Bennett Lester "Benny" Carter (August 8, 1907 –
July 12, 2003) 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. Carter performed with major artists from several generations
of jazz, and at major festivals, such as his 1958 appearance with Billie
Holiday at the Monterey Jazz Festival.
To say that Benny Carter had aremarkable and productive
career would be an extreme understatement. As an altoist, arranger, composer,
bandleader, and occasional trumpeter, Carter was at the top of his field since
at least 1928, and in the late '90s, Carter was as strong an altoist at the age
of 90 as he was in 1936 (when he was merely 28). His gradually evolving style
did not change much through the decades, but neither did it become at all stale
or predictable except in its excellence. Benny Carter was a major figure in
every decade of the 20th century since the 1920s, and his consistency and
longevity were unprecedented.
Essentially self-taught, Benny Carter started on the trumpet
and, after a period on C-melody sax, switched to alto. In 1927, he made his
recording debut with Charlie Johnson's Paradise Ten. The following year, he had
his first big band (working at New York's Arcadia Ballroom) and was
contributing arrangements to Fletcher Henderson and even Duke Ellington. Carter
was with Henderson during 1930-1931, briefly took over McKinney's Cotton
Pickers, and then went back to leading his own big band (1932-1934). Already at
this stage he was considered one of the two top altoists in jazz (along with
Johnny Hodges), a skilled arranger and composer ("Blues in My Heart"
was an early hit and would be followed by "When Lights Are Low"), and
his trumpet playing was excellent; Carter would also record on tenor, clarinet
(an instrument he should have played more), and piano, although his rare vocals
show that even he was human.
The few recordings his band made between 1933 and 1934 are
considered by most jazz scholars to be milestones in early swing arranging.
They were sophisticated and very complex arrangements and a number of them
became swing standards which were performed by other bands ("Blue
Lou" is a great example of this).
In 1935, Benny Carter moved to Europe, where in London he was
a staff arranger for the BBC dance orchestra (1936-1938); he also recorded in
several European countries. Carter's "Waltzing the Blues" was one of
the very first jazz waltzes. He returned to the U.S. in 1938, led a classy but
commercially unsuccessful big band (1939-1941), and then headed a sextet.
In 1943, he relocated
permanently to Los Angeles, appearing in the film Stormy Weather (as a
trumpeter with Fats Waller) and getting lucrative work writing for the movie
studios. He would lead a big band off and on during the next three years (among
his sidemen were J.J. Johnson, Miles Davis, and Max Roach) before giving up on
that effort. Carter wrote for the studios for over 50 years, but he continued
recording as an altoist (and all-too-rare trumpeter) during the 1940s and '50s,
making a few tours with Jazz at the Philharmonic and participating on some of
Norman Granz's jam-session albums.
By the mid-'60s, his writing chores led him to hardly
playing alto at all, but he made a full "comeback" by the mid-'70s,
and maintained a very busy playing and writing schedule even at his advanced
age. Even after the rise of such stylists as Charlie Parker, Cannonball
Adderley, Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman, and David Sanborn (in addition to their
many followers), Benny Carter still ranks near the top of alto players.
Carter was a member of the music advisory panel of the
National Endowment for the Arts. He was also a member of the Black Film Makers'
Hall of Fame and in 1980 received the Golden Score award of the American
Society of Music Arrangers. In 1987, Carter was awarded the Grammy Lifetime
Achievement Award. Carter was also a Kennedy Centre Honouree in 1996 and
received honorary doctorates from Princeton, Harvard, Rutgers, and the New
England Conservatory.
His concert and recording schedule remained active through
the '90s, slowing only at the end of the millennium. After eight amazing
decades of writing and playing, Benny Carter passed away quietly on July 13, 2003
at a Los Angeles hospital. He was 95. (Info mainly AMG With snippets from Wikipedia)
1 comment:
For “Benny Carter, All Of Me - 1998 Jazz Greats CD No 058” go here:
http://www33.zippyshare.com/v/FlALXbUC/file.html
1. I`d Love It 3:03
2. Miss Hannah 2:58
3. Once Upon A Time 3:33
4. Devil`s Holiday 3:10
5. Lonesome Nights 3:36
6. Symphony In Riffs 3:06
7. These Foolish Things 3:07
8. When Day Is Done 2:58
9. Black Bottom 3:02
10. Lazy Afternoon (Luie Middag) 3:05
11. When Lights Are Low 2:14
12. All Of Me 3:23
13. Midnight 3:21
14. Back Bay Boogie 2:58
15. Moppin` And Boppin` 4:23
16. Jump Call 3:44
17. I Can`t Get Started 2:54
18. Boulevard Bounce 3:18
19. Chant Of The Weed 3:18
20. Lafayette (`Hot Lips` Page & His Band) 2:52
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