Norman Granz was an American jazz record producer and concert promoter. He founded the record labels Clef, Norgran, Down Home, Verve, and Pablo. Granz was acknowledged as "the most successful impresario in the history of jazz". He was also a champion of racial equality, insisting, for example, on integrating audiences at concerts he promoted.
Jean-Baptiste Illinois Jacquet was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, best remembered for his solo on "Flying Home", critically recognized as the first R&B saxophone solo. He is also known as one of the writers of the jazz standard "Don'cha Go 'Way Mad."
Harry "Sweets" Edison was an American jazz trumpeter and a member of the Count Basie Orchestra. His most important contribution was as a Hollywood studio musician, whose muted trumpet can be heard backing singers, most notably Frank Sinatra.
Jazz at the Philharmonic, or JATP (1944–1983), was the title of a series of jazz concerts, tours and recordings produced by Norman Granz.
Barney Kessel was an American jazz guitarist. Known in particular for his knowledge of chords and inversions and chord-based melodies, he was a member of many prominent jazz groups as well as a "first call" guitarist for studio, film, and television recording sessions. Kessel was a member of the group of session musicians informally known as the Wrecking Crew.
Mitchell Herbert Ellis was an American jazz guitarist. During the 1950s, he was in a trio with pianist Oscar Peterson.
Benjamin Francis Webster was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
Gjon Mili was an Albanian photographer from Korçë who developed his profession in America, best known for his work published in Life, in which he photographed artists such as Pablo Picasso.
Jazz at Santa Monica '72 is a 1972 live album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, recorded at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium accompanied by a jazz trio led by the pianist Tommy Flanagan, and the Count Basie Orchestra.
Marlowe Morris was an American jazz pianist and organist. He was the nephew of Thomas Morris.
The Astaire Story is a 1952 album by Fred Astaire. The album was conceived of and produced by Norman Granz, the founder of Clef Records, who was also responsible for the Jazz at the Philharmonic concerts, at which all of the musicians on the album had performed.
Lester Young with the Oscar Peterson Trio is a 1954 studio album by Lester Young, accompanied by Oscar Peterson's working trio of the time, plus drummer J. C. Heard. The music on this album was originally released as three separate albums: Lester Young with the Oscar Peterson Trio #1 and Lester Young with the Oscar Peterson Trio #2, both released in June 1954, and The President. It was collated for this 1997 reissue by Verve Records.
The History of an Artist, Vol. 1 is a 1974 studio album by Oscar Peterson, the first of two albums so titled to provide a retrospective of his career.
The History of an Artist, Vol. 2 is a studio album by Oscar Peterson, the second of two albums so titled to provide a retrospective of his career.
Krupa and Rich is a 1956 studio album by jazz drummers Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich, released on Norman Granz' Clef Records. Krupa and Rich play on two different tracks each and play together only on "Bernie's Tune." Krupa and Rich would record again for Verve Records; their album Burnin' Beat was released in 1962.
Billie Holiday at Jazz at the Philharmonic is a live album by jazz singer Billie Holiday, originally recorded on February 12, 1945 and October 3, 1946 at the Jazz at the Philharmonic concert at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, and at Carnegie Hall on June 3, 1946.
The Melody Masters were a series of first-rate big band musical film shorts produced by Warner Brothers, under the supervision of Samuel Sax at their Vitaphone studio in New York between 1931 and 1939, and in Burbank, California with producer Gordon Hollingshead in charge between 1940 and 1946.
Midnight Symphony is a 1944 jazz standard by Lester Young. A slow blues, it was originally recorded in the key of B-flat major and is noted for its classic blues piano phrasing by Marlowe Morris, mellow tenor sax soloing by Young, and trumpet soloing by Harry Edison. "Midnight Symphony", along with "On the Sunny Side of the Street", was included in the film of that year, Jammin' the Blues, which features Young performing the songs in a May 1944 jam with Red Callender, Harry Edison, Marlowe Morris, Sid Catlett, Barney Kessel and numerous others. Many of them performed it together in clubs that year, including the Palm Club of Los Angeles.
The Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame is part of a US-based non-profit organization that began operations in 1978 and continues to the present (2022) in San Diego County, California. David Larkin is current president.
Sid Catlett 1944–1946 is a compilation album by jazz drummer Sid Catlett. It was recorded during 1944 to 1946, and was released in 1998 by the French label Classics Records as part of their Chronological Classics series. On the album, Catlett is heard in ensembles of varying size and instrumentation.
