Al Grey
Encyclopedia
Al Grey was a jazz
trombonist who is most remembered for his association with the Count Basie
orchestra.
Grey is known for his plunger mute technique (comparable only to Tricky Sam Nanton
, Bob Hunt and Wycliffe Gordon
), and also wrote an instructional book called "Plunger Techniques".
and grew up in Pottstown, Pennsylvania
. During World War II
he served in the Navy
where he started playing the trombone
. Soon after his discharge he joined Benny Carter
's band and later the trombone section of Lionel Hampton
. After some solo work Grey joined Dizzy Gillespie
's big band in 1956. In October 1957 Count Basie
urgently needed a fill-in for his European tour and Al Grey luckily was in the right place at the right time.
After 1961 Grey performed only occasionally with the Count. Apart from leading his own combos, he appeared with many jazz greats such as Herbie Hancock
,
Quincy Jones
and even Ray Charles
.
He is featured on Count Basie
recordings with Ella Fitzgerald
or Frank Sinatra
and recorded "Snap your Fingers". His trombone skills were also featured on the award-winning soundtrack for Steven Spielberg
's film The Color Purple
.
Al Grey greatly contributed to the post-swing era jazz-trombone vocabulary and will be remembered for his charming personality as well as his ability to bond with audiences around the world.
. He developed a wild, strong and full sound. Solos often consisted of short, pronounced phrases with precisely timed syncopation
. When playing with the plunger, however, he would produce the most mellow fill-ins and shape melodic answers to the lead voice.
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
trombonist who is most remembered for his association with the Count Basie
Count Basie
William "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
orchestra.
Grey is known for his plunger mute technique (comparable only to Tricky Sam Nanton
Tricky Sam Nanton
Joe "Tricky Sam" Nanton was a famous trombonist with the Duke Ellington Orchestra.-Early life:Nanton was born in New York City and began playing professionally in Washington with bands led by Cliff Jackson and Elmer Snowden. He joined Ellington in 1926.From 1923 to 1924, he worked with Frazier's...
, Bob Hunt and Wycliffe Gordon
Wycliffe Gordon
Wycliffe Gordon is a jazz trombonist. He also plays didgeridoo, trumpet, tuba, piano and sings.In 1995, he re-orchestrated the theme song for NPR's All Things Considered...
), and also wrote an instructional book called "Plunger Techniques".
Early life and career
Al Grey was born in Aldie, VirginiaAldie, Virginia
Aldie is an unincorporated village located on the John Mosby Highway between Gilbert's Corner and Middleburg in Loudoun County, Virginia. It is located in a gap between the Catoctin Mountain and Bull Run Mountain, through which the Little River flows...
and grew up in Pottstown, Pennsylvania
Pottstown, Pennsylvania
Pottstown is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States northwest of Philadelphia and southeast of Reading, on the Schuylkill River. Pottstown was laid out in 1752–53 and named Pottsgrove in honor of its founder, John Potts. The old name was abandoned at the time of the...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he served in the Navy
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
where he started playing the trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
. Soon after his discharge he joined Benny Carter
Benny Carter
Bennett Lester Carter was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. He was a major figure in jazz from the 1930s to the 1990s, and was recognized as such by other jazz musicians who called him King...
's band and later the trombone section of Lionel Hampton
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Leo Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. Like Red Norvo, he was one of the first jazz vibraphone players. Hampton ranks among the great names in jazz history, having worked with a who's who of jazz musicians, from Benny Goodman and Buddy...
. After some solo work Grey joined Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
's big band in 1956. In October 1957 Count Basie
Count Basie
William "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
urgently needed a fill-in for his European tour and Al Grey luckily was in the right place at the right time.
After 1961 Grey performed only occasionally with the Count. Apart from leading his own combos, he appeared with many jazz greats such as Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
,
Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
and even Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
.
He is featured on Count Basie
Count Basie
William "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
recordings with Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
or Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
and recorded "Snap your Fingers". His trombone skills were also featured on the award-winning soundtrack for Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's film The Color Purple
The Color Purple (film)
The Color Purple is a 1985 American period drama film directed by Steven Spielberg, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Alice Walker. It was Spielberg's eighth film as a director , and was a change from the summer blockbusters for which he had become famous...
.
Al Grey greatly contributed to the post-swing era jazz-trombone vocabulary and will be remembered for his charming personality as well as his ability to bond with audiences around the world.
His style
Al Grey's early trombone style was inspired by Trummy YoungTrummy Young
James "Trummy" Young was a trombonist in the swing era. Although he was never really a star or a bandleader himself, he did have one hit with his version of "Margie," which he played and sang with Jimmie Lunceford's Time-Life Orchestra.-Biography:Growing up in Savannah, GA and Richmond, VA, Young...
. He developed a wild, strong and full sound. Solos often consisted of short, pronounced phrases with precisely timed syncopation
Syncopation
In music, syncopation includes a variety of rhythms which are in some way unexpected in that they deviate from the strict succession of regularly spaced strong and weak but also powerful beats in a meter . These include a stress on a normally unstressed beat or a rest where one would normally be...
. When playing with the plunger, however, he would produce the most mellow fill-ins and shape melodic answers to the lead voice.
Discography
Recordings :- -Dizzy's Blues (with Dizzy GillespieDizzy GillespieJohn Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
, 1957 ) - -At NewportDizzy Gillespie at NewportDizzy Gillespie at Newport is a 1957 live album by Dizzy Gillespie, featuring his big band. -Track listing:# "Dizzy's Blues" – 11:51# "School Days" Dizzy Gillespie at Newport is a 1957 live album by Dizzy Gillespie, featuring his big band. -Track listing:# "Dizzy's Blues" (Dizzy Gillespie, A.K....
(With Gillespie, 1957) - - I needs to be bee'd with (with Basie, 1958 )
- - Melba Liston and Her 'Bones (with Melba ListonMelba ListonMelba Doretta Liston was an American jazz musician . Her collaborations with pianist/composer Randy Weston, beginning in the early 1960s, are widely acknowledged as jazz classics.-Life and career:Liston was born in Kansas City, Missouri...
, 1958) - - Rare Butterfly (with Basie, 1960 )
- - Boss Bone (1964; John Young (piano), Leo Blevins (guitar), Ike Isaacs (bass))
- - The New Al Grey Quintet (1988; Al Grey, Mike Grey (trombone), Joe Cohn (guitar, trumpet), J.J. Wiggins (bass), Bobby Durham (drums) )
- - Live At the Floating Jazz Festival (1991)
- - Things Are Getting Better All the Time (with fellow trombonist J. J. Johnson (1983)
- - Me N' Jack (1995)
- - Truly Wonderful (1978)
- - The Basie Big Band (with Count BasieCount BasieWilliam "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
, arr. by Sammy NesticoSammy NesticoSamuel "Sammy" Louis Nestico is a prolific and well known composer and arranger of big band music...
, 1975) - recordings include what some argue is Grey's best plunger technique on tracks: "Midnight Freight" and "Tall Cotton"
External links
- Al Grey/Rosalie Soladar Memorial Collection, part of the International Jazz Collections at the University of Idaho Library