William James "Count" Basie was an African-American jazz pianist,organist,bandleader,and composer. In 1935,he formed the Count Basie Orchestra,and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and their first recording. He led the group for almost 50 years,creating innovations like the use of two "split" tenor saxophones,emphasizing the rhythm section,riffing with a big band,using arrangers to broaden their sound,and others. Many musicians came to prominence under his direction,including the tenor saxophonists Lester Young and Herschel Evans,the guitarist Freddie Green,trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry "Sweets" Edison,plunger trombonist Al Grey,and singers Jimmy Rushing,Helen Humes,Thelma Carpenter,and Joe Williams.
Eugene Edward "Snooky" Young was an American jazz trumpeter. He was known for his mastery of the plunger mute,with which he was able to create a wide range of sounds.
Sinatra–Basie:An Historic Musical First is a 1962 studio album by Frank Sinatra,arranged by Neal Hefti.
The Count Basie Orchestra is a 16 to 18 piece big band,one of the most prominent jazz performing groups of the swing era,founded by Count Basie in 1935 and recording regularly from 1936. Despite a brief disbandment at the beginning of the 1950s,the band survived long past the Big Band era itself and the death of Basie in 1984. It continues under the direction of trumpeter Scotty Barnhart.
Ella and Basie! is a 1963 studio album by Ella Fitzgerald,accompanied by Count Basie and his orchestra,with arrangements by Quincy Jones and Benny Carter. It was later reissued with slightly different cover art as On the Sunny Side of the Street.
Count Basie Swings,Joe Williams Sings is an album by pianist/bandleader Count Basie and vocalist Joe Williams recorded in 1955 and originally released on the Clef label.
Genius + Soul = Jazz is a 1961 album by American musician Ray Charles,featuring big band arrangements by Quincy Jones and Ralph Burns. Charles is accompanied by two groups drawn from members of The Count Basie Band and from the ranks of top New York session players. It was recorded at Van Gelder Studio in two sessions on December 26 and 27,1960 and originally released on the Impulse! label as Impulse! A–2.
In Person! is a 1959 album by Tony Bennett,accompanied by the Count Basie Orchestra.
Count Basie/Sarah Vaughan is a 1961 album by the American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan,accompanied by the Count Basie Orchestra,with arrangements by Frank Foster,Thad Jones and Ernie Wilkins. According to James Gavin's liner notes to the 1996 CD release,Basie himself does not perform on any of the tracks.
A Swingin' Christmas is a Christmas album by Tony Bennett,released in 2008,that features the Count Basie Big Band. Bennett's daughter Antonia duets with him on one track.
First Time! The Count Meets the Duke is an album by American pianists,composers and bandleaders Duke Ellington and Count Basie with their combined Orchestras recorded and released on the Columbia label in 1961.
The Greatest!! Count Basie Plays,Joe Williams Sings Standards is an album by vocalist Joe Williams and pianist/bandleader Count Basie and His Orchestra recorded in 1956 and released on the Verve label. It was Williams' second album with Basie following Count Basie Swings,Joe Williams Sings.
Sinatra at the Sands is a live album by Frank Sinatra accompanied by Count Basie and his orchestra,and conducted and arranged by Quincy Jones,recorded live in the Copa Room of the former Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas in 1966.
The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz is a six-LP box set released in 1973 by the Smithsonian Institution. Compiled by jazz critic,scholar,and historian Martin Williams,the album included tracks from over a dozen record labels spanning several decades and genres of American jazz,from ragtime and big band to post-bop and free jazz.
Everyday I Have the Blues is an album by singer Joe Williams with Count Basie and His Orchestra featuring tracks recorded in 1959 which was originally released on the Roulette label.
String Along with Basie is an album by pianist,composer and bandleader Count Basie accompanied by a small band and string section on tracks recorded in 1959 and 1960 and originally released on the Roulette label.
Breakfast Dance and Barbecue is a live album by pianist,composer and bandleader Count Basie and his Orchestra with vocalist Joe Williams featuring tracks recorded at a Disc Jockey convention in Florida in 1959 and originally released on the Roulette label.
Count Basie Story is a double album by pianist,composer and bandleader Count Basie featuring tracks originally performed by his orchestra in the 1930s and 1940s rerecorded in 1960 as a celebration of its 25th anniversary and first released on the Roulette label. Selections from the 2-LP set were also released as Roulette's The Best of Basie in 1962 and The Best of Basie Vol. 2 in 1964. The album was rereleased with bonus tracks in 2004 to commemorate Basie's 100th birthday.
Basie Jazz is an album by pianist/bandleader Count Basie recorded in 1952 and released on the Clef label in 1954. Selections from this album were also released on the 1956 Clef LPs The Swinging Count! and Basie Rides Again!.
The Complete Roost Recordings is a 1997 compilation 3-CD set of sessions led by saxophonist and bandleader Stan Getz recorded for the Roost Records label between 1950 and 1954. The compilation includes material previously released on Getz's Roost LPs The Sound,The Getz Age,the two volumes of Stan Getz at Storyville and the album with guitarist Johnny Smith - Moonlight in Vermont along with alternate takes and previously unreleased performances.
