Jazz Articles about Count Basie

Count Basie: Swiss Radio Days, Vol. 20: Mustermesse Basel 1956, Pt. 2; On My Way & Shoutin' Again! & Swinging, Singing, Playing

by George Kanzler
October 4, 2009

Count Basie OrchestraSwiss Radio Days, Vol. 20: Mustermesse Basel 1956, Pt. 2 TCB2009 Count BasieOn My Way & Shoutin' Again!Verve2009 Count Basie OrchestraSwinging, Singing, PlayingMack Avenue2009 If the rhythm section of Count Basie's Old Testament big band of the '30s-40s is remembered as the “All-American Rhythm ...

Count Basie Orchestra: Swinging, Singing, Playing

by Robert J. Robbins
September 22, 2009

Count Basie OrchestraSwinging, Singing, PlayingMack Avenue2009 Although over a quarter-century has elapsed since the passing of William “Count" Basie in 1984, the bandleader and pianist's legacy has proved one of the most durable from the big band era, and the Basie band's Swinging, Singing, Playing maintains the Basie tradition and carries it triumphantly into the new millennium. Dennis Wilson (not to be confused with his late Beach Boys namesake), who served in ...

Columbia/Legacy Signature Series: Count Basie & The Brecker Brothers

by Jim Santella
May 13, 2007

Memories stay intact with treasures like these. Columbia/Legacy's claim that their Signature Series includes “the greatest songs by the greatest artists has considerable credibility. Personal opinions notwithstanding, these are indeed among of the best recordings to come out of the Columbia, Bluebird and Arista labels and the series looks set to preserve a valuable portion of jazz history. Each disc comes with thorough discographical annotation, a brief biography of the artist, and a few photos.

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Count Basie Orchestra: Basie Is Back

by Jack Bowers
November 20, 2006

No, the Count isn't literally back... in fact, he's never really been away, as the Count Basie Orchestra has kept rolling along under a series of leaders since Basie's death in April 1984. This latest incarnation, directed by the Count's longtime bass trombonist Bill Hughes, was recorded in concert in October '05 at Denryoku Hall in Sendai, Japan. Following in the footsteps of Basie's Old Testament and New Testament bands, Aaron Woodward writes in his liner notes, “We are calling ...

Count Basie: Good Time Blues

by Donald Elfman
October 3, 2005

Is there any sound more timeless in all of jazz than that of the Basie Orchestra? The title of this new Pablo release might be a perfect description of the essence of the Basie band--except one might add the word swingin'. This is the band that perfected a sound and a feeling that define what's best about jazz, and especially big band jazz: brilliant ensemble sound; players who understand the notion of playing together, but also of making smart and ...

The Count Basie Orchestra and Vocalist Lizz Wright

by Victor L. Schermer
May 11, 2005

The Count Basie Orchestra and Vocalist Lizz Wright The Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, PA May 6, 2005

During this past concert season, the Mellon Jazz Festival at the Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, has offered a number of double bills, perhaps to provide variety and contrast, suggest comparisons, and include more artists. The pairing of rising star Lizz Wright with the venerable Count Basie Orchestra made for a powerful dialectic between soulful ballads with a backup of two guitars ...

Count Basie & His Orchestra: Good Time Blues

by Chris M. Slawecki
March 15, 2005

Recorded in Budapest, this previously unissued 1970 performance proves that nobody could make feeling the blues swing good and hard like Count Basie. Especially when fronting a typically first-rate orchestra, in this case featuring Eddie “Lockjaw Davis on tenor sax, returning son Harry “Sweets Edison (who first played with Basie in the late 1930s) on trumpet, and guitarist Freddie (no nickname given) Green.

This encyclopedic set runs as wide and broad and deep as a river, featuring arrangements ...