On December 3, 2008, Derek Wadsworth died aged 69. He was musician (cornet, trombone, keyboards), composer and arranger. He was musical director for Diana Ross, Dusty Springfield, and the musical “Hair”. As a musician and arranger he worked with Maynard Ferguson, Georgie Fame, Nina Simone, David Essex, Judy Garland, Humphrey Lyttelton, Graham Collier, Tonny Bennett, George Harrison, Tom Jones, Dionne Warwick, Mike Oldfield, Simply Red, Kate Bush, Cat Stevens, Small Faces, Manferd Mann, and the Rolling Stones.
Tag Archives: composer
Jack Nitzsche
On August 25, 2000, Bernard Alfred Nitzsche aka Jack Nitzsche, died aged 63. He was a songwriter, composer, arranger, record producer, and musician, known for his work with Phil Spector, Neil Young, The Rolling Stones, Earl Palmer, Leon Russell, Roy Caton, Willy DeVille, Glen Campbell, and Graham Parker. He also worked in film scores, for films such as “Performance”, “The Exorcist” and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”. Nitzsche released four solo albums and five OSR albums.
Gene Page
On August 24, 1998, Eugene Edgar Page Jr. aka Gene Page, died aged 58. He was a conductor, composer, arranger, and record producer, one of the most successful arrangers and conductors from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s, who worked on more than 200 Platinum and gold records. He created specific sound in the arrangements, and work with numerous artists including Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, George Benson, The Jackson 5, Jefferson Starship, The Righteous Brothers, The Supremes, The Four Tops, Roberta Flack, Elton John, Leo Sayer, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Frankie Valli, Helen Reddy, Lionel Richie, Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Donna Loren, Martha and The Vandellas, Cher, Barry White, The Love Unlimited Orchestra, and Dionne Warwick. Page released four solo albums and composed soundtracks for few movies.
David Bartholomew
On June 23, 2019, David Louis Bartholomew died aged 100. He was a musician (trumpet), bandleader, composer, arranger, and record producer, active in various musical genres, including rhythm and blues, big band, swing music, rock and roll, New Orleans jazz, and Dixieland. In his induction into the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”, he was cited as a key figure in the transition from jump blues and swing to R&B and as “one of the Crescent City’s greatest musicians and a true pioneer in the rock and roll revolution.” His biggest success as a composer was in the partnership with Fats Domino producing some of his greatest successes. In the mid-50s they wrote more than forty hits for “Imperial Records”, including Ain’t That a Shame. Bartholomew’s other hit songs include I Hear You Knocking, Blue Monday” I’m Walkin’, My Ding-A-Ling, and One Night. He was a member of the “Songwriters Hall of Fame”, the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”, and the “Louisiana Music Hall of Fame”.
Richie Cole
On May 2, 2020, Richie Cole died aged 72. He was composer, arranger and musician (saxophone), began to play alto saxophone when he was ten years old, encouraged by his father, who owned a jazz club in New Jersey. In the 70’ he created his own “alto madness” bebop style. In the 90’s he formed The Alto Madness Orchestra. Cole recorded and performed with many musicians such as Buddy Rich, Lionel Hampton, Doc Severinsen, Eddie Jefferson, Nancy Wilson, Tom Waits, The Manhattan Transfer, Hank Crawford, Freddie Hubbard, Eric Kloss, Bobby Enriquez, Phil Woods, Sonny Stitt, Art Pepper, Greg Abate, Les DeMerle, Allan Harris, Jim Holman, Vic Juris, Peter Lauffer, Oliver Nelson, Anita O’Day, Red Rodney, Janine Santana, Mark Murphy, Sonny Stitt and Boots Randolph. In 2005, Cole was awarded the “State of California Congressional Certificate of Lifetime Achievement in Jazz” on behalf of the “Temecula Jazz Society”.
Tony Allen
On April 30, 2020, Tony Oladipo Allen died aged 80. He was composer, songwriter and musician (drums), regarded as one of the primary co-founders of the genre of Afrobeat music. He has recorded and performed with Fela Kuti, Roy Ayers, Ernest Raanglin, Zap Mama, Sébastien Tellier, Chicago Afrobeat Project, Moritz Von Oswald Trio, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Jimi Tenor, Rocket Juice & The Moon, Gonjasufi and Hugh Masekela. Brian Eno described Allen as “perhaps the greatest drummer who has ever lived”.
Lee Konitz
On April 15, 2020, Lee Konitz died aged 92. He was composer and musician (alto saxophone), performing in a wide range of jazz styles, including bebop, cool jazz, and avant-garde jazz, noted for improvising long, melodic lines with the rhythmic interest coming from odd accents, Konitz has recorded and performed with many famous musicians including Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, Elvin Jones, Charlie Haden, Dave Holland, Lennie Tristano, Stan Kenton, Chick Corea, Gerry Mulligan, Claude Thornhill, Ralph Burns, Gil Evans, Warne Marsh, Dave Pike, Attila Zoller, Charles Mingus, Dave Brubeck, Warne Marsh, Hal Galper, Bill Evans, Martial Solal, Max Roach, Don Friedman, Kenny Wheeler, Kenny Werner, Brian Dickenson, Paul Motian, Bill Frisell, Gary Peacock, and Joey Baron.
McCoy Tyner
On March 6, 2020, Alfred McCoy Tyner died aged 81. He was musician (piano), composer, bandleader, one of the most recognizable and influential figures in jazz history. He has recorded and performed with many famous musicians including John Coltrane, Art Blakey, Donald Byrd, George Benson, Art Farmer, Lou Donaldson, Benny Golson, Grant Green, Freddie Hubbard, Joe Henderson, Bobby Hutcherson, Milt Jackson, J.J. Jackson, Blue Mitchell, Hank Mobley, Lee Morgan, David Murray, Julian Priester, Sonny Rollins, Ron Carter, Al Foster, Avery Sharpe, Woody Shaw, Jackie McLean, Cecil McBee, Jack DeJohnette, Wayne Shorter, Sonny Stitt and Stanley Turrentine, As a leader he recorded 74 albums. Tyner was a “NEA Jazz Master” and a five-time “Grammy” winner.
Jon Christensen
On February 18, 2020, Jon Ivar Christensen died aged 76. He was musician (drums) and composer, one of the most respected European Jazz drummers. He has recorded with artists such as Keith Jarrett, Jan Garbarek, Enrico Rava, Palle Danielsson, John Abercrombie, Michael Mantler, Miroslav Vitous, Terje Rypdal, Bobo Stenson, Eberhard Weber, Ralph Towner, Barre Phillips, Arild Andersen, Rainer Brüninghaus, Charles Lloyd, Dino Saluzzi, George Russell, John Clark, David Friedman, David Darling, Steve Kuhn, Lee Konitz, Pony Poindexter, Phil Woods, Leo Wright, Yelena Eckemoff and Tomasz Stanko.
Lyle Mays
On February 10, 2020, Lyle David Mays died aged 66. He was musician (piano, keyboards) and composer, arranged and composed for One O’Clock Lab Band, toured with Woody Herman, but was best known as a member of the Pat Metheny Group. For his work with Pat Metheny, Mays won eleven “Grammy Awards”.
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