The involvement of women in the all-male world of jazz as early as the 1920s, not merely being singers and accompanists on piano or percussion, but also as various instrumentalists, composers, and arrangers. The evolution of this genre would be incomplete without the presence of such pioneers or trailblazers as The Boswell Sisters, Lil Hardin, […]readmore
In 1939, the art director at Columbia Records, Alex Steinweiss, realized that the record industry had to make their record covers more appealing so as to attract potential buyers for their art form. It was not enough to denote an artist’s product by simply stamping their name in black and gold paper sleeves for 78rpm […]readmore
Since the very beginning of writing music and lyrics during the great classical period in Europe, with such legendary composers like Mozart, Bach, Vivaldi Brahms, and Schubert, love songs have played a major (and minor) role in the creation of classic or standard songs to this day. If one was to examine the major themes […]readmore
As my musical intelligence grew in the 1960s/’70”s, I began, not only to think about the finest composers or lyricists, and occasionally both components in one entity, but also collaborations or writing teams. like Lennon/McCartney, King/Geoffin, Leiber/Stoller, John/Taupin, Jagger/Richards, and finally the team that jazz artists/disciples found most alluring, the sophisticated duo of composer Burt […]readmore
Occasionally I have been asked by people why a ‘nickname’; and why would anybody ever go to the trouble of trying to get an autograph. The latter question will be addressed in a future article, but for now I will attempt to explain why there exists an abundance of nicknames in communal environments for the […]readmore
I often thank God when it comes to turns or twists of fate in one’s destiny; and the fact that one of jazz’s finest pianists, composers, and combo leaders nearly became a vet instead of the famous jazz master into which he evolved. Before he ventured into the army, he founded an octet and then […]readmore
It could not have been an easy task being in the shadows of the greatest jazz composer of all time; but because of his extraordinary gifts as an arranger, composer, pianist and occasional lyricist, Billy ‘Swee Pea’ Strayhorn managed just fine, and. in fact, I believe he became one the greatest composers of improvised music […]readmore
Each year on or near November 18, I find myself thinking about my Huckleberry friend while singing one of my three favourite songs by the incomparable lyricist and sometimes composer, Johnny Mercer from Savannah, Georgia, Moon River; the other two being Dream and Laura; I Remember You and When The World Was Young notwithstanding. He […]readmore
With Remembrance Day festivities a week away, I ponder, as I do every year, the significant music that was produced during one of mankind’s darkest periods in history; namely World War 2. The popular songs created ranged from patriotic to romantic and sentimental. This was an era where big bands and the wing era prevailed. […]readmore
In this article, I will attempt to determine what classifies to become a standard, classic or iconic song for The Great American Songbook. I will focus primarily on songs composed by jazz artists such as Thelonius Monk, Duke Ellington, Dave Brubeck, and Benny Carter, rather than Broadway and film composers, whose music has been embraced […]readmore
