Johnny Mercer, Composer, 1909, Savannah, GA
Johnny, a lyricist and singer, went to New York in 1927 as a member of an acting troupe from Savannah, but also began writing lyrics. Later he became one of the most prolific songwriters of all time. He wrote lyrics (and in many cases, the music) to hundreds of popular, film, and theater songs, many of which became standards. Some of his most famous are; Lazybones. Jeepers Creepers, Fools Rush In, Blues in The Night, Skylark, That Old Black Magic, Moon River, and The Days of Wine And Roses. In 1942 he and two partners founded Capitol Records. Mercer was an excellent jazz singer with a distinctive style. His delivery was relaxed and emphasized his southern roots.. Johnny Mercer died in 1976.
Claude Williamson, Piano, 1926, Brattleboro, VT
Claude was classically trained and studied at the New England Conservatory in Boston. In the late '40s he worked with Charlie Barnet and Red Norvo, and during the 1950s led his own trio. In 1958 Claude toured and recorded with Bud Shank. During the next two decades he worked sporadically with a trio in the Hollywood area. During the late '70s he gained a fair amount of success recording and performing in Japan. Williamson was originally inspired by Jess Stacy and Teddy Wilson, but eventually took on a more modern style of his own. His later influence was Bud Powell's playing to which he added a touch of elegence. His playing enlivened many West oast recording sessions.
Sheila Jordan, Singer, 1928, Detroit, MI
It was Charlie Parker's music that inspired Sheila to become a jazz artist when she was a teenager, and during the 1940s she was part of a group that sang vocalese to Parker's improvisations. In 1951 Sheila moved to New York where she continued singing and met and married Duke Jordan. In the 1950s she studied jazz theory with Lennie Tristano and also performed at clubs in Greenwich Village. In 1962 she sang with George Russell who recommended her to Blue Note Records for her first meaningful contract. During the late '70s Sheila maintained some important associations with Steve Kuhn and Steve Swallow, performing in clubs and recording with both of them. Her varied repertory includes scat singing to contemporary American poetry and American standards.
Don Cherry, Cornet, 1936, Oaklahoma City, OK
It was while playing the pocket trumpet with Ornette Coleman's band in the mid '70s that Don first gained public notice. He left Coleman around 1961 and began working with Steve Lacy, Sonny Rollins, and Archie Shepp in Europe. For a few years, during the mid '60s, Don, Shepp, and John Tchical co-led a group called The New York Contemporary Five, a group that was only moderately successful. He next spent some time in Europe where he recorded what are considered to be his best albums, "Complete Communion", and "Symphony for Improvisers". In 1970 he taught at Dartmouth College and then moved to Sweden for around five years, and then back to the U.S. During the early '80s Don worked with the rock group Codona, led by Lou Reed. Their style of jazz incorporated characteristics of African, Indian, and other ethnic musics. Codona disbanded in 1984 and Cherry went on to form his own group with which he performed at the Berlin Jazzfest. Although Don's improvising is strongly influenced by Coleman, he is one of the most prominent figures in free jazz. He seems to explore the tone qualities of the trumpet, probably because he doesn't have the speed, agility and range of the average modern jazz trumpet player. His improvisations are original, filled with new ideas, not depending on the usual bop vocabulary. Don has also learned to play the flute, bamboo flute, and some percussion instruments. He plays what he calls World Music, making use of drones and extended vamps as well as mantras chanted and repeated over and over.
