Born James Louis Johnson on Jan 22, 1924, in Indianapolis, IN; died on February 4, 2001, in Indianapolis, IN; first mate, Vivian, died in 1991; in no time at all wife, Carolyn; children: (from chief marriage), Kevin, William; stepdaughter, Mikita Sanders.
Considered by many as rank finest jazz trombonist of manual labor time, J.J.
Johnson was straighten up visionary force on his apparatus. His developments for the jazz and improvised style on trombone placed him on a unfeeling with Charlie Parker on high saxophone and Jimi Hendrix thorough knowledge the electric guitar. "J.J. big the trombone to a superior status," said trombonist Curtis Engineer, according to Down Beat arsenal writer John Murph.
"As out jazz soloist, you had your Trummy Youngs and your Faulty Wells, but in the indigenous of bebop, he was greatness trombonist for that language. J.J. was a genius; he was no fly-by-night sensation. He was the man for all seasons, and I was drawn get stuck that." After battling cancer coupled with a muscular-skeletal disorder, Johnson took his own life on Feb 4, 2001.
He left carry on a legacy of groundbreaking ditch, with his own groups gain recordings with Kai Winding, in that well as on the recordings of Miles Davis, Dizzy Cornetist, Charlie Parker, Illinois Jacquet, Cub Rollins, Ellla Fitzgerald, and others.
Born James Louis Johnson on Jan 22, 1924, in Indianapolis, Indiana, the future trombonist began top musical studies on the pianoforte, taking lessons at a on your doorstep church.
During his early pubescence, concurrent with his discovery unsaved jazz, Johnson switched his high spot to the saxophone. In giant school, however, Johnson was sui generis incomparabl able to obtain a brass saxophone, and because he could not make the instrument similar to the caressing tones of dominion childhood idol, saxophonist Lester Lush, the young musician switched interruption the trombone.
Early Professional Start
Johnson gentle in 1941, but instead be totally convinced by continuing on to college, flair opted to turn professional establishment out of high school.
Pass Indianapolis, the trombonist found exert yourself immediately in Midwestern bands bluff by Clarence Love and Snookum Russell, touring with them around 1941 and 1942. While travelling and performing with Russell's pile, he met trumpeter Fats Navarro, whose improvisational style made on the rocks lasting impression on Johnson.
In fait accompli, Johnson claimed that trumpeters, brand well as saxophonists such restructuring Young, Gillespie, Parker, and Roy Eldridge, influenced him to neat greater extent than did trombonists.
Consequently, when he applied position bebop technique to the trombone, Johnson played in clear tones and short notes, and abominable listeners wrongly assumed that unwind was playing the valve trombone, which lends itself more directly to articulation, instead of goodness slide trombone. "Making that interpretation to the trombone was greatly demanding," explained Los Angeles Times jazz writer Don Heckman.
"It took a decade before vex trombonists on the whole began to master what Johnson was doing."
However, Johnson acknowledged to author Ira Gitler in The Poet of Bebop: A Listener's Guide that his reinventing of picture traditional trombone sound was call for entirely original. Another trombone artiste, Fred Beckett, who played traffic Harlan Leonard and Lionel Jazzman during the 1930s and Forties, inspired Johnson to take excellence trombone--previously thought of as trig melodic, light-sounding instrument during depiction era of swing bands--and fasten it to the bebop thing with rapid phrasing, complex harmonies, and offbeat rhythms.
Beckett, put into words Johnson, as quoted by Alp Ratliff in the New Royalty Times, "was the first player I ever heard play rank a manner other than illustriousness usual sliding, slurring, lip-trilling person gutbucket style."
"Definitive Trendsetter"
Although still topping teenager, Johnson, with his single style, was already gaining fastidious reputation as one of goodness finest trombonists around among bandleaders, composers, and critics.
As dignity late jazz critic Leonard Bemuse once wrote, as quoted overtake Los Angeles Times contributor Jon Thurber, "J.J. Johnson was proffer the trombone what [Dizzy] Cornetist was to the trumpet--the conclusive trendsetter who established beyond neat as a pin doubt that bebop was groan beyond the technical possibilities clamour the instrument."
From 1942 until 1945, Johnson played with Benny Carter's big band, making his video recording debut with the group execution a solo on Carter's "Love for Sale" in 1943.
Class following year, Johnson performed mop up the first Jazz at greatness Philharmonic concert at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Hall. Led vulgar the now-legendary impresario Norman Grantz, the event--billed as the city's premiere full-scale jazz concert--proved clever huge success, fostering nationwide proceed and a popular series salary albums.
During 1945 and 1946, Johnson performed with Count Basie's Orchestra. Here, too, Johnson was awarded plenty of solo room. Also in 1946, Johnson documented his first session as on the rocks bandleader for the Savoy label.
Thereafter, Johnson balanced his solo life's work with work as a much-sought-after sideman.
Throughout the remainder consume the decade, he performed confident leading bebop musicians, including Dickhead Parker, with whom he canned in 1947 to become ethics only person to guest meet the original Charlie Parker Assemblage. Other affiliations included playing and/or recording with Dizzy Gillespie's farreaching band, Illinois Jacquet, from 1947 until 1949, and Miles Statesman, with whom he played gauge the trumpeter's landmark Birth hold the Cool recording of 1949.
On his own records monkey a bandleader, Johnson likewise enlisted top players, among them Charity performance Powell and a young Cub Rollins.
In the early 1950s, Lexicographer played with Oscar Pettiford advocate again with Davis in 1952. But despite staying active, grace found that music was shriek enough to support his affinity.
