Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank Jr. was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and throughout the decade worked in various small jazz combos. He spent the 1960s as a first-call studio musician in Hollywood. In the 1970s and 1980s, he performed regularly with the L. A. Four. Shank ultimately abandoned the flute to focus exclusively on playing jazz on the alto saxophone. He also recorded on tenor and baritone sax. His most famous recording is probably the version of "Harlem Nocturne" used as the theme song in Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer. He is also known for the soundtrack recordings with his group to the surfing films of Bruce Brown in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and for the alto flute solo on the song "California Dreamin'" recorded by The Mamas & the Papas in 1965.
Stanley Newcomb Kenton was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though Kenton had several pop hits from the early 1940s into the 1960s, his music was always forward-looking. Kenton was also a pioneer in the field of jazz education, creating the Stan Kenton Jazz Camp in 1959 at Indiana University.
Bob Cooper was a West Coast jazz musician known primarily for playing tenor saxophone, but also for being one of the first to play jazz solos on oboe.
Jay Saunders(néJohn Henry Saunders III; born 29 June 1944 Sacramento, California) is an American trumpeter and music educator at the collegiate level. In the 1970s, Saunders was a lead trumpeter with big bands — notably the Stan Kenton Orchestra — and a session musician in the Dallas area. Saunders recently retired from the faculty at the University of North Texas College of Music where he taught jazz trumpet, jazz recordings, and directed the One O'Clock Lab Band.
Anthony Sebastian "Tony" Campise was an American jazz musician. He primarily played tenor saxophone and flute though he was a multireedist who also used clarinet and oboe. He was known for his exceptional technique and fluid style on all reed instruments; Campise is most recognized for his association with the Stan Kenton Orchestra in the mid-1970s.
Cuban Fire! is an album by Stan Kenton and his orchestra released in 1956 by Capitol Records. This was Stan Kenton's big band's first full-length recording of Afro-Cuban-styled music. The LP charted for four weeks in Billboard starting on September 15, 1956, peaking at #17. The concept of the original 1956 recording centers on the Cuban Fire! suite Kenton had commissioned from composer Johnny Richards. The 1991 CD re-issue is augmented with one extra track from the 1956 sessions and five cuts recorded four years later by the first of Kenton's mellophonium orchestras.
Standards in Silhouette is an album recorded in September 1959 by Stan Kenton and his orchestra. The entire set of arrangements for the LP were written by Bill Mathieu. This recording stands alone in approach and style; Kenton himself only plays on "Django" and every standard is done at a slow, ballad tempo with very sparse, effusive writing.
City of Glass, an album originally issued as a 10" LP by Stan Kenton, consists entirely of the music of Bob Graettinger. The original album has been reconstituted in different LP re-issues, and the entire set of Kenton/Graettinger Capitol Records sessions is on the digital CD City of Glass.
Robert Harry "Bob" Curnow is an American musician who served as a trombonist, staff arranger and producer for the Stan Kenton Orchestra during the 1960s and 1970s. As a composer and arranger, he has become well known for large ensemble jazz music set to contemporary fusion and rock music of groups such as Chicago, Blood, Sweat and Tears, and the Yellowjackets. Most notably, he arranged the music for and produced the award-winning and critically acclaimed CD, Bob Curnow's L.A. Big Band Plays The Music of Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays. His compositions and arrangements are heavily influenced by earlier writers for the Stan Kenton Orchestra such as Pete Rugolo, Bill Russo, Johnny Richards and Bill Holman. Curnow is currently owner and President of Sierra Music Publications, Inc., he is also prominent in the instrumental music and jazz education fields.
Stan Kenton Plays Chicago is a studio album by American jazz musician Stan Kenton and his orchestra, released on August 17, 1974, by Creative World Records. Recording sessions for the album took place at Universal Recording Corp. in Chicago on June 4, 5, 6, 1974. The sessions are entirely based on the music of modern rock n' roll groups, in contrast to Kenton's earlier work which primarily featured swing with some progressive jazz leanings.
Adventures in Jazz is an album by the Stan Kenton Orchestra, recorded in late 1961 but not released until about a year later in November 1962. The album won a Grammy Award in the category for Best Jazz Performance – Large Group (Instrumental) category in 1963. This would be Kenton's second Grammy honor in as many years, the first being Kenton's West Side Story winning the Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album in 1962. Adventures In Jazz was also nominated for Best Engineered recording for the 1963 Grammys. The 1999 CD re-issue of Adventures In Jazz is augmented with two alternate takes from the original recording sessions and one track from Kenton's release Sophisticated Approach.
Kenton's West Side Story is an album by the balls Orchestra recorded in 1961 and released by Capitol Records. It won the Grammy Award in 1962 for Best Jazz Performance – Large Group (Instrumental). The album was recorded in 1961 and released quickly to take advantage of the movie premiere of the musical West Side Story. Kenton won his first Grammy Award and he won again the next year in the same category with Adventures in Jazz. Kenton's West Side Story peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard magazine album chart.
Stan Kenton Presents Gabe Baltazar is an album by Gabe Baltazar. It was the last recording by Stan Kenton's Creative World Records label prior to Kenton's death on August 25, 1979. It was also the last of the "Stan Kenton presents..." series of albums ; this recording presents the talent of the alto saxophonist and former Kenton band member Gabe Baltazar. Though never reissued on CD the recording is critically acclaimed and does a good job highlighting the jazz talents of a legendary jazz artist (Baltazar) at the peak of his playing career. He is backed up by a 17 piece big band on most cuts, a string section is added to one track.
Stan Kenton Conducts the Los Angeles Neophonic Orchestra is an album by bandleader Stan Kenton recorded in 1965 by Capitol Records.
The Jazz Compositions of Dee Barton is an album by bandleader Stan Kenton recorded in 1967 by Capitol Records.
Live at Redlands University is a double live album by American jazz musician Stan Kenton and his orchestra, released in late 1970 by Creative World Records. It was the initial release on Kenton's newly formed record company after he broke his relationship with Capitol Records. Recording for the album took place in Southern California at Redlands University in August of 1970.
Journey into Capricorn is the last studio album by American jazz musician Stan Kenton and his orchestra, released in late 1976, by Creative World Records. Recording sessions for the album took place in Hollywood, California on August 16–18, 1976. The initial release of the album titled both the album and the individual tune Journey to Capricorn. The later release reworked the cover art and corrected both titles to JOURNEY INTO CAPRICORN.
Kenton '76 is one of the last two studio albums by American jazz musician Stan Kenton and his orchestra, released in 1976, by Creative World Records. Recording sessions for the album took place in Chicago on December 3–5, 1975. The album was recorded after the longest hiatus the band would have from the studio due to financial difficulties and Kenton's growing health problems.
Fire, Fury, and Fun is a studio album by American jazz musician Stan Kenton and his orchestra, released on Creative World Records. Recording sessions for the album took place in Chicago on September 26/27, 1974 at Universal Recording.
7.5 on the Richter Scale is an album by American jazz musician Stan Kenton and his Orchestra that was released in 1973. Recording sessions for the album took place during August 1973 in Hollywood, California.
