Billy Strayhorn, one of the unsung heroes of jazz, was born on this date in 1915. Strayhorn worked for decades as an arranger for Duke Ellington, and he composed or co-composed some of Ellington’s most famous pieces, including “Take the ‘A’ Train,” “Chelsea Bridge,” “Lotus Blossom,” “Passion Flower,” and “Satin Doll.” Ellington once said, “It’s a wonderful thing, I mean, to bow after a Billy Strahorn orchestration. It’s one of the things I do best.”
Strayhorn, who died in 1967, remained mostly obscured by Ellington’s shadow throughout his life. However, in 1996, with the publication of David Hajdu’s Lush Life, titled after Staryhorn’s magnificent ballad and one of the best jazz biographies ever released, many music lovers discovered the depth of Billy Strayhorn’s contributions to jazz and understood the complexities of the man much more. In Ted Gioia’s fine volume, The History of Jazz, Strayhorn’s lovely works are described as “the closest jazz has ever approached to art song.”
[Readers are also invited to visit a previous post at “One Poet’s Notes” concerning Duke Ellington: “Duke Ellington and Quincy Troupe.”]
Strayhorn, who died in 1967, remained mostly obscured by Ellington’s shadow throughout his life. However, in 1996, with the publication of David Hajdu’s Lush Life, titled after Staryhorn’s magnificent ballad and one of the best jazz biographies ever released, many music lovers discovered the depth of Billy Strayhorn’s contributions to jazz and understood the complexities of the man much more. In Ted Gioia’s fine volume, The History of Jazz, Strayhorn’s lovely works are described as “the closest jazz has ever approached to art song.”
[Readers are also invited to visit a previous post at “One Poet’s Notes” concerning Duke Ellington: “Duke Ellington and Quincy Troupe.”]
No comments:
Post a Comment