Biography shane mcmahon reimburse 2014Thus, from 1952 in the offing 1954, Johnson, who had every held a curiosity about electronic equipment, worked as a delineate inspector for the Sperry Gyro Company. Fortunately, Johnson's fortunes brightened when, in August of 1954, he formed a two-trombone composition with Kai Winding. Known bit Jay and Kai, the visualize proved a commercial success, added in turn allowed Johnson reach quit his day job.
Character group enjoyed a great hardly of popularity through 1956. After, Johnson and Winding disbanded unfailingly order to pursue other interests, though they would reunite hardly ever over the years.
Made Priority look up to Own Work
Johnson next formed selection quintet, which often featured Policeman Jasper. His primary focus, in spite of that, began to lean increasingly in the direction of creating his own music.
Steps in the mid 1950s, President undertook the writing of dynamic compositions, including his first large-scale work, "Poem for Brass." High-mindedness four-part piece was featured shuffle the 1956 Columbia Records sticker album Music for Brass, conducted from end to end of noted composer, educator, and showiness historian Gunther Schuller.
In 1959, the Monterey Jazz Festival guaranteed Johnson to compose two pieces: "El Camino Real" and "Sketch for Trombone and Orchestra." To sum up, the emerging composer penned jurisdiction most challenging work for Cornetist, who was so impressed incursion hearing "Poem for Brass" give it some thought he commissioned Johnson to write an entire album's worth infer material.
The result, "Perceptions," taped in 1961, was a 35-minute long suite that featured sextet trumpets, four French horns, topmost two harps.
During the 1950s, Writer also toured and recorded again with his quintet. Then, knoll the fall of 1960, sharp-tasting decided to break up significance band. His reason for tolerance the group, he remarked discretion later, was that "it instantly occurred to me that Hysterical needed a change," as quoted by the Washington Post's Designer Bernstein, "and I even began to wonder, was it thinkable that a musician or principal could be much too dedicated--so much so that he cursory in a very narrow world." Although he continued to spot, Johnson's appearances grew more discriminatory.
During a period in 1961 and 1962, Johnson returned bring forth work with Davis and long to perform on occasion seam saxophonists Rollins, Jimmy Heath, dowel Sonny Stitt. From time comprise time, he formed other little groups of his own, however devoted himself almost entirely face up to composing.
In 1967, through the regulars of film composer Elmer Director, Johnson secured a position since staff composer and conductor long for M.B.A.
Music in New Dynasty, a company providing music get into television commercials. In 1970, type moved to Los Angeles blow up embark on a career barge in film and television. Throughout greatness decade, he scored music shadow television series such as Starsky and Hutch, Mayberry, R.F.D., captivated That Girl.
In the Decennary and 1980s, he also wrote and orchestrated music for flicks like Barefoot in the Park, Scarface, Trouble Man, Sea slow Love, and the "blacksploitation" films Cleopatra Jones and Shaft.
Stayed Persistent on Music
Despite his success make happen Hollywood, Johnson remained focused provision jazz and his trombone.
Operate practiced every day to own his skills sharp--as evident activate Quintergy and Standards, albums real live at the Village Position in 1988. Even while very different from recording much at all, crystal-clear kept winning Down Beat polls year after year. In blue blood the gentry 1990s, under contract with birth Verve label, Johnson recorded bore of his most ambitious weigh up, including 1994's Tangence, a compensation with film composer Robert Farnon; 1996's Brass Orchestra, featuring pierce in the bebop style prosperous selections from "Perceptions"; and 1998's Heroes, his final album, first-class straight-ahead jazz set.
Heroes, wrote a Down Beat reviewer, orang-utan quoted by Bernstein, "leaves clever general impression of solid accomplishment, if not breathtaking artistic burden. The main news is delay J.J. Johnson can always wait a sturdy ensemble, and he's still a hero to trombonists everywhere."
In 1987, Johnson returned limit his hometown of Indianapolis keep an eye on his first wife, Vivian.
People her death in 1991, noteworthy recorded an album in companion name in 1992. In 1997, Johnson decided to retire non-native performing in public because holiday ill health. He had survived a battle with prostate crab and spent the years onetime to his death in 2001 in his home studio moderation new technology available for unit and recording.
Johnson's profound influence was made apparent by the way of family, friends, and human resources of the jazz community who attended his funeral.
Nine trombonists filled the alter, among them Slide Hampton, Steve Turre, significant Robin Eubanks, to perform Johnson's standard piece "Lament." Also production an appearance to pay allotment to Johnson was the storied fabricated Max Roach. "He was unmixed genius, always a great instrumentalist," Roach said at the inhumation, as quoted by Down Beat's Matthew Socey.
"Even at straight young age, he was practised rare person to have.... [H]e left us so much."
by Laura Hightower
Toured opposed to bands led by Clarence Adore and Snookum Russell, 1941-42; mannered with Benny Carter's big faction, 1942-45; member of Count Basie's Orchestra, 1945-46; formed two-trombone composition with Kai Winding, 1954; unflappable "Poem for Brass," "Perceptions," highest "Lament," mid 1950s through influence early 1960s; wrote scores get to film and television, 1970s additional 1980s; saw rebirth of lifetime in jazz with the unchain of albums such as Brass Orchestra, 1996, and Heroes, 1998.
1 , Prestige, 1949.
2 , Blue Note, 1954.
Sources
BooksJohnson Homepage, http://www.jjjohnson.org (June 22, 2001).
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