – July 17, 1989) was an American jazz pianist, arranger, and composer.

Biography

Brooks was born on December 22, 1913, in

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, ...

."Dudley Brooks"
Internet Movie Database (IMDb). While under contract to Paramount Studios, Brooks spent considerable time working as a session piano player at the

Radio Recorders Radio Recorders, Inc. was an American recording studio located in Los Angeles, California. During the 1940s and 1950s, Radio Recorders was one of the largest independent recording studios in the world. Notable musicians recorded at Radio Recorde ...

studio in Los Angeles.Jorgensen, Ernst (1998), ''Elvis Presley: A Life in Music.'' New York: St. Martin's Press, pp. 84, 86, 89, 95, 99, 101, 104-105, 130, 133, 136. For many years, Radio Recorders was one of the best known recording studios in the country and hosted performers such as

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz Saxophone, saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of beb ...

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

, and

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

. Presley was also under contract to Paramount Studios where he was filming movies to include '' Girls! Girls! Girls!'' and ''

Blue Hawaii ''Blue Hawaii'' is a 1961 American musical romantic comedy drama film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Elvis Presley. The screenplay by Hal Kanter was nominated by the Writers Guild of America in 1962 in the category of Best Written Amer ...

''. Paramount, to ensure Presley's recordings and movies stayed on schedule, regularly provided studio musicians to Radio Recorders. As a result, Brooks developed a professional relationship with Presley that spanned decades. Together, they collaborated on many albums and movies to include: * '' Peace in the Valley'' (1957) * '' Loving You'' * '' Jailhouse Rock'' * ''

Elvis' Christmas Album ''Elvis' Christmas Album'' (also reissued as ''It's Christmas Time'') is the first Christmas album and third studio album by American singer and musician Elvis Presley on RCA Victor, LOC -1035, a deluxe limited edition, released October 15, 1957 ...

'' * '' A Date with Elvis'' (1959) * '' G.I. Blues'' (1960) * ''

Flaming Star ''Flaming Star'' is a 1960 American Western film starring Elvis Presley, Barbara Eden, and Steve Forrest, based on the book ''Flaming Lance'' (1958) by Clair Huffaker. Critics agreed that Presley gave one of his better acting performances as ...

'' (movie soundtrack) * '' Wild in the Country'' (1961, movie soundtrack) * ''

'' * ''

Kid Galahad ''Kid Galahad'' is a 1962 American musical film starring Elvis Presley as a boxer. It was released by United Artists in August 1962 and opened at #9 at the American box office. '' Variety'' ranked it #37 on its list of the top-grossing films of ...

'' (1962, movie soundtrack) * '' Girls! Girls! Girls!'' * ''

It Happened at the World's Fair ''It Happened at the World's Fair'' is a 1963 American musical film, musical comedy film starring Elvis Presley as a Aerial application, crop-dusting pilot. It was filmed in Seattle, Washington, site of the Century 21 Exposition. The governor of ...

'' (1963) * '' Fun in Acapulco'' * ''

Viva Las Vegas ''Viva Las Vegas'' is a 1964 American rock and roll musical film directed by George Sidney, written by Sally Benson, choreographed by David Winters, and starring Elvis Presley, Ann-Margret, Cesare Danova, William Demarest and Nicky Blair ...

'' (1964, movie soundtrack) * '' Elvis for Everyone'' (1965) * '' Elvis' Gold Records Volume 4'' (1968) * '' Let's Be Friends'' (1970) Brooks, one of several African Americans who worked with Presley, contradicted allegations that Presley was a racist. During his career, Brooks also composed a number of songs often in collaboration with other songwriters. Among his works is the well-known Christmas song " (Everybody's Waitin' For) The Man with the Bag". Made popular by

Kay Starr Kay Starr (born Catherine Laverne Starks; July 21, 1922 – November 3, 2016) was an American singer who enjoyed considerable success in the late 1940s and 1950s. She was of Iroquois and Irish heritage. Starr performed multiple genres, such as p ...

in 1950, the song has been covered by many artists to include the Brian Setzer Orchestra and Vonda Shepard. Brooks died in his hometown of Los Angeles in 1989.Dudley A Brooks: Los Angeles, California
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Dudley 1913 births 1989 deaths Musicians from Los Angeles 20th-century American jazz composers African-American jazz composers African-American jazz pianists American male jazz pianists American jazz organists American male organists American music arrangers Jazz arrangers 20th-century American keyboardists 20th-century African-American musicians

Biography

See also

